Editing Checker Records

{{short description|American record label}}
{{Infobox record label <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Music -->
| name        = Checker Records
| image_name  = Checker records.jpg
| image_size  =
| image_bg    = 
| parent      = 
| founded     = {{Start date|1952}}
| founder     = [[Leonard Chess]]<br />[[Phil Chess]]
| defunct     = 1971
| distributor = 
| genre       = [[Blues]]<br />[[Rhythm and blues]]<br />[[Doo-wop]]<br />[[Gospel music|Gospel]]<br />[[Rock and roll]]<br />[[Soul music|Soul]]
| country     = [[United States]]
| location    = [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]]
| url         = <!-- {{URL|example.com}} -->
}}

'''Checker Records''' is a defunct [[record label]] that was started in 1952 as a [[subsidiary]] of [[Chess Records]] in [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]]. The label was founded by the Chess brothers, [[Leonard Chess|Leonard]] and [[Phil Chess|Phil]], who ran the label until they sold it to [[General Recorded Tape]] (GRT) in 1969, shortly before Leonard's death.

The label released recordings by mostly [[African American]] artists and groups. Checker's releases cover a wide range of [[Music Genre|genre]]s including [[blues]] ([[Little Walter]], [[Sonny Boy Williamson II]]), [[rhythm and blues]] (Sax Mallard, [[Jimmy McCracklin]]), [[doo-wop]] ([[The Flamingos]], [[The Moonglows]], [[The Students]]), [[Gospel music|gospel]] ([[Aretha Franklin]], [[Five Blind Boys of Mississippi]]), [[rock and roll]] ([[Bo Diddley]], [[Dale Hawkins]]), and [[Soul music|soul]] ([[Gene Chandler]]).

The label was discontinued in 1971 following GRT's consolidation of the Chess catalogs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bsnpubs.com/chess/chessconsolidated.html |title=GRT Consolidated Chess/Cadet Album Discography (1971-1975) |author=David Edwards |author2=Mike Callahan |author3=Randy Watts  |work=Both Sides Now Publications |access-date=March 14, 2011}}</ref> As with Cadet and Chess, the label's catalog is now owned by [[Universal Music Group]]<ref name="gillett">{{cite book
| first=Charlie 
| last=Gillett
| author-link=Charlie Gillett 
| year= 1996
| title= The Sound of the City: The Rise of Rock and Roll
| edition= 2nd
| publisher= Da Capo Press
| location=[[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]]
| isbn= 0-306-80683-5
| page= 79}}</ref> and releases from the Checker catalog are released by [[Geffen Records]] and Chess.

== History ==
Due to the recent expansion of Chess Records, as well as to achieve greater airplay for [[Single (music)|singles]], the Chess brothers opened up a subsidiary label named Checker. The first [[Gramophone record|45/78&nbsp;rpm]] single released by the label was "Slow Caboose" b/w "Darling, Let's Give Love a Chance" by Sax Mallard and his Orchestra, which was released as Checker 750 in April 1952.<ref name="Label1">{{cite web |url=http://campber.people.clemson.edu/chess1.html |title=The Chess Label Part I (1950–1952) |author=George R. White |author2=Robert L. Campbell |author3=Tom Kelly  |work=Robert Campbell |publisher=[[Clemson University]] |location=[[Clemson, South Carolina]] |access-date=March 14, 2011}}</ref>

The label's most popular artist, in the label's early years, was [[Little Walter]], who had ten songs released by Checker that made the Top Ten of ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' magazine's [[Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs|Top Rhythm & Blues Records]] charts.<ref name="Devil">{{cite book|title=The Devil's Music|author=Giles Oakley|publisher=[[Da Capo Press]]|page=[https://archive.org/details/devilsmusichisto00oakl_0/page/223 223/5]|isbn=978-0-306-80743-5|date=1997|url=https://archive.org/details/devilsmusichisto00oakl_0/page/223}}</ref>  Among those ten was "[[Juke (song)|Juke]]" which topped the charts<ref name="r&b">{{cite book
  | last = Whiburn
  | first = Joel
  | author-link = Joel Whitburn
  | title = Top R&B Singles 1942–1988
  | publisher = Record Research
  | year = 1988
  | isbn = 0-89820-068-7
  | url = https://archive.org/details/joelwhitburnstop00whit
  }}</ref> and was inducted into the [[Grammy Hall of Fame Award|Grammy Hall of Fame]] in 2008.<ref name="grammy">{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame |title=Grammy Hall of Fame |work=[[Grammy Award]]s |publisher=[[National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences]] |location=United States |access-date=March 14, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110122042616/http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame |archive-date=January 22, 2011 }}</ref>

Checker released several singles by well-established blues artists such as [[Elmore James]],<ref name="Devil"/> [[Arthur Crudup|Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup]] (credited as Perry Lee Crudup), and [[Memphis Minnie]], none of which sold well.<ref name="Label1" /><ref name="Label2">{{cite web |url=http://campber.people.clemson.edu/chess2.html |title=The Chess Label Part II (1953–1955) |author=George R. White |author2=Robert L. Campbell |author3=Tom Kelly  |work=Robert Campbell |publisher=[[Clemson University]] |location=[[Clemson, South Carolina]] |access-date=March 14, 2011}}</ref> One well-established blues artist that did manage to make a hit on Checker was [[Sonny Boy Williamson II]], who charted with "[[Don't Start Me Talkin']]" (number 3) in 1955, "Keep It to Yourself" (number 14) in 1956, and "[[Help Me (Sonny Boy Williamson II song)|Help Me]]" (number 24) in 1963.<ref name="r&b" />

On March 2, 1955, the Chess brothers recorded their first [[rock and roll]] artist, [[Bo Diddley]]. From this session came Bo's [[Bo Diddley (Bo Diddley song)|self-titled debut]] single on Checker,<ref name="Label2" /> which topped the R&B charts<ref name="r&b" /> and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. Another one of Bo Diddley's Checker singles, "[[Who Do You Love? (Bo Diddley song)|Who Do You Love?]]", was inducted in 2010.<ref name="grammy" /> In 1957, Checker cracked into the [[rockabilly]] market with [[Dale Hawkins]], who had a [[Crossover (music)|crossover]] hit with "[[Susie Q (song)|Susie Q]]", although he could not repeat the single's success.

In 1958, Checker released its first 12" 33⅓&nbsp;rpm [[LP record]], ''[[The Best of Little Walter]]'', which was released as Checker LP-1428.<ref>[http://www.blues.org/halloffame/inductees.php?YearId=18#ref=halloffame_inductees Past Hall of Fame Inductees] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120717083052/http://www.blues.org/halloffame/inductees.php?YearId=18 |date=2012-07-17 }}. [[Blues Foundation]]. Go under ''1991 Hall of Fame Inductees'' and click on ''The Best of Little Walter--Little Walter (Checker, 1958)'' to view the album review.</ref>

== Discography==
The original Checker LP series started with six albums released as part of the Chess 1425 album series before switching to the 2970 series in 1959 and continued until 1970.<ref name=BSN>[https://www.bsnpubs.com/chess/chess/chess1425.html Both Sides Now: Chess Album Discography, Part 1: LP-1425 to LPS-1553 and CHV-400 Vintage Series] accessed August 27, 2019.</ref><ref name=BSN2>[https://www.bsnpubs.com/chess/checker/checker.html Both Sides Now: Checker Album Discography (1957–1971)] accessed August 27, 2019.</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Catalog No.
! Album
! Artist
! Details
|-
|LP-1428
|''[[The Best of Little Walter]]''
|[[Little Walter]]
|
|-
|LP-1429
|''Oh! Suzy-Q''
|{{sortname|Dale|Hawkins}}
|
|-
|LP-1431
|''[[Bo Diddley (1958 album)|Bo Diddley]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley}}
|
|-
|LP-1433
|''The Flamingos''
|{{sortname|The|Flamingos}}
|
|-
|LP-1436
|''[[Go Bo Diddley]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-1437
|''[[Down and Out Blues]]''
|{{sortname|Sonny Boy|Williamson|Sonny Boy Williamson II}}
|
|-
|LP-2971
|''Keeping Tab''
|{{sortname|Tab|Smith}}
|
|-
|LP-2973
|''Love Those Goodies''
|Various Artists
|
|-
|LP-2974
|''[[Have Guitar Will Travel (Bo Diddley album)|Have Guitar Will Travel]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2975
|''Hits That Jumped''
|Various Artists
|
|-
|LP-2976
|''[[Bo Diddley in the Spotlight]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2977
|''[[Bo Diddley Is a Gunslinger]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2978
|''Watusi!''
|{{sortname|The|Vibrations}}
|
|-
|LP-2979
|''Sugar Pie DeSanto''
|{{sortname|Sugar Pie|DeSanto}}
|
|-
|LP-2980
|''[[Bo Diddley Is a Lover]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2981
|''[[Twist with Steve Alaimo]]''
|{{sortname|Steve|Alaimo}}
|
|-
|LP-2982
|''[[Bo Diddley's a Twister]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2983
|''[[Mashed Potatoes (Steve Alaimo album)|Mashed Potatoes]]''
|{{sortname|Steve|Alaimo|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2984
|''[[Bo Diddley (1962 album)|Bo Diddley]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2985
|''[[Bo Diddley & Company]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2986
|''[[Every Day I Have to Cry (album)|Every Day I Have to Cry]]''
|{{sortname|Steve|Alaimo|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2987
|''[[Surfin' with Bo Diddley]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2988
|''[[Bo Diddley's Beach Party]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2989
|''Bo Diddley's 16 All Time Greatest Hits''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2990
|''Hi-Heel Sneakers''
|{{sortname|Tommy|Tucker|Tommy Tucker (singer)}}
|
|-
|LP/LPS-2991
|''[[Two Great Guitars]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}} and [[Chuck Berry]]
|
|-
|LP-2992
|''[[Hey! Good Lookin' (album)|Hey Good Lookin']]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP-2993
|''Hold On! It's Joe Tex''
|{{sortname|Joe|Tex}}
|
|-
|LP/LPS-2994
|''Dance with Daddy "G"''
|{{sortname|Gene|Barge}}
|
|-
|LP/LPS-2995
|''We're Gonna Make It''
|[[Little Milton]]
|
|-
|LP/LPS-2996
|''[[500% More Man]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP/LPS-2997
|''[[The New Look (album)|The "New" Look]]''
|{{sortname|Fontella|Bass}}
|
|-
|LP/LPS-2998
|''Sing a Song of Soul''
|Various Artists
|
|-
|LP/LPS-3000
|''Searching for My Love''
|[[Bobby Moore & the Rhythm Aces]]
|
|-
|LP/LPS-3001
|''[[The Originator (album)|The Originator]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LP/LPS-3002
|''Little Milton Sings Big Blues''
|Little Milton
|
|-
|LP/LPS-3003
|''The Duke of Soul''
|{{sortname|Gene|Chandler}}
|
|-
|LP-3004
|''[[The Best of Little Walter]]''
|Little Walter
|reissue of Checker LP-1428
|-
|LPS-3005
|''The Flamingos''
|{{sortname|The|Flamingos|nolink=1}}
|reissue of Checker LP-1433
|-
|LP-3006
|''[[Go Bo Diddley]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|reissue of Checker LP-1436
|-
|LP-3007
|''[[Bo Diddley (1958 album)|Boss Man]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|reissue of Checker LP-1431
|-
|LP/LPS-3008
|''[[Super Blues]]''
|Bo Diddley, {{sortname|Muddy|Waters}}, and Little Walter
|
|-
|LP/LPS-3010
|''[[The Super Super Blues Band]]''
|[[Howlin' Wolf]], Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley
|
|-
|LPS-3011
|''Grits Ain't Groceries''
|Little Milton
|
|-
|LPS-3012
|''If Walls Could Talk''
|Little Milton
|
|-
|LPS-3013
|''[[The Black Gladiator]]''
|{{sortname|Bo|Diddley|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LPS-3014
|''In the Beginning...''
|Various Artists
|
|-
|LPS-3015
|''Hot Wheels''
|{{sortname|Stan|Farlow|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|LPS-3016
|''Born to Love Me''
|{{sortname|Jimmy|Reeves Jr.|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|CK-3017
|''The Prayer''
|{{sortname|Ray|Scott|nolink=1}}
|
|-
|}

==See also==
* [[List of record labels]]
* [[:Category:Checker Records albums|Checker Records albums]]
* [[:Category:Checker Records singles|Checker Records singles]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category-inline}}
*[https://archive.org/details/georgeblood?and%5B%5D=publisher:checker Checker Records] on the Internet Archive's [http://great78.archive.org/ Great 78 Project]

{{All Platinum Records}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Record labels based in Illinois]]
[[Category:Record labels established in 1952]]
[[Category:Record labels disestablished in 1971]]
[[Category:Pop record labels]]
[[Category:1969 mergers and acquisitions]]
[[Category:1952 establishments in Illinois]]
[[Category:Chess Records]]