Editing Shrapnel Records

{{Short description|American record label}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2021}}
{{More citations needed|date=March 2017}}
{{Infobox record label
| name        = Shrapnel Records
| image       = Shrapnel logo.png
| parent      = [[Sony Music Entertainment]]
| founded     = {{start date|1980}}
| founder     = [[Mike Varney]]
| distributor = [[The Orchard (company)|The Orchard]]
| genre       = {{hlist|[[Heavy metal music|Heavy metal]]|[[speed metal]]|[[neoclassical metal]]|[[hard rock]]|[[instrumental rock]]}}
| country     = United States
| location    =  [[Novato, California]]
| website    = {{URL|shrapnelrecords.com}}
}}
'''Shrapnel Records''' is an American record label group founded by record producer [[Mike Varney]]. The group principally uses the ''Shrapnel Records'' [[record label]], a guitar-oriented label which features [[shred guitar]], [[hard rock]], metal and [[progressive metal]]. In the 1990s, he also started the ''Tone Center Records'' and ''Blues Bureau International'' sublabels to promote [[Fusion (music)|fusion]] and [[blues]].

'''Blues Bureau''' artists include [[Rick Derringer]], [[Eric Gales]], [[Marc Ford]], [[Chris Duarte (musician)|Chris Duarte]], [[Leslie West]] and [[Pat Travers]].

'''Tone Center Records''' grew out of Varney's admiration for the jazz fusion of the 1970s and groups such as [[The Tony Williams Lifetime]], [[Mahavishnu Orchestra]], [[Return to Forever]], and [[Soft Machine]]. Tone Center's early releases included drummer [[Steve Smith (musician)|Steve Smith]] and guitarists [[Larry Coryell]],  [[Frank Gambale]], and [[Scott Henderson]].<ref name="Woodard">{{cite web|last1=Woodard|first1=Josef|title=Jazz Departments: Label Watch: Tone Center|url=http://jazztimes.com/articles/20753-label-watch-tone-center|website=Jazz Times|accessdate=13 December 2016|date=January 1999}}</ref>

== History ==
Guitarist [[Marty Friedman]] (formerly of [[Megadeth]] and [[Cacophony (band)|Cacophony]]), one of the label's most successful artists, first appeared on the album ''Unsung Guitar Heroes II'' in 1980 with the band Vixen. Vixen would later change their name to [[Hawaii (band)|Hawaii]] and release the album ''[[One Nation Underground (Hawaii album)|One Nation Underground]]'' for Shrapnel. In 1981, a friend gave Mike Varney a tape featuring a 17-year-old Swedish guitarist named [[Yngwie Malmsteen]]. A year later, Malmsteen wrote to the label stating that he wanted to export his music to America. Varney, who started writing a column called "Spotlight" for ''[[Guitar Player]]'' magazine in 1982, featured Malmsteen in his February 1983 column. The record executive flew Yngwie to California and set him up with vocalist [[Ron Keel]]'s new band called [[Steeler (American band)|Steeler]]. Steeler's self-titled album became a best selling release for Shrapnel Records.

''Blues Bureau'' was created as a subsidiary in 1992,<ref>Deborah Russell, [https://books.google.com/books?id=qRAEAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22blues+bureau+international%22&pg=PA57 "Grass Route"]. ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'', June 20, 1992.</ref> as an American guitar oriented, [[blues]], and [[blues rock]] [[independent record label]].

The label was acquired by [[The Orchard (company)|The Orchard]], [[subsidiary]] of [[Sony Music Entertainment]], in November 2015.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/record-labels/6770067/the-orchard-acquires-shrapnel-records-catalog |title=The Orchard Acquires Shrapnel Records' Catalog |last=Christman |first=Ed |work=Billboard Biz |publisher=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=November 19, 2015 |access-date=August 15, 2017 |archive-date=August 14, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160814223822/http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/record-labels/6770067/the-orchard-acquires-shrapnel-records-catalog |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Related labels ==
In 1989, Mike Varney co-founded [[progressive rock]]/[[Progressive metal|metal]] label [[Magna Carta Records]].

''Tone Center Records'' a jazz oriented label featuring fusion guitar as well as a number of [[jazz]] tributes.

== Notable releases ==
===Shrapnel Records===
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! # !! Artist !! Title !! Year !! Note
|-
|SH-1001||Unsung Guitar Heroes (V.A.)||''U.S. Metal Vol. 1''||1982||
|-
|SH-1002||Unsung Guitar Heroes (V.A.)||''U.S. Metal Vol. 2''||1982||feat. [[Michael Angelo Batio]] and [[Marty Friedman (musician)|Marty Friedman]]
|-
|SH-1003||[[Wild Dogs]]||''Wild Dogs''||1983||feat. [[Deen Castronovo]]
|-
|SH-1004||[[Exciter (band)|Exciter]]||''[[Heavy Metal Maniac]]''||1983||
|-
|SH-1007||[[Steeler (American band)|Steeler]]||''[[Steeler (American band album)|Steeler]]''||1983||feat. [[Yngwie Malmsteen]]
|-
|SH-1008||[[Culprit (band)|Culprit]]||''[[Guilty as Charged (Culprit album)|Guilty as Charged]]''||1983||
|-
|SH-1009||[[Hawaii (band)|Hawaii]]||''[[One Nation Underground (Hawaii album)|One Nation Underground]]''||1983||
|-
|SH-1013||Unsung Guitar Heroes (V.A.)||''U.S. Metal Vol. 4''||1984||feat. [[Shawn Lane]]
|-
|SH-1014||[[Keel (band)|Keel]]||''[[Lay Down the Law (Keel album)|Lay Down the Law]]''||1984||
|-
|SH-1018||[[Chastain (band)|Chastain]]||''[[Mystery of Illusion]]''||1985||
|-
|SH-1019||[[London (heavy metal band)|London]]||''[[Non-Stop Rock]]''||1985||
|-
|SH-1020||[[Vicious Rumors]]||''[[Soldiers of the Night]]''||1985||
|-
|SH-1021||[[Tony MacAlpine]]||''[[Edge of Insanity]]''||1986||
|-
|SH-1022||[[Fifth Angel]]||''[[Fifth Angel (album)|Fifth Angel]]''||1986||
|-
|SH-1023||[[Racer X (band)|Racer X]]||''[[Street Lethal]]''||1986||
|-
|SH-1024||Chastain||''[[Ruler of the Wasteland]]''||1986||
|-
|SH-1027||[[Vinnie Moore]]||''[[Mind's Eye (album)|Mind's Eye]]''||1986||
|-
|SH-1028||MacAlpine, Aldridge, Rock, Sarzo||''[[Project Driver|Project: Driver]]''||1986||
|-
|SH-1030||[[Joey Tafolla]]||''[[Out of the Sun]]''||1987||
|-
|SH-1031||[[Cacophony (band)|Cacophony]]||''[[Speed Metal Symphony]]''||1987||
|-
|SH-1032||Racer X||''[[Second Heat]]''||1987||
|-
|SH-1033||Vicious Rumors||''[[Digital Dictator]]''||1988||
|-
|SH-1035||[[Marty Friedman]]||''[[Dragon's Kiss]]''||1988||
|-
|SH-1036||[[Jason Becker]]||''[[Perpetual Burn]]''||1988||
|-
|SH-1037||[[Greg Howe]]||''[[Greg Howe (album)|Greg Howe]]''||1988||
|-
|SH-1038||Racer X||''[[Extreme Volume Live]]''||1988||
|-
|SH-1040||Cacophony||''[[Go Off!]]''||1988||
|-
|SH-1042||[[Richie Kotzen]]||''[[Richie Kotzen (album)|Richie Kotzen]]''||1989||
|-
|SH-1043||[[Phantom Blue]]||''[[Phantom Blue (album)|Phantom Blue]]''||1989||
|-
|SH-1044||[[Greg Howe|Howe II]]||''[[High Gear (Howe II album)|High Gear]]''||1989||
|-
|SH-1045||[[Michael Lee Firkins]]||''[[Michael Lee Firkins (album)|Michael Lee Firkins]]''||1990||
|}

===Blues Bureau===
{{incomplete-list|date=May 2023}}
*Eric Gales - ''Relentless'' (2010)
*Marc Ford - ''Weary and Wired''(2007)
*Joe Louis Walker - ''New Direction'' (2004)
*Leslie West - ''Got Blooze'' (2005)
*Chris Duarte - ''Blue Velocity'' (2007)
*Jimi Kidd/Paul Gilbert - ''Raw Blues Power'' (2001)
*Glenn Hughes - ''Blues L.A. Authority Volume II'' (1992–93)
*Rick Derringer - ''Back to the Blues'' (1993)
*Pat Travers - ''Just A Touch'' (1993)
*Outlaws - ''Hittin' The Road Live!'' (1993)
*Outlaws - ''Diablo Canyon'' (1994)
*Jon Butcher - ''Positively the Blues'' (1995)
*Marc Ford & The Neptune Blues Club - ''Marc Ford & The Neptune Blues Club'' (2008)

== See also ==
* [[List of record labels]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
*[http://shrapnelrecords.com/ Shrapnel Label Group]
**[http://www.shrapnelrecords.com/label/tone-center Tone Center at Shrapnel Records]
*[http://www.studioexpresso.com/profiles/mikevarney.htm Producer Profile: Mike Varney]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:American record labels]]
[[Category:Record labels established in 1980]]
[[Category:Sony Music]]
[[Category:Heavy metal record labels]]