Cameo Records

infobox record label
name = Cameo Records


parent =
founded = 1922
founder =
distributor =
genre = Jazz
Blues
country = US
url = Cameo was a USA based record label, first flourishing in the 1920s, not connected with a later record label of the same name which was active in the 1950s and 1960s.

The Cameo Record Company was based in Manhattan, New York. Cameo records were introduced in February of 1922, selling for 50 cents each, and soon Cameo became one of the more popular budget labels.

Cameo Records are noted for a wealth of jazz influenced 1920s dance music. While there is little of outstanding importance on Cameo, a high percentage of Cameo Records have fairly good hot music. New York based musicians such as Red Nichols, Miff Mole, Adrian Rollini, and Frank Signorelli made many trips to the Cameo studios. In 1924, Cameo appears to have started recording using a microphone-electrical process. An early example is 583, "Crazy Blues", by Salt & Pepper. [http://www.dawnofsound.com/?p=15| Listen to the podcast at 26:46, where the disc is mentioned as an "early electric".]

Cameo also featured a series of recordings by noted early blues singer Lucille Hegamin.

Cameo also owned the Lincoln Records and Romeo Records labels, as well as a subsidiary for making records for children, Cameo-Kid. Cameo was purchased by Pathé Records in 1928; the label continued in use until 1930. Pathé was in turn acquired by the American Record Corporation.

See also

* List of record labels