# Chief Records

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**Chief Records**, together with its Profile and Age subsidiaries, was an independent record label that operated from 1957 to 1964. Best known for its recordings of [Chicago blues](/source/Chicago_blues) artists [Elmore James](/source/Elmore_James), [Junior Wells](/source/Junior_Wells), [Magic Sam](/source/Magic_Sam), and [Earl Hooker](/source/Earl_Hooker), the label had a diverse roster and included R&B artists Lillian Offitt and [Ricky Allen](/source/Ricky_Allen).

Chief Records was founded in Chicago in 1957 by [Mel London](/source/Mel_London), a 25-year-old R&B entrepreneur.[1] London served as producer and wrote several of the label's best-known songs. Earl Hooker, one of the most well-regarded blues guitarists of his era,[2][3] was an important contributor to the label. He worked closely with London and "was involved in over a dozen recording sessions, and his playing was featured on some forty titles and twenty-five singles, a dozen of which were released under his own name, the rest being ascribed to Junior Wells, [A.C. Reed](/source/A.C._Reed), Lillian Offitt, and Ricky Allen".[1] Among Hooker's recordings are several slide-guitar instrumentals, including the 1961 Age single "Blue Guitar", which [Muddy Waters](/source/Muddy_Waters) later overdubbed a vocal and titled it "[You Shook Me](/source/You_Shook_Me)".

"Little by Little", written by Mel London, was a hit for Junior Wells, reaching number 23 in the [Billboard R&B chart](/source/Billboard_R%26B_chart) in 1960.[4] Wells continued to perform and record several of his Chief and Profile songs ("[Messin' with the Kid](/source/Messin'_with_the_Kid)", "Come on in This House", and "[It Hurts Me Too](/source/It_Hurts_Me_Too)") during his career. "Cut You Loose", another London composition, was a hit for Ricky Allen; the song reached number 20 in 1963.[5] Next to Wells, Allen had the most singles on the label (all on Age).

As with many independent blues labels in the early 1960s, Chief was plagued by financial problems.[1] First to be discontinued were the Chief and Profile labels; finally the Age label was discontinued in 1964 and the company went out of business.[1] During its seven years of operation, Chief/Profile/Age released about 80 singles (including reissues) from approximately 37 artists. Later, various singles (including reissues) by Chief artists were released by All-Points Records, Mel/Mel-Lon Records, Bright Star Records, and Starville Records, but none had the impact of the originals.[1]

## Partial discography

List of releases with year, artist, title, label, and catalogue number Year Artist Title (A-side / B-side) Label Cat. no. 1957 Mel London "Man from the Island" / "Doggin' Me Around" Chief 7000 Elmore James "Coming Home" / "The Twelve Year Old Boy" Chief 7001 Elmore James "It Hurts Me Too" / "Elmore's Contribution to Jazz" Chief 7004 Junior Wells "Two Headed Woman" / "Lovey Dovey Lovely One" Chief 7005 Elmore James "Cry for Me" / "Take Me Where You Go" Chief 7006 1958 Junior Wells "I Could Cry" / "Cha Cha Cha in Blue" Chief 7008 1960 Junior Wells "Little By Little" / "Come on in This House" Profile 4011 Lillian Offitt "Will My Man Be Home Tonight" / "The Man Won't Work" Chief 7012 Magic Sam & the Ammons Sisters "Mister Charlie" / "My Love Is Your Love" Chief 7013 Lillian Offitt "Oh Mama" / "My Man Is a Lover" Chief 7015 Junior Wells (A) / Earl Hooker (B) "Galloping Horses A Lazy Mule" (A) / "Blues in D Natural" (B) Chief 7016 Magic Sam "Square Dance Rock Part 1" / "Square Dance Rock Part 2" Chief 7017 Elmore James (A) / Earl Hooker (B) "Knocking at Your Door" (A) / "Calling All Blues" (B) Chief 7020 Junior Wells "Messin' with the Kid" / "Universal Rock" Chief 7021 Junior Wells "You Don't Care" / "Prison Bars All Around Me" Profile 4013 1961 Magic Sam "Every Night About This Time" / "Do the Camel Walk" Chief 7026 Junior Wells "I'm a Stranger" / "Things I'd Do for You" Chief 7030 Earl Hooker "Rockin' with the Kid" / "Rockin' Wild" Chief 7031 Magic Sam "You Don't Have to Work" / "Blues Light Boogie" Chief 7033 Junior Wells "You Sure Look Good to Me" / "Lovey Dovey Lovely One" Chief 7034 Junior Wells "It Hurts Me Too" / "Cha Cha Cha in Blue" Chief 7035 Junior Wells "So Tired" / "Love Me" Chief 7037 Junior Wells "I Need Me a Car" / "I Could Cry" Chief 7038 A.C. Reed (A) / Earl Hooker (B) "This Little Voice" (A) / "Apache War Dance" (B) Age 29101 Ricky Allen "You'd Better Be Sure" / "You Were My Teacher" Age 29102 Earl Hooker "Blue Guitar" / "Swear to Tell the Truth" Age 29106 1962 Reggie "Guitar" Boyd "Nothing but Poison" / "Nothing but Good" Age 29110 Earl Hooker "How Long Can This Go On" / "These Cotton Pickin' Blues" Age 29111 A.C. Reed "Mean Cop" / "That Ain't Right" Age 29112 Big Moose & the Jams "The Bright Sound" "Bright Sounds" / "Off the Hook" Age 29113 Earl Hooker & the Earlettes "Win the Dance" "Crying Blues" / "That Man" Age 29114 1963 Ricky Allen "Cut You A-Loose" / "Faith" Age 29118 Jackie Brenston with Earl Hooker Band "Want You to Rock Me" / "Down in My Heart" Mel-Lon 1000 Earl Hooker "The Leading Brand" / "Blues in D Natural" Mel-Lon 1001 1964 A.C. Reed "Lotta Loving" / "I Stay Mad" Age 29123 1964 Ricky Allen "Help Me Mama" / "The Big Fight" Age 29125

## References

1. Danchin 2001, pp. 121, 122.

1. Herzhaft 1992, p. 141.

1. Dahl 1996, p. 115.

1. Whitburn 1988, p. 438.

1. Whitburn 1988, p. 23.

## Sources

- Dahl, Bill (1996). "Earl Hooker". *[All Music Guide to the Blues](/source/All_Music_Guide_to_the_Blues:_The_Definitive_Guide_to_the_Blues)*. Erlewine, Michael; Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Koda, Cub (eds.). San Francisco: [Miller Freeman Books](/source/Miller_Freeman,_Inc.). ISBN 0-87930-424-3.
- Danchin, Sebastian (2001). *Earl Hooker: Blues Master*. Jackson, Mississippi: [University Press of Mississippi](/source/University_Press_of_Mississippi). ISBN 978-1-57806-307-9.
- Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). "Earl Hooker". *Encyclopedia of the Blues*. Fayetteville, Arkansas: [University of Arkansas Press](/source/University_of_Arkansas_Press). ISBN 1-55728-252-8.
- Whitburn, Joel (1988). "Artist entries". *Top R&B Singles 1942–1988*. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: [Record Research](/source/Record_Research). ISBN 0-89820-068-7.

## External links

- ["Chief Records — Discography"](http://koti.mbnet.fi/wdd/chief.htm). *Wangdangdula.com*. Pete Hoppula. October 8, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2020.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Chief Records](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_Records) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_Records?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.