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Los Angles 48, California  |
Los Angles 48, California  |
California  |
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and 5 2007 - 1958 |
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| Bob
Keane was playing clarinet in several bars and clubs around Los Angeles,
and one evening met businessman John Siamas, who persuaded Bob to set up
a record label with him. The label would be known as Keen Records, with
Bob working as an A&R man. He was given an acetate of two songs by
Sam Cooke, who at the time using his original surname, Cook, and singing
in a gospel group called The Soul Stirrers. On the acetate was "Summertime"
and "You Send Me". Sam Cooke was signed to a three-year contract with Keen.
Originally "Summertime" was intended to be the A-side, and sold moderately.
It was only when a DJ played the B-side that the record took off, and by
November 25 1957, it reached #1 on the Billboard chart.
At this point, despite Keen Records having earned over $1,000,000 from sales of "You Send Me", Bob only had an oral contract with Siamas. Upon asking when he was likely to receive stock certificates for the company, he received a letter asking for him to invest $5000 (which, of course, he did not have) into his own company should he wish to remain a partner. He realized that he had been tricked into finding a hit record and then pushed out of the company. Bob Keane left the company and started Del-Fi records. |
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