| Touch and Go Records | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1981 |
| Founder | Tesco Vee Dave Stimson Corey Rusk |
| Genre | Punk, noise rock, indie rock, hardcore punk, post-hardcore, alternative rock, various |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Location | Chicago |
| Official Website | http://www.tgrec.com |
Touch and Go Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
After its genesis as a hand-made fanzine in 1979, it grew into one of the key record labels in the American 1980s alternative and underground rock scenes, Touch & Go carved out a reputation for releasing adventurous noise rock by the likes of the Butthole Surfers, Big Black, and The Jesus Lizard.
Contents |
The zine was formed in 1979 in East Lansing, Michigan as Touch and Go magazine, a self-printed fanzine written and produced by Tesco Vee and Dave Stimson. It wasn't until 1981 that it grew into an independent record label. Vee (later front man of The Meatmen) was bored with the punk sounds of the day, and captivated by the emerging hardcore movement in America. Inspired, he put out records by the Necros, The Fix, the Meatmen, and Negative Approach. In 1981, Necros bassist Corey Rusk joined with Tesco to run the label. In 1983, Tesco handed Touch and Go over to Rusk and his wife Lisa when he left Michigan for Washington DC. With the label under their ownership, the Rusks hired Terry Tolkin who signed the Butthole Surfers and Virgin Prunes to the label, and also produced the "Gods Favorite Dog" compilation. Soon the Rusks relocated the label to Chicago, and Touch and Go released material in the mid-'80s to mid-'90s by bands such as the Butthole Surfers, who no longer have their catalog on the label (see below), Big Black, the Jesus Lizard, Scratch Acid, the Didjits, and Killdozer, and continued into the new millennium with artists on its roster including Shellac, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV on the Radio (the latter two are no longer on the label), Arcwelder, CocoRosie, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, and the Black Heart Procession. Lisa Rusk left the label after she and Corey were divorced. Corey Rusk continues to run the label. [1]
Similarly to some other alternative music labels, such as Factory Records in the UK and punk label Dischord Records in the US, Touch and Go pursued a relaxed approach to recording contracts, characterized by handshake deals providing for a 50-50 split of profits between artist and label after promotion and production costs. In this way, the label built a respected catalog of influential punk, and alternative artists.[1] However, following a 1999 legal dispute with the Butthole Surfers (see below), Touch and Go began asking bands to sign a 1-2 page memorandum of intent.
In 2006, Touch and Go celebrated its 25th anniversary. To commemorate this occasion, the label held a three-day block party event at Chicago's Hideout venue on September 8–10, 2006. Several seminal bands, including Big Black, Scratch Acid, the Didjits, Killdozer, Negative Approach, and Man or Astro-man? reunited and performed at the event.
On February 18, 2009, Corey Rusk announced that Touch and Go would drastically downsize itself. He cited the "current state of the economy" as the reason for shutting down manufacturing and distribution services for many independent labels like Jade Tree, Kill Rock Stars, and Merge Records.[2]
In February 2010, LAS Magazine posted an article in which writer Ian Christe confirmed that a 576 page book compiling Touch and Go Fanzine: The Complete Years had been compiled by Bazillion Points Publishing.[3]
Their approach to contracts was challenged in a court case started in 1999 by the Butthole Surfers, who purported that Touch and Go was not marketing its catalog effectively. The band argued that because its contract with T&G was of an unspecified duration, the contract could be terminated. Touch and Go argued that according to existing US copyright law, it controlled the copyright to the band's recordings for a minimum of 35 years, based on sec. 203 of the Copyright Act of 1976.
The US Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit ruled in favor of the band, determining that "when a contract is silent as to its length, it is implicit that it can be terminated by either side," and that "allowing terminations under Illinois law does not conflict with sec. 203, but rather is, in fact, in keeping with the intent of sec. 203."[4]