Reprise Records Founding

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Lore & Background

One of the label's founding principles under Sinatra's leadership was that each artist would have full creative freedom, and at some point complete ownership of their work, including publishing rights. This is the reason why recordings of early Reprise artists (Dean Martin, Jimi Hendrix, the Kinks, etc.) are (in most cases) currently distributed through other labels. In Martin's case, his Reprise recordings were out of print for nearly 20 years before a deal was struck with Capitol Records. Reprise continued to reissue the Sinatra catalog until 2013 when it was sold to Capitol. The original Reprise LP label had four different logos, depending on the genre: a riverboat for Pop records, a cherub for Jazz records, an owl for Spoken Word/Comedy records, and a picture of Sinatra for his records.

In Their Own Story

In August 1963, as part of a film deal, Warner Bros. purchased Reprise (which had been losing money) from Frank Sinatra, who nonetheless retained a 1/3 interest in the label until the end of the year. Many of the older artists on the label were dropped by Warner Bros. Records. Reprise president Mo Ostin was retained as the head of the label and he went on to play a very significant role in the history of the Warner group of labels over the next four decades. Warner-Reprise executives began targeting younger acts, beginning by securing the American distribution rights to the Pye Records recordings by the Kinks in 1964.

Reader's Guide

Sinatra grew dissatisfied with Capitol Records, leading him to form Reprise in 1960. He recruited Rat Pack members Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr., along with artists like Bing Crosby, Jo Stafford, Rosemary Clooney, Duke Ellington, Nancy Sinatra, Esquivel, and Redd Foxx. The label's founding principle gave artists full creative freedom and eventual ownership of their work. In August 1963, Warner Bros. purchased Reprise (which had been losing money) from Sinatra, who retained a 1/3 interest until the end of the year. Mo Ostin was retained as president and played a significant role in the Warner group for four decades.

Did You Know?

• The first album Sinatra released on Reprise was Ring-a-Ding-Ding!
• The original Reprise LP label had four different logos: a riverboat for Pop, a cherub for Jazz, an owl for Spoken Word/Comedy, and a picture of Sinatra for his records.
• Reprise continued to reissue the Sinatra catalog until 2013 when it was sold to Capitol.
• In August 1963, Warner Bros. purchased Reprise (which had been losing money) from Frank Sinatra, who nonetheless retained a 1/3 interest in the label until the end of the year.
• Reprise president Mo Ostin was retained as the head of the label and went on to play a very significant role in the history of the Warner group of labels over the next four decades.