Monument Records
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Monument Records was a record label founded in 1958 by Fred Foster and Bob Moore. From a recording studio in the Nashville suburb of Hendersonville, Tennessee they produced a variety of sounds including Rock and Roll, Country and Western, and Rhythm and Blues.
The company's first recording was by Billy Grammer, titled "Gotta Travel On." However, it was the signing of the ex Sun Records singer, Roy Orbison, that brought great success, starting with the 1960 hit, Only the Lonely. In addition to Orbison, over the years the studio was home to a number of successful recording artists including Kris Kristofferson, Jeannie Seely, Boots Randolph, Dolly Parton, Ray Stevens, Cindy Walker, Charlie McCoy, Willie Nelson, Tommy Roe, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers.
With the loss of Monument's key business partner, Bob Moore, followed by the loss of Orbison to MGM in 1965, the studio fell into a slow decline. These circumstances, combined with a series of bad investments in the 1980s, led to difficulties that saw Foster lose the company to bankruptcy. Today, the catalog of Monument recordings is owned by Sony Corporation.
Fred Foster, also started a soul/R&B label called 'Sound Stage 7' in the 1960s. Its rostrum of artists included Allen Toussaint (recording under another name), Ivory Joe Hunter, the O'Jays, Joe Simon and Alvin Cash, among others. Tracks by artists on this label, often produced by Foster with arrangements by Bill Justis (famous in rock history for his hit 'Raunchy'), were generally only available as singles. Arthur Alexander was also one of this label's artists for a time and one deserving a special mention in pop and rock history for his particular influence on the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. In particular, it is believed that John Lennon was heavily influenced in his singing style by Arthur Alexander.
