Tent Records

infobox record label


parent = Tent Records Ltd
founder = Buster Pearson
founded = 1982 - 2005
distributor = Tent Records Ltd
genre = Various
country = UK
url = http://www.tentrecords.com/

Tent Records is the independent record label started by British pop group Five Star and their father/manager Buster Pearson in 1982. During the 1980s Tent Records blossomed into becoming the UK's most successful independent record label. The first recording on the label was "Problematic" by Five Star, released in 1983, but fared poorly in the charts. The group then got backing of a major label, RCA/BMG (now known as Sony BMG). The next two singles, "Hide And Seek" and "Crazy" in 1984 were also disappoinments sales wise. it was the label's fourth single, "All Fall Down" in 1985 that put Five Star and Tent Records into the top 40 for the first time.

Tent Records also had one other signing to the label, a little known duo called The Duel between 1988 and 1989, but they had no success chart wise.

The label blossomed as chart success followed right until the end of the 1980s, when Buster Pearson decided to end Tent's association with RCA and opted to sign a joint deal with Epic. This move would prove unsuccessful as Five Star's new album for Epic failed, as did the singles from it. In 1990 Buster Pearson invested £2.5 million pounds into building a recording studio in the grounds of their family home, Stone Court, in Sunningdale in Berkshire wanting to rent the studio out to other artist's as well. But the business didn't take off, and the business lost a lot of money because of the failed venture. Media speculation in the tabloids began to mount as to Five Star's financial status, and the financial status of Tent Records, many newspapers reporting that both were bankrupt (proved later as false).

Many fans and loyal friends, including Michael Barnett, Paula Rushforth and Neil Petty and others proved loyal to Tent Records and the Pearson family, by stepping in and helping to keep the label and fan club going from 1991 in the group's absence.

Tent Records continued to release records into the 1990s and the new millennium, but could never repeat the great success it achieved as a business in the 1980s. Tent recently released "System Addict 2005" and "The Slightest Touch 2005", to little commercial success. The company was declared bankrupt in 2005.

Releases

ingles

ALL SINGLES & ALBUMS LISTED ARE RELEASES FROM FIVE STAR EXCEPT WHERE STATED OTHERWISE

* "Problematic" Tent PRT 4 (Oct 1983) (UK didn't chart)
* "Hide and Seek" Tent/RCA 399 (May 1984) (UK #113)
* "Crazy" Tent/RCA 401 (Oct 1984) (UK #144)
* "All Fall Down" Tent/RCA PB40039 (May 1985) (UK #15)
* "Let Me Be the One" Tent/RCA PB40193 (Jul 1985) (UK #18)
* "Love Take Over" Tent/RCA PB40353 (Sep 1985) (UK #25)
* "RSVP" Tent/RCA PB40445 (Nov 1985) (UK #45)
* "System Addict" Tent/RCA PB40515 (Jan 1986) (UK #3)
* "Can't Wait Another Minute" Tent/RCA PB40697 (Apr 1986) (UK #7)
* "Find the Time" Tent/RCA PB40799 (Jun 1986) (UK #7)
* "Rain or Shine" Tent/RCA PB40901 (Sep 1986) (UK #2)
* "If I Say Yes" Tent/RCA PB40981 (Nov 1986) (UK #15)
* "Stay Out Of My Life" Tent/RCA PB41131 (Feb 1987) (UK #9)
* "The Slightest Touch" Tent/RCA PB41265 (Apr 1987) (UK #4)
* "Whenever You're Ready" Tent/RCA PB41477 (Aug 1987) (UK #11)
* "Strong As Steel" Tent/RCA PB41565 (Oct 1987) (UK #16)
* "Somewhere Somebody" Tent/RCA PB41661 (Dec 1987) (UK #23)
* "Another Weekend" Tent/RCA PB42081 Jun (1988) (UK #18)
* "Rock My World" Tent/RCA PB42145 (Aug 1988) (UK #28)
* "Someones in love" (released in the USA chart position unknown)
* "Living To Be Made" (The Duel) Tent 5 (Sep 1998) (chart position unknown)
* "Tell Me Why" (The Duel) Tent 6 (Nov 1988) (chart position unknown)
* "There's A Brand New World" Tent/RCA PB42235 (Sep 1988) (UK #61)
* "Let Me Be Yours" Tent/RCA PB42343 (Nov 1988) (UK #51)
* "With Every Heartbeat" Tent/RCA PB42693 Apr (1989) (UK #49)
* "Treat Me Like A Lady" Tent/Epic FIVE 1 Mar(1990) (UK #54)
* "Hot Love" Tent/Epic FIVE 2 (Jun 1990) (UK #68)
* "What About Me Baby" Tent/Epic FIVE 3 Aug 1990 (UK Cancelled release)
* "Shine" Tent/Epic 657480 Oct (1991) (UK #53)
* "I Love You (For Sentimental Reasons)" Tent TRIFS2 Jul (1994) (UK #84)
* "Surely" USA only release feb 1995 (USA #25) underground club hit
* "I Give You Give" Tent CDTRIFS3 Oct (1995) (UK #83)
* "I Give You Give Remixed" Tent CDTRIFS4 May (1996) (UK didn't chart)
* "Funktafied" Tent TR 44545-2 (Jun 2001) (USA release only R&B #26)
* "System Addict 2005" Tent TR44547 (Jul 2005), (UK #46)
* "The Slightest Touch 2005" Tent TR445492 (Sep 2005) (Unreleased)

Albums

* "Luxury of Life" Tent/RCA PL70735 (Jun 1985) (UK #12)
* "Silk and Steel" Tent/RCA PL71100(Sep 1986) (UK #1)
* "Between the Lines" Tent/RCA PL71505(Aug 1987) (UK #7)
* "Rock the World" Tent/RCA PL71747 (Aug 1988) (UK #17)
* "Greatest Hits" Tent/RCA PL74080 (Oct 1989) (UK #53)
* "Five Star" Tent/Epic 46768 (Aug 1990) (US only)
* "Shine" Epic 48832 (Oct 1991) (US only)
* "Heart and Soul" TRIFSCD1 (Aug 1994) (positions not available)
* "Eclipse" Tent 44544-2 (Jul 2001) (US #-)
* "Greatest Hits" BMG/Camden 74321578222 (May 1998) (UK didn't chart)
* "Greatest Hits" BMG/Camden 828765 07202 (Apr 2003) (UK #-)
* "Legends 3CD Set" BMG/Camden 82876 637132 (May 2005) (positions not available)

ee also

* List of record labels