Infinity Records

Infinity Records was a short lived subsidiary of MCA Records established in New York City in 1977. The label was conceived by MCA president Sidney Sheinberg as a way for the Los Angeles-based entertainment conglomerate to improve its presence on the east coast. Ron Alexenberg, who had previously been the head of the Epic division of CBS Records was hired as CEO.

The biggest hit the Infinity label had was "Escape" by Rupert Holmes, which was #1 at the end of 1979. Infinity had some success with other artists including Hot Chocolate, Spyro Gyra, New England and TKO. Under the distribution of MCA, the Infinity Records label released titles in the U.S.A., Canada, the U.K., Japan and parts of Europe.

Infinity spent lavishly but failed to earn a profit. In addition to developing new talent, Infinity also paid substantial sums to acquire established artists. Most of the established artists were unable to duplicate their previous success.

In October 1979, Infinity released "Pope John Paul II Sings at the Festival of Sacrosong" an album of singing and speeches by Pope John Paul II. Due to the tremendous popularity of the new Pope at that time, Infinity was convinced they had huge hit on their hands. The company paid a substantial sum (which went to charity) to the Catholic Church to obtain exclusive rights to the recording. However, the album received poor reviews and was a colossal failure. Most of the one million advance copies of the John Paul II album were returned unsold to the label, producing a huge financial loss. MCA pulled the plug on Infinity Records in December 1979. It was absorbed by the parent company in 1980, with only Rupert Holmes and Spyro Gyra going to MCA.

The collapse of Infinity also coincided with rising costs of manufacturing for vinyl LP records and a huge sales slump for the music industry. Infinity has since become known as one of the most expensive failures in the history of the record business.

There are at least two other smaller record labels that also have used the name Infinity Records. One of these other labels was subsidiary of Festival Records, Australia's leading independent record company, now also defunct. Other companies with this name do not have an affiliation with MCA.

Partial list of Infinity Records recording artists

* Solomon Burke
* Dixon House Band
* Dobie Gray
* Rupert Holmes
* Hot Chocolate
* The Kats
* Orsa Lia
* Nature's Divine
* New England
* Orleans
* Racey
* Screams
* Spyro Gyra
* TKO

Artists associated with other labels named "Infinity Records" that are not connected with the MCA include:

* Richard Batchens

See also:

* Donald Dempsey

External links

[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,916921,00.html Time Magazine article on the John Paul II album]