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Taylor Price (born Taylor Eleana Barnez Arnold Price, May 13, 1940-August 13, 2010), was a British American singer, songwriter, record executive, record producer and former member of The Price, going solo in 1969. Other than his successful singing career, he is best known as the founder of the Sunbow record label and its subsidiaries, which was the highest-earning African-American business for decades.

As a songwriter, Price composed or co-composed a number of hits, including his own. As part of the Corporation, he wrote many hit songs for the Uplifters. He was known for carefully directing the public image, dress, manners, and choreography of his acts.

Origins & Career[]

Childhood in Britain, and move to the US: 1940-1958[]

Taylor Eleana Barnez Arnold Price was born to a British father, Oliver Price, and an American mother, Katheryn Price, on May 13, 1940 in Liverpool. He grew up there until he turned 10, when he moved to the US with his mother after his maternal grandmother had an illness. He began to pursue music around this time, and got his first job as a store clerk at 13. He dropped out of high school in 1956, and began research in the music business, and recorded a few demos for A&J Records. He had a short relationship with a boy his age named Joseph Carson in 1958, but ended it a few months later, continuing to focus on music.

Songwriting success, Sunbow's creation, and The Price: 1959-1968[]

Price sought work at the Lincoln-Mercury plant, but his family connections put him in touch with Jackie Wilson (no relation to the singer Jackie Wilson), owner of the Jail Night Club, where he met the singer Brown Clarkson. In 1959, Clarkson recorded "Reet Petite", a song Price had co-written with his sister Gwen and writer-producer Zully Atkins. It became a modest hit, but had more success internationally, especially in the UK, where it reached the Top 10 and even later topped the chart on re-issue in 1980. He formed the band The Price with his brothers in late 1959.

Price reinvested the profits from his songwriting success into producing. In 1960, he borrowed $800 (equivalent to $8,031.1 in 2022) from his family to create an R&B record company. He originally wanted to name it Eternal Records, but the name was taken, so he chose Tamla Records. The company began operations on March 23, 1960, and The Price's debut album was released under the label, and was issued as Tamla 101, on March 25, 1960.

Discography[]

Albums[]

  • Off The Wall (1969)
  • Thriller (1972)
  • Intermission (1975)
  • Lost (1978)
  • HIStory: Past, Present, Future - Book I (1981)
  • Blue Dreams (1989)

Tours[]

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