RAFT
One of the members of the
WEA family, albeit a short-lived one. The first oblique reference to
Raft in 'Music Week' came in the 'Gossip' column of the 17th
of March, which claimed that the launch of 'WEA's British label' could
be expected soon. 'MW' of the 14th of April
1973 reported on the launch; it revealed Raft's name, and confirmed its
function as being WEA's UK label. Martin Wyatt was to
be in charge; the intention was to assemble a small roster of 'new, young' acts, who
would be give the freedom to develop their potential. According to a
quote by WEA managing director Ian Ralfini in an article the following week, British group Family would
form the nucleus of the Raft crew ('MW', 12st April). The article stated
that eighteen months previously there had been plans for a label called
'America', and that its first release would have been by the group of that name; it had been shelved, however, the band
had signed to Warner Bros, and eventually Raft had come along in its stead. Presumably the
functions of the labels would have been different, with 'America' being devoted to
American releases.
In the event, Raft was destined for a short and choppy
journey. Ian Ralfini left WEA in July, reportedly in dissatisfaction
at structural changes in the organization being imposed by the company's American owners ('MW',
14th July 1973). Then the following month Raft label manager Martin Wyatt resigned.
He left in September, having been in charge for
only six months or so, and was replaced by Sean Murphy. Raft still appeared to
have a future: according to 'Billboard' magazine of the 20th of October
it was to remain autonomous and was to focus on developing British talent for overseas representation. In April the following year, however, news came that Raft
was shortly to be dropped, on instructions from the major American components of the
WEA group ('MW', 20th April 1974). WEA's UK arm was to concentrate on
building up the company's main labels, and
the artists on Raft were to be offered contracts with one or other of
them. 'MW' of the 4th of May confirmed that, after one final promotional push for
an album by Beckett, Raft would hit the rocks and sink.
Raft managed a mere
three albums and
seven singles during the twelve months of its existence. Singles were numbered in
an RA-18500 series; the 'RA' was a departure from WEA's
normal practise of using 'K' prefixes. Soul singer Linda
Lewis was responsible for three of those singles,
including the label's only hit, 'Rock-A-Doodle Doo' b/w 'Reach For
The Truth' (RA-18502; 5/73). Reportedly Raft's demise left unreleased LPs by the Streetwalkers
and Kilburn & the High Roads still in the can. Manufacture
and distribution were by CBS, with whom WEA had a
close relationship at the time. There were two types of company sleeve, the blue-and-white one apparently being the later.
Copyright 2006 Robert Lyons.