OAK



Arguably one of the most collectable of the 'private pressing' labels.  Oak was the label of Oak Recording Studios, of Morden, in Surrey.  It was set up in 1962 by Derek Serjeant and R. G. Jones, and was named after the Folk club that Serjeant ran, in Surbiton.  Its first release, an EP by Serjeant, came out in 1962, with a catalogue number of RGJ-101.  Originally intended as a Folk label, Oak ended up recording a large number of British R'n'B / Freakbeat sides; the Rolling Stones and the Yardbirds made their first demos at the studio.  Actual Oak releases, as opposed to demos, were usually limited to 99 copies, the reason for this being that if you made 100 copies they were subject to a tax.  The studio had its own disc-cutting facilities but manufacture of records which were required in any quantity appears to have been done by companies such as Pye.  Oak's glory days were in the '60s but it survived into the early '70s; the Woodhatch School Choir single shown above dates from July 1972, as the label helpfully shows.  The few Oak records from the 1970s that I have managed to track down are listed below.  Thanks to Robert Bowes for the scan and for letting me know that Oak was still around in the '70s.

Copyright 2008 Robert Lyons.