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The history of GB and Jazzology records starts with Southland Records. Southland was founded c.1948
by Joeseph P. Mares. (Mares sometimes billed himself as "Joe Mares Jr.", although his father was Joseph E. Mares.) Mares was
the an amateur jazz clarinetist, and the younger brother of noted jazz cornetist Paul Mares. Mares loved traditional style
New Orleans jazz and was impressed with the many fine musicians still playing in the city, only a few of whom had been recorded.
At the end of the 1960s Mares retired, and looked at offers to sell off his label. Although he was
offered more money by some major labels, Mares sold to George H. Buck's GHB/Jazzology Records, as Mares knew that Buck would
make a commitment to keep all his material in print, whereas the major labels were mostly interested in the recordings by
currently popular artists like Pete Fountain and Al Hirt, and were likely to let the rest of the Southland catalogue go out
of print. |
