The Famous Charisma

Discography
A 40th anniversary celebration
The Record Press ISBN 978-0-9563531-1-5

Available 7 June from

www.bristol-folk.co.uk
With forewords by Michael Palin and String Driven Thing’s Chris Adams
In the sleeve notes for the 1973 LP, Charisma Disturbance, Tony Stratton Smith wrote that, “A record label is the
sum of its artists”. In the case of Charisma, however, it can be more than convincingly argued that the record label
was the sum of its owner: this book is a 40th anniversary year celebration of Stratton Smith’s vision to sign to
Charisma “anything good of its kind” and includes:

Listings of all known UK LPs and singles, all bar a handful with full track listings
The original label design and release date for the majority of records
The first published listings of cassette and 8-track releases
The original recommended retail price for the majority of LPs and tapes
An organisational history of Charisma, with contributions from those who were there

The Famous Charisma Label was formed in 1969 by the near-legendary Tony Stratton Smith. Those who knew
him have said that he named the label after what he himself had in abundance, charisma, from the Greek χάρισμα
– an extraordinary power and appeal of personality with an innate ability to inspire a large following. His vision to
sign anything good of its kind led to Charisma becoming home to, amongst others, several uncompromising and
ground-breaking progressive rock bands, a maverick classical conductor, a cross-dressing Australian satirist, a
cult TV comedy combo, a sports commentator or two, a singing school teacher, a well-known psychoanalyst and
even the Poet Laureate. Strat, as he was known to all, then got it completely wrong, as far as the music industry
was concerned, by actually caring about his acts. The rest, as they say, is history.

The Famous Charisma Discography features painstakingly-researched discographies of all known UK releases by
the company, from the first in 1969 to the last in 1987. Those who think that Charisma just meant Genesis are in
for a shock. Genesis were there for pretty much the duration, true, but they shared the label with names both well-
known and obscure. Where else are you going to find a book that includes Van der Graaf Generator, Lindisfarne,
Monty Python, Audience, Rare Bird, Barry Humphries, Automatic Fine Tuning, Brand X, Trevor Billmuss, Malcolm
McLaren, The Ferrets, Clifford T. Ward, Charlie Drake, Sir John Betjeman, Michael Nyman, Prince Far I, Delta 5,
Peter O’Sullivan, Gary Shearston, String Driven Thing, Bert Jansch, La La, Robert John Godfrey, Refugee, Patrick
Moraz, Hawkwind, Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett, John Arlott, Pierre Cour, Trimmer and Jenkins, Jackson Heights,
The Nice, Capability Brown, Joseph Eger, Gordon Turner, Peter Hammill, Bo Hansson, Spreadeagle, Atacama,
Hot Thumbs O’Reilly, Vivian Stanshall, Gregory Isaacs and more?

To add value to an already value-rich compendium of information, the book presents the first-known listings of
cassette and 8-track cartridge releases, as well as looking at the little-known Charisma Books and Charisma Films
offshoots. To contextualise the listings, the book includes a detailed history that discusses both Strat and the
organisational set-up at Charisma, supported by memories from those who worked for the company alongside
those of artists that made the label such a delight of eclecticism in an industry where confirmation of taste through
providing bland, watered-down product is the norm. Charisma bucked this trend and in its heyday provided an
intelligent and varied mix of the sublime and the (mostly deliberately) ridiculous for anyone who was willing to listen.

Available internationally from www.bristol-folk.co.uk

TRP The Record Press Email: info@bristol-folk.co.uk
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The Record Press is an imprint of Bristol Folk Publications