American. Myrrh was established by Billy Ray Hearn in 1972 as a division of the Christian record company Word, and it specialized in Contemporary Christian music until its demise in 2000. Happily that demise proved temporary and the label was resurrected some five years later. As far as Britain is concerned, Myrrh was comparatively low-key compared to its US incarnation. It seems to have started issung records here in 1973, and the first of its few mentions in the Trade press came the following year, when 'Music Week' of the 27th of April 1974 confirmed that it was a division of the Word organization and described it as "a 'Jesus Music' label, for young Jesus people to communicate their faith in their own radical manner". It was predominantly an album company in this country; the only British 7" release on Myrrh in the 1970s was the one pictured above, Garth Hewitt's, 'That's Why We're Here' b/w 'Memories' (WOO-1; 3/79). 'MW' of the 31st of March 1979 said that that single was available via EMI's International Imports division; a couple of weeks previously 'MW' of the 17th of March had mentioned in passing that Myrrh was part of the Word group. The album label was quite pretty, but the single one is distinctly dull - perhaps the Devil has all the best 7" labels, as well as the best tunes. Manufacture and distribution were by EMI, marketing by Word.
('Both Sides Now'; www.bsnpubs.com)
Copyright 2006 Robert Lyons.