SWAN (SW prefix)



A small independent company from Swansea, operative from the mid '70s till around 1980.  Swan was owned by Stan Horobin, the chief engineer of radio station Swansea Sound; according to 'Studio Sound' magazine for November 1978 he recorded local artists for his label in the studio attached to the station.  Only five of the records on Swan that I have seen listed were seven-inchers.  Four were singles, the odd one out being a Various Artists EP called 'Swansea Sound Themes' (SW-104; 1976).  Singles, EPs and albums shared the same SW-100 catalogue numbering.  The label's output was heavy on Club / Cabaret singers, who were presumably popular in the area; an album of church bells recorded in the Winchester district of Hampshire, 'Centenary Bells' (SW-114; 1979), provides a more unusual item.  Audrey Squires recorded for other labels such as Cambrian and Klub.  The single shown above looks like an Orlake pressing, as do the 'Swansea Sound Themes' EP and the records by Tony Beckett and Live Connection.  Thanks to Barry Adcock for his discographical input.

Copyright 2008 Robert Lyons.