Zoo Entertainment was an American record label formed in 1990 by Lou Maglia. Zoo released three platinum records by the group Tool, as well as gold records by Green Jellÿ and Matthew Sweet. During the record company's early years, music industry executive George Daly was the label's original Vice President of A&R.
History The label was formed in 1990 by Lou Maglia, former president of Island Records. As early as 1993, Zoo was having financial difficulties. In November 1991, Zoo signed Los Angeles band Tool, and released their debut EP Opiate early the following year. The label wanted to market them as a heavy metal band, and insisted they only put their most aggressive material on the EP. In 1993, Zoo released Tool's full-length debut Undertow, and by September 1994 it was certified platinum for sales of a million copies.https://loudwire.com/tool-back-catalog-multi-platinum-updates-2021/ The record label also distributed Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia International Records for a short time. Being its distributor, the late Phyllis Hyman enjoyed a chart entry with "Don't Wanna Change The World," a song that was taken to US radio by radio promoter Jesus Garber, then a VP at Zoo; the single ultimately peaked at No. 59 on the Billboard R&B charts. In 1995, BMG reduced the staff at Zoo, foreshadowing problems for the label.
The label released Our Little Visionary, the 1996 debut album of Dogstar, founded by actor Keanu Reeves. However, by the following year Dogstar had been dropped from Zoo.https://www.paloaltoonline.com/morgue/cover/1997_Aug_1.ARTS1.html In August 1996, BMG sold Zoo to Kevin Czinger's newly formed Volcano Entertainment. It began as a partnership between the two labels, and new albums continued to be released under the Zoo name in late 1996 and 1997. By the end of 1997 the Zoo name had been phased out, with the label's only releases that year being Matthew Sweet's Blue Sky on Mars and Free Mars by Lusk (a band founded by ex-Tool bassist Paul D'Amour). All of Zoo's artists were absorbed by the new Volcano imprint. Volcano went through changes and was eventually sold to the Zomba Label Group in the spring of 1998. When Zomba was purchased by BMG in 2002, any remaining Zoo artists were returned to the BMG fold. BMG's assets were sold in 2008 to Sony Corporation of America and the back catalog is now handled by Sony Music Group through Volcano.
Artists 20 Fingers 7 Year Bitch Ajax Akinyele Alcohol Funnycar Bad Boys Blue Big Star Bleu Blue Train Calamity Jane Cause & Effect Clarence Clemons Coming Of Age Course of Empire Cosmic Travelers Crowbar Disturbance Dogstar Drive Flowerhead Gary Hoey Gillette Great White Green Jellÿ Hoodoo Gurus Kemelions Killers Killing Joke Little Feat Last Gentlemen Lazet Michaels Lusk Love Jones Matthew Sweet Max-A-Million Miss Alans Morpheus Nature N.F.B. Odds Oliver Who? Overlords Philip Bailey Phyllis Hyman Pood, Bhud, 'N' Pflug The Pooh Sticks Procol Harum Steve Pryor Band Street Mentality Red Square Black Replicants Rhythm Tribe Rosco Martinez Self Shaver Spelvins Tool Tung Twista Varga Voices Webb Wilder
Discography ArtistAlbumDetails Odds Neopolitan Released: 1991 Mark Germino and the Sluggers Radartown Released: 1991 Peter Wells Everything You Like Tries To Kill You Released: 1991 Steve Pryor Band Steve Pryor Band Released: 1991 Webb Wilder Doo Dad Released: 1991 Procol Harum The Prodigal Stranger Released: 1991 Cause and Effect Another Minute Released: 1991 The Pooh Sticks The Great White Wonder Released: 1991 Matthew Sweet Girlfriend Released: 1991 Procol Harum Chapter One: Turning Back The Page 1967-1991 (compilation) Released: 1991 Rhythm Tribe Sol Moderno Released: 1991 Lazet Michaels Too Strong Released: 1991 Phyllis Hyman Prime of My Life Released: 1991 Green Jellÿ Suxx! (EP) Released: 1992 Killers Murder One Released: 1992 Oliver Who? Shaka Who Who? Released: 1992 Last Gentlemen The World Behind Your Back Released: 1992 Tool Opiate (EP) Released: 1992 Drive Diablero Released: 1992 African Unity Volume One: Out Of The Flames Released: 1992 Voices Just the Beginning... Released: 1992 Flowerhead ...Ka-Bloom! Released: 1992 Matthew Sweet Goodfriend Released: 1992 Matthew Sweet Girlfriend: The Superdeformed CD (EP) Released: 1992 Tung Twista Runnin' Off at da Mouth Released: 1992 Rastine Afrodisiac Released: 1992 The Dells I Salute You Released: 1992 Matthew Sweet Altered Beast Released: 1993 Green Jellÿ Cereal Killer Soundtrack Released: 1993 Odds Bedbugs Released: 1993 Pooh Sticks Million Seller Released: 1993 Disturbance We Come out at Night Released: 1993 Tool Undertow Released: 1993 The Spelvins Whichever Train Comes Released: 1993 Bad Boys Blue Bad Boys Blue Released: 1993 Coming of Age Coming of Age Released: 1993 Loves Jones Here's to the Losers Released: 1993 Varga Prototype Released: 1994 Great White Sail Away Released: 1994 Rosco Martinez Rosco Martinez Released: 1994 Spade Ghetto Destruction Spade Ghetto Destruction Released: 1994 Ray Bailey Satan's Horn Released: 1994 The Overlords All the Naked People Released: 1994 Odds Neopolitan Released: 1991 Killing Joke Pandemonium Released: 1994 Green Jellÿ 333 Released: 1994 Roscoe Martinez Aqui Estoy Released: 1994 The Wailing Souls Lives On Released: 1994 Prairie Oyster Only One Moon Released: 1994 Tool Sober: Tales from the Darkside (EP) Released: 1994 Course of Empire Initiation Released: 1994 Matthew Sweet Son of Altered Beast (EP) Released: 1994 Philip Bailey Philip Bailey Released: 1994 The Miss Alans Blusher Released: 1994 Cause and Effect Trip Released: 1994 Red Square Black Square (EP) Released: 1994 Gillette On the Attack and More Released: 1994 Hoodoo Gurus Crank Released: 1994 Flowerhead The People's Fuzz Released: 1995 Paul Barrere If the Phone Don't Ring Released: 1995 Clarence Clemons Peacemaker Released: 1995 Shaver Unshaven: Shaver Live At Smith's Olde Bar Released: 1995 Nature Nature Released: 1995 Various Artists Mad Love (The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Released: 1995 20 Fingers 20 Fingers Released: 1995 Ajax Ex-Junkie (EP) Released: 1995 Matthew Sweet 100% Fun Released: 1995 Love Jones Powerful Pain Relief Released: 1995 Great White Stage Released: 1995 Replicants Replicants Released: 1995 G-Mo Ballin' for Life Released: 1995 John Frizzell VR.5 Released: 1995 Max-A-Million Take Your Time Released: 1995 Neal Casal Fade Away Diamond Time Released: 1995 Ajax Aphrodite (EP) Released: 1995 Self Subliminal Plastic Motives Released: 1995 Tool Ænima Released: 1996 Various Artists The Pompatus of Love: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Released: 1996 Killing Joke Democracy Released: 1996 Gillette Shake Your Money Maker Released: 1996 Little Feat Live from Neon Park Released: 1996 Dogstar Quattro Formaggi (EP) Released: 1996 Hoodoo Gurus Blue Cave Released: 1996 Dogstar Our Little Visionary Released: 1996 Matthew Sweet Blue Sky on Mars Released: 1997 Lusk Free Mars Released: 1997
See also List of record labels Volcano Entertainment Freeworld Entertainment
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