Gavin

Very early on Tuesday, December 18, 2007, I learned that True North Records had been sold to Linus Entertainment of Mississauga, Ontario. I had talked with Bernie on December 12 and he told me there might be some big news coming out of True North in the next week… to give him a call soon. Well, sure enough, there was big news. I talked with Bernie on December 20, the last day of operation of True North Records as it has been known since 1969.

BF: I hope so. That’s really one of the main reasons why I’m doing it. Time to change you know, Daniel. I’ve been doing this for a long, long time… at least 38 years with the label and 44 years including the time leading up to the label. It’s been long. I’m staying in of course. I’m absolutely very clearly still Bruce’s manager and still Bruce’s music publisher along with Bruce. So we are continuing our relationship. From that point of view it’s business as usual. The actual record label and some of the other interests that the label had, have now been sold as of Monday, December 17.

We’re going to have a very tight, kick-ass management company. We’re staying with Stephen Fearing. We have two young bands, Hunter Valentine and Golden Dogs that we’re staying with for the time being anyway. Starting January 2, to some degree, I’ll just be walking into the same offices. There’s going to be less people. True North is moving out to Mississauga. We’re staying here in this office… that won’t change.

To those that are specifically interested in Bruce it probably won’t seem like very much has changed at all because I’m here and it will be somewhat similar. Bruce will do another new album for True North and then we’ll see what the future brings. But we don’t know when that record is. I’m not expecting to see a record hit the stores until 2009. I’m just booking a bunch of dates in May for him after Alaska. They will all be in New England. Probably six or seven right after Alaska, including probably a date in Boston at the Somerville Theatre, probably Northampton… solo shows.

One of the financial backers, Harvey Glatt, is one of my older friends. He used to, many, many, many years ago, even before me; manage Bruce for a short while. I was then partners with Harvey for awhile at a couple of radio stations. Geoff Kulawick has a nice label called Linus. He’s going to run both companies somewhat separately but with the same staff, at least at the beginning. I can’t really speak to exactly what he’s going to do as time goes by. He put out Gordon Lightfoot’s last album. He’s put out a couple of Ron Sexsmith albums. He’s a good buyer. The company, True North, will move to Mississauga. I’m going to be Chair of the new company at least during a longer transitional period, so there will be lots of continuity. It’s coming at a pretty good time because we don’t have any new releases right now… not unintentionally.

It’s one of those things that has a lot more gray area than black and white. The black and white is: I won’t own True North. But all the gray areas are that, in a way, I continue to do what’s most important to me right now, which is continuing to work with Bruce and publishing the music. To some degree it’s going to look like business as usual except I’m going to have a lot more time to think, I think. [laughter, a pause] …I think. That was what I promised myself.

As well as that, we might record the shows that we’re doing in New England. One album we’ve never put out is a live, solo album. I know how much everybody would like to have one… I know how much I’d like to have one. We’re thinking about that [Bernie states that this idea is speculative at this point].

Interrupted with a phone call from one of his bands with crisis out on the road, Bernie excuses himself and goes back to work. END

True North Records announces strategic investment by Canadian group led by Linus Entertainment.

TORONTO, Dec. 18 /CNW/ - Bernie Finkelstein, founder and President of
True North Records, a division of High Romance Music Ltd, Canada's oldest
independent record label that owns many of Canada's most historic recordings
including the catalog of Bruce Cockburn, Murray McLauchlan, Blackie & The
Rodeo Kings, Rough Trade as well as emerging artists Golden Dogs, Hunter
Valentine and Catherine MacLellan, today announced the completion of a
strategic investment by Linus Entertainment, entrepreneurs Harvey Glatt, and
Mike Pilon.

Linus Entertainment is home to prominent Canadian recordings by Gordon
Lightfoot, Sophie Milman, Ron Sexsmith, Alannah Myles, Quartetto Gelato,
Downchild, and Ashley MacIsaac. Both companies are distributed in Canada by
Universal Music.

Finkelstein, a recipient of the Order of Canada and inductee into the
Canadian Music Hall of Fame, will remain with True North as Chairman and as a
long term consultant, while Linus Entertainment CEO Geoff Kulawick becomes CEO
of both companies, and will be responsible for day-to-day management.

Finkelstein Management and the publishing interests of Bruce Cockburn are
not a part of the deal and both will continue to be operated by Mr
Finkelstein.

Said Mr. Finkelstein of the deal, "It's been a long, interesting and
fulfilling road starting and building True North these past 38 years but all
things must change. It's been a thrill to work with all the wonderful
musicians and on all of the great records we've done together over the years
but it's time for True North to have new direction and energy. I think Geoff
Kulawick and his partners will bring those qualities to True North and I'm
looking forward to continuing my commitment to True North as Chairman."

Said Mr. Kulawick, "The True North label, and Bernie in particular have
been an inspiration to me. It is my goal to see True North continue to grow,
and its great roster of artists reach even more people. The most powerful form
of communication is music, and through the incredible talent of artists like
Bruce Cockburn, music can influence, and change people."

THE HISTORY OF TRUE NORTH RECORDS

True North Records began in 1969. Founded by Bernie Finkelstein as a
response to the lack of record companies willing to sign Canadian artists in
Canada as well as the lack of understanding of things Canadian in America,
True North's first signing was Bruce Cockburn. Some 29 albums later Bruce
Cockburn is still signed to True North and has become one of Canada's most
recognizable and respected musical acts of all time.

By 1972 True North had also signed Murray McLauchlan who along with Bruce
now has the Order Of Canada and is known as one of Canada's leading
troubadours.

As True North grew the company opened two new divisions, one for music-
publishing and one for management.

In 1979 True North signed the seminal alternative band Rough Trade who in
many ways revolutionized Canada's music scene with their sexually charged
political songs and inventive music and arrangements. Indeed during their
active career they received a double platinum CD, a platinum CD and two gold
CD's. Their song "All Touch" became an international hit reaching the charts
around the world including the US and Australia.

The period between 1979 and 1985 were to become a golden period for True
North with major hits from Bruce Cockburn, Dan Hill, Murray McLauchlan and
Rough Trade happening during a short time. Dan Hill hit the top of the world's
charts with "Sometimes When We Touch," Cockburn with "Wondering Where The
Lions Are," the aforementioned Rough Trade with "High School Confidential" and
"All Touch" and Murray put out his best selling CD "Whispering Rain." In 1985
True North continued to put out international hits with the release of Bruce
Cockburn's "If I Had A Rocket Launcher." During this same period the company
signed Graham Shaw to a management contract. Graham went on to win a Juno
award in 1985 which was a particularly fruitful Juno's for True North with the
company and its artists winning 5 Junos.

True North and its artists have won over 40 Junos and has 39 gold and
platinum CD's as well as several International awards from countries like the
US, Italy and Holland.

In 1988 True North Management signed Vancouverite Barney Bentall who went
on to have 1 Platinum and 3 Gold records. Barney is now back with True North
after a ten year absence with the release of his new CD "Gift Horse."

In 1995 True North moved its distribution to Universal Canada after 25
years with Sony Music Canada. At the same True North went from being an
independent "licensed" label to a full line independent label with its own
press and promotion people. It was also the year that True North went from
exclusively releasing only Canadian artists to also releasing artists in
Canada from all over the world. Its first international artist was Kelly Joe
Phelps who has gone on to build a very successful career around the world
including Canada. True North now distributes several foreign labels in Canada
including the UK's Cooking Vinyl and Americas Fuel 2000 and Signature Sounds
and has released records by such luminaries as Jethro Tull, Shawn Colvin and
Richard Thompson.

However Canadian music has remained True North's first and greatest love.
Since 1995 the label has released such Canadian luminaries as The Cowboy
Junkies, Stephen Fearing, Randy Bachman, The Rheostatics, 54-40 and Lenny
Breau. The label has also recently won Juno awards for Lynn Miles, Stephen
Fearing, Zubot & Dawson, Bruce Cockburn, and Blackie & the Rodeo Kings.

Recently True North has signed two new young rock acts, The Golden Dogs
and Hunter Valentine. The Golden Dogs through True North's efforts have
recently signed a new recording agreement in the US with the highly thought of
independent label Yep Roc. Their sophomore album "Big Eye Little Eye" was
released in the US in August 2007 and has been greeted with encouraging
amounts of airplay and media attention and just returned from their maiden
American tour in November. Hunter Valentine who are an all female rock trio
have just released their debut CD "The Impatient Romantic" and are also
receiving lots of positive attention from the media.

True North most recently signed Catherine MacLennan and released her
debut True North recording "Church Bell Blues."Catherine is highly original
young singer-songwriter from Halifax. She is currently touring across Canada
and the US.

Now Canada's oldest as well as one of its largest independent record
companies True North has remained at the forefront of Canadian music and the
Canadian music business for some 38 years - a remarkable achievement in an
industry characterized by short term, quick meteoric rises and falls.

Bernie Finkelstein was recently honoured by Juno's where he was inducted
into the Hall Of Fame and further was honoured by being inducted into the
Order of Canada.

Pioneering Canadian indie music champion Bernard Finkelstein is stepping back from the day-to-day leadership of his landmark label, True North Records.

Finkelstein announced Tuesday that he has made a deal with Linus Entertainment, whose head, Geoff Kulawick will now be CEO of both companies.

However, Finkelstein will remain chairman of, and a long-term consultant for True North.

"It's been a long, interesting and fulfilling road starting and building Truth North these past 38 years, but all things must change," Finkelstein, a member of the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame, said in a statement.

The deal does not include Finkelstein Management — as a top talent manager, his roster has included artists such as Bruce Cockburn, Murray McLaughlan and Dan Hill — or the publishing interests of Cockburn, who was the first artist Finkelstein signed to True North and who remains one of the label's best known artists. Both will continue to be run by Finkelstein.

The Toronto-born music executive began his career in the late 1960s as a talent manager of groups such as Kensington Market.

In 1969, he founded True North Records as a platform to promote Canadian recording artists, whom U.S. companies were not as willing to sign to record deals.

The company, which has since released music by the likes of Randy Bachman, 54-40, Rough Trade, the Rheostatics and Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, is now Canada's oldest independent record label.

Last year, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences awarded Finkelstein its Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award, which honours "individuals who have contributed to the growth and development of the Canadian music industry."

TORONTO - Linus Entertainment has bought True North Records, Canada's oldest independent record label.

Under the deal announced Tuesday, True North founder Bernie Finkelstein is selling the company and will step down as president but remain on as chairman and serve as a long-term consultant. Linus president and CEO Geoff Kulawick will take over as CEO and president of Toronto-based True North.

Finkelstein founded True North in 1969 and is a member of the Order of Canada.

In an interview, Finkelstein said he thought it was time for him to make a change.

"I've had 38 relatively great years," he said over the phone. "I was feeling restless, I guess, so I wanted to sort of make a change and I also just felt that there were other things that I would like to free up some time to do.

"I'm 63 now. I think that it was just time for me to move along and I think Geoff is a great buyer and a great inheritor of what we have."

Finkelstein added that he did not sell Finkelstein Management Company Ltd. or Golden Mountain Music Corp., which holds the publishing interests of Bruce Cockburn.

Cockburn was the first artist signed by True North Records. The company's recording catalogue also includes Randy Bachman, Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, Murray McLauchlan, the Rheostatics and 54-40.

Kulawick founded Linus Entertainment in 2001. The Mississauga, Ont.-based company has a sound recording label, two music publishing companies and provides artist management and music supervision services.

Linus is distributed by Universal Music in Canada and Koch Entertainment in the U.S.

Posted December 19, 2007

Founder sells iconic record label
Bernie Finkelstein, Juno-winning founder, will stay on as chair
The Toronto Star
December 19, 2007
GREG QUILL

True North Records, the independent Canadian record label that grew from a phone booth on Yorkville Ave. to a powerhouse in domestic and international markets, has a new owner.

"I've been in the music business for 43 years and in the recording business for 38, and there's only so much time left to make changes in my life that I can dictate," Bernie Finkelstein, 63, the company founder and Canadian music industry icon, said yesterday.

He confirmed that True North – with a catalogue of some 300 albums, including classics by Bruce Cockburn, Murray McLauchlan, Rough Trade, Stephen Fearing, Rheostatics, Colin Linden, Lynn Miles, Blackie and the Rodeo Kings and David Wiffen – will be taken over by Mississauga-based independent Linus Entertainment.

There's also financial backing from Ottawa radio station owner Harvey Glatt and a private investor, Mike Pilon from Courtice, Ont.

Linus CEO Geoff Kulawick, a former artist and repertoire manager at EMI/Virgin, will operate thetwo companies as separate entities, said Finkelstein, who underwent heart bypass surgery two years ago.

Financial details of the deal are confidential, but music industry insiders put the value of True North's catalogue and assets at between $2.5 million and $4 million.

Finkelstein will stay on as True North chair and adviser, and retains the publishing administration rights to Cockburn's songs.

A recipient of the Order of Canada and inductee into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, Finkelstein will continue to manage Cockburn, Fearing, and the rock bands Hunter Valentine and The Golden Dogs. He will also remain chair of VideoFACT, the government-financed organization that funds videos for Canadian music artists.

Finkelstein's plans also include writing a memoir of the Canadian music industry.

Linus, in operation since 2001, has a catalogue of about 50 Canadian artists, including an exclusive contract with jazz chanteuse/songwriter Sophie Milman and licensed recordings by Gordon Lightfoot, Downchild, Ron Sexsmith and Ashley MacIsaac. The new company will honour all existing True North contracts, Kulawick said.

"This is the biggest deal of my life, Bernie is a creative and energetic businessman and has always been a mentor to me."

MORE...

Posted: December 21, 2007
The Larry LeBlanc Newsletter
Issue # 12 (December 21, 2007)

Will The Last Label Standing, Please Turn Off The Light

Financial details of the transaction aren’t being disclosed but Linus Entertainment is taking over True North Records, the Canadian label that has long evoked comparisons with such heritage American imprints as Atlantic, Elektra, Rounder, and Verve.

Under the deal announced Dec. 18, True North owner/founder Bernie Finkelstein, 63, is selling the Toronto-based label and will step down as president. He will remain, however, as chairman.

Linus Entertainment president/CEO Geoff Kulawick will take over as CEO/president of True North as well as continue to operate Mississauga-based Linus Entertainment as a separate entity.

“It’s a fantastic catalog with fantastic artists,” says Kulawick. “Combining the True North and Linus operations makes great business sense. We will run both labels out of one location and share staff resources. It gives us more trading leverage.”

“It was clear to me that I needed to make a change,” says Finkelstein. “Certainly it was difficult. True North is my baby. To wake up thinking ‘It’s not mine anymore’ was an interesting feeling. But the time had come. It has been a wonderful trip.”

For the deal Kulawick has undisclosed financial backing from Finkelstein Ottawa-based confidante Harvey Glatt, and a private investor, Mike Pilon from Courtice, Ont. Glatt has been involved in almost every aspect of the Canadian music industry, including retail, distribution, and artist management. In 1977, he was a key force in the creation of the Ottawa FM radio station, CHEZ, with Finkelstein as a minority shareholder.

Finkelstein will continue to operate Finkelstein Management which has managed Canadian singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn since 1971 and also handles Canadian singer/songwriter Stephen Fearing, and the Canadian rock bands Hunter Valentine and the Golden Dogs.

“I’m staying in the business,” declares Finkelstein. “We’re going to put together a tight, kick-ass management company.”

Finkelstein remains chair of VideoFACT, the organization that funds videos for Canadian music artists; and he will continue to administer Cockburn's songs, published by Golden Mountain Music, which the two co-own. He has also been recently named to the board of the Radio Starmaker Fund, the private funding agency developed by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters.

With the True North transaction, there are shifts in personnel. Mark Kozar, dir. of financial administration, and Vee Popat, national promotions manager will remain with True North; Graham Stairs, and Noah Finkelstein will move to Finkelstein Management; and office manager Tiffany Ferguson will work now at VideoFact.

Meanwhile, Sue McCallum, dir. of media relations & video promotion, and Dan Broome VP operations & administration have been left without jobs. As well, Elizabeth Blomme, dir. of publishing & licensing will retire.

True North Records is a prime example of a small, independent imprint, recognized not only for a superior artist roster but also as a brand name. Over 37 years, it has been awarded 40 Juno Awards.

Since debuting with Cockburn's self-titled first album in 1970, True North has released over 450 albums. Those include 130 of its own masters by pivotal Canadian acts such as Cockburn, Murray McLauchlan, Rough Trade, Barney Bentall, Gregory Hoskins, Randy Bachman, plus a current roster of Fearing, Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, Joel Kroeker, Catherine MacLellan, Hunter Valentine, the Golden Dogs, and jazz guitarist Michael Occhipinti.

Ironically, in the late-80s, Finkelstein practically phased True North out to concentrate instead on his management division. In 1995, with only Cockburn and Fearing on the label’s roster, Finkelstein began reshaping True North. He switched Canadian distribution from Sony Music Entertainment (Canada), which had handled the label from its origins, to MCA (now Universal) Canada where it remains. True North also handles Canadian distribution of Cooking Vinyl, Fuel 2000, SCI Fidelity and Signature Sounds.

Kulawick formed Linus after resigning as dir. of A&R at Virgin/EMI Music Canada in 2000. He signed a pressing and distribution deal with Warner Canada in 2001, and switched to Universal Music Canada in 2004.

As dir. of A&R for six years at Virgin Music Canada, Kulawick had developed its eclectic domestic roster, which ranged from Toronto rapper Choclair to the Ontario-based Celtic family group, Leahy. In his earlier post as creative director at Warner/Chappell Music, Kulawick had signed urban acts Maestro, and Rupert Gayle; alternative rock bands the Tea Party and the Rheostatics; and Celtic rockers Spirit of the West.

To date, Linus Entertainment has released albums by jazz chanteuse Sophie Milman, the Canadian Brass, Tuuli, By Divine Right, Harpoon Missile, and Not by Choice. It has also licensed recordings by Gordon Lightfoot, Downchild, Alannah Myles, Ron Sexsmith and Ashley MacIsaac.

"I see an opportunity for an A&R driven and a small-to-medium artist development enterprise being able to develop artists and then license them internationally,” said Kulawick in 2002. “We'll build the company by being both a label and a publisher. Many (Canadian) independents aren't taking ownership. They are providing a service, really. I'm building assets, and a company with a value."

Meanwhile, Finkelstein has one more project to keep him busy.

“I’m going to take a serious kick at the can of trying to write a book,” he says. “It will be a memoir of being in the music industry since the 1960s, and being a Canadian.”

Larry was the Canadian bureau chief of Billboard for 16 years.