Independent record label distributed her label, Ode Records), Joe Cocker, Free, Cat Stevens, Procol Harum, Humble Pie, Peter Frampton, The Police and Sting (as a solo artist), Styx, Bryan Adams, Amy Grant, Suzanne Vega and Sheryl Crow. A&M was also the initial distributor of Windham Hill Records and George Harrison's Dark Horse Records. Alpert and Moss sold A&M Records to Polygram in 1989 with the caveat that Alpert and Moss would continue to manage the label. Polygram was bought by Universal Music Group in 1998, and A&M folded the following year. The punk rock movement was another turning point for independent labels, the
Jack Daugherty (musician) Roger Nichols, Richard felt that he was producing the records and Daugherty put his name on them. In 1972, Daugherty had his own secretary at A&M and was paid a $25,000 salary (US$ in dollars) in addition to royalties from The Carpenters' records, but after he was fired from A&M, Daugherty sued Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss for wrongful termination and he claimed that his termination undermined his credibility in the music industry. He lost the 9-year lawsuit after the courts ruled in favour of both A&M and The Carpenters, but the defense cost the record label $350,000 (US$ in