What was the name of the cheap record singles label that Woolworths brought out to sell cover versions of hit songs
Embassy Records Embassy Records Embassy Records was a UK budget record label that produced cover versions of current hit songs, which were sold exclusively in Woolworths shops at a lower price than the original recordings. The original label was active between 1954 and 1965, after which it disappeared when its parent company, Oriole, was taken over by CBS Records. Later, between 1973 and 1980, CBS Records revived the Embassy imprint to release budget versions of albums in the UK and Europe by artists who were signed to its parent company, Columbia Records. Embassy Records was the result of a contractual arrangement between
Woolworths Group singles featuring two cover versions of current hit singles sold at a much cheaper price. This venture was very successful at the time, but was eventually killed off when other record companies started to issue compilation albums. However, Woolworths remained in the music business selling a wide range of singles and albums, and remained the UK's Number 1 music retailer well into the 1990s. Even successful nationwide music specialists stores such as Virgin Megastores and HMV did not overtake Woolworths during this time. They later suffered from strong competition in this field from the large supermarket chains Tesco and Asda.