Essex Records was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 in 1951

1951 in music

-Events:*January 29 – Nilla Pizzi wins the first annual Sanremo Music Festival with "Grazie dei fiori".*February – The first complete performance of Charles Ives's Second Symphony is given in Carnegie Hall by the New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Bernstein.*March – Alan...

 by David Miller

Dave Miller (producer)

Dave Miller was a record producer and the founder of many budget album record companies.-Biography:...

 primarily to record contemporary country and western, rhythm and blues

Rhythm and blues

Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...

 as well as jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 and gospel

Gospel

A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...

. Jack Howard was the promotion manager. The label had little popular success. They issued a 1954 single called "Oh, Mein Papa". Later they became known for the release of the early Bill Haley & His Comets

Bill Haley & His Comets

Bill Haley & His Comets was an American rock and roll band that was founded in 1952 and continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band, also known by the names Bill Haley and The Comets and Bill Haley's Comets , was the earliest group of white musicians to bring rock and roll to the attention of...

 recordings such as "Rock the Joint

Rock the Joint

"Rock the Joint", also known as "We're Gonna Rock This Joint Tonight", is a boogie song recorded by various proto-rock and roll singers, notably Jimmy Preston and early rock and roll singers, most notably Bill Haley...

" and "Crazy Man Crazy" the latter of which is the first rock and roll

Rock and roll

Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...

 recording to make the American record charts when it was released in 1953.

The label also released the first 12-inch album of rock and roll music with its 1954 Haley compilation Rock with Bill Haley and the Comets

Rock with Bill Haley and the Comets

Rock with Bill Haley and the Comets is the title of an early rock and roll music compilation album issued by Essex Records in 1954, and featuring music by the titular group, Bill Haley & His Comets. The album features recordings made by Haley in 1952 and 1953, including his hits, "Rock the Joint"...

. Haley's first big hit, "Crazy Man, Crazy" was followed by two other chart hits, "Fractured", and "Live It Up". In 1954, Haley left Essex for Decca Records

Decca Records

Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....

. The colour of the Essex label was orange with the print in black.