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Dick Rowe

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Music Producer

The Resume

    (June 9, 1921-June 6, 1986)
    Born in London, United Kingdom
    Produced #1 UK singles by the Stargazers ('Broken Wings,' 1953), 'Lita Roza ('How Much Is That Doggie in the Window,' 1953), Jimmy Young ('Unchained Melody,' 1955), Dickie Valentine ('Christmas Alphabet, 1955), and Jet Harris and Tony Meehan ('Diamonds,' 1963)
    Head of A&R (Singles) for Decca Records
    With Decca executive Mike Smith, auditioned the Beatles (January 1, 1963)
    Decided to sign Brian Poole and the Tremeloes instead

Why he might be annoying:

    Despite a long and varied career, he is remembered mainly as 'the man who turned down the Beatles.'
    According to Beatles manager Brian Epstein, he declared 'Groups with guitars are on the way out.'
    His main reason for choosing the Tremeloes over the Beatles: the Tremeloes were based in London and it would be easier to work with a local group.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He always denied making the 'Groups with guitars' comment.
    Some music historians suspect that if he did make the remark, it was intended as a way of letting Epstein and the band down easily.
    In fairness to Rowe, the five songs from the Decca audition on 'Anthology 1' don't exactly scream 'This band's gonna outsell Elvis!'
    The Beatles were also turned down by Columbia, EMI, HMV, Pye, Philips, and Oriole, so Rowe was hardly the only executive to find the band lacking.
    The Beatles apparently did not hold a grudge over their rejection: when Rowe and George Harrison were both panelists on 'Juke Box Jury,' Harrison recommended that he check out an unsigned London rock band, Rolling Stones.
    In addtion to the Rolling Stones, acts he signed to Decca included the Zombies, the Moody Blues, Them featuring Van Morrison, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, the Small Faces, and Tom Jones.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 79 Votes: 30.38% Annoying