Dave Robinson (music executive)

Robinson was born in Drumcondra, Dublin.[2] He left Ireland while he was still a teenager and was hired as a photographer at Butlins Bognor Regis.[5] From there he had jobs in London. He started with Rave magazine, where he a photographer. He took photographs of The Beatles in The Cavern Club in Liverpool and then went onto photograph The Rolling Stones as the official photographer for their first tour Ireland.[6]

Robinson went onto manage Irish band Eire Apparent on a tour bill that included The Nice, The Move, Pink Floyd, Amen Corner and the Jimi Hendrix Experience.[7] He went onto become a tour manager for Jimi Hendrix from his first tour of the UK until just before his death.[8] He also managed The Animals,[9] The Young Rascals and Vanilla Fudge.[10] He also then went onto manage Van Morrison, Graham Parker, Nick Lowe, Dave Edmunds, Ian Dury and Elvis Costello, amongst others.[8][10] Robinson also built a makeshift eight-track recording studio in the downstairs of the Hope and Anchor, Islington,[8][11] and he created a network of 35 pubs in London where bands could play what they liked.[12]

Robinson co-founded Stiff Records in August 1976 with his business partner Jake Riviera, with a £400 loan from the Dr. Feelgood lead singer Lee Brilleaux.[9] He started as managing director,[13] and started signing up The Damned, Motörhead, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, Tracey Ullman, The Plasmatics, Jona Lewie, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, Kirsty MacColl, The Box Tops, The Adverts, Lene Lovich, The Pogues, and Madness, amongst others.[8]

Stiff merged with Island Records between 1984 and 1985,[9] with Robinson becoming President of the record company, while still head of Stiff.[8][14] Later Robinson admitted that the merger was a mistake. He said "Island was in a bad financial state and I spent too much time worrying about his label and not enough about my own. I had a big hand in the success of Legend, the Bob Marley compilation; U2 went multi-platinum; and I had a lot to do with the marketing of Frankie Goes to Hollywood. (Chris) Blackwell (the founder of Island Records) kind of double-crossed me after I'd essentially saved his arse".[9] Stiff again became an independent again after the demerger, however by 1986 Stiff had gone into liquidation and was sold to ZTT records for £300,000[15]

By 2004, Robinson had established Shell Records to be able to release Best Laid Plans by Sandra McCracken.[16] He was a director of the label for just 6 days, from 7 May 2004 until 12 May 2004.[17]

• Richard Balls (30 October 2014). Be Stiff: The Stiff Records Story. Soundcheck Books. ISBN 978-0-9575700-6-1.

• Media related to Dave Robinson at Wikimedia Commons