| Cobra Records | |
| Founder: | Eli Toscano |
| Status: | Defunct |
| Genre: | Blues, rhythm and blues |
| Country: | United States |
| Location: | Chicago |
Cobra Records was an independent record label that operated in Chicago from 1956 to 1959 and launched the careers of Chicago blues artists Otis Rush, Magic Sam and Buddy Guy, a new generation who pioneered the West Side Sound.
Cobra was started on Chicago's West Side in 1956 by Eli Toscano, a record store- and television repair shop owner, with help from promoter Howard Bedno. When his previous record label, Abco Records, failed to generate much interest, Toscano approached Willie Dixon about working for him. Dissatisfied with his arrangement with Chess Records, Dixon joined Cobra and served as a talent scout, producer, arranger, songwriter and bassist, becoming "the artistic vision behind Cobra Records".
First to record for Cobra was Otis Rush. His single "I Can't Quit You Baby" became a hit, spending six weeks in the Billboard R&B chart, where it reached number six in 1956. Rush recorded another seven singles for Cobra, described as "defining moments of Chicago blues." In 1957, Magic Sam recorded his signature song "All Your Love" and released four singles on Cobra. Buddy Guy released two singles in 1958 on Cobra's Artistic Records subsidiary.
From 1956–1958 Cobra issued singles by a variety of acts, including Ike Turner and several blues veterans. However, by 1959 financial troubles overtook the company and it went out of business. The Cobra catalogue was subsequently purchased by Stan Lewis of Jewel/Paula/Ron Records. Most of the Cobra (and Artistic) recordings (57 tracks, including several alternate and outtakes) were released on The Cobra Records Story: Chicago Rock and Blues 1956–1958 by Capricorn Records in 1993. In 2013, 40 songs from the Cobra catalogue were released on a two-CD set, titled Double Trouble: The Cobra Record Story.
| Artist | Title (A-side / B-side) | Year released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "I Can't Quit You Baby" / "Sit Down Baby" | 1956 | |||
| "Rock and Roll Boogie" / "I Do" | ||||
| "Have a Good Time" / "Need My Baby" | ||||
| "Fine Girl" / "Mambo Fiesta" | ||||
| & His Combo | "One More Dance" / "You Eat Too Much" | |||
| & His Band | "Violent Love" / "My Love Will Never Die" | |||
| Sunnyland Slim | "It's You Baby" / "Highway 61" | 1957 | ||
| "Fishin' in My Pond" / "I'll Just Keep Walkin'" | ||||
| "I Need a Man" / "For You and Only You" | ||||
| Duke Jenkins Orchestra | "Something Else" / "The Duke Walks" | |||
| "Groaning the Blues" / "If You Were Mine" | ||||
| "Crying the Blues" / "Little Girl" | ||||
| "Messed Up" / "I Don't Care Who Knows" | ||||
| Magic Sam | "All Your Love" / "Love Me with a Feeling" | |||
| "Born with Rhythm" / "Lonely Lonely Village" | ||||
| "Love That Woman" / "Jump Sister Bessie" | ||||
| "Changing Love" / "Don't Leave Me" | ||||
| Guitar Shorty | "You Don't Treat Me Right" / "Irma Lee" | |||
| "Stop for the Red Light" / "Satisfied" | ||||
| "My Life Depends on You" / "My Love" | ||||
| Duke Jenkins Orchestra | "Where Can My Loved One Be" / "Shake It" | |||
| Magic Sam | "Everything Gonna Be Alright" / "Look Whatcha Done" | 1958 | ||
| , Willie Dixon Band | "She Knocks Me Out" / "A Heart (Filled with Pain)" | |||
| with Willie Dixon Orchestra | "Three Times a Fool" / "She's a Good 'Un" | |||
| "Ain't Gonna Cry" / "Killer Diller" | ||||
| Magic Sam | "All Night Long" / "All My Whole Life" | |||
| & His Band | "I Cry for You" / "Betty Jean" | |||
| "It Takes Time" / "Checking on My Baby" | ||||
| Jimmy & Kelly the Rock-a-Beats | "Little Chickie" / "Bonnie" | |||
| Magic Sam | "Easy Baby" / "21 Days in Jail" | |||
| & His Band | "Double Trouble" / "Keep on Loving Me, Baby" | |||
| & Willie Dixon Band | "I'll Weep No More" / "Tell Me, Darling" | |||
| & His Band | "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)" / "My Baby's a Good 'Un" | |||
| 's Kings of Rhythm | "Walking Down the Aisle" / "Box Top" | 1959 |
| Artist | Title (A-side / B-side) | Year released | |
|---|---|---|---|
| & Willie Dixon Band | "Row Your Boat" / "Hidden Charms" | 1958 | |
| & His Band | "Sit and Cry (The Blues)" / "Try to Quit You Baby" | ||
| & Willie Dixon Band | "Roll Your Moneymaker" / "Call Me if You Need Me" | ||
| & His Band | "This Is the End" / "You Sure Can't Do" | 1959 | |
| 's Kings of Rhythm | "(I Know) You Don't Love Me" / "Down and Out" |
| Artist | Title (A-side / B-side) | Year released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "I'll Always Remember You" / "Meet Me Half Way" | 1956 | |||
| Herby Joe | "Smoke Stack Lightning" / "Dreamed (Last Night)" | |||
| Zona Sago's Modern Sounds | "Short Order" / "Jivin' at Random" | |||
| & the Aces | "Can't This Be Mine" / "Playin' Hard to Get" | |||
| & the Aces | "Just Whaling" / "Bluesy" | |||
| Rip-Chords | "I Love You the Most" / "Let's Do the Razzle Dazzle" | |||
| "Screaming and Crying" / "Maybe Blues" | ||||
| "When I Find My Baby" / "Please Let It Be Me'" | 1957 |