Evergreen Records

Grove Press, publishers of Evergreen Books' fine line of higher-priced paperbacks . . ., PW, Sept. 23, 1957, at 62. 

GROVE PRESS. publishers of Evergreen Books' fine line of higher-priced paperbacks, is going into the record business on the side. The first release under the new Evergreen Record label is the “San Francisco Poets,” featuring the reading of twenty-four poems by ten modern San Francisco poets, including Allen Ginsberg, Robert Duncan, Michael McClure, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, James Broughton and Brother Antoninus. All the poems on the record are included in the new San Francisco edition of the quarterly Evergreen Review, (see page 58, this issue) Allen Ginsberg’s much-discussed poem, “Howl,” is one of those on the disc. Release date for the “San Francisco Poets” record was September 8. Like all the other Evergreen Records to come, this first one is a 33 1/3 RPM, unbreakable 12-inch recording and will retail at a list price of $5.95. Evergreen Records will certainly be promoted through bookstores as well as record shops and booksellers may order them directly from Grove Press at the regular book discount. Future Evergreen Records will include poetry, drama and music.

Aaron Sternfield, Grove Back in Disk Business, BILLBOARD, Apr. 15, 1967, at 1 & 10: 

Grove Press, noted as a publisher of avant-garde books and plays, has reactivated its Evergreen label with the original cast recording of "MacBird." Distribution will be directly to book shops and to record distributors. Over the years, Grove has released three other albums — "San Francisco Poets," "End Game," the Samuel Beckett play, and "The Music of Afghanistan and Iran," none of which made any showing on the charts. However, Grove's latest incursion into the record business has a better chance of succeeding than the previous ventures. Grove owns the Mid-Century Book Club and plans to use the club membership as a mailing list for its record product. And, according to Grove executive Morrie Goldfisher, the publisher also produces motion pictures and publishes plays by Harold Pinter, British author whose current play, "Homecoming," is a hit on Broadway. "Waiting for Godot," a Beckett play, has sold 300,000 copies, Goldfisher said. Evergreen's new release, "MacBird," lists for $9.50 in both monaural and stereo. The published edition of the play has already topped the 400,000 mark in sales. Distribution plans call for a continuation of direct sales to book stores, with record stores reached through normal record distribution channels.