Marmalade Records

Did You Know?

• Marmalade's first release, in August 1966, was a controversial single called "We Love The Pirate Stations" by five musicians masquerading as The Roaring 60's, mainly members of the Ivy League who later became The Flower Pot Men.
• Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger and The Trinity reached No.5 in the UK in 1968 with "This Wheel's on Fire".
• John McLaughlin's first solo album, Extrapolation, was released on Marmalade in 1969.
• After Utopia collapsed, Tomato Records grew out of the wreckage and took over Utopia's back catalogue, re-releasing Magma's Live/Hhaï in 1978.

Aftermath

For the BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous, which aired from 1990 to 1996, Driscoll performed "This Wheel's on Fire" as the closing theme. She did so without Auger, instead singing alongside Adrian Edmondson, who was married to the show's creator and star Jennifer Saunders. After a period managing the French progressive rock group Magma, Gomelsky relocated to New York City in the mid-1970s. There, he helped establish Utopia Records, a label envisioned with the same alternative, innovative spirit as Marmalade.

Gomelsky produced Magma's Live/Hhaï for Utopia in 1975. The label, co-founded with Kevin Eggers, was reportedly bankrolled by RCA president Ken Glancy. Gomelsky was gradually pushed aside as Eggers took control. Utopia eventually collapsed, and Tomato Records emerged from its remains, acquiring the back catalogue. Tomato reissued Live/Hhaï in 1978, and Gomelsky's production later surfaced on several other labels.