The Stiff Records record label was created in 1976, at the height of the punk boom by Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera .
The label entered a distribution deal with Island Records. Riviera left Stiff in 1977 to form Radar Records. In 1984 Stiff became part of Island Records. The deal wasn't a success and Robinson regained control in 1986 of the newly independent label. After a serious cashflow crisis, ZTT Records bought the label for a reported £300.000.
Stiff billed themselves as The World's Most Flexible Record Label. The label had a lot of attitude. Other slogans were "We came. We saw. We left." and "If it ain't Stiff it ain't worth a fuck."
Barney Bubbles was responsible for the graphic art associated with Stiff Records.
Although Stiff had the punk reputation, it hosted a wide variety of players. Artists who recorded on Stiff include:
- Elvis Costello, angry young rocker
- Ian Dury and the Blockheads, blend of jazz and pub rock, creators of rock and roll anthem "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll"
- Wreckless Eric, wry pub rocker
- Kirsty MacColl
- Madness, ska and more
- Tracey Ullman, over-the-top pop
- Larry Wallis, crazed punk, on his own and with the Pink Fairies and the first version of Motörhead.
- Dave Edmunds, rockabilly revivalist
- The Adverts
- Graham Parker
- Jona Lewie
- Devo, kitschy futuristic new wave
- The Damned
- Any Trouble
- Richard Hell and The Voidoids, punk to be sure
- Nick Lowe, "Looking for love in the heart of the city"
- Sean Tyla and the Tyla Gang, early power pop
- Plasmatics
- The Pogues
- Lene Lovich
- Rachel Sweet
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