Like 53rd and 3rd Records, you can't talk C86 without talking Sarah Records. Sarah Records had the whole DIY, indie thing down, also like 53rd and 3rd, but they were a bit more political about it. The label grew out of a 'zine, and their releases often came packaged with political writings of a decidedly socialist bent. They also took on that whole "macho" thing the music industry sometimes has going on. After over 100 7" singles, plenty of full length albums, and a board game, Sarah decided to self destruct, taking out ads in the music press to announce the label was shutting down. In the ads they said, "we don't do encores" - and they haven't, no matter how much music fans wish they would. In the story of Sarah lies one of the things that makes the music business unique - you could tell a hundred business people the way Sarah Records planned to operate, and they would assure any such business would be destined to fail. And yet - they didn't just survive, they thrived, doing things exactly the way they wanted to do them. Music for the sake of music - who'd have thought?
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