Sean Rowley.

I think that the Flowered Up story is probably quite representative of how London sometimes just couldn't get it right.

They were one of those brilliant bands that their first single, they were on the front cover of Melody Maker and front cover of The Enemy on the week of release.

It was so hot.

It was one of those classic sort of moments where everyone's jumping up and down.

Then the majors obviously started sniffing and it got big and the money got huge and London Records trumped everyone.

Yeah, I got back and, and we was just, wow, just blown away, all of us, you know? And, um, now this has been offered, it, I, I don't see how I can turn it down.

When they signed, I remember the bands would go in the boardroom, champagne was on the table, signatures would go onto a, onto a contract.

Hit that perfect, hit that perfect, hit that perfect beat, boy.

Sean Rowley.

What I loved about Pete was his s- just his absolute real, genuine enthusiasm and love for the music.

So in the time that acid house kicks in and all of a sudden we're off and running and we're, we're very, very much connected to that.

And that was obviously because Pete was connected via his DJing to that world.

They, they were records that, they're cultural touchstones.

But the thing with Pete, he had the everyman touch.

That's what he was absolutely brilliant at.

Sean Rowley spills the beans.

Ah.

I, I'm just gonna start this by saying this was not particular to London Records.

Every fucker did this.

And it was basically that we were in a, you know, w- everything was dominated by getting the single away.

There were some tricks of the trade that were used.

And of course, the most important part about that was if you could just get that Top of the Pops performance on a Thursday, you were home and dry.

Sean Rowley.

Sean Rowley recalls the office in the '80s.

The hierarchy and the executives that ran London Records were, were pretty extreme characters.

Um, Tracy Bennett, Colin Bell, Roger Ames, you know, they, they were very, very strong personalities.

But they were fucking bonkers.

Tracy Bennett would be ...

He had a sound system in his office that would've been appropriate for Wembley Stadium.

Do you remember the, uh, Pete Murphy Bauhaus Memorex tape ad where you sit in the chair and the, the, the sound comes on and his hair gets blown back? That was every time that, that Tracy wanted to play you, like, a new Fine Young Cannibals mix.

Perhaps it wasn't surprising that London was gaining somewhat of a reputation.