Zoo Entertainment
Zoo Entertainment was an American record label formed in 1990 by Lou Maglia. Zoo released three platinum records by the group Tool, as well as gold records by Green Jellÿ and Matthew Sweet. During the record company's early years, music industry executive George Daly was the label's original Vice President of A&R.
Zoo Entertainment
- Name
- Zoo Entertainment
- Founded
- 1990
- Headquarters
- Los Angeles
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Zoo Entertainment was an American record label formed in 1990 by Lou Maglia. Zoo released three platinum records by the group Tool, as well as gold records by Green Jellÿ and Matthew Sweet. During the record company's early years, music industry executive George Daly was the label's original Vice President of A&R.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Zoo Entertainment. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q3249038
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Zoo Entertainment • Parent — BMG (1991-1996) Volcano (1996-1997) Sony Music Entertainment (current) • Founder — Lou Maglia • Status — Defunct since 1997 • Distributor — Volcano • Genre — Alternative rock • Country — United States • Location — Los Angeles (1991-1996) New York City (1996-1997)
History
History
The label was formed in 1990 by Lou Maglia, former president of Island Records. As early as 1993, Zoo was having financial difficulties. In November 1991, Zoo signed Los Angeles band Tool, and released their debut EP Opiate early the following year. The label wanted to market them as a heavy metal band, and insisted they only put their most aggressive material on the EP. In 1993, Zoo released Tool's full-length debut Undertow, and by September 1994 it was certified platinum for sales of a million copies. The record label also distributed Gamble & Huff's Philadelphia International Records for a short time. Being its distributor, the late Phyllis Hyman enjoyed a chart entry with "Don't Wanna Change The World," a song that was taken to US radio by radio promoter Jesus Garber, then a VP at Zoo; the single ultimately peaked at No. 59 on the Billboard R&B charts. In 1995, BMG reduced the staff at Zoo, foreshadowing problems for the label. The label released Our Little Visionary, the 1996 debut album of Dogstar, founded by actor Keanu Reeves. However, by the following year Dogstar had been dropped from Zoo. In August 1996, BMG sold Zoo to Kevin Czinger's newly formed Volcano Entertainment. It began as a partnership between the two labels, and new albums continued to be released under the Zoo name in late 1996 and 1997. By the end of 1997 the Zoo name had been phased out, with the label's only releases that year being Matthew Sweet's Blue Sky on Mars and Free Mars by Lusk (a band founded by ex-Tool bassist Paul D'Amour). All of Zoo's artists were absorbed by the new Volcano imprint. Volcano went through changes and was eventually sold to the Zomba Label Group in the spring of 1998. When Zomba was purchased by BMG in 2002, any remaining Zoo artists were returned to the BMG fold. BMG's assets were sold in 2008 to Sony Corporation of America and the back catalog is now handled by Sony Music Group through Volcano.
Artists
Artists
• * 20 Fingers * 7 Year Bitch * Ajax * Akinyele * Alcohol Funnycar * Bad Boys Blue * Big Star * Bleu * Blue Train * Calamity Jane * Cause & Effect * Clarence Clemons * Coming Of Age * Course of Empire * Cosmic Travelers * Crowbar * Disturbance * Dogstar * Drive * Flowerhead * Gary Hoey * Gillette * Great White * Green Jellÿ * Hoodoo Gurus * Kemelions * Killers * Killing Joke * Little Feat * Last Gentlemen — * Lazet Michaels * Lusk * Love Jones * Matthew Sweet * Max-A-Million * Miss Alans * Morpheus * Nature * N.F.B. * Odds * Oliver Who? * Overlords * Philip Bailey * Phyllis Hyman * Pood, Bhud, 'N' Pflug * The Pooh Sticks * Procol Harum * Steve Pryor Band * Street Mentality * Red Square Black * Replicants * Rhythm Tribe * Rosco Martinez * Self * Shaver * Spelvins * Tool * Tung Twista * Varga * Voices * Webb Wilder
Institutional history
Dated record
Institutional history
Explore 1990
The full dated record · 3 entries
1990
Zoo Entertainment established.
1990
Zoo Entertainment is recorded from 1990.
1990
Zoo Entertainment was established or created in 1990.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
- United States
Discography
• Artist — Album — Details • Odds — Neopolitan — * Released: 1991 • Mark Germino and the Sluggers — Radartown — * Released: 1991 • Peter Wells — Everything You Like Tries To Kill You — * Released: 1991 • Steve Pryor Band — Steve Pryor Band — * Released: 1991 • Webb Wilder — Doo Dad — * Released: 1991 • Procol Harum — The Prodigal Stranger — * Released: 1991 • Cause and Effect — Another Minute — * Released: 1991 • The Pooh Sticks — The Great White Wonder — * Released: 1991 • Matthew Sweet — Girlfriend — * Released: 1991 • Procol Harum — Chapter One: Turning Back The Page 1967-1991 (compilation) — * Released: 1991 • Rhythm Tribe — Sol Moderno — * Released: 1991 • Lazet Michaels — Too Strong — * Released: 1991 • Phyllis Hyman — Prime of My Life — * Released: 1991 • Green Jellÿ — Suxx! (EP) — * Released: 1992 • Killers — Murder One — * Released: 1992 • Oliver Who? — Shaka Who Who? — * Released: 1992 • Last Gentlemen — The World Behind Your Back — * Released: 1992 • Tool — Opiate (EP) — * Released: 1992 • Drive — Diablero — * Released: 1992 • African Unity — Volume One: Out Of The Flames — * Released: 1992 • Voices — Just the Beginning... — * Released: 1992 • Flowerhead —...Ka-Bloom! — * Released: 1992 • Matthew Sweet — Goodfriend — * Released: 1992 • Matthew Sweet — Girlfriend: The Superdeformed CD (EP) — * Released: 1992 • Tung Twista — Runnin' Off at da Mouth — * Released: 1992 • Rastine — Afrodisiac — * Released: 1992 • The Dells — I Salute You — * Released: 1992 • Matthew Sweet — Altered Beast — * Released: 1993 • Green Jellÿ — Cereal Killer Soundtrack — * Released: 1993 • Odds — Bedbugs — * Released: 1993 • Pooh Sticks — Million Seller — * Released: 1993 • Disturbance — We Come out at Night — * Released: 1993 • Tool — Undertow — * Released: 1993 • The Spelvins — Whichever Train Comes — * Released: 1993 • Bad Boys Blue — Bad Boys Blue — * Released: 1993 • Coming of Age — Coming of Age — * Released: 1993 • Loves Jones — Here's to the Losers — * Released: 1993 • Varga — Prototype — * Released: 1994 • Great White — Sail Away — * Released: 1994 • Rosco Martinez — Rosco Martinez — * Released: 1994 • Spade Ghetto Destruction — Spade Ghetto Destruction — * Released: 1994 • Ray Bailey — Satan's Horn — * Released: 1994 • The Overlords — All the Naked People — * Released: 1994 • Odds — Neopolitan — * Released: 1991 • Killing Joke — Pandemonium — * Released: 1994 • Green Jellÿ — 333 — * Released: 1994 • Roscoe Martinez — Aqui Estoy — * Released: 1994 • The Wailing Souls — Lives On — * Released: 1994 • Prairie Oyster — Only One Moon — * Released: 1994 • Tool — Sober: Tales from the Darkside (EP) — * Released: 1994 • Course of Empire — Initiation — * Released: 1994 • Matthew Sweet — Son of Altered Beast (EP) — * Released: 1994 • Philip Bailey — Philip Bailey — * Released: 1994 • The Miss Alans — Blusher — * Released: 1994 • Cause and Effect — Trip — * Released: 1994 • Red Square Black — Square (EP) — * Released: 1994 • Gillette — On the Attack and More — * Released: 1994 • Hoodoo Gurus — Crank — * Released: 1994 • Flowerhead — The People's Fuzz — * Released: 1995 • Paul Barrere — If the Phone Don't Ring — * Released: 1995 • Clarence Clemons — Peacemaker — * Released: 1995 • Shaver — Unshaven: Shaver Live At Smith's Olde Bar — * Released: 1995 • Nature — Nature — * Released: 1995 • Various Artists — Mad Love (The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) — * Released: 1995 • 20 Fingers — 20 Fingers — * Released: 1995 • Ajax — Ex-Junkie (EP) — * Released: 1995 • Matthew Sweet — 100% Fun — * Released: 1995 • Love Jones — Powerful Pain Relief — * Released: 1995 • Great White — Stage — * Released: 1995 • Replicants — Replicants — * Released: 1995 • G-Mo — Ballin' for Life — * Released: 1995 • John Frizzell — VR.5 — * Released: 1995 • Max-A-Million — Take Your Time — * Released: 1995 • Neal Casal — Fade Away Diamond Time — * Released: 1995 • Ajax — Aphrodite (EP) — * Released: 1995 • Self — Subliminal Plastic Motives — * Released: 1995 • Tool — Ænima — * Released: 1996 • Various Artists — The Pompatus of Love: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack — * Released: 1996 • Killing Joke — Democracy — * Released: 1996 • Gillette — Shake Your Money Maker — * Released: 1996 • Little Feat — Live from Neon Park — * Released: 1996 • Dogstar — Quattro Formaggi (EP) — * Released: 1996 • Hoodoo Gurus — Blue Cave — * Released: 1996 • Dogstar — Our Little Visionary — * Released: 1996 • Matthew Sweet — Blue Sky on Mars — * Released: 1997 • Lusk — Free Mars — * Released: 1997
Context
Primary material
Context
The circumstances in which Zoo Entertainment stands. Using museums to popularise science and technology / edited by Sharyn Errington (editor), Susan M. Animals on display: the creaturely in museums, zoos, and natural history / edited by Liv Emma Thorsen, Karen A. The animal welfare handbook / Caroline E. Zoo Entertainment has its headquarters at Los Angeles. Established or created in 1990. Situated in United States. Recorded as record label.
Holdings and surviving copies
Where the work is held
Holdings and surviving copies
Where material relating to Zoo Entertainment is held.
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Taylor, Tess. An Interview with Lou Maglia. National Association of Record Industry Professionals. 1996-11-01.
- 2.Haring, Bruce. Sedona files breach suit against BMG. Variety. 1993-04-16.
- 3.TOOL: NEWSLETTER. Tool Army.
- 4.https://loudwire.com/tool-back-catalog-multi-platinum-updates-2021/
- 5.US Charts > Phyllis Hyman. Billboard.
- 6.BMG Entertainment Restructures Two Core Record Labels Paving The Road To Success. Business Wire. 1995-02-07.
- 7.https://www.paloaltoonline.com/morgue/cover/1997_Aug_1.ARTS1.html
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Music memorabilia
42,731 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- ZomboyPerson
- Zona BrutaOrganisation
- Zone 4Organisation
- ZonophoneOrganisation
- Zoo RecordsOrganisation
- Zoogz RiftPerson
- Zoom LensOrganisation
- Zoom RecordsOrganisation
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own an object connected with Zoo Entertainment?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.