Lauder was born in Hartlepool, County Durham, England on May 22, 1947,[1] the son of a timber yard owner, he attended Wellingborough School, Northamptonshire.
On the Liberty sampler Gutbucket (1969) Lauder placed The Bonzo's spoof 'Can Blue Men Sing The Whites' directly after Tony McPhee's 'No More Doggin'.
Lauder largely ignored the pop market, although the label had a few UK hit singles such as Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Proud Mary".
[9] Lauder and Riviera also started Demon Music Group in 1980, to concentrate on the singles market, early signings including Department S and Bananarama.
Initially focusing on indie bands such as The Stone Roses,[11] he expanded their roster to include Peter "Sonic Boom" Kember[12] John Lee Hooker, J.J. Cale and The Men They Couldn't Hang.
[citation needed] In 1993 Lauder started "This Way Up" label whose signings included Ian McNabb,[13] The Warm Jets, Tindersticks, Redd Kross and Pal Shazar.