Calla Records was a small, New York City-based independent black owned Soul record label run by Nate McCalla (1930-1980)[1] and active from approximately 1965 to 1977.
McCalla was an associate and bodyguard for Morris Levy who headed Roulette Records which had known ties to the mob.
Artists recording for the label include J.J. Jackson, Jimmie Raye, The Sandpebbles, Little Jerry Williams (aka Swamp Dogg), Jean Wells, The Emotions, The Fuzz, Lonnie Youngblood, The Persuaders, and Geraldine Hunt among others.
[4] The label nonetheless continued, developing new artists, such as The Fuzz, into the early 1970s, and then releasing a number of disco-oriented albums in 1975 and 1976.
McCalla was found murdered, execution style, in 1980, allegedly on the orders of Morris Levy.