Griffin Music was an independent record label created in 1989 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by author and publisher Robert Godwin.
Having established the label with its first release, Godwin then pursued venerable British space rockers Hawkwind, finally securing the North American rights to two obscure albums in 1991.
[1] During the course of 1990, Godwin partnered the label with mega-distributor Feedback Incorporated of Chicago who took over the day-to-day operation of the label (headquartered in the suburb Lombard), while Godwin concentrated on finding artists and catalogs to sign to Griffin.
Between 1991 and 1995, Griffin Music would become one of the largest independent record labels in the United States, releasing back catalog of many European classic rock artists such as Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, Motörhead, Denny Laine, Roy Harper, Uriah Heep, Wishbone Ash, Rick Wakeman, Fish, Mike Oldfield, Jethro Tull, Pete Best, The Quarry Men, Budgie, XTC, Nazareth, Hawkwind, Tangerine Dream, Steve Hillage, Status Quo, Strawbs, UFO, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band and dozens of others.
[2][3][4] In 1993, Griffin Music secured the license to manufacture and distribute a portion of the BBC in Concert series in North America.