Label Guide: Keen

Keen Records was an independent abel, founded by brothers John and Alex Siamas in 1957 in Los Angeles. They owned two other labels, Ensign and Andex, which shared the same numbering system with Keen. Bob Keane (later of Del-Fi Records) was with the label in its early days, but departed in late 1957.

Keen's biggest star was soul singer Sam Cooke who got involved with Keen Records when his home label Specialty rejected some of his recordings (You Send Me), fired the producer and released the tapes. Cooke stayed with Keen for three years and when he left for RCA, Keen Records was slowly winding down.

The last Keen album was Sam Cooke's "Wonderful World" and the lead single became Cooke's biggest hit since "You Send Me," closing the cirle for Keen Records. "Keen owner John Siamas, meanwhile, was on his way out of the music business when he thought he would sift through recordings he had on hand to see if anything was worth releasing. 'Wonderful World,' with the simple backing of guitar, bass and drums plus a vocal trio, didn't fit the model of current R&B." (Billboard Magazine)