The Invictus and Hot Wax labels were formed in Detroit Michigan in 1969 by Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland and Eddie Holland. Holland-Dozier-Holland was the most successful writer/producer team in the world when they left the Motown label in 1968. Between the time they left and late 1969, they were effectively prevented from recording by a lawsuit filed by Motown, which eventually was settled out of court. Once the suit was settled, they started Invictus and Hot Wax.

The H-D-H studio style at Motown was to get the songs down first, then find the artists to do them. In 1969, as the new label was being formed, Eddie Holland was talking on the phone to singer Freda Payne about signing with them. During the call, her sister, Scherrie, played loudly enough in the background to get his attention, and Holland signed her, too. Glass House was put together by H-D-H and built around Scherrie. The others were Ty Hunter, Larry Mitchell, and Pearl Jones. They had the distinction of having the first single on the new Invictus label in 1969, "Crumbs Off the Table" [Invictus 9071], which made #7 on the R&B charts. From there, however, the group gradually slid off the charts with each successive single. The group disbanded in 1973, and Hunter joined the Originals and Payne the Supremes.

If the first single on Invictus was a hit, three singles later there was an even bigger hit. The Chairmen of the Board, a group made up of ex-Showmen lead singer General Norman Johnson, ex-Lee Andrews & the Hearts singer Eddie Custis, ex-Stone Soul Children singer Harrison Kennedy, and Johnson's friend Danny Woods, hit #3 on the pop charts with "Give Me Just a Little More Time" [Invictus 9074]. They followed it with several other chart hits, including "(You've Got Me) Dangling on a String" [Invictus 9078], "Everything's Tuesday" [Invictus 9079], and "Pay to the Piper" [Invictus 9081]. The stereo version of "Give Me Just a Little More Time" is interesting, since there is a short mono segment in the bridge on every issue to date. The Chairmen ended up with four albums on Invictus, and Johnson, Woods and Kennedy all did solo albums. Custis left the group after the second album. Johnson was also a successful writer and producer for Invictus and its sister label, Hot Wax. The Chairmen of the Board fell apart in the mid-70s, but regrouped and are still performing today. Johnson, of course, as the voice of the Showmen as well as the Chairmen of the Board, is a very popular "beach sound " vocalist in the Carolinas.

One single after the Chairmen hit, Scherrie's sister Freda Payne hit #3 also, with her signature song, "Band of Gold" [Invictus 9705]. Actually, she had known Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier for years before she signed with Invictus, having known them from their childhood days. They had introduced her to Berry Gordy of Motown years before, and she was an early audition for Motown. After one recording, her parents nixed a career in pop music. Payne had spent most of the 1960s working as a backup singer, as a featured singer with Bob Crosby's big band, and as an understudy on Broadway. In addition to "Band of Gold," Payne would also hit with "Bring the Boys Home" [Invictus 9092], an anti- war tune which was popular and timely, and four other chart records.

The 8th Day started as session bassist Tony Newton. As was the style of H-D-H, they recorded tracks without an artist in mind, so when studio musicians (including Newton) cut "She's Not Just Another Woman" [Invictus 9087] and it became a hit, Newton was asked to put together a group for live shows. The lead vocal was by Clyde Wilson, who sang with Hot Wax' 100 Proof (Aged in Soul) as Steve Mancha. The other hits by the group used the group Newton put together, including Lynn Harter, Melvin Davis, Michael Anthony, Bruce Nazarian, Carole Stallings, Anita Sherman, and Jerry Paul.

With Invictus, Holland-Dozier-Holland certainly proved that they still "had it," with many hits. As the years went by, the hits became less frequent, however. The label hung on till about 1978, although H-D-H consolidated their Invictus and Hot Wax masters into a new label called H-D-H in the 1980s. The original issues were distributed by Capitol, but in 1973 they moved to a Columbia distribution and numbering system. The H-D-H label, distributed by Fantasy, has been used to issue CDs of the greatest hits on Invictus and Hot Wax.

The Invictus label was light blue with black printing. A statue of a seated man (Auguste Rodin's "The Thinker") almost covers the entire label, with "INVICTUS" in dark blue at the top and to the left of the center hole. There are a group of black and white rays coming from the eye of the statue and extending downward to the right.

We would appreciate any additions or corrections to this discography. Just send them to us via e-mail. Both Sides Now Publications is an information web page. We are not a catalog, nor can we provide the records listed below. We have no association with Invictus Records. Should you be interested in acquiring albums listed in this discography (which are all out of print), we suggest you see our Frequently Asked Questions page and follow the instructions found there. This story and discography are copyright 1999 by Mike Callahan.