From Macon, Georgia, Phil Walden began as manager for R&B singers such as Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Percy Sledge and Clarence Carter. The first record he was associated with was Johnny Jenkins' "Love Twist", a regional hit, reissued on Atlantic 2144 in 1962.

In 1967, Walden approached Atlantic Records vice president Jerry Wexler with the idea to build a studio in his hometown, but Wexler suggested instead that Atlantic finance a record label to be based in Macon. The label was christened Capricorn and one of the first artists signed was a then-little-known session guitarist working at Muscle Shoals Studios in Alabama, Duane Allman. Walden also signed Johnny Jenkins, with whom he had worked five years earlier. The first few albums on Capricorn were released under the Atco imprint (a subsidiary of Atlantic), with Capricorn getting a mention on the record cover as the "Capricorn Record Series".

Allman, who had previously been a guitarist in a '60s group called Hour Glass, as well as with his brother in the Allman Joys, formed a new rock and roll band in 1969 -- The Allman Brothers Band -- with his brother Gregg and a few others. The original lineup included the Allmans, plus Dickey Betts (guitar), Berry Oakley (bass), Butch Trucks (drums), and Jai Johnny Johanson (drums). They quickly gained a national following. After two studio albums, the Allmans released one of the best live albums in the history of rock and roll: The Allman Brothers Band At Fillmore East, which set a near-perfect standard for all subsequent live releases, and defined the southern rock and roll genre as well.

After switching distribution from Atlantic to Warner, the Capricorn roster of the mid-1970s included Elvin Bishop (from the Paul Butterfield Blues Band), Bonnie Bramlett, Alex Taylor, and such southern luminaries as the Marshall Tucker Band, Cowboy, and Wet Willie.

By 1977, the Allman Brothers Band had disbanded (to regroup later in the '80s) and, plagued by financial difficulties, Walden signed a distribution agreement with Polygram. Unfortunately, this was to no significant success, despite the new signing of bands like Sea Level (which included several ex- Allman Brothers Band musicians) and Black Oak Arkansas. In 1980, Capricorn was forced into bankruptcy and Walden went into a personal low.

From 1987 on, a clean and sober Phil Walden tried to convince major labels to invest in the resurrection of Capricorn. In 1990, a meeting with Mo Ostin, then head of Warner Records, led to a new incarnation of the label, this time based in Nashville. In 1991, the first release to feature the new Capricorn logo was the debut album by an Athens, Georgia, band called Widespread Panic. In 1996, with a headquarters relocated in Atlanta, Phil Walden sold half the company to Polygram/Mercury, who still owned the first era Capricorn's master tapes, and this agreement led to the reissue of many classic and out-of-print albums.

To our knowledge, all tracks on Capricorn albums were stereo except those on the "Capricorn Records Presents" series of CD reissue box sets. For this reason, we have not indicated stereo or mono on an individual album basis, except for those box sets. Song titles are given in the order they appear on the album or CD, except for those marked with an asterisk (*), which are given in alphabetical order because we do not know the exact track lineup.

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 Capricorn. 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 2000, 2005 by Mike Callahan.