Pete Waterman Entertainment

Pete Waterman Entertainment (PWE) is the production company one-time pop and dance record label owned by British pop mogul Pete Waterman. The label, originally PWL (Pete Waterman Limited), is most famous for being the home of hit record producers Stock Aitken Waterman.

History

After producing many hits for other record companies, PWL launched its own label in 1987 (PWL Records) with the single "I Just Can't Wait" by Mandy Smith. After several promos that were eventually licensed to other labels, the next single commercially released on PWL Records (PWL8) was the biggest selling single of 1988: "I Should Be So Lucky" by Kylie Minogue. Stock Aitken Waterman also used the label to release material under their own name, including top twenty hit, "Roadblock".

As an independent record label, PWL enjoyed number ones with Australian artists Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan, as well as top ten hits with British artists, such as Pat and Mick, The Reynolds Girls, American singer Sybil Lynch, and Dutch dance group, 2 Unlimited. As a production house, they produced hits for English artists including, Hazell Dean, Rick Astley, Dead or Alive, Bananarama, Sonia, Brother Beyond, Samantha Fox and Mel and Kim, all licensed to other record labels.

In the US, PWL America was established in 1989 and specialized primarily in hip-hop music, launching the careers of MCs Ed O.G. and Diamond D. In 1992, it was renamed Chemistry Records Ltd., but it shut its doors in 1993. It was distributed in that territory by Mercury/PolyGram Records.

In the early 1990s, Pete Waterman formed a new label called PWL International in partnership with Warner Music; one of the artists that recorded for the label, Opus III, would score two number ones on Billboard’s Dance Club Songs Chart through a US deal with Warner’s EastWest Records. However, with other projects taking up Waterman's time, his involvement in the label decreased, and PWL International Ltd. became the Warner label Coalition.

The record label is still in operation today and operates the label EBUL through former labels Jive Records and Zomba (now labels by Sony Music Entertainment).

As of March 2017, most of the PWL catalogue is now distributed by BMG Rights Management.^[1] In November 2023, BMG Rights Management and PWL released a triple CD and two double vinyl LPs, "Extended Big Hits and Surprises", containing 24 12" PWL remixes of primarily Stock Aitken Waterman productions, which was well received. No tracks were licensed from other record labels. An exclusive Blu-ray edition was also released via the Super Deluxe Edition website.

Notable former PWL artists

Some of these acts were produced at the PWL Hit Factory and were signed to PWL Records, whilst others were licensed to PWL from other European independent dance labels (e.g. Media or Byte):^[2]