Shelter Records (3)

New York house label founded in 1991 by Freddy Sanon. Closely associated with Club Shelter, established by Sanon the same year with resident DJs Timmy Regisford and Merlin Bobb. Club Shelter was initially located at 6 Hubert Street/157 Hudson Street, the Tribeca club previously known as Area and subsequently Vinyl and Arc; it closed in 2004. Sanon explained the origin of the name in a 2011 interview in Straight No Chaser magazine: After [Timmy and Merlin's] radio show at WBLS had finished around two in the morning we had nowhere to go, so Timmy, Merlin and I started talking and said we needed a place, somewhere we could call home. We felt the only appropriate name to call it was The Shelter because with the Paradise Garage closing there was no where else for us to go to - we were homeless... We wanted to continue what the Garage had which we felt was special, a club where all these interesting people could get together and get loose, a place where you could be gay, you could be straight, black or white - somewhere that you could get release from every day life. We wanted to keep that going - a feeling of being at a house party. Initially located at the same address as Polar Records, run by Manny Diaz, and Sumo Records (6), run by Danny Diaz (4). Early releases were manufactured and distributed by Polar Records, Inc. The company name is listed as Shelter Records Inc. on several early releases but more commonly as Shelter Records (3). Five releases in 1995/96 list the label as 157 Shelter Records.