A BRIEF HISTORY OF MAZAMA BOOKS

Mazama Books was first envisioned as an outlet for books on the history and catalog of A&M Records. Publisher Randy Kosht had been working on a discography of his favorite record company for over a decade, and Mazama would issue the work when it was completed.

However, the first Mazama title would not be music-related, but a collection of cartoons. “Clara O’Hara’s Greatest Hits” was issued in the summer of 1980. It was actually the third magazine-length collection of Kosht cartoons, and included material from his earlier works, “Super Pickel Magazine” and “Ron & Clara Magazine” (all three are out of print).

In 1986, the third edition of A&M Records: The Discography was the first to bear the Mazama imprint. It was distributed to A&M’s executives and friends, and sent to the Library of Congress. Eventually, several libraries in the U.S. and Canada showed interest in the title, and it was a key part of the research material used by A&M Records for their 25th anniversary planning.

To date, the A&M books (there have been two more editions of the Discography completed, and another in the works) are the best-known of Mazama’s titles.