Mack Avenue Records


Mack Avenue Records is an independent record label in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan.

Background

Mack Avenue was founded in 1999 by Gretchen Carhartt Valade, a jazz fan and chair of Carhartt. The company is a sponsor of the Detroit Jazz Festival, to which Gretchen Valade donated $15 million in 2006.
Early recordings included Terry Gibbs, Oscar Castro-Neves, and George Shearing. Over time Mack Avenue signed veteran jazz musicians such as Gary Burton, Kevin Eubanks, Stanley Jordan, Christian McBride, Gerald Wilson, and the Yellowjackets. Acquisitions made in 2008 expanded the label's catalogue beyond jazz and into blues, gospel, and rhythm and blues, with Jonathan Butler, Brian Bromberg, Rick Braun, Richard Elliot, and Kenny Rankin. Mack Avenue's recording artists have received multiple Grammy awards and nominations.
In 2016, Mack Avenue expanded its catalogue further when it acquired MAXJAZZ.