Dolton Records was a
record label based in
Seattle that was originally known as Dolphin Records. It was owned by Bob Reisdorf and
Bonnie Guitar. Success for the label came early with "
Come Softly to Me" by
the Fleetwoods, the first single to be released on that label. Reisdorf was soon informed that there was another Dolphin Records in circulation (which was a subsidiary of
Laurie Records), so he changed the name to Dolton after the first release, the second release being an instrumental by the Frantics called "Straight Flush" b/w "Young Blues" (Dolton 2). The new label retained the fish symbols on the logo and the fonts associated with the Dolphin name. The first major hit on the newer Dolton label was the Fleetwood's "
Mr. Blue", a number one hit, and the fifth single released by that company. Other major Dolton artists included
the Ventures,
Vic Dana, and
the Frantics. It was acquired in 1963 by
Avnet and merged with its
Liberty Records parent label in 1966. Liberty had distributed Dolton releases when "Come Softly To Me" became a hit.