BIZ BUZZ: Fantasy Records, the Berkeley-based independent...

BIZ BUZZ: Fantasy Records, the Berkeley-based independent label that’s home to many venerable jazz, rock and R&B; catalogues, is reportedly on the block for about $75 million, with PolyGram leading the pack of potential purchasers. Though representatives of PolyGram and Fantasy declined to comment, sources at each of the record companies confirmed the ongoing discussions.

Fantasy, which was founded in the late ‘40s and is currently owned by a consortium of partners, includes among its holdings Creedence Clearwater Revival’s vast catalogue, many titles from the soul-oriented Stax and Volt labels, Specialty Records, for whom Little Richard, Sam Cooke and Lloyd Price recorded, and such premiere jazz lines as Riverside, Milestone, Prestige and Pablo.

A PolyGram insider said the deal could close any day, but a Fantasy source was more circumspect. “We’re still talking to PolyGram, but there are others, too,” he said, declining to elaborate.