Some record companies don’t conjure up very much in the mind’s eye. In marketing terms they have no ‘distinctive assets’. What do you think of if you hear the names Polygram or A&M or Universal Music Group? For me, not much. Others are more famous but not necessarily for their artists. Virgin say, who, beyond Tubular Bells, became associated with Richard Branson rather than their musical output.
But happily some labels do have an ethos. Island was founded by Chris Blackwell as long ago as 1959. Listening to Sparks albums were indelibly linked in my young, sprightly days with the Island logo on the turntable. Blackwell explained in 2009: “I loved music so much, I just wanted to get into it, or be as close to it as I could.”.
The rise of the record label as branded identities really kicked in after punk. There were regional powerhouses – Manchester’s Factory, London’s Rough Trade, Glasgow’s Postcard, Coventry’s Two Tone. Then genre labels – Sarah’s twee, Warp’s electronica, Matador’s alternatives in the States. And so on.
In the 1980s 4AD started releasing a string of excellent albums from indie rock, post-punk, gothic rock and dream pop artists. Some of them are featured in this episode. But they had one ‘distinctive asset’ above all others, which Peter Saville had pioneered at Factory.
Ivo Watts-Russell, the label’s founder, invited the graphic designer Vaughan Oliver and the photographer Nigel Grierson to create sleeve art for the label, and as a result, 4AD acquired a highly distinctive visual identity. It’s hard to listen to early Red House Painters without the synaesthesia of that sepia tonality. Or listen to Come On Pilgrim without seeing that strangely hairy back.
4AD are still going strong and we’ll do a “Current Roster” episode before too long. But here’s the historic roster tracklist:
