Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
founded in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
in 1896 by the
Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parlophone Company Limited (the Parlophone Co. Ltd.), which developed a reputation in the 1920s as a
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
record label. On 5 October 1926, the
Columbia Graphophone Company
Columbia Graphophone Co. Ltd. was one of the earliest gramophone companies in the United Kingdom.
Founded in 1917 as an offshoot of the American Columbia Phonograph Company, it became an independent British-owned company in 1922 in a managemen ...
acquired Parlophone's business, name, logo, and release library, and merged with the
Gramophone Company
The Gramophone Company Limited (The Gramophone Co. Ltd.), based in the United Kingdom and founded by Emil Berliner, was one of the early recording companies, the parent organisation for the '' His Master's Voice (HMV)'' label, and the Europe ...
on 31 March 1931 to become
Electric & Musical Industries Limited (EMI).
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the B ...
joined Parlophone in 1950 as assistant to Oscar Preuss (who had set up the London branch of the company in 1923), the label manager, taking over as manager in 1955. Martin produced and released a mix of recordings, including by comedian
Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...
, pianist
Mrs Mills
Gladys Mills (; 29 August 1918 – 24 February 1978), known as Mrs Mills, was an English pianist who was active in the 1960s and 1970s, and who released many records. Her repertoire included many sing-along and party tunes made popular in the ...
, and teen idol
Adam Faith
Terence Nelhams Wright (23 June 1940 – 8 March 2003), known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. A teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK Singles Chart with " What Do You Want?" (1959) and "P ...
.
In 1962, Martin signed
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
, a
beat group from
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
who earlier that year had been rejected by
Decca Records
Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...
. During the 1960s, when
Cilla Black
Priscilla Maria Veronica White (27 May 1943 – 1 August 2015), better known as Cilla Black, was an English singer, actress and television presenter.
Championed by her friends the Beatles, Black began her career as a singer in 1963. Her ...
,
Billy J. Kramer
William Howard Ashton (born 19 August 1943), known professionally as Billy J. Kramer, is an English pop singer. With The Dakotas, Kramer was managed by Brian Epstein during the 1960s and scored hits with several Lennon–McCartney composition ...
,
the Fourmost
The Fourmost are an English Merseybeat band that recorded in the 1960s. Their biggest UK hit single was "A Little Loving" in 1964.
Biography
Guitarist/vocalist Brian O'Hara and best friend guitarist/vocalist Joey Bower (born Joseph Bower, 17 N ...
, and
the Hollies
The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash founded the band ...
also signed, Parlophone became one of the world's most famous labels. For several years, Parlophone claimed the best-selling UK single, "
She Loves You
"She Loves You" is a song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and recorded by English rock band the Beatles for release as a single in 1963. The single set and surpassed several sales records in the United Kingdom charts, and set a record i ...
", and the best-selling UK album, ''
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'', both by the Beatles. The label placed seven singles at number 1 during 1964, when it claimed top spot on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
for 40 weeks. Parlophone continued as a division of EMI until it was merged into the Gramophone Co. on 1 July 1965. On 1 July 1973, the Gramophone Co. was renamed EMI Records Limited.
On 28 September 2012, regulators approved
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
's (UMG) planned
acquisition of EMI on condition that its EMI Records group would be divested from the combined group. EMI Records Ltd included Parlophone (except the Beatles' catalogue) and other labels to be divested and were for a short time operated in a single entity known as the Parlophone Label Group (PLG), while UMG pended their sale.
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...
(WMG) acquired Parlophone and
LGon 7 February 2013, making Parlophone their third flagship label alongside
Warner and
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
. PLG was renamed Parlophone Records Limited in May 2013. Parlophone is the oldest of WMG's "flagship" record labels.
History
Early years
Parlophone was founded "Parlophon" by
Carl Lindström Company in 1896.
The name Parlophon was used for
gramophones before the company began making records of their own. The label's
₤ trademark is a stylised
blackletter
Blackletter (sometimes black letter), also known as Gothic script, Gothic minuscule, or Textura, was a script used throughout Western Europe from approximately 1150 until the 17th century. It continued to be commonly used for the Danish, Norweg ...
''L'' (
) that stands for Lindström. (Its resemblance to the British
pound sign
The pound sign is the symbol for the pound unit of sterling – the currency of the United Kingdom and previously of Great Britain and of the Kingdom of England. The same symbol is used for other currencies called pound, such as the Gibralt ...
''£'' and the Italian
lira sign ''₤'' is coincidental: both derive from the letter ''L'' used as an abbreviation for the Ancient Roman unit of measurement .) On 8 August 1923, the British branch of "Parlophone" (with the "e" added) was established, led by
A&R manager Oscar Preuss.
In its early years, Parlophone established itself as a leading jazz label in Britain.
EMI years and initial success
In 1927, the
Columbia Graphophone Company
Columbia Graphophone Co. Ltd. was one of the earliest gramophone companies in the United Kingdom.
Founded in 1917 as an offshoot of the American Columbia Phonograph Company, it became an independent British-owned company in 1922 in a managemen ...
acquired a controlling interest in the Carl Lindström Company, including Parlophone.
Parlophone became a subsidiary of Electric & Musical Industries (
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
), after Columbia Graphophone merged with the
Gramophone Company
The Gramophone Company Limited (The Gramophone Co. Ltd.), based in the United Kingdom and founded by Emil Berliner, was one of the early recording companies, the parent organisation for the '' His Master's Voice (HMV)'' label, and the Europe ...
in 1931.
In 1950, Oscar Preuss hired producer
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the B ...
as his assistant. When Preuss retired in 1955, Martin succeeded him as Parlophone's manager. Parlophone specialized in mainly classical music, cast recordings, and regional British music, but Martin also expanded the reach into novelty and comedy records. A notable example was ''The Best of Sellers'', a collection of sketches and comic songs by
Peter Sellers
Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...
undertaken in the guise of a variety of comic characters. It reached number three in the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
in 1958. Musicians signed to the label included
Humphrey Lyttelton
Humphrey Richard Adeane Lyttelton (23 May 1921 – 25 April 2008), also known as Humph, was an English jazz musician and broadcaster from the Lyttelton family.
Having taught himself the trumpet at school, Lyttelton became a professional ...
and
the Vipers Skiffle Group
The Vipers Skiffle Group – later known simply as The Vipers – were one of the leading British groups during the skiffle period of the mid to late 1950s, and were important in the careers of radio and television presenter Wally Whyton, coffee ...
.
A consistently successful act for Parlophone was teen idol
Adam Faith
Terence Nelhams Wright (23 June 1940 – 8 March 2003), known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. A teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK Singles Chart with " What Do You Want?" (1959) and "P ...
, who was signed to the label in 1959.
The label gained significant popularity in 1962 when Martin signed Liverpool band
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
.
Parlophone gained more attention after signing
the Hollies
The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash founded the band ...
,
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...
, and
Gerry and the Pacemakers
Gerry and the Pacemakers were a British beat group prominent in the 1960s Merseybeat scene. In common with the Beatles, they came from Liverpool, were managed by Brian Epstein, and were recorded by George Martin. Their early successes alongsid ...
in the 1960s. Martin left EMI/Parlophone to form Associated Independent Recording (
AIR
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing f ...
) Studios in 1965.
Norman Smith took over as Parlophone director, though EMI chairman Sir
Joseph Lockwood unsuccessfully attempted to recruit
Joe Meek
Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer, sound engineer and songwriter who pioneered space age and experimental pop music. He also assisted in the development of recording practices like over ...
for the job.
Parlophone became dormant (except for Beatles reissues) in 1973 when most of EMI's heritage labels were phased out in favour of
EMI Records,
only to be revived in 1980.
During the next decades the label signed
Pet Shop Boys,
Duran Duran
Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...
,
Roxette,
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
,
Supergrass,
Guy Berryman
Guy Rupert Berryman (born 12 April 1978) is a Scottish musician, songwriter and producer, best known as the bassist of the rock band Coldplay and electronic supergroup Apparatjik. Raised in Kirkcaldy, he began to play bass from an early age ...
,
the Chemical Brothers
The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat genre t ...
,
Blur,
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University Col ...
,
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...
,
Damon Albarn,
Conor Maynard
Conor Paul Maynard (born 21 November 1992) is an English singer. Born and raised in Brighton, he signed a recording contract with Warner Music Group in 2011. Maynard rose to fame in 2012 when he was nominated for, and subsequently won, MTV's '' ...
,
Gabrielle Aplin
Gabrielle Ann Aplin (born c. October 1992) is an English singer-songwriter. After amassing a following for her acoustic music covers on YouTube, Aplin signed a recording deal with Parlophone in February 2012. She rose to prominence the following ...
, and
Gorillaz.
On 23 April 2008,
Miles Leonard
Miles Leonard is a British music industry executive and co-founder of NFT marketplace, Token, , Traxx. Leonard was previously Chairman of Parlophone & Warner Bros. Records UK. He has worked for Virgin Records, EMI Records, Roadrunner Records and ...
was confirmed as the label's president.
Acquisition by Warner Music Group
On 28 September 2012, regulators approved
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
's planned acquisition of Parlophone's parent group EMI for £1.2 billion, subject to conditions imposed by the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
requiring that UMG sell off a number of labels, including Parlophone itself (aside from the Beatles' catalogue, which was kept by UMG and moved to Universal's newly formed
Calderstone Productions
Calderstone Productions is the London-based subsidiary of the Universal Music Group that administers the Beatles' recorded music output that was originally owned by EMI and released on EMI's Parlophone Records (in the United Kingdom)/Capitol Recor ...
),
Chrysalis (aside from
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut stud ...
' catalogue),
Ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...
,
Virgin Classics
Virgin Classics was a record label founded in 1988 as part of Richard Branson's Virgin Records.
The unit, along with EMI Classics, was acquired by Universal Music in 2012 as part of the takeover of the EMI Group, however the terms of the Europea ...
,
EMI Classics
EMI Classics was a record label founded by Thorn EMI in 1990 to reduce the need to create country-specific packaging and catalogues for internationally distributed classical music releases. After Thorn EMI demerged in 1996, its recorded mus ...
, worldwide rights to
Roulette Records
Roulette Records was an American record company and label founded in 1957 by George Goldner, Joe Kolsky, Morris Levy and Phil Kahl, with creative control given to producers and songwriters Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore. Levy was appointed ...
(and its sublabels), and EMI's operations in Portugal, Spain, France, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland. These labels and catalogues were operated independently from Universal as Parlophone Label Group until a buyer was found. UMG received several offers for PLG, including those from
Island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
founder
Chris Blackwell
Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell (born 22 June 1937) is an English businessman and former record producer, and the founder of Island Records, which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels". According to the Rock and Roll ...
,
Simon Fuller
Simon Fuller (born 17 May 1960) is a British entrepreneur, artist manager, and film and television producer renowned for nurturing and inspiring world class entertainment talent. He is the creator of the ''Idols'' TV format, including the UK s ...
, a
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
/
BMG consortium,
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...
, and
MacAndrews & Forbes
MacAndrews & Forbes Incorporated is an American diversified holding company wholly owned by billionaire investor Ronald Perelman.
Current investments include leading participants across a wide range of industries, from cosmetics and entertainme ...
.
On 7 February 2013, it was confirmed that
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...
would acquire Parlophone Label Group for US$765 million. The deal was approved in May 2013 by the European Union, which saw no concerns about the deal because of WMG's smaller reach compared to the merged UMG and Sony. Warner Music closed the deal on 1 July. Parlophone Label Group was the old
EMI Records label that included both the Parlophone and the eponymous EMI labels. The EMI trademark was retained by Universal (as
Virgin EMI Records
Virgin EMI Records was a British record label owned by the Universal Music Group that was formed in 2013. In June 2020, the label was rebranded as EMI Records, and operates Virgin Records as an imprint of the new EMI Records.
History
Virgin ...
) while the "old" EMI Records became defunct and was renamed "Parlophone Records Ltd."
Soon after acquiring Parlophone, WMG signed an agreement with
IMPALA
The impala or rooibok (''Aepyceros melampus'') is a medium-sized antelope found in eastern and southern Africa. The only extant member of the genus '' Aepyceros'' and tribe Aepycerotini, it was first described to European audiences by Germa ...
and the
Merlin Network (two groups which opposed the EMI/Universal deal) to divest $200 million worth of catalogues to independent labels in order to help offset the consolidation triggered by the merger.
In April 2016, the back catalogue of British rock band
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
, who had sued Parlophone and EMI over a dispute in music royalties, was transferred to
XL Recordings
XL Recordings is a British independent record label founded in 1989 by Tim Palmer and Nick Halkes. It has been ran and co-owned by Richard Russell since 1996. It forms part of the Beggars Group.
Although only releasing an average of six album ...
.
WMG treats Parlophone as its third "frontline" label group alongside
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
and
Warner.
In the US, most of Parlophone's artists are now distributed under Warner Records except
Dinosaur Pile-Up
Dinosaur Pile-Up are an English alternative rock band formed in late 2007. Hailing from Leeds, West Yorkshire. Current members are lead vocalist, lead singer and electric guitar, guitarist Matt Bigland, drum kit, drummer Mike Sheils and bass gu ...
, distributed by
300 Elektra Entertainment
300 Elektra Entertainment (or 3EE) is an umbrella label group owned by Warner Music Group. It exists as a merger of 300 Entertainment and Elektra Music Group, along with its respectively owned labels.
The umbrella label describes itself as " avi ...
's
Roadrunner Records
Roadrunner Records is an American record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock bands. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City.
History
The label was launched in 1980 in t ...
, Coldplay and Tinie Tempah, both distributed by Atlantic Records, and
David Guetta
Pierre David Guetta ( , ; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and music producer. He has over 10 million album and 65 million single sales globally, with more than 10 billion streams. In 2011, 2020 and 2021, Guetta was voted the number one D ...
, distributed by Atlantic's electronic music imprint
Big Beat Records.
Roster
Parlophone's roster includes many popular music artists. Its contemporary
HMV
Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom.
The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...
was more of a classical music label and ceased issuing popular music recordings in 1967; later known as
EMI Classics
EMI Classics was a record label founded by Thorn EMI in 1990 to reduce the need to create country-specific packaging and catalogues for internationally distributed classical music releases. After Thorn EMI demerged in 1996, its recorded mus ...
, it was absorbed into
Warner Classics
Warner Classics is the classical music arm of Warner Music Group. The label began issuing new recordings under the Warner Classics banner in 1991. The company also includes the Erato Records, Teldec Records and NVC Arts labels. Based in France, W ...
in 2013; English Columbia was replaced by the EMI pop label. Parlophone also operates
Regal, a contemporary revival of the historic Columbia Graphophone budget/reissue label founded in 1914.
The list records those who achieved notability.
The Beatles
The Beatles' albums in the U.K. up to ''
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' were issued on the Parlophone label. Subsequent releases – ''
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
'' (also known as the "White Album"), ''
Yellow Submarine'', ''
Abbey Road
''Abbey Road'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It is the last album the group started recording, although ''Let It Be'' was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly re ...
'' and ''
Let It Be
Let It Be most commonly refers to:
* ''Let It Be'' (Beatles album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970
* "Let It Be" (Beatles song), the title song from the album
It may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''Let It Be'' (1970 ...
'' – were issued on the Beatles' own
Apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple fruit tree, trees are agriculture, cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, wh ...
record label, manufactured and distributed by EMI and bearing Parlophone catalogue numbers.
On 6 June 1962, producer George Martin signed the Beatles to Parlophone,
in turn, making the Beatles' deal one of the cheapest by Parlophone. Despite the separation of Parlophone from EMI as a condition of EMI's acquisition by UMG, Universal was allowed to keep the Beatles' recorded music catalogue, which is now managed by the subsidiary
Calderstone Productions
Calderstone Productions is the London-based subsidiary of the Universal Music Group that administers the Beatles' recorded music output that was originally owned by EMI and released on EMI's Parlophone Records (in the United Kingdom)/Capitol Recor ...
.
Parlophone record labels
File:Vertinsky Parlophone B.23017 02.jpg, Vertinsky Parlophone B.23017, made in Germany
File:EarlyParlophoneLabel.jpg, Early 20th century Parlophone record label of the 78rpm acoustic era
File:Parlophone LP PMC 1202.jpg, ''Please Please Me
''Please Please Me'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom, following the success of the band's first two s ...
'' by the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
(side 1) – 1963. Parlophone ''gold and black'' label
File:With the beatles side 1.JPG, ''With the Beatles
''With the Beatles'' is the second studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It was released in the United Kingdom on 22 November 1963 on Parlophone, eight months after the band's debut ''Please Please Me''. Produced by George Martin ...
'' (side 1) – Parlophone ''yellow and black'' label
File:Record Label Parlophone, UK, West End Blues.jpg, West End Blues
"West End Blues" is a multi-strain twelve-bar blues composition by Joe "King" Oliver. It is most commonly performed as an instrumental, although it has lyrics added by Clarence Williams.
King Oliver and his Dixie Syncopators made the first rec ...
, British Parlophone record
The labels shown here include those used for 78s and LPs. The label design for 7" singles had the same standard template as several other EMI labels, with the large "45" insignia to the right. In recent years, design uniformity has relaxed from release to release.
References
External links
*
Parlophoneon ''
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
''
{{Authority control
1896 establishments in Germany
British record labels
British subsidiaries of foreign companies
Electronic dance music record labels
EMI
German record labels
Jazz record labels
Labels distributed by Universal Music Group
Labels distributed by Warner Music Group
Pop record labels
Record labels established in 1896
Rock record labels
Warner Music labels