Record Label Logos

June 27, 2018 2:32 AM

Record Label Logos curated by designer and illustrator Reagan Ray.

Other Logo Collections by Reagan Ray:

Railway Logos
VHS Distributor Logos
Western Clothing Labels

via Katexic.

posted by chavenet (15 comments total)

These are great.

I make my living selling rare records and am familiar with most of these but it's nice to see them all gathered together like this.

My only quibble is the dates underneath are not accurate. For instance, he lists Blue Note as being active 1939 - 1969, but they're still around and putting out records today. In fact, the label variation he's chosen for his page didn't come into use until 1975. They stopped using that design in 1979. (Variations in font, logo, label color/design, etc, is one of the ways record dealers are able to distinguish one pressing from another.)

Record geeks who like this page may also appreciate this, admittedly small, collection of runout / deadwax inscriptions.

posted by dobbs at 3:09 AM on June 27, 2018 [3 favorites]

Factory is easily my favourite of these, but a whole bunch of them are great!
posted by Dysk at 3:38 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]

Kinda feel like some important ones were missed:

SST Records

Alternative Tentacles

Homestead Records

Bloodshot Records

Dischord Records

4AD

Nettwerk

Midnight Records

Metal Blade Records

Nuclear Blast
posted by NoMich at 5:32 AM on June 27, 2018 [5 favorites]

Rough Trade
Cherry Red
posted by Grangousier at 5:37 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]

Vertigo
Chrysalis
posted by Grangousier at 5:40 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

The list was also lacking my personal favourite version of the Island Records logo.
posted by Dysk at 6:00 AM on June 27, 2018

(I really like the Vertigo logo, and the 4AD one is classic, but a lot of the others you've linked Grangousier are excellent or significant labels with boring, nothing logos. Maybe it's just a matter of taste, of course, YMMV!)
posted by Dysk at 6:03 AM on June 27, 2018

That is not a 1942 Capitol Records logo.
posted by rhizome at 7:14 AM on June 27, 2018

My only quibble is the dates underneath are not accurate.

That's really my only quibble with the collection, too. Even labels with multiple versions of logos (RCA, Liberty, etc.), they're identified by the same dates, as opposed to the dates that particular logo was used. Fun collection, nonetheless.
posted by Thorzdad at 8:09 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

Enigma Records
posted by pxe2000 at 8:24 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

I might like to see some Jamaican (and Jamaican-influenced) labels on there:

Trojan Records
2 Tone Records
Wackie's

And, of course, more rap:

Cold Chillin' Records
Delicious Vinyl
Lench Mob Records
Loud Records
Rawkus Records
Rhymesayers
Soul Brother Records
posted by box at 3:34 PM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]

I have a similar collection of labels from 78s my dad owned. I loved the music as a kid, but I love the look of those labels, too.
posted by DaddyNewt at 8:11 PM on June 27, 2018

Some of it was designed by an artist, and some of it was just scrawled on a napkin. A few of them were scrawled on a napkin by an intelligent person with a sense of humour. Sugar hill kinda wins here.
posted by ovvl at 9:31 PM on June 27, 2018

Reagan Ray has a lot of interesting material like this one on his blog. "VHS Distributor Logos," "80s Movie Studio Intros," "Western Clothing Labels," etc.

And although I don't know anything about him, as soon as I saw his webpage, I knew exactly what state he lives in...
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 10:32 PM on June 27, 2018

Happy to see Factory. Was hoping to see Blackheart.
posted by 4ster at 2:46 PM on June 29, 2018