Trojan Records

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Trojan Records is a British record label founded by Jamaican Duke Reid in 1968. It specialises in ska, rocksteady, reggae and dub music. The label currently operates under the Sanctuary Records Group. The name Trojan comes from the Croydon-built Trojan truck that was used as Duke Reid's sound system in Jamaica. The truck had "Duke Reid - The Trojan King of Sounds" painted on the sides, and the music played by Reid became known as the Trojan Sound.

The label had almost 30 hit singles in the

Trojan Records was founded in 1968 when Lee Gopthal, who operated the Musicland record retail chain and owned Beat & Commercial Records, pooled his Jamaican music interests with those of Chris Blackwell’s Island Records.^[2] Until 1975, they were based at a warehouse in Neasden Lane, Willesden, London.^[3]

Trojan was instrumental in introducing reggae to a global audience and, by 1970, had secured a series of major UK chart hits. Successful Trojan artists from this period include

The bulk of the company’s successes came via licences for Jamaican music supplied by producers such as Duke Reid, Harry Johnson and Leslie Kong.^[2] While the company’s focus was firmly on the sale of 7” singles, it also launched a series of popular, budget-priced compilations such as Tighten Up, Club Reggae and Reggae Chartbusters.^[2]

In 1972, Chris Blackwell decided to withdraw

The Sanctuary Records Group purchased Trojan Records in 2001 and continued to focus on the label's back catalogue, under the general management of Laurence Cane-Honeysett. In 2002, Trojan's new owners acquired former UK rival record company, Creole Records, previously owned by Bruce White and Gary Himmelfarb's US-based RAS Records. In August 2007, Universal Music Group (UMG) had acquired 90% of Sanctuary Records after announcing in June a share offer that valued Sanctuary at $US87.68 million.^[4] In 2013, UMG sold their entire Sanctuary back catalogue including Trojan to BMG, as part of a divestment programme that was a mandatory condition set by EU regulators when UMG acquired EMI in 2012.^[5]

In 2018, the company celebrated 50 years in the business.^[6]

Influence on skinheads

Trojan skinheads, influenced by traditional 1960s skinhead culture, are named after Trojan Records, to stress the influence of black Jamaican music and the rude boy style to the skinhead subculture. This designation emphasizes differences from the punk rock-influenced Oi! skinheads of the 1980s. The logo of Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice (SHARP) is based on the Trojan Records logo, although the Corinthian helmet is reversed to face the opposite direction. It was designed by Roddy Moreno of antifascist Oi! band The Oppressed. "I reversed the Trojan helmet because SHARP, in the plume, looked better that way."^{[clarification needed]}

Collectable records

Over the years; as demand for many rare records has increased, a number of Trojan releases have become collectors items. For example, a 1969 single by The Slickers entitled "Run Fattie" sold for more than £300 in 2015.^[7] Other collectable records on Trojan that have sold for £200 or more include "Night Of Love" by Ansel Collins,^[8] "Wiggle Waggle" by The Wanderers,^[9] and "Hang 'Em High" by Richard Ace.^[10]

Labels licensed to Trojan

References

Further reading

• ISBN 1-86074-464-8
  .
• ISBN 978-1-84513-480-8

• Official website
• 45cat Trojan Records discography
• Discography at Discogs
• Rudeboy: The Story of Trojan Records at
  IMDb
  (2018)