Factory Records

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FAC 115: Factory Records Stationery (1984)

Factory Records was a Manchester based British independent record label, started in 1978 which featured several prominent musical acts, such as Joy Division, New Order, The Durutti Column, Happy Mondays, and (briefly) James and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. Like the label 4AD Records, Factory Records used a creative team (most notably record producer Martin Hannett and graphic designer Peter Saville) which gave the label, and the artists recording for it, a particular sound and image. The label employed a unique cataloguing system that gave a number not just to its musical releases, but to artwork and other objects.

1 History
- 1.1 FAC numbers
- 1.2 Factory Classical
2 Factory Too
3 Bands on Factory Records:
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] History

Factory's genesis was in January 1978, when Tony Wilson, a TV presenter on Granada Television, formed a partnership with Alan Erasmus, an unemployed actor and band manager. The Factory name was first used for a club in May of that year, which featured local bands including The Durutti Column (managed at the time by Erasmus and Wilson), Cabaret Voltaire and Joy Division. Advertising for the club was designed by Peter Saville, and in September the trio decided to release an EP of music by acts who had played at the club (The Durutti Column, Joy Division, Cabaret Voltaire and comedian John Dowie). Factory Records was born, with Wilson, Erasmus, Saville and producer Martin Hannett as partners in the enterprise.

The label set up an office in Erasmus's home, and the EP was released in early 1979. Singles followed by A Certain Ratio (who would stay with the label), and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (who left for Virgin Records shortly afterwards). The first Factory LP, Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures, was released in June. Joy Division manager Rob Gretton became the fifth partner towards the end of the year, and the Factory club closed down (it would reopen briefly the following year).

In January 1980 The Return of the Durutti Column was released, the first in a long series of releases by the "band" (now effectively a solo project for guitarist Vini Reilly). In May, Joy Division singer Ian Curtis committed suicide shortly before a planned tour of the USA. The following month saw Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" reach the UK top twenty, and second album Closer was released the following month. In late 1980 the remaining members of Joy Division decided to continue as New Order. Factory branched out, with Factory Benelux being run as an independent label in conjunction with Les Disques du Crepuscule, and Factory US organising distribution for the UK label's releases in America.

In 1981, Factory and New Order decided to open a nightclub, and preparations were made to convert a victorian textile factory near the centre of Manchester, which had lately seen service as a motor boat showroom. Hannett left the label, as he had wanted to open a recording studio, and subsequently sued for unpaid royalties (the case was settled out of court in 1984). Saville also quit as a partner due to problems with payments (although he continued to work for Factory). Wilson, Erasmus and Gretton formed Factory Communications Ltd.

The Haçienda (FAC 51) opened in May 1982. Although successful in terms of attendance, and attracting a lot of praise for Ben Kelly's interior design, the club lost large amounts of money in its first few years due largely to the low prices charged for entrance and at the bar, which was markedly cheaper than nearby pubs. Adjusting bar prices failed to help matters significantly , as by the mid 80s crowds were increasingly preferring ecstasy to alcohol. Therefore the Haceinda ended up costing New Order 10,000 pounds a month.

The following year, New Order's "Blue Monday" became an international chart hit, and 1985 saw the first release by Happy Mondays. The two bands were to be the most successful on the label, bankrolling a host of other projects. Factory, and the Haçienda, became a cultural hub of the emerging techno and acid house genres, and their amalgamation with post-punk guitar music (the "Madchester" scene).

Factory also opened a bar (The Dry Bar, FAC 201) and a shop (The Area, FAC 281) in the Northern Quarter of Manchester. Factory's headquarters (FAC 251) on Charles Street, near the Oxford Road BBC building, were opened in September 1990 (prior to which the company was still registered at Alan Erasmus' flat in Didsbury).

In 1991 Hannett died - he had re-established a relationship with the label, working with Happy Mondays, and tributes including a compilation album and a festival were organised. Saville's association with Factory was now reduced to simply designing for New Order and their solo projects (the band itself was in suspension, with various members recording as Electronic, Revenge and The Other Two).

By 1992, ironically, the label was in serious financial trouble due to the two bands who had been most successful. The Happy Mondays were recording their troubled fourth album Yes Please in Barbados, and New Order reportedly spent £400,000 on recording their comeback album Republic. London Records were interested in taking over Factory, but the deal fell through when it emerged that due to Factory's early practice of eschewing contracts, New Order's back catalogue was owned by the band rather than the label. Factory Communications Ltd, the company formed in 1981, declared bankruptcy in November 1992. Many of the former Factory acts, including New Order, found a new home at London Records.

The Haçienda closed in 1997 and shortly afterwards was demolished and replaced by a modern luxury apartment block.

The 2002 film 24 Hour Party People is a satire centred around Factory Records, the Haçienda, and the infamous, often unsubstantiated anecdotes and stories surrounding them. Many of the people associated with Factory, including Tony Wilson, have minor parts in the film (the central character, based on Wilson, is played by Steve Coogan).

[edit] FAC numbers

See also: Factory Records Catalogue

All the label's releases (both music and video) were given a catalogue number of the form FAC followed by a number. This numbering system was also applied to other Factory "productions", including posters (FAC 1 advertised a club night), The Haçienda (FAC 51), a hairdressing salon (FAC 98), a broadcast of Channel 4's The Tube (FAC 104), sellotape (FAC 136), a bucket on a restored watermill (FAC 148), the Haçienda cat (FAC 191), a bet between Wilson and Gretton (FAC 253), a radio advertisement (FAC 294), and the website for the film 24 Hour Party People (FAC 433). Factory Benelux releases were similarly numbered (FAC BN or FBN), but the numbers were restricted to record releases.

Numbers were not allocated in strict chronological order - numbers for Joy Division and New Order releases generally ended in 3 or 0, A Certain Ratio and Happy Mondays in 2, The Durutti Column in 4. Factory Classical releases were 226, 236 and so on.

Despite the demise of Factory Records in 1992, the catalogue is still active, with recent additions including the 24 Hour Party People film (FAC 401), its website (FAC 433) and DVD release (FACDVD 424).

[edit] Factory Classical

In 1989, Factory Classical was launched with five albums by composer Steve Martland, the Kreisler String Orchestra, the Duke String Quartet (which included Durutti Column viola player John Metcalfe), oboe player Robin Williams and pianist Rolf Hind. Composers included Martland, Benjamin Britten, Paul Hindemith, Francis Poulenc, Dmitri Shostakovich, Michael Tippett, György Ligeti and Elliott Carter. Releases continued until 1992, including albums by Graham Fitkin, vocal duo Red Byrd, a recording of Erik Satie's Socrate, Piers Adams playing Handel's Recorder Sonatas, Walter Hus and further recordings both of Martland's compositions and of the composer playing Mozart.

[edit] Factory Too

In 1994, Wilson attempted to revive Factory Records, in collaboration with London Records, as "Factory Too". The first release was by Factory stalwarts The Durutti Column, the other main acts on the label were Hopper and The Space Monkeys, and the label also gave a UK release to the first album by Stephin Merritt's side project The 6ths, Wasps' Nests. A further release ensued: a compilation EP featuring previously unsigned Manchester acts East West Coast, The Orch, Italian Love Party and K-Track. This collection of 8 tracks (2 per band) was simply entitled A Factory Sample Too (FACD2.02). The label was active until the late 1990s, as was "Factory Once", which organised reissues of Factory material. The current incarnation of Factory is F4 Records.