Factory Records

Did You Know?

• The original sleeve for New Order's 'Blue Monday' (FAC 73) was die-cut and designed to look like a floppy disk, and was so costly that the label lost money on every copy sold.
• The Haçienda nightclub (FAC 51) opened in May 1982 and lost tens of thousands of pounds every month due to low prices and crowds preferring ecstasy to alcohol by the mid-1980s.
• Factory's early practice of eschewing contracts meant that New Order, not the label, owned New Order's back catalogue, which scuttled a takeover deal with London Records in 1992.
• In 2010, Peter Hook had six bass guitars made using wood from the Haçienda's dancefloor.

History

The Factory name first appeared for a club night in May 1978, with the inaugural Factory night held on 26 May 1978 at the Russell Club, also known as the Caribbean Club, PSV Club, or simply 'The Factory'. The club was launched by Alan Erasmus, Tony Wilson, and promoter Alan Wise, and it hosted touring bands as well as local post-punk acts such as the Durutti Column, Cabaret Voltaire, and Joy Division. Peter Saville designed advertising for the club.

In September 1978, Factory released an EP titled A Factory Sample, featuring music from the Durutti Column, Joy Division, Cabaret Voltaire, and comedian John Dowie. Following the success of the club nights, Factory Records made its first official release, A Factory Sample, in January 1979. The label was set up by Tony Wilson, Rob Gretton, and Alan Erasmus, with Martin Hannett joining from the Manchester punk label Rabid Records. In 1978, Wilson compered the new wave afternoon at Deeply Vale Festival, where the Durutti Column made its fourth live appearance and the Fall also performed early in their career.

Successor labels

In 1994, Tony Wilson attempted to revive Factory Records as 'Factory Too' in collaboration with London Records. Its first release was by the Durutti Column, and other acts included Hopper and Space Monkeys; it also gave a UK release to the first album by the 6ths, Wasps' Nests. A compilation EP titled A Factory Sample Too (FACD2.02) featured previously unsigned Manchester bands. The label was active until the late 1990s, later independent of London Records, while 'Factory Once' handled reissues.

Wilson founded a short-lived fourth incarnation, F4 Records, in the early 2000s. In 2012, Peter Saville and James Nice formed Factory Records Ltd. with Alan Erasmus and Oliver Wilson, releasing only a vinyl reissue of From the Hip by Section 25. Nice later revived the Factory Benelux imprint for reissues and new recordings. In 2019, Warner Music Group marked the label's 40th anniversary with a website, exhibition, and select vinyl editions.

Retrospective

An exhibition by Colin Gibbins titled FACTVM (Latin for 'deed accomplished') celebrated the 20th anniversary of Factory Records' closure (1978–1992) and was held at the Ice Plant, Manchester, from 4 to 7 May 2012. In October 2019, a box set of rarities and releases from the label's first two years was issued. From 19 June 2021 to 3 January 2022, Manchester's Science and Industry Museum hosted 'Use Hearing Protection: The early years of Factory Records', featuring Peter Saville's designs, previously unseen archive items, and objects loaned from the estates of Tony Wilson and Rob Gretton.