Trojan Records

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. Until 1975, Trojan was based at a warehouse in Neasden Lane, Willesden, London. 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 Judge Dread, Tony Tribe, Lee "Scratch" Perry's Upsetters, Bob and Marcia, Desmond Dekker, Jimmy Cliff, the Harry J All Stars, the Maytals, the Melodians, Nicky Thomas and Dave and Ansel Collins. 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. 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. In 2018, the company celebrated 50 years in the business. ==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." ==Collectable records==

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

• Amalgamated • Attack • Big • Big Shot • Blue Cat • Bread • Clandisc • Down Town • Duke • Dynamic • Explosion • Gayfeet • GG • Green Door • Harry J • High Note • Horse • Hot Rod • Jackpot • Joe • Moodisc • Pressure Beat • Q • Randy's • Smash • Song Bird • Summit • Techniques • Treasure Isle • Upsetter ==References==