In the wake of
punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered commercially attractive to those companies. By 1978, labels like
Cherry Red,
Rough Trade, and
Mute had started up, and a support structure soon followed, including independent pressing, distribution and promotion. These labels got bigger and bigger, and by 1980 they were having Top 10 hits in the
UK Singles Chart.—the record needed to be delivered by a distribution service that was independent of the four major record companies:
EMI,
Sony Music Entertainment,
Warner Music Group and
Universal Music Group. In 1981, compilation of the chart switched to research company
MRIB. and both
Sounds and
Melody Maker later switched from the MRIB chart and adopted the
Music Week chart instead. Other weekly music papers also published their own charts, often compiled from single record shops. However, none of them were as widespread as the MRIB chart which was even being published in countries abroad. To be included in the indie chart, a record had to be distributed independently of the corporate framework of the major record companies; the genre of music was irrelevant. Large independent distributors emerged such as Pinnacle and Spartan, and there later emerged The Cartel, an association of regional distributors including Rough Trade, Backs, and
Red Rhino. The first weekly independent chart was published on 19 January 1980, with "
Where's Captain Kirk" by
Spizzenergi topping the singles chart, and
Dirk Wears White Sox by
Adam and the Ants topping the album chart. ==Official Charts Company==