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The Popular label first
appeared in 1913 and were manufactured in England by Crystalate. The
masters were recorded by the Sound Recording Company, whose logo may be
seen on the later labels; the herald on horseback with the letters S R C
in an oblong design beneath. Some early "Populars" used maters
from Grammavox, recognisable as the record are larger in diameter at 10½
inches. The catalogue series started at P-1 in 1913 and reached over P-1200 by the time the label was withdrawn in 1923. The label design changed slightly over the years and the colour varied, too. The initial label was deep violet with gold printing. This style was used for about the first 500 issues, before it changed to what is probably the most-seen design in a dark red-brown with gold printing. This was used until the P-900s when the background colour became variously red, blue or pale blue. At some point in the P-1000s, the label changed to be pale blue with dark blue over-printing. Just before the label's demise, the name was changed to be "Ye Popular" and two designs of this label may be seen here, in addition to an white-labelled "Emergency label", which was an old issue still in the catalogue, judging by the catalogue number. It is possible the name change coincided with the introduction of the new "Imperial" label which replaced "Popular". Over the whole life of the label, records occasionally turn up with a "Butterfly" sticker over the top third of the label. It is assumed this was an attempt to sell off old stock by a particular store. My thanks to Chuck Mulder for supplying the picture of the type 1 label with the "Butterfly" sticker. |
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