How Trojan Records conquered the world

When Trojan Records attempted to break into the United States music market in the early 1970s, it hit an insurmountable barrier: the company shared its name with America’s most popular brand of condom. ‘It was a case of commercial coitus interruptus,’ says Rob Bell, at the time the label’s production manager.

In America, Trojan signified rubber, not vinyl. The label proved to have greater staying power in the UK, where it was at the forefront of popularising Jamaican music. Founded in 1968 as a joint venture between Chris Blackwell’s Island Records and Lee Gopthal’s Beat & Commercial, from a Willesden warehouse Trojan introduced the music of Desmond Dekker, Lee Perry, the Pioneers, the Maytals, Bob Marley, Prince Buster and Jimmy Cliff to the British masses.

Its lasting legacy is The Trojan Story, the first and finest anthology of early ska, rocksteady and reggae. The 50 tracks form a compelling narrative, charting the evolution of Jamaican music through the 1960s while tracing its assimilation into British culture.

Initially, Trojan targeted Britain’s Afro-Caribbean communities. ‘It was a popular saying in the office that the average Jamaican family included enough money in their household budget each week for at least one single,’ says Bell. Trojan had licensing agreements with several Jamaican labels, but sometimes they had to improvise. Word would arrive that a record was proving popular on the island’s sound systems, pushing demand among Britain’s West Indian population. Trojan would race to secure the UK rights and rush-release the song.

By the time the label scored its first British no. 1 single in 1971 with the mighty ‘Double Barrel’ by Dave and Ansell Collins, something had changed.