Label Guide: HörZu

HörZu is a German weekly TV guide that started its own record label in 1963. Most of the releases were license productions of major German and international labels under the HörZu brand. The label released three albums a month, advertised these releases in its magazine and sold them both in record stores and via mail order for the standard price of 18 Deutsche Mark. Starting with classical music only, HörZu quickly moved into pop music (The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elvis) and by the late 1960s even into Jazz (Peter Herbolzheimer, Herbie Mann). Most of the releases sold very well as promotion was very strong and the price rather low for 1960s standards.

The label design was mostly red with a steadily evolving HörZu logo, but many of the international license productions used the original label of the rights owner with an additional HörZu print or logo. There were so many different variations of HörZu-branded original labels that we won't be able to show them all in this label guide.

In 1968 HörZu started a new label imprint for progressive and avantgarde music and called it HörZu Black Label. Everything that was considered out of the ordinary was put on this subsidiary, from electronic music and Krautrock to Free Jazz and Blues Rock, but also comedy and singer/songwriter albums can be found on there. HörZu Black Label was discontinued in 1972.

The main HörZu label continued to release albums until the early 1990s.