Label Guide: Infinity

Infinity Records (Australia) was established in 1971 as the progressive rock subsidiary of Australian major Festival Records a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Limited (later News Corporation). Early Infinity releases included Kahvas Jute, Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs and Blackfeather. Infinity's biggest successes were Sydney band Sherbet, who became the most popular and successful local band of the early Seventies and one of the most successful Australian groups of all time.

The Australian Infinity Records was active throughout the 1970s, and the last release dates from late 1979 or early 1980. It was completely unrelated to the American MCA subsidiary label portrayed below.

Infinity Records (USA) was a short-lived subsidiary of MCA Records established in New York City in 1977. The label was conceived by MCA president Sidney Sheinberg as a way for the West Coast company to improve its presence on the East Coast. Infinity was modestly successful - although it never returned a profit - until an album of songs, sung by Pope John Paul II in his native Polish, produced a huge financial loss.

MCA pulled the plug on Infinity Records in November 1979, and the Infinity catalog was immediately absorbed by the parent company. The collapse of Infinity also coincided with rising costs of manufacturing for vinyl LP records and a huge sales slump for the music industry. Infinity has since become known as one of the most expensive failures in the history of the record business.