Label Guide: Intercord

Intercord (Intercord Tonträger GmbH) was a German record label, founded in 1966 by the Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. The label started with a focus on classical music and German songwriters like Reinhard Mey, who was the first contracted Intercord artist. In the early 1970s, Intercord started to expand with a number of German distribution deals for labels like Freedom, Cube, Gull and Sonet Records, and by launching a Krautrock subsidiary named Spiegelei.

In early 1976 the label changed its numbering system for all own and licensed releases to the familiar INT-prefix followed by a six-digit number. Many of the earlier releases have been reissued since 1976 with such a number, those are all reprints!

The 1980s were Intercord's most successful decade, driven by the cooperation with Mute Records and the distribution of Depeche Mode in Germany, one of the best-selling artists in the country. Holzbrinck sold Intercord incl. all subsidiaries to EMI in 1994, and EMI closed the label for good in 2000.