Album cover for The Beatles, Help!

Parlophone Records was a British record label founded in 1896, initially established as a manufacturing subsidiary before becoming an independent imprint. The label released classical, jazz, and popular music across multiple decades, establishing itself as a significant force in early twentieth-century sound recording and distribution. Parlophone operated through various ownership structures and eventually became part of the EMI group, where it continued as a major catalogue holder. The company's archive represents a substantial historical document of recorded music from the early electrical recording era onward.