Capitol

Capitol Records, founded in 1942 as Liberty Records, is a renowned music label based in Hollywood, California. With a rich history and impressive sales of 42 million records by 1946, Capitol quickly became one of the Big Six studios. In 1955, it was acquired by British company EMI for $8.5 million and later became part of the Universal Music Group's Worldwide division in 1979. The merger with Priority Records in 2001 further solidified Capitol's position in the industry.

EMI began releasing Capitol products in the UK, Europe, and Australasia from January 1956 onwards after licenses with other record companies expired. Over the years, Capitol has seen various changes in ownership and management. In September 2012, it was purchased by Vivendi S.A., owner of Universal Music Group.

Capitol Records is known for its distinctive album prefix codes that provide valuable information about each release. These codes include letters indicating stereo or mono recordings, price codes denoting different list prices, indicators for multiple discs or special packaging.