Trax Records: The 40th Anniversary

Specifications: 180 gram black vinyl, cut at 45 rpm for superior audio quality, high fidelity mastering.
Label: Red central label, faithful to Trax tradition, with white logo and titles drawn in industrial font.
Inner sleeve: Matte black, elegant and protective, recalls the old school essentiality of underground releases, maintaining an aesthetic coherence with the entire project.
Feeling: Solid, heavy to the touch, designed to last over time and offer a deep and dynamic listening, both on professional systems and in clubs.

Born in Chicago, spread across the world: Trax Records ignited a global cultural revolution with the raw sound of House Music. A label that didn’t just release records—Trax changed lives, built communities, and rewrote the rules of dance culture.

Chicago, 1984. In a modest vinyl pressing plant on the city’s industrial west side, one of the most influential record labels in electronic music history was born: Trax Records.

Founded by Larry Sherman, a savvy and unconventional businessman who had recently acquired Precision Record Pressing, Trax began almost by accident — but went on to change music forever. Sherman started pressing vinyl for local DJs and producers who had no access to major labels, giving them a platform to capture the sound rising from Chicago’s underground dancefloors.

Trax Records quickly became the spiritual and literal home of House Music — a genre still in its infancy, forged in the sweaty clubs and marginalized neighborhoods of the city by Black and Latinx DJs and producers. A hybrid of disco, funk, and electronic experimentation, house was raw, soulful, and revolutionary.

Early Trax releases like “No Way Back” by Adonis, “Your Love” by Jamie Principle & Frankie Knuckles, and “Move Your Body” by Marshall Jefferson weren’t just records — they were cultural manifestos. Pressed on low-budget, often noisy vinyl, their sonic power was undeniable. These tracks became underground anthems, then worldwide hits, spreading house music from Chicago to New York, London, Berlin, and Tokyo.

Despite controversies surrounding Sherman’s business practices — including disputes over royalties and artist rights — Trax became synonymous with House Music itself: bold, unpolished, and liberating. The red logo, lo-fi artwork, and unmistakable analog sound became visual and auditory icons of an era.

Today, 40 years later, Trax Records is more than a label. It is a symbol of creative freedom, cultural resistance, and the power of music to ignite global movements. Its birth didn’t just mark a milestone in Chicago’s music scene — it sparked a worldwide revolution.

TRAX RECORDS TURNS 40

THE GLOBAL HOUSE REVOLUTION CONTINUES WITH AN ANNIVERSARY COMPILATION THAT HONORS ITS RAW ROOTS AND RADICAL LEGACY

Born in Chicago, spread across the world: Trax Records ignited a global cultural revolution with the raw sound of House Music.

A label that didn’t just release records—Trax changed lives, built communities, and rewrote the rules of dance culture

Featuring music from Frankie Knuckles, Marshall Jefferson, Phuture, Ron Hardy,

Paul Johnson, Armando, Joey Beltram, Frankie Bones, Screamin’ Rachael, and more

CURATED BY JORGE

In 1984, a seismic shift in music history was set in motion within a modest vinyl pressing plant on Chicago’s industrial west side. Trax Records—founded by Larry Sherman after he acquired Precision Record Pressing—was not born from a business plan but from a creative explosion rooted in community, culture, and rebellion. By pressing vinyl for local DJs and producers excluded from the mainstream industry, Trax gave voice to a new sound rising from the city’s marginalized neighborhoods.

That sound—House Music—was more than just a genre. It was a movement forged by Black and Latinx artists in the sweaty, euphoric underground clubs of Chicago’s South Side. A radical blend of disco, funk, and electronic experimentation, House became a global force, largely thanks to the uncompromising vision of Trax Records.

Now, 40 years later, Trax celebrates its legacy and future with Trax Records: The 40th Anniversary Collection, curated by artist and provocateur Jorge. The collection will be released digitally and in limited-edition vinyl drops starting June 20, capturing the label’s revolutionary past and defiant present.

The compilation features foundational icons—Frankie Knuckles, Marshall Jefferson, Phuture, Ron Hardy, Armando, and Paul Johnson—and new-school innovators like Jorge, Analog 87, and Hiroko Yamamura. It includes everything from genre-defining anthems like “Your Love” and “Move Your Body” to politically charged underground tracks and bold, experimental remixes.

Trax’s influence is everywhere. Its chaotic, lo-fi, DIY energy helped to birth the global dance ecosystem as we know it—from raves to fashion runways to streaming charts. The label’s unmistakable red logo and raw, analog sound have become cultural symbols as iconic as the tracks.

The 40th Anniversary Collection is more than mere nostalgia—it’s a living archive. Each themed drop of three tracks will be pressed by Desslab in just 150 copies of vinyl, paired with custom artwork by Jorge. These aren’t just records—they’re time capsules and collectors’ artifacts that connect House's past and future.

On June 20, Trax will host an in-store celebration at Reckless Records (33 S Wabash, Chicago), bringing together legends and luminaries: L.A. Williams, Joe Smooth, Farley Jackmaster Funk, Screamin’ Rachael, Gene Hunt, Ron Carroll, and more. Screamin’ Rachael will perform with LaZara and Chillsesh, while Jorge delivers a rare DJ set that embodies the full arc of Trax’s legacy—from basement to main stage, from DIY to global.

The anniversary also marks Trax’s entry into fashion with its first-ever clothing line designed by Chicago creative Mario Maldonado. Distributed via Desslab and stocked at Juno, HHV, and deejay.de, the line reflects the rebellious, underground aesthetics that have defined House from the start.

Additional releases this year will expand the Trax universe, featuring artists like Late Nite Dub Addict, George Clinton, Toti Coco, Alex Phratz, and Screamin’ Rachael, reinforcing the label’s role as a launchpad for innovation and resistance.

Trax Records remains a symbol of cultural defiance. It didn’t polish the sound of House. It let it roar, unapologetically. It opened the doors for queer, Black, and working-class artists to speak their truth, and the world danced along.

This 40th anniversary is not just a celebration—it’s a reckoning. It reminds us that the best revolutions come from the underground, that noise can be beautiful, and that music can build worlds when unfiltered and unbound.

CAROL JIANI

"First of all congratulations for the label still going strong 40th year. I come from old school and loved the songs "Move Your Body" Marshall Jefferson Classic. The late Legendary Frankie Knuckels and Jamie Priciple's "Baby Wants To Ride" Great melody lines and keeping House Music alive.It means a great deal to me that we are bringing back the good old days . In those days the fans knew exactly what songs were coming on.Thank you Trax for bringing and keeping great melody lines alive.Music remains the greatest therapy in a very difficult world."