Recordings by Elton John, Nirvana and Thousands More Lost in Fire

[Dennis Donovan]

Link to tweet

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/11/us/master-recordings-universal-fire.html

June 11, 2019


Smoke poured out of a sound stage on June 1, 2008.

Eleven years ago this month, a fire ripped through a part of Universal Studios Hollywood.

At the time, the company said that the blaze had destroyed the theme park’s “King Kong” attraction and a video vault that contained only copies of old works.

But, according to an article published on Tuesday by The New York Times Magazine, the fire also tore through an archive housing treasured audio recordings, amounting to what the piece described as “the biggest disaster in the history of the music business.”

What happened?
The fire started in the early hours of June 1, 2008.

Overnight, maintenance workers had used blowtorches to repair the roof of a building on the set of New England Street, a group of colonial-style buildings used in scenes for movies and television shows. The workers followed protocol and waited for the shingles they worked on to cool, but the fire broke out soon after they left, just before 5 a.m.

The flames eventually reached Building 6197, known as the video vault, which housed videotapes, film reels and, crucially, a library of master sound recordings owned by Universal Music Group.

<snip>

The list of artists affected spans decades of popular music. It includes recordings by Ray Charles, B.B. King, the Four Tops, Joan Baez, Neil Diamond, Sonny and Cher, Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Al Green, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Buffett, the Eagles, Aerosmith, Rufus and Chaka Khan, Barry White, Patti LaBelle, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, the Police, Sting, Steve Earle, R.E.M., Janet Jackson, Guns N’ Roses, Mary J. Blige, No Doubt, Nine Inch Nails, Snoop Dogg, Nirvana, Beck, Sheryl Crow, Tupac Shakur, Eminem, 50 Cent and the Roots.

</snip>

[snowybirdie]

1. Sad stoty

but it happened 11 years ago. Why being it out again now?

[Dennis Donovan]

2. I think Universal hushed it up, only coming to light now

[D2020]

7. What purpose would that have served them?

[Dennis Donovan]

9. Per the same article:

Jody Rosen, the writer of the article, described the successful effort to play down the scope of the loss as a “triumph of crisis management” that involved officials working for Universal Music Group on both coasts. Those efforts were undoubtedly aimed at minimizing public embarrassment, but some suggest the company was also particularly worried about a backlash from artists and artist estates whose master recordings had been destroyed.

The real extent of the loss was laid out in litigation and company documents obtained by Mr. Rosen, a contributing writer for the magazine.

[jberryhill]

3. On the upside, 80% of their disco recordings were successfully incinerated

Unlike the unsuccessful attempt in Chicago in 1979...

Almost as memorable as 10 cent beer night.

[Dennis Donovan]

4. Sadly, they weren't "masters"

[D2020]

8. Lol

Just spit my orange juice!

[Progressive Law]

10. The "Disco Sucks" movement was largely fueled by racist homophobic bigots.

https://timeline.com/disco-sucks-movement-racist-homophobic-2d4e63b43a0e

[pstokely]

5. it's UCS for them

[Dennis Donovan]

6. THAT is friggin' HILARIOUS!!