The Day the Music Burned
Based on new reporting from the New York Times, the Universal Studios fire from 2008 may have been “the biggest disaster in the history of the music industry.”
In a feature called “The Day the Music Burned,” it is alleged that hundreds of thousands of master tapes from recording artists — among them dozens of legends — may have been destroyed in the fire, with some catalogues being wiped out entirely.
Many of the tapes lost came from some legends like, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, John Coltrane, Dizzy Gillespie, Buddy Guy, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Elton John, Chuck Berry, and Aretha Franklin losing work alongside contemporary artists including Nirvana, Eminem, Hole, Snoop Dogg, and Soundgarden.
According to the Times, a court document from 2009 estimated the “assets destroyed” at 118,230. But another confidential report obtained by the paper has Universal Music Group saying “an estimated 500K song titles” were destroyed.
Specific tracks that were reportedly burned up include Bill Haley and His Comets’ “Rock Around the Clock,” Etta James’s “At Last,” the Kingsmen’s “Louie Louie,” and the Impressions’ “People Get Ready.”
There were also masters from the labels MCA, ABC, A&M, Geffen, and Interscope
UMG disputes the Times reporting, saying there were “numerous inaccuracies, misleading statements, contradictions and fundamental misunderstandings of the scope of the incident and affected assets,” and the company issued a statement today that said, “Music preservation is of the highest priority for us and we are proud of our track record.”
For more from the Times check out the article below:
