Reich, EMI-America, and CBS

[ed@das.llnl.gov (Edward Suranyi)]

     First of all, I hope nobody thinks I believe it was right for
Reich's books to have been burnt.  That would have been wrong
no matter what they contained.

    Next, in all the talk about Kate's switch to CBS, nobody seems
to realize that Kate was not the only artist to leave EMI-America
over the last year and a half.  CEMA merged its EMI-America and 
Manhattan divisions then and kicked many of its artists off its
roster.  Kate, as well as some others, left because of the "general
malaise" at the label.  The label had been in financially poor
shape for some time, and many artists began to notice.  This information
comes from _Rolling Stone_, February 11988.  (I don't have the
exact reference with me, but if anybody wants to know I can dig it up.)

    As for CBS, well I read not long ago that Joan Jett, for one,
was very glad that she switched to them.  She said in an interview
that CBS promoted her much better than her previous label did, and 
the result was that her latest album did much better than the one 
before.  (I think this was in _Billboard_, but I didn't keep the
article.)

    So I say we'll just have to wait and see.

Ed
ed@das.llnl.gov