2017: The Year Of Sire
The legendary Sire Records marks its 50th anniversary this year with a string of cool upcoming events. Founded by Seymour Stein — who remains at the helm today — and Richard Gotterher, Sire was launched as a full-fledged independent label in 1967. By the mid-’70s, the company had become a champion of the emerging punk and New Wave scene with such groundbreaking signings as The Ramones and Talking Heads. In 1976, Sire joined the Warner Music Group family with an expanded roster that included Madonna, the Pretenders, The Smiths, Depeche Mode, The Cure, k.d. lang, The Cult, the Replacements, Ice-T and dozens more.
The Sire 50th celebration kicks off on Monday, February 6, when the Recording Academy hosts a special Grammy Week event with Seymour Stein at the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live. The intimate evening will feature a discussion with Stein and special guests Billy Duffy of The Cult, director/producer Brett Ratner and Martin Mills, Chairman of the Beggars Group, moderated by Scott Goldman, VP of the Grammy Foundation and MusiCares.
And there’s more — a new Sire Records website launches this Friday, February 3, along with a Sire 50 playlist campaign across multiple streaming services, along with a special limited-edition vinyl box-set release. Also, Stein’s long-awaited autobiography, written by Stein and author Gareth Murphy will be published later this year, and a documentary film about Stein and Sire Records is being planned by Stein’s daughter, Mandy.
Stein commented, “It’s impossible to believe that it’s been a half century since Richard Gotterher and I decided to turn our little production company into a proper record label. I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by so many, many great artists. I always tried to get in on the ground floor and see artists before anybody else, and I believe that great music will always prevail, sooner or later. The one constant is that it all begins with the song, and that’s the most important thing. Recorded music is 140 years old, but there’s been a music business for hundreds of years, and I love being part of that continuum as much now as I did when I started out over 60 years ago. I also want to thank my colleagues at WMG for giving Sire such a welcoming home for the past four decades, and my many great team members at Sire over the years for their invaluable contributions.”
