Friday, September 25, 2009

Hard times at Rhino Records

More bad news for the music industry. Variety reports long-heralded back catalog savior Rhino Records is laying off 30-40 people, citing "fundamental transformation of the physical new release and catalog business."

Over the years, Rhino reissues have become a dominant element of my music collection. From the Monkees reissues that helped launch that band's mid-80s critical and commercial revival to the thoughtfully packaged and annotated Nuggets box sets, there has always been a palpable sense of passion in Rhino's products.

Here's hoping there's still a sustainable place for eccentric music nuts in whatever emerges from the wreckage of the old guard.

2 comments:

Cornbiter Deluxe said...

They'll probably need to emulate norton and sundazed and the other smaller re-issue labels that put out vinyl. That seems to be what people want these days.

I love vinyl, but it's too bad that the kind of work Rhino put in to collections like the excellent Postpunk Chronicles and the aforementioned Nuggets releases seems like it'll be a thing of the past.

Lee said...

That is a tragedy. Rhino's "Billboard No.1 Country Hits 1959-68" played a huge role in my musical education. I suppose I would have discovered Buck Owens eventually, but that collection kicked it off.