Sir Paul McCartney has accused EMI, his former record company, of becoming boring and taking him for granted. The former Beatle, speaking to The Times, complained that the British record company had become too bureaucratic – and how he had “dreaded going to see them”.

 

“Everybody at EMI had become part of the furniture. I’d be a couch; Coldplay are an armchair. And Robbie Williams, I dread to think what he was. But the most important thing was, I’d felt [the people at EMI] had become really very boring, you know?”

 

Last summer, after 4½ decades, Sir Paul left EMI to join the start-up Starbucks-owned record label Hear Music, which released Memory Almost Full. The album, which attracted positive critical reviews, has sold more than a million copies worldwide since its release this summer.

 

Sir Paul accused EMI of being unimaginative, telling him that he should “go to Cologne” to market a new record. “This idea became symbolic of the treadmill, you know? You go somewhere, speak to a million journalists for one day and you get all the same questions. It’s mind-numbing. So I started to saying: ‘God we’ve got to do something else’.”

 

EMI owns the rights to all the Beatles albums, which were released on its Parlophone label or the group’s Apple label. Although Apple was owned by the Fab Four, EMI retained the distribution rights in an agreement struck in the late 1960s and continued to distribute Sir Paul’s material after the band split up.

 

He also complained about the long marketing lead times demanded by EMI, the so-called process of “setting up a record” in an attempt to enhance sales, recalling that John Lennon was able to force EMI to release Instant Karma a week after he had written it in 1970.

 

Sir Paul said that he would ask EMI to release a song “next week”, to which executives would reply: “You can’t do that these days.” When told that EMI wanted six months “to figure out how to market it”, Sir Paul asked: “Couldn’t some bright people do that in two days? Jesus Christ, I said, ‘Look boys, I’m sorry, I’m digging a new furrow’.”

 

The comments are a further embarrassment for Eric Nicoli, the former EMI chief executive who left the music major after its takeover by Terra Firma, the venture capital group led by Guy Hands. But Mr Hands is unlikely to be quite so concerned, as he is thought to agree with Sir Paul’s criticisms of the previous regime.

 

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article3048895.ece

:laugh3:

 

So what does that make Radiohead then? A colour-shifting lava lamp?

^ :laugh1:

 

but radiohead's off EMI; they have been since hail to the theif, so i suppose they dont count in that living room setting anymore. i think theyd be like, the other armchair, or a coffee table, or a fireplace if that counts :P (fireplace is quite important...)

 

but paul mccartney mentioning coldplay is enough to make me smile. my first music love talking about my second music love...tee hee.

 

and paul mccartley?? :laugh1:

^ :laugh1:

 

but radiohead's off EMI; they have been since hail to the theif, so i suppose they dont count in that living room setting anymore. i think theyd be like, the other armchair, or a coffee table, or a fireplace if that counts :P (fireplace is quite important...)

 

but paul mccartney mentioning coldplay is enough to make me smile. my first music love talking about my second music love...tee hee.

 

and paul mccartley?? :laugh1:

 

 

Didley write songs with John Lemmon??:rolleyes:

yeah EMI is pretty much the best...........................

 

 

 

 

 

.............NOT!

The Evil Music Institution strikes again??:rolleyes:

Hey, can I be an ottoman at EMI?:) Or, maybe a piano bench? I'll bet the pay is pretty good, even though you get sat on a lot..:laugh3:

 

but radiohead's off EMI; they have been since hail to the theif, so i suppose they dont count in that living room setting anymore.

 

Same with Paul McCartney... he's with Starbucks now. I meant it in past tense.

 

And they didn't officially decide to cut ties until after In Rainbows came out, from what I understand.

 

Actually, I would say they were more one of those souvenirs that sit in the corner so the owner can point and say "see look, I really am cool, honest" since they were too prickly to sit on.

Radiohead are now the chair in the spare room, bought out when needed.

Didley write songs with John Lemmon??:rolleyes:

 

:laugh3::laugh3::laugh3::laugh3::laugh3: LOL

i only knew Jack Lemmon, hahaha but John? ROFL

 

i like your sense of humor mc!

:laugh3::laugh3::laugh3::laugh3::laugh3: LOL

i only knew Jack Lemmon, hahaha but John? ROFL

 

i like your sense of humor mc!

 

Thanks. I'll add you to my ever-growing fan list!!:P

Where are you, by the way?:confused:

Thanks. I'll add you to my ever-growing fan list!!:P

Where are you, by the way?:confused:

 

woooow thank you so much you're too good to me. but always remember me as your BIGGEST fan.:kiss::D

 

and...what do you mean with 'where i am'? ....at home?....:thinking:

woooow thank you so much you're too good to me. but always remember me as your BIGGEST fan.:kiss::D

 

and...what do you mean with 'where i am'? ....at home?....:thinking:

 

Your city/country location.

oh, sorry i thought i already told you: unfortunately i live in germany but fortunately its pretty close to england:D

 

you live in germany too, dont you? :)

oh, sorry i thought i already told you: unfortunately i live in germany but fortunately its pretty close to england:D

 

you live in germany too, dont you? :)

 

Which city?

now you make me blushing....:embarassed:

ok, its mannheim. do you know it?

now you make me blushing....:embarassed:

ok, its mannheim. do you know it?

 

I know of it, but I've never been there.

I know of it, but I've never been there.

 

did you ever want to come here?

did you ever want to come here?

 

I can't say I've ever had any reason to, no.;)

maybe you'll have one soon :wink3:

in 2008 when coldplay come here :D

maybe you'll have one soon :wink3:

in 2008 when coldplay come here :D

 

Well if and when they come, I reckon they'll do a gig somewhere in NRW, so I probably won't need to.;)

Well if and when they come, I reckon they'll do a gig somewhere in NRW, so I probably won't need to.;)

 

haha! no way! :sneaky: they'll come to MANNHEIM like in 2005!!!

haha! no way! :sneaky: they'll come to MANNHEIM like in 2005!!!

 

AND NRW!!:cool:

wanna bet? :wink3:

 

:D

wanna bet? :wink3:

 

:D

 

I don't need to, because they always do. NRW is the most populous region of Germany.:D