Universal Records: The Return

Rob Thomas live, November 2005

 Universal Music Group have revived their former US flagship label Universal Records. While a few unrelated labels have come up in the Philippines, Belgium and Brasil, this Universals roots go back to 1988 when started by country trailblazer Jimmy Bowen as part of MCA Nashville, but in 1990, he moved to Capitol Nashville and took his artists with him, ending that Universal label (yet Capitol would become part of UMG in 2013). There had also been UNI Records (Universal City Records) in the late '60s until 1972 when absorbed into MCA along with Kapp and Decca US (spun off of the UK one before WWII and came full circle once UMG bought PolyGram in 1999 after the latter bought UK label in 1979, but that's for another day). UNI signed Elton John in the US and Canada, and I explained earlier how he touched nearly every pop division of Universal Music Group in one way or another.
 Universal Records' second chapter began when they absorbed Rising Tide Records and Seagram bought MCA from Matsushita (Panasonic). After getting PolyGram from Philips by the end of the millennium, Universal Records had absorbed Polydor US and took over The Moody Blues and Bee Gees' contracts here for what would be their final all-original studio releases. Universal Records would later be combined with the perennial Motown and current chartmakers Republic each. While the Detroit label would go back to their old name and is now under the Interscope Capitol arm, Universal Republic would just be Republic and have hits with Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande. Now, with little to go on, Universal Records returns after nearly two decades when Rob Thomas signs a new solo deal just after leaving Atlantic Records after thirty years' time, including Matchbox Twenty proper. He's lucky for an older artist to get a new home, let alone another major label, straight away and at this point in time. All Nights Days is available now and a tour is underway to support. I saw it in the shop and found he moved to a label I thought was retired. Republic had brought back Mercury US for non-country, signing our own Post Malone, and I wrote about sister label A&M earlier, which only Sting has kept alive in recent years. New talent could come to Universal Records, as changes have been made under UMG brass Sir Lucian Grange, who is the modern day Sir Edward Lewis (Decca UK) or Sir Joseph Lockwood (EMI), if you like.