Johnny Marr and Diane Warren have paid tribute to late Sire Records founder Seymour Stein.
The New York music executive, perhaps best known for signing Madonna, The Ramones and Talking Heads, passed away at his home in Los Angeles on Sunday after a battle with cancer, his daughter Mandy confirmed. He was 80.
Stein co-founded Sire with Richard Gottehrer as an independent record label in 1966 before partnering with Warner Bros. Records in the late ’70s. Sire’s roster included acts such as Madonna, The Ramones, The Smiths, Talking Heads, the Pretenders, The Cure, Soft Cell, Depeche Mode, k.d. lang and Tommy Page.
After news of Stein’s death broke, former Smiths guitarist Marr tweeted, “RIP Seymour Stein. Legendary record man. Signed me to Sire Records in 1984 and bought me my Red 355 from 48th Street to seal the deal. Worked with The Drifters, Rolling Stones & Shangri-Las. Discovered Talking Heads, Ramones & Madonna. Well done Seymour & thank you my friend.”
Elsewhere, award-winning songwriter Warren posted a picture of Stein and Page on Twitter and wrote, “Now they’re together in Heaven Forever. Rest In Power Seymour Stein say hi (to Tommy) Page for me. Thank U for signing him and so many great artists (sic).”
Lang simply tweeted, “Swift rebirth my friend”, with the praying hands emoji, while Tim Burgess of the Charlatans wrote, “Sire was one of those labels that was a sign of great taste and quality. He knew good music. We met him in New York, at The Limelight, when The Charlatans played there, we’d been asked to put him on the guest list – his plus one was Madonna.”
In 2005, Stein was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in the lifetime achievement category.
He is survived by his daughter, filmmaker Mandy Stein.
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