Editing Rykodisc (section)

==History==
Claiming to be the first [[CD]]-only [[independent record label]] in the United States, Rykodisc was founded in [[1984 in music|January 1984]] in [[Cannes]], [[France]],<ref name="Simonds 2004"/> by Arthur Mann, Rob Simonds, Doug Lexa and Don Rose. The name "Ryko," which the label claimed was a Japanese word meaning "sound from a flash of light," was chosen to reflect the company's CD-only policy. In the late 1980s, however, the label also began to issue high-quality [[Compact Cassette|cassette]] / [[Gramophone record|vinyl]] and MiniDisc versions of many releases under the name Ryko Analogue.<ref>Bruce Britt. "CD-Only Rykodisc Label Decides to Give Vinyl a Spin." ''Chicago Tribune'', July 14, 1988, p. 11C.</ref>

Initially founded as an [[audiophile]]-oriented label, Rykodisc shifted its focus towards mainstream audiences following the worldwide success of [[Dire Straits]]{{'}} 1985 album ''[[Brothers in Arms (album)|Brothers in Arms]]'', which demonstrated that the compact disc's growth would be significantly faster than initially anticipated.<ref name="Simonds 2004"/> The label subsequently saw notable successes in the CD reissue industry, as artists such as [[Elvis Costello]], [[David Bowie]], [[Yoko Ono]], [[Frank Zappa]], the estate of [[Nick Drake]], [[Nine Inch Nails]], [[Sugar (American band)|Sugar]], [[Robert Wyatt]], and [[Mission of Burma]] allowed Rykodisc to issue their catalogs on CD. Rykodisc also re-released the [[SST Records]]-era recordings by the [[Meat Puppets]]. It also was responsible for the first release of the "[[I Am the Cosmos]]" LP by the late Chris Bell of [[Big Star]], another band on the label.
[[Image:Rykodisctray.jpg|left|thumb|Artwork designed by Conrad Warre for the inside of Rykodisc CD reissues (1993–1994); bottle green transparent jewel cases designed and developed by Warre with Philips Dupont Optical]]

Over the years, the label acquired [[Hannibal Records]], [[Tradition Records]], Gramavision (founded by [[Jonathan F. P. Rose]]),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tfana.org/about/new-home/project-development-team/jonathan-f-p-rose |title=Jonathan F.P. Rose &#124; Theatre for a New Audience |date=21 December 2010 |publisher=Tfana.org |access-date=2016-09-28}}</ref> [[Emperor Norton Records]], [[Restless Records]] and [[Cordless Recordings]]. Rykodisc also founded a distribution company, Ryko Distribution, and a music publishing company, Rykomusic. The label's catalog exceeds 1,200 titles.

In 1998, [[Chris Blackwell]] left [[Island Records]] and bought Rykodisc for a reported $35 million as a means of acquiring music marketing and distribution expertise for his new venture, a media company called [[Palm Pictures]]. In 1999, one year after the Blackwell buy-out, the office in Salem, Massachusetts, was closed, and many industry veterans were laid off. In 2001,  Blackwell parted ways with Rykodisc. The label was then located in [[New York City]] with offices in [[Los Angeles]] and in [[Beverly, Massachusetts]].

On March 23, 2006, it was announced that [[Warner Music Group]] acquired the Ryko Corporation for $67.5 million.<ref>"Ryko bought by Warner." ''Ottawa (Ontario) Citizen,'' March 25, 2006, p. D3.</ref> The Zappa Family Trust and Ryko parted ways in 2012 with the Zappa Family Trust reacquiring Frank Zappa's recorded music catalogue and [[Universal Music Enterprises]] taking over distribution of the Zappa catalogue.<ref>{{cite web|author=Christopher Morris |url=https://variety.com/2012/music/news/umg-sets-frank-zappa-re-releases-1118055340/ |title=UMG sets Frank Zappa re-releases |publisher=Variety |date=2012-06-11 |access-date=2016-09-28}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Marchese |first=Joe |url=http://theseconddisc.com/2012/06/11/freak-out-early-zappa-classics-coming-from-universal/ |title=Freak Out! Zappa Family Trust Strikes Deal For Reissue Of 60 Albums From Universal, Roll-Out Begins In July |date=11 June 2012 |publisher=The Second Disc |access-date=2016-09-28}}</ref> Also in 2006, the independent publishing company [[Evergreen Copyrights]] purchased the Rykomusic publishing catalogue, among others.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.evergreencopyrights.com/articles/1/evergreen-grows-global.html |title=Temporarily Disabled |access-date=2009-06-16 |archive-date=2011-07-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710205701/http://www.evergreencopyrights.com/articles/1/evergreen-grows-global.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> In September 2010, Evergreen was acquired by [[BMG Rights Management]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://m.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/publishing/1200448/bmg-to-buy-evergreen-copyrights|title=BMG To Buy Evergreen Copyrights|website=billboard.com}}{{Dead link|date=July 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In 2009, Ryko Distribution was folded into [[Alternative Distribution Alliance]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i202b681b4f13751392a3478435ebfb83 |title=Ryko Distr. Merged with ADA, Staffs Shuffled &#124; Billboard.biz |access-date=2009-06-16 |archive-date=2012-07-24 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120724014953/http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i202b681b4f13751392a3478435ebfb83 |url-status=dead }}</ref>