Spacemen 3 Take Down Request Asking Fans Not to Buy Reissues
Just before Record Store Day (last Saturday, April 22), Jason Pierce and Peter “Sonic Boom” Kember posted on Spiritualized’s Twitter and Facebook accounts asking fans not to buy new reissues of albums by their former band Spacemen 3. The reissues were released via Space Age Recordings, the label run by Gerald Palmer, the band’s ex-manager. Pierce and Kember wrote, “We are currently in legal dispute with Gerald Palmer due to him depriving us of our rights in our music and other intellectual property rights relating to Spacemen 3. Any monies from those sales will go directly to him and help fund his side of the dispute.” However, those posts have since been taken down.
In a statement emailed to Pitchfork, Palmer said that the posts were removed after he contacted Pierce and Kember’s legal advisers on April 26, “requesting (amongst other things) that I required their immediate confirmation that they would remove the wildly inaccurate, distorted and untrue postings.” He continued, “I received a response 2 hours later confirming ‘we can confirm that the posting has been removed from the Spiritualized Facebook and Twitter page and that it will not be re-posted.’”
Palmer also stated, “All claims that the reissues are ‘illegitimate,’ that legal action is being taken, and that the band’s members are being paid ‘very little’ in royalties are both strenuously denied and completely refuted.”
Read his full statement below.
Pitchfork has reached out to representatives for Pierce and Kember for comment.
Gerald Palmer:
All claims that the reissues are “illegitimate,” that legal action is being taken, and that the band’s members are being paid “very little” in royalties are both strenuously denied and completely refuted and you can quote me on that; in print if you like.
It is true to state that our solicitor (attorney) did send a letter to one of the ex-members of the band who illegally authorised the license of a Spacemen 3 recording behind our back (to which the other band members were denied any royalties or advance) but no legal proceedings have been initiated by us (or any other party for that matter) in relation to ANY dispute concerning Spacemen 3. The disgruntled band member did subsequently make a post on a forum erroneously alleging they got paid ‘zero’ royalties which then appears to have been disseminated by other fans of the band whilst adding their own take on the story but hey, that’s the internet for you. For the record these albums are owned and controlled by me for life of copyright. All the ex-members of Spacemen 3 continue to be accounted to and paid on a bi-annual basis as they have been for the last 30 years, with the total sum paid out in royalties running into substantial six figure sums.
Let me pose a question you may wish to consider; if the releases are purported to be “illegitimate” you may wish to ask yourself why, since the expiration of the licenses to Fire Records, BMG and subsequently Taang! Records in the U.S.A. in the 90’s (check the copyright notices on the jackets of these issues if you have them to hand) then you may ask yourself why no other label (excepting only Space Age Recordings) has exclusively manufactured, distributed and sold these records on a worldwide basis for approximately the last 20 years?
Subsequent to being alerted to Pitchfork’s news story I contacted Jason Pierce and Peter Kember’s legal advisers yesterday (26th April) requesting (amongst other things) that I required their immediate confirmation that they would remove the wildly inaccurate, distorted and untrue postings made on the official Spiritualized Facebook page and the official Spirtualized twitter page. I received a response 2 hours later confirming ‘we can confirm that the posting has been removed from the Spiritualized Facebook and Twitter page and that it will not be re-posted.’”
As a foot note, it is the small independent record stores who will suffer the financial consequence of Pete and Jason’s reckless actions the most.
Gerald Palmer
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