Loeb & Loeb Represents Criterion Music Corp. in its Sale to Universal Music Publishing

Loeb & Loeb LLP represented Criterion Music Corporation in the sale of the iconic, family-owned and run music publishing company and its affiliated entities to Universal Music Publishing (UMPG). The company will relocate to UMPG’s global headquarters in Santa Monica, CA, where Bo Goldsen will continue to serve as President of Criterion.

Criterion’s catalog of pop, country and jazz hits stretches back over seventy years, and features songs written by jazz great Charlie “Bird” Parker(“Ornithology”), Lee Hazlewood (“These Boots are Made for Walkin’”), Lyle Lovett (“If I Had a Boat”), Rodney Crowell (“Shame on the Moon”), Rosanne Cash (“Seven Year Ache”), Jackson Browne (“Doctor My Eyes”), and many others. It includes 13 No. 1 country hits, one of the largest collections of Hawaiian and Polynesian music, and interests in such standards as “Dream (When You’re Feeling Blue),” “Moonlight in Vermont,” “It’s a Good Day,” “Mañana,” “Papa Ooh Mow Mow,” “Let The Good Times Roll,” “Gee Baby, Ain’t I Good To You,” and “Have I Stayed Too Long at the Fair,” to name just a few.

The Loeb & Loeb deal team representing Criterion Music Group in this transaction was led by John T. Frankenheimer, partner and Chair of the firm’s Music Industry Practice, along with attorney Amy B. Ortner.

Loeb & Loeb's Music Industry Practice has long been recognized as a leader in a transformative industry that continues to evolve as a result of the convergence of technology and content. We provide sophisticated, strategic counsel to the world's leading music companies and today's most successful talent, and offer broad knowledge of industry issues, practices and challenges, in-depth experience in complex entertainment and corporate finance matters, and an unmatched record of successful deals involving virtually all types of content, intellectual property, and digital media. Loeb & Loeb was named "Law Firm of the Year" in Music by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers in their 2013 rankings.