Spirit Music Teams Up With James Guercio

NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Spirit Catalogue Holdings, in conjunction with Spirit Music Group, have acquired a majority stake in the publishing rights and rights to a portion of the producer royalties of legendary record producer James William Guercio.

The deal encompasses a decade worth of Chicago's music from the 1970s, considered by many to be their strongest period.. During that time, the band released 11 albums and charted 24 Top 40 hits including "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is", "Colour My World", "Saturday In The Park", "Just You 'N' Me", "(I've Been) Searchin' So Long", "If You Leave Me Now" and "Baby What A Big Surprise".

Additionally, the deal will also see Spirit Music participate via producer royalties in Blood Sweat & Tears' eponymously-named 1969 album, which featured the standards "You've Made Me So Very Happy", "And When I Die" and "Spinning Wheel" as well as The Buckinghams, known for their hits such as "Kind of A Drag", and "Don't You Care" among others.

Spirit Music Group also plans to work with the still-active producer in telling the story of the Caribou Ranch recording studio, a sonically and environmentally unique facility he built on more than 4,000 acres in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, which attracted a who's-who of rock, country and jazz music royalty through the 1970's and '80s.

"We consider Jim Guercio a renaissance man in rock and roll. While he is clearly one of the pre-eminent record producers of the last half century, his uncanny ability to put musicians together, to build complex yet beautiful arrangements and to consistently create an environment where creativity and artistry thrived is unparalleled in the modern business." said Spirit Music Group President/CEO Mark Fried. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers