Editing MCA Records (section)

=== Recovery, further expansion and MCA Music Entertainment Group ===
[[Irving Azoff]] became the head of MCA Records in 1983. Azoff is known as an experienced music industry veteran who received credit amongst MCA management and staff for saving the company from bankruptcy.

In 1983, rock musician [[Frank Zappa]] negotiated a distribution agreement for his [[Barking Pumpkin]] label with MCA. As the records were being manufactured, a woman in the quality control department objected to the lyrics of Zappa's album ''[[Thing-Fish]]''. After this MCA cancelled the Zappa contract.<ref name="pent1989">{{cite web|url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1989-05_Penthouse.htm |title=The Porn Wars |first=with Peter Occhiogrosso |last=Frank Zappa |work=Penthouse - May 1989 |access-date=July 18, 2022}}</ref> At about the same time, Zappa publicly argued with members of the [[Parents Music Resource Center]] (PMRC) over censorship and warning stickers for albums with potentially offensive content. The experience with MCA prompted Zappa to create a satirical "WARNING/GUARANTEE" sticker of his own. ''Thing-Fish'' was released with Zappa's sticker in December 1984 under a new agreement with [[Capitol Records|Capitol]]/[[EMI Records|EMI]].<ref name="pent1989"/> Despite the conflict with Zappa, MCA later became the biggest label to oppose the PMRC and the use of warning stickers. In October 1985, Azoff said "Never will you find a sticker on one of our records."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-10-10-8503090238-story.html|title=Warning Stickers Won't Appear on Mca Albums|website=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=October 10, 1985 }}</ref>

In the 1980s, MCA became commonly nicknamed "Music Cemetery of America" due to a huge surplus of unprofitable records sitting unsold in MCA warehouses. A number of MCA associates, including Azoff and Zappa, disparaged the company in this way.<ref name="pent1989"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/e82076d0d7ee78a6b2b13d06eaaa30c5 |title=Azoff Quits as Chairman of MCA's Music Unit |publisher=AP News |date=September 6, 1989 |accessdate=March 9, 2022}}</ref>

Starting in 1984, [[William Knoedelseder]] wrote a series of articles for the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' about the connections between [[organized crime]] and MCA. Knoedelseder told the story of mobster Sal Pisello and the corrupt deals he arranged with MCA for the liquidation sales of unsold [[Cut-out (recording industry)|cut-out]] recordings that had been [[Deletion (music industry)|deleted]] from the MCA catalog. The story was later adapted into the book ''Stiffed: A True Story of MCA, the Music Business, and the Mafia'', which was published in 1993.

The [[Chess Records]] catalog was acquired from the remnants of [[Sugar Hill Records (rap)|Sugar Hill Records]] in 1985. [[Motown Records]] was bought in 1988. In the late 1980s, MCA formed Mechanic Records as a sub-label for releasing [[heavy metal music]]. Bands signed to Mechanic included [[Voivod (band)|Voivod]], [[Dream Theater]], [[Bang Tango]], and [[Trixter]].{{citation needed|date=August 2017}}

MCA created a new holding company in 1989 called MCA Music Entertainment Group, headed by Al Teller, former President of United Artists Records, and co-chairman of Turf Classics, a concert production company, run by Producer Richard Flanzer.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/09/06/business/business-people-mca-music-group-names-new-chairman.html?pagewanted=1 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |title=BUSINESS PEOPLE; MCA Music Group Names New Chairman |first=Geraldine |last=Fabrikant |date=September 6, 1989 |access-date=May 12, 2010}}</ref> The same year the MCA Inc. parent company was purchased by the [[Panasonic Corporation|Matsushita group]].

Azoff resigned from MCA in 1989 to form his own record label, the now-defunct [[Giant Records (Warner)|Giant Records]]. [[Richard Palmese]] was named president of MCA Records after Azoff in 1990.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-08-07-fi-39-story.html|title=Richard Palmese has been named president of MCA Records. He previously was executive vice president and general manager of MCA Records.|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=May 12, 2010 |date=August 7, 1990}}</ref>