Capitol Records: The Music Industry Builds a Landmark
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Transcript
The Capitol Records building looks like a stack of records.
Its designers said the resemblance was not the original concept.
That is a good Hollywood lesson: audiences can create symbolism whether architects intended it or not.
The circular tower opened in 1956 as the West Coast headquarters of Capitol Records.
The Welton Becket architectural office designed a compact high-rise at a moment when the recording industry and Hollywood were becoming increasingly interconnected.
Studios inside the complex gained reputations for technically sophisticated recording.
Artists including Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole recorded here.
The building represents a shift in Hollywood identity.
Film made the neighborhood famous.
Radio, television and recorded music expanded the entertainment economy.
The star system could now operate through sound as powerfully as through images.
A singer did not need to appear on a film set to become globally identified with Hollywood.
Architecture helped reinforce that brand.
The tower's shape was memorable enough to become a visual logo for the music business.
For visitors, this is a useful reminder that Hollywood is not simply old movie nostalgia.
It continuously absorbed new forms.
Silent film gave way to sound.
Radio linked performers to households.
Records created repeatable private listening.
Television moved entertainment into the living room.
Each technology threatened the previous business and then became part of the same industry ecosystem.
Hollywood survives because it is better at incorporating new media than at preserving old ones.