EMI hopes for millions from Abbey Road sale

THE iconic Abbey Road recording studios have been put up for sale by embattled music group EMI, it was announced yesterday.

EMI's private equity parent, Terra Firma, is said to be hoping a sale of the studios, made famous by the eponymous Beatles album and zebra crossing cover shot, could raise tens of millions of pounds.

It is not clear if the sale plans would include the Abbey Road brand as well as the property.

The move would help EMI to pay down some of the mammoth debts it was saddled with after Terra Firma's highly leveraged 2007 takeover.

EMI has been touting for interested buyers to acquire the studios at number 3 Abbey Road in St John's Wood, according to the Financial Times.

The group bought the property for 100,000 in 1929, transforming it into world-famous studios that have hosted artists as diverse as composer Sir Edward Elgar, who recorded Land of Hope and Glory with the London Symphony Orchestra there in 1931, to Pink Floyd and Blur.

Abbey Road's rich history also saw it used for propaganda recordings for the British government during the Second World War.

The Beatles used Abbey Road for 90 per cent of their recordings, naming their penultimate album after the studios in 1969.

However, recent recording advances and cheaper overseas studio facilities have added competitive pressure to Abbey Road and a sale of the studios would raise much-needed cash for its struggling owner.

EMI – which counts Robbie Williams and Coldplay among its artists – posted a 1.75 billion loss for the year to March 2009 in accounts earlier this month.