The masters for short-lived supergroup Temple Of The Dog‘s sole self-titled album are at the center of a new legal dispute. That album was released in 1991 and saw various members of Pearl Jam and Soundgarden unite. The Seattle Times are reporting that A&M Records are suing Rajan Parashar—brother of the album’s late producer Rick Parashar over the ownership of the masters.
A&M alleges in a suit filed earlier this week that the masters are their property and should be turned over. Rajan, who is in possession of the tapes, disputes this however. Apparently Temple Of The Dog were originally signed to the label on a verbal contract, before finalizing the deal in 1993. A&M alleges that then they paid Rick $35,000 for the rights and possession of the masters.
As it turns out, A&M thought that the masters were in possession of members of the outfit themselves since that arrangement. They state that Rajan has denied several requests to turn over the masters and disputes A&M‘s rights to the ownership. Rajan‘s attorney asserts that the deal was between his brother and the label and not his client. Parashar‘s attorney Warren Rheaume was quoted as saying of Rajan‘s rights to the masters: “He’s had them all along, they’re his.”
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