Eddie Rosenblatt, Veteran Geffen Records Executive, Dies at 89

Eddie Rosenblatt, the respected music executive who partnered with David Geffen to launch Geffen Records and then succeeded him as chairman, has died. He was 89.

Rosenblatt died Tuesday of pneumonia at a Santa Barbara hospital, a family spokesperson announced.

Nicknamed “The Chief,” Rosenblatt had spent about a decade at Warner Bros. Records when was named president of Geffen Records when it began in 1980.

The label found early success with such landmark albums as John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Double Fantasy, oversaw releases from established stars Don Henley, Joni Mitchell and Neil Young and broke acts like Peter Gabriel, Quarterflash and Whitesnake.

When Geffen sold his label to MCA for $550 million in 1990 and opened DGC Records, Rosenblatt served as its president as well. DGC became synonymous with alternative rock and grunge, releasing seminal titles from Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Weezer, Hole and Beck.

Geffen Records continued its success with such artists as Guns N’ Roses and Counting Crows, and in 1994 alone, Geffen and DGC generated $500 million in album sales, more than a quarter of the global revenue of MCA’s music division.

In 1995, David Geffen stepped down at Geffen Records to co-found DreamWorks SKG and tapped Rosenblatt to be his successor as chairman.

“If you think of David as the vision behind Geffen Records, then Eddie is the heart,” Mo Ostin, his former boss at Warner Bros., said. “That label is not just profitable, it’s got hipness and heat, and Eddie is the glue that has held it together all these years.”

Born on Nov. 6, 1934, in Far Rockaway, Queens, Rosenblatt attended Brooklyn College and served in the U.S. Army before entering the music business in 1958 in Cleveland at Cosnat Distribution and then Mainline Distribution. In Ohio, he formed important connections with rock ’n’ roll impresarios Phil and Leonard Chess.

He moved to Los Angeles in 1967 to become sales director at A&M Records, then teamed with Steve Binder to open the independent TA Records, which signed Seals & Crofts and releasing their first album.

Rosenblatt joined Warner Bros. in 1971 as director of sales and played a pivotal role in transitioning it out of independent distribution by creating WEA Distribution. Then, as vp sales and radio promotion, he worked with music legends Young, Alice Cooper, Van Morrison, Fleetwood Mac and James Taylor, among others.

Amid the consolidation brought about by Seagram’s purchase of PolyGram in 1998 and the merger of PolyGram with the Universal Music Group, he retired from the business. He and his late wife, Bobbi, moved to Montecito, where they engaged in charitable activities.

Rosenblatt mentored dozens of executives during his career, among them Johnny Barbis, Bill Bennett, Dennis Dennehy, Al Coury, Tom Zutaut, Gary Gersh, John Kalodner, Bryn Bridenthal, Marko Babineau, Peter Baron, David Berman, Mark DiDia, Larry Solters and Wendy Goldstein.

Survivors include his children, Michael, Steven, Peter and Gretchen; six grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. His wife of 68 years died in March 2023.

A memorial service is being planned. Donations in his memory can be made to the Sansum Clinic. He served on the board of the nonprofit healthcare organization.