After a long illness, Freddy Bienstock, a music publishing industry legend and founder of Carlin Music, died September 21, 2009 at his Manhattan home. He was 86.
During his career Bienstock worked with such songwriters and music business executives as Leiber & Stoller, Cliff Richards, Bobby Darin, Ray Davies, U2, John Sebastian, Tim Hardin, Eric Burdon, James Brown, Peter Allen, William Bolcom, Ernesto Lucuona, Norman Dello Joio, Carol Bayer Sager, Kander & Ebb, Koppleman & Rubin, Marvin Hamlish, Stephen Sondheim and, Elvis Presley. According to his company bio, Bienstock worked closely with Presley, who often relied on the publisher to choose the songs he recorded.
After emigrating to the U.S. before the start of World War II, Bienstock began his career in the stock room of publisher Chappell and Company, later becoming its chairman. Bienstock, who served on the National Music Publishers Assn.'s board of directors for nearly 20 years, founded Carlin Music in 1966 by acquiring the Belinda Music catalog and built it into a catalog with more than 100,000 songs.
"More than an icon and leader in the music publishing industry, Freddy was a cherished friend and colleague," said NMPA chairman Irwin Robinson. NMPA president and CEO David Israelite, added, "Freddy's passion for music and commitment to artists and songwriters made him a giant in our industry, and his legacy will not soon be forgotten."
Today, the Carlin catalog has an extensive catalog of classical, country, classic pop and standards as well as being a leading Broadway musical publisher.
Bienstock is survived by his wife Miriam, who co-founded Atlantic Records; his daughter Caroline, who is COO at the company; Caroline's husband Douglas Rodriguez; his son Robert, who is senior VP of business at Carlin, and his wife Ellen; and five grandchildren.
Services will be held, at 11:45 a.m. Wednesday (Sept. 23) at Riverside Chapel, 333 Amsterdam Ave. in New York. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Bienstock's memory to: Children's Rights; 330 Seventh Avenue; 4th Floor, New York, NY 10001.