Court Rejects Royalty Claims by Heirs of Jimi Hendrix Bandmates in Dispute With Sony Music and Estate
A British High Court judge has ruled against the heirs of two former bandmates of Jimi Hendrix, rejecting their attempt to claim royalties from the legendary guitarist’s catalog in a closely watched copyright dispute involving Sony Music and the Hendrix estate.
In a detailed 140-page judgment, High Court Judge Edwin Johnson concluded that bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell had signed away their rights to future royalties through a recording agreement executed on Oct. 11, 1966. The agreement, which also included Hendrix himself, was made with producers Michael Jeffery and Bryan “Chas” Chandler at the outset of the band’s career.
At the center of the case was whether Redding and Mitchell, or their estates, retained any entitlement to performance royalties generated decades later, including from modern streaming platforms. The heirs argued that they were owed compensation tied to billions of streams of recordings created during the band’s active years.
The court found that the original contract unambiguously transferred ownership of the recordings to the producers. Judge Johnson emphasized that the agreement explicitly granted the producers copyright over “any sound recordings made hereunder,” as well as “the copyright throughout the world in all sound recordings of performances of musical works by the artistes.”
“The producers were to have the copyright in sound recordings made pursuant to the terms of the recording agreement,” the judge wrote, adding that the language was “clear and unequivocal.” He further noted that the agreement contained no time limits or geographic restrictions, reinforcing the producers’ ownership rights in perpetuity.
The ruling also addressed what happened to those rights after Hendrix died in 1970. Judge Johnson determined that a series of subsequent business transactions ultimately transferred those rights to the Hendrix estate, making it the lawful successor to the original producers’ interests.
The decision marks a significant setback for the estates of Redding and Mitchell, who had sought a share of revenue tied to the enduring popularity of Hendrix’s recordings. The legal dispute first gained momentum in 2021, when British attorney Lawrence Abramson sent a letter to Sony claiming that the estates were owed royalties tied to streaming activity. According to that claim, revenues associated with those streams were estimated to be in the millions of pounds.
In response, Experience Hendrix, the company managing Hendrix’s estate, and Sony initiated legal proceedings in New York, seeking a declaratory judgment affirming their ownership of the recordings. The estates of Redding and Mitchell filed a competing lawsuit in London, prompting the U.S. case to be paused while British courts addressed the central contractual issues.
The judge’s ruling effectively resolves the core question of ownership, affirming that the original agreement governs the rights to the recordings and excludes the bandmates’ estates from royalty claims.
Following the decision, Janie Hendrix, Hendrix’s sister and head of the estate, welcomed the outcome. In a statement, she described her brother’s music as “a living piece of our family’s soul” and said the ruling ensures the estate can continue managing his legacy “with the love, care, and integrity it deserves.”
The case also revisits the history of The Jimi Hendrix Experience, which was formed in 1966 and became one of the most influential rock acts of its era. Redding left the group in June 1969, while Mitchell continued to collaborate with Hendrix intermittently until the guitarist’s death in September 1970 at age 27.
Redding died in 2003, with his estate eventually passing to his partner and later her family members. Mitchell died in 2008, and his estate is now represented by his daughter.
