

Harold Bradley

Between open letters and public rallies, we’ve heard a lot from Ben Folds on the sale of RCA Studio A, the storied Music Row studio the singer, songwriter and bandleader has rented and operated for the past 12 years. And we’ve heard from Brentwood-based condo developer Tim Reynolds, whose Bravo Development LLC is buying the building housing the studio — and who told the Cream that despite the controversy stirred up over the sale, it’s always been his absolute intention to preserve Studio A. One group we haven’t heard from is the estate of Chet Atkins and Owen Bradley, the owners who are selling the property to Reynolds.

That just changed.

Late this afternoon, the Scene received a copy of an open letter titled “Fact v. Fiction.” It was written by Owen Bradley’s surviving brother, legendary session guitarist and Country Music Hall of Famer Harold Bradley, who helped build the RCA building at 30 Music Square West and is one of the current owners. The Cream has learned he intends to send it to Metro City Council members and Metro's head of planning, zoning and development in advance of tonight’s council meeting, on behalf of the owners.

A number of Bradley’s claims contradict statements made by Folds and others in recent days. Among them: that 30 Music Square West is not hallowed ground worthy of the recent sanctimony around it; that he and his fellow property owners have been trying to sell the building for 24 years (meaning Folds could have offered to buy at any time); and that perhaps most shockingly to some, Elvis Presley never recorded there. For those reasons and others, Bradley takes issue with Folds and the recently announced Music Industry Coalition (MIC) campaign to get Music Row designated — and thus restricted — as an historic overlay.

Read the letter in full after the jump.