Imago Records Sues DreamWorks

Imago Records filed a $50-million contractual-interference lawsuit in Los Angeles on Tuesday against DreamWorks, alleging that the firm’s music executives induced rock singer Henry Rollins to breach his contract with Imago.

The action is an amended complaint to a claim filed by Imago in April against Rollins, whom the firm accuses of breaching a recording agreement after delivering only two of the eight albums required under it.

Rollins notified Imago last summer that he was terminating his deal, claiming that the contract he signed was void after the tiny label severed ties on Dec. 31, 1994, with Bertelsmann Music Group, the giant global conglomerate that funded Imago and distributed its albums.

Sources said the Grammy-winning singer weighed offers in late 1995 from Virgin Records and Sony Music before signing a multimillion-dollar pact three months ago with DreamWorks, owned by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen.