EMI has agreed to sell its historic Capitol Records Tower in Hollywood to a New York-based commercial property firm, but the label will remain housed in the building under a long-term lease.

Capitol Records Tower

EMI said the sale of the 50-year-old Vine Street landmark to Argent Ventures was part of its strategy to divest noncore real-estate assets.

Designed by architect Welton Becket as "the office of tomorrow," the futuristic Capitol Tower opened its office doors on April 6, 1956. Styled to resemble a stack of records and capped by a towering "spindle" (topped by a light that blinked the word "Hollywood" in Morse code), the dramatic circular building became an immediate tourist attraction and went on to be a Hollywood icon featured in dozens of films and TV shows.

The tower also houses Capitol's recording studios, famed in their own right for their built-in echo chambers and brilliant acoustics. Frank Sinatra inaugurated Studio A on February 22, 1956, with sessions for his instrumental album Tone Poems of Color.

Through 1968, the studios were used exclusively by Capitol artists; Nat "King" Cole, Peggy Lee, Judy Garland, Gene Vincent, the Beach Boys, and Grand Funk Railroad were among the stars who cut hits there.