This week’s episode of Rolling with Scissors dives into a tragic piece of music history that still flies under the radar for a lot of people: the 2008 Universal Studios fire that destroyed an estimated 175,000 original master tapes.

We’re not talking about backups or digital remasters—these were the original analog reels. First-generation tapes from the studios where musical history was made. Nirvana. Tom Petty. Sheryl Crow. Elton John. The list is overwhelming, and the loss is permanent.

In tonight’s show, we feature just a few of the albums that were impacted by that fire. Some are massive cultural landmarks. Some are personal rediscoveries. All of them carry a new weight once you realize the original recordings are gone.

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Hour 1

Artist – Song – Album – Label – Year

Nirvana – Serve the Servants – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Scentless Apprentice – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Heart-Shaped Box – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Rape Me – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Dumb – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Very Ape – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Milk It – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Nirvana – Pennyroyal Tea – In Utero – DGC – 1993

Hour 2

Artist – Song – Album – Label – Year

Tom Petty – Wildflowers – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – You Don’t Know How It Feels – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Time To Move On – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – You Wreck Me – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – It’s Good To Be King – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Only A Broken Heart – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Honey Bee – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Don’t Fade On Me – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Hard On Me – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Cabin Down Below – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – To Find A Friend – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – A Higher Place – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – House In The Woods – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Crawling Back To You – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Tom Petty – Wake Up Time – Wildflowers – Warner Bros. – 1994

Hour 3

Artist – Song – Album – Label – Year

Elton John – Funeral for a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – Candle in the Wind – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – Bennie and the Jets – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – This Song Has No Title – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – Grey Seal – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – Jamaica Jerk-Off – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Elton John – I’ve Seen That Movie Too – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – MCA – 1973

Sheryl Crow – Run, Baby, Run – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Sheryl Crow – Leaving Las Vegas – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Sheryl Crow – Strong Enough – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Sheryl Crow – Can’t Cry Anymore – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Sheryl Crow – Solidify – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Sheryl Crow – The Na-Na Song – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Sheryl Crow – No One Said It Would Be Easy – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993 Crow – What I Can Do For You – Tuesday Night Music Club – A&M – 1993

Rolling with Scissors airs live every Tuesday from 2–5 AM on 89.9 FM in Madison and streams at wortfm.org. Missed it? You can catch the episode for two weeks after broadcast at archive.wortfm.org or at rwsradio.com.

While the audio disappears after two weeks, the episode notes and playlists don’t. Every deep dive, rant, and full album breakdown stays right here — so you can revisit the details any time.

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