On August 1, 1942, the American Federation of Musicians organized a strike against the major recording companies because of disagreements over royalty payments. The strike lasted through the end of 1942 and into 1943, forcing the companies to record without orchestral backups to the popular songs of the day and to release earlier recordings that had not been already released. (For some recording companies, the strike lasted into 1944, but Decca Records settled in September, 1943.)