Legally printing cover songs on CD...

[Promythia]

I'm just curious if anyone knows what the process to legally put a cover song on a CD is. I'm half way through with my project and was thinking about covering some songs from old video games just for the hell of it, but I don't want to end up getting sued or something. Don't you just have to site who wrote it, who owns it, what it's from, etc? Do you still have to pay royalties? Thanks a million.

 

[RAK]

If you want to record someone else's song, you have to pay them for it.

Check out the Harry Fox agency. Look up Mechanical Liscences
http://www.harryfox.com/index.jsp

By the same token, if you want to perform someone's song live, then you have to pay the publisher as well. For info on that, look into ASCAP or BMI

 

[fraserhutch]

Not knowing what your ambition are.... the real deal is that they'll only come after you if you actually make decent money on your CD.

I really don't think it's an issue if you're a home recordist who'se making CDs for friends and family, who gives a crap? You're not stealing money from the original artist.

However, if you have ambitions of making money from the CD and/or getting a large distribution of it, then you should get clearance from the artist's management.

 

[Reggie]

It's been a while since I studied this, but I think for playing live it is the venue's responsibility to pay ASCAP/BMI. Usually a monthly or yearly flat fee or something; and the agencies do their own popularity sampling to determine how the fees are distributed to their artists. Otherwise, I don't think clubs would be able to have DJ's play recorded music or anything....at least if they are charging people to enter the venue and hear the music. Now if you are a band that just does their own thing and sets up in a field to play a self-run show, then you may be technically liable for royalties. Just watch out for the agency goons (they're like MIB's, I think) and you shouldn't have any trouble.

But yeah, cover song on CD = pay the hairy fox.

 

[Elton Bear]

No idea where you live or what the laws are, but here in the UK you're only in trouble if you make money out of it. Best bet is to phone up whoever owns the copyright and ask for permission. Explain that you're not doing it for cash and they probably won't give a rat's arse, but it's always worth asking.

 

[Reggie]

Tried getting Eric Clapton on the phone lately?
Harry Fox is much easier to deal with.

 

[gullyjewelz]

not that i truly know the answer to this question - but . . .

lets use some logic . . .

if you are selling so few cds that only the few folk that come out to your open mic venue or your whole in the wall spot in your city even hear what you are doing . . . let alone that same # of people actually give a fuck enough to pay for your cd . . .

i mean, MIB was a fantasy for a reason!! u know how much $ it would take for all these industry artists to have "spies" in every city hunting down "cover bands" . . .

now if ur like HOOTIE N THE BLOWFISH before they got BIG - then u need to call harry fox , , but otherwise

do ur thing.

 

[Metalbard]

Gota love the music bussness. Its the total C.Y.A thing again.

But here is what i would do(and yes i think like a lawer even though im not one)

leagly as per the use copywright act of 1979 all u have to do to be leagle is to pay royaltys to the publisher at the full statutory rate monthly based on album sales. So basicly you dont need permition just so long as the publisher gets paid(aint that the way it always works pay some one somethign and u can normaly get what u want)

However what normaly happens is a meating of the minds between lawers to decide who gets paid and how much. With contracts you can sort of buypass the copywrite law as far as payin royaltys go just so long as both partys are in agreement and its in signed doucments.

What i would do is shoot for royalty scale. To publishers 0% of 0 is still 0. so what you would like to get is a scaled royalty contract with the pubisher where it works like this(just normal numbers for easy of use)

1-1500 units sold* 0% statutory rate
1500-5000 units sold 10% statutroy rate
5000-1000 units sold 25% statutory rate
1000-2500 units sold 45% staturoty rate
2500-5000 50% statutory rate
5000-25000 units sold 75% staturory rate
25000+ units full staturotry rate

* free goods not to exceed 3% of album sales(free goods are disks u press and send out in Press packets give away as prizes for radio stations extra)

The home recordin artist loves a deal like this beacuse u dont have to pay any one if your disk doesnt sell 1500 copies and because u have it in contract with the publisher you cant get sued. Audited yes sued no. The more copies you sell and the more money you make the more money the writer and thier publishing company make. if you only add one cover to the album and u own the publishing to all the other tracs after the 25,000 unit mark your gona have to come up with about $0.09 per disk to pay the other publisher.

Just remember the publishing company can aways counter offer. If you dont like the deal, dont put the song on the album. The publisher knows you have that option as well.


Now if u wanta be low lifed and underhanded what u can do is send the contract to them via registerd mail. And in the final line of the contract place a line that says something to the effect of "Failure to reply within 90 days will make this contract leagle and binding."

Im not endorcing this type of stuff but it happens all the time in the music industry. Remeber your dealing with people and people can be evil mean power hungry and greedy. U gota read every word of every contract because there will be people out there that will screw u over in a heart beat if you arnt carefull.

Hope this helps

Rich

 

[demensia]

Cover Tunes

Its pretty simple really.
I just covered Damien Rice's Cannonball on my album.
I paid the Harry Fox agency about $50.00 for their minimum of 500 licences. The rate is actually about 9 cents a copy.

I also covered some lesser known artists on the album. I contacted the management of Peter Mulvey, who asked that I send the check directly to them.. I sent him $9.00.

Another artist I contacted directly, and was given the permission to cover the song free of charge.

It doesn't hurt to try and contact the artist, or the artists management directly.