General Music Chat

.. in other words, when does the copyright from ,say, a 60's song run out? I'm not trying to steal a song from Jimi H, or anybody, I just want to do a re-make of one song so that it doesn't fade into oblivion (not that I will be successful in my endevour of this, but..) (and of course I will give full credit to the writers/ composers)..
I've heard 10-15 or 20 years, then it's "public domain" anybody know?
(Also, I dont have the necessary monitary assets to pay "royalty fees" lol).. shocking, i know..

COPYRIGHTS run the life of the composer plus fifty years if the estate renews, after that I believe there is one more renewal period. I WOULD SAY JUST GO AHEAD AND USE IT ,if some one sues you it will just make you famous, or the heirs may thank you for remembering the deceased. You can allways check with the copyright office to see if a book or song has fallen into public domain
IF ANYONE WANTS TO " STEAL ONE OF MY SONGS " I WOULD BE HONORED. Just give me credit and I'll write another. HELL I 'D EVEN HELP YOU.

Thats what I said, if somebody wants to steal one of my songs I'd be honored.. lol.. doubtful that'll ever happen..

I DON'T LIKE THE WORD DOUBT <<<<STOP USING IT

to answer the real question songs become public domain around 150 years after the original release, or somethin like that, I dunno, gotta study my guide again before I return it

1- I'll use any word I want to when ever I want to, goingg, and..
2- Ted , I could have sworn a patent from the USPTO outlasted a copyright, which was less than 50- 100 years or so.. I guess I'll have to research...

you can't patent music, otherwise micheal smith of suffocation would be rich (pioneered the blast beat on snare drum) and I think its 300 years cuz classical tunes are fair game

What song is it that you want to redo?

ALLRIGHT You can use any word you want. Just don't ever DOUBT, YOURSELF
I allways try to avoid negative words,as gently as I can. PROBLEM, suddenly there is a PROBLEM> see what I mean!
DOUBT ....only raises the nagging question ,can I do it? ??????
OF COURSE YOU CAN,IF WE CAN LAND A MAN ON THE MOON ,YOU CAN DO ANYTHING, NO DOUBT!

Any song published prior to 1922 in the US is public domain, however, NO sound recordings are public domain. In most countries outside the USA, a composition becomes public domain 70 years after the author's death.

Thanks for the input everybody. I was thinking of Jimi Hendrix' "Ezy Ryder" , one of his best songs imho, but one of the least known. I don't know if I'll be able to pull it off and make it sound any good but maybe give it a shot.
Really was just a general question that I was wondering.
Thx.

Anybody can record a cover of any song. No one needs anyone's permission. If you go to sell said recording you will need to pay royalties to the publisher. I believe you can pay a blanket royalty payment to the publisher ($250?).

I was mulling this over last night but as regards new stuff. I got to thinking what on Earth is the point of creating a CD cover and CD (Of course) and sending it off to some US company?

I mean, what does that prove? Could be your music on my CD right? What makes it theirs and what makes it mine?

Yes, Jimmy, you can record any song you wish, but you CANNOT distribute it, not even freely (except as a teaching tool), without the proper rights to do so. There are lots of misconceptions about this, but I found this to be true when I had a little problem with an old band. The thinking on this is that you are still getting benefits from the song, even if you give it away, in the form of advertising, which, though the actual value is intangible, is still considered a benefit to you through the author's work. Be careful about this stuff, cuz it can come back to bite you in the end if you go about things incorrectly.

It is true that, in most cases, you will be left alone if you give it away, but don't try it with Metallica stuff...LOL

The blanket fee you referred to is also up to the publisher, or the owner of the copyright. In many cases, a fee of $250 won't do at all, especially if the song is more recent, or the original composer is still alive & owns his own rights, or if the song was popular.