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Hi,
Just wondering today if there are classic or standard songs other people have heard, but their copyright or other things that would prevent me from recording and selling for my own profit has expired, and therefore I could do my own arrangement and sell it on Amazon or Itunes without being sued or cheating anybody ?
I live in the United States, but dream of selling to anyone on the earth willing to buy (e.g. other countries).
And I'll bet other people on this forum dream of selling songs for $$$$ too
...and I bet some people on this site have made lots of money from their songs ('lots' is relative, of course)
.......and I bet some people have lost money on trying to sell their songs, but very much enjoyed the process of the writing and recording
If you're interested, share some of your related stories : )
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Do a websearch for listings of works in "the public domain". Might also want to use the search engine to find out about Public Domain and copyright law. For all questions pertaining to copyright in the US, the US Copyright Office has a webpage with a really good FAQ page and should be your first source for info concerning Copyright issues: http://www.copyright.gov/ Trust no other source. Stories about copyright are often wrong. Many do not seem to want to take the time to understand copyright issues or perhaps are willfully trying to ignore or otherwise contribute a good bit of nontruth and confusion to the issue. --Mac
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Quote:
Stories about copyright are often wrong. Many do not seem to want to take the time to understand copyright issues or perhaps are willfully trying to ignore or otherwise contribute a good bit of nontruth and confusion to the issue.
--Mac
Absolutely. Couldn't agree more.
Mike
Cheers, Mike My Music * Asus ROG Strix G15CF 32 GB DDR4 4TB HDD + 1 TB SSD NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 8GB Win 11 AKAI EIE PRO Sound Interface. BIAB/RB 2024 UltraPak Build - Latest
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Keith
2026 Audiophile Windows 11 RYZEN THREADRIPPER 3960X 4.5GHZ 128 GB RAM 2 Nvidia RTX 3090s, Vegas,Acid,SoundForge,Izotope Production,Melodyne Studio,SONAR,3 Raven Mtis
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Life is short so make sure you spend as much time as possible on the Internet arguing with strangers.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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People often forget that a forum such as this has an international membership. Copyright is not universal. A correct copyright answer for the United Kingdom might not be the correct answer in the United States.
Keith
2026 Audiophile Windows 11 RYZEN THREADRIPPER 3960X 4.5GHZ 128 GB RAM 2 Nvidia RTX 3090s, Vegas,Acid,SoundForge,Izotope Production,Melodyne Studio,SONAR,3 Raven Mtis
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Has it truly expired Joe? Even Stephen Foster's music of the mid-1800s is still protected by copyright, to the best of my knowledge.
I collect OTR (Old Time Radio) and, just recently, copyrights were made renewable meaning, in this case, another 75 years. Granted, that probably wont apply internationally and may be different in your home country. As for the USA, follow Mac's advice.
I believe the same renewal option was granted to music copyright holders. The governing regulations (for USA) have changed in 2012 so be sure to check before releasing anything.
These are the same laws that we expect to protect our works so don't abuse them when they are protecting the works of others.
We are all aware of high profile cases of John Doe being fined $25,000.00 for using copyrighted music on his website.
Edit: Legal use of copyrighted music is not prohibitive. My Canadian cousin just released an album of cover songs but she paid the modest fees and can sleep nights.
Last edited by Don Gaynor; 02/08/13 09:39 AM.
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Joe also be aware that pretty much anything done from about 1929 on is still protected. If you're thinking some classic songs from say 30-50 years ago have somehow slipped into public domain, that has not happened. The estates of famous composers or publishers can keep on renewing the copyrights.
Bob
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Some basics from The US Copyright Office. This obviously applies on to the US.
John Laptop-HP Omen I7 Win11Pro 32GB 12TB SSD Desktop-ASUS-I7 Win10Pro 32GB 12TB SATA BB2026/UMC204HD&404HD/Casios/Cakewalk/Reaper/Studio One/Notion/Dorico/Noteworthy/NI/Halion/IK http://www.sus4chord.com (under rehosting/construction)
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Copyright holders are obligated by law to aggressively protect their "works" or risk losing their rights to the public domain. BMI and ASCAP (and others) actively "police" violations of their member's works. Copyrights are "durable property" and pass to heirs upon the death of the copyright holder. Heirs have full renewal rights.
Most British OTR, Including Agatha Christie Mysteries and BBC shows are still zealously protected many decades after originally being broadcast.
Heirs often conditionally release entire series to us in the interest in preservation. If they become stagnant they are of little value to anyone.
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Quote:
People often forget that a forum such as this has an international membership. Copyright is not universal. A correct copyright answer for the United Kingdom might not be the correct answer in the United States.
Ah, but that ignores the International Copyright Agreements.
While there are a few differences, there are not a lot of them and most don't make that much difference.
But then, there's all those wive's tales about copyright that go around, confusing the issue.
--Mac
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Joe is from New York City.
Last time I checked, the People's Republic of New Yawk was still at least legally part of the United States.
So far.
Just don't try to exercise your right to purchase a 32 oz. soda there.
Among other items.
Sorry.
I'm a country boy.
Where I grew up, "Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms" was the name of the convenience store (which we called an "Ice House" back then) and not the name of an overreaching gummint agency.
--Mac
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Or, you could just acquire a limited digital license from the HFA. http://www.harryfox.com/
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Quote:
Joe is from New York City.
Last time I checked, the People's Republic of New Yawk was still at least legally part of the United States.
So far.
Just don't try to exercise your right to purchase a 32 oz. soda there.
Among other items.
Sorry.
I'm a country boy.
Where I grew up, "Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms" was the name of the convenience store (which we called an "Ice House" back then) and not the name of an overreaching gummint agency.
--Mac
Yep, New York City is part of New York State and the United States of America. However most everyone outside of NYC would like to separate from it and form either another state or better yet another country.
Those Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms “Ice Houses” can still be found here. Dick’s Country Store & Music Oasis has and proudly advertises Groceries, Gas, Guns and Guitars! http://www.themusicoasis.com/items/cloth...0001-detail.htm
I’m a country boy and I’m proud of it 
Life is short so make sure you spend as much time as possible on the Internet arguing with strangers.
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MarioD, I ain't kiddin' - that was the actual NAME of the place, minus the family surname in front.
A Seegar, a six pack and a box o' shells.
Those were good times.
--Mac
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Copyright is a complex issue and the need for caution and research is vital. I have a copy of the Australian regulations permanently on my computer so I can refer to. Mac's link is definitely the way to go. This is a link to a music list and PD info relative to US laws that might be of interest to everyone. http://www.pdinfo.com/Public-Domain-Music-List.php
yjoh
[i]Music...a joy for life.
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