[Dixielandjazz] Tunes in the public domain

[Bill Haesler]

> I checked the archives, but could not find the list of public domain
tunes that someone posted recently.<

Dear Kent,
It is probably the selective list of about 20 tunes that Steve Barbone
posted to the DJML.
Ray Osnato added to the list and included some additional advice.
Both are covered in Ray's long email reply to Steve dated 2/28/07 below:

**********************************************************
A little long, but a recap appears at the bottom for those who prefer my
posts Bowdlerized.
In a message dated 2/27/2007 11:12:06 PM Eastern Standard Time,
barbonestreet at earthlink.net writes:
Bob  Ringwald asked about public domain tunes that you might list when
faced with the money grubbers from ASCAP, BMI and/or SESAC. And Ray Osnato
pays a $35 ASCAP fee for more current tunes. Below is my quick 20 PD  list:

SNIP
1914    Yellow Dog Blues
1915    Jelly Roll  Blues
1917    At The Jazz Band Ball
1917    Back  Home Again In Indiana
1917    Rose Room
1917     Original Dixieland One Step
1917    Darktown Strutters  Ball
1917    Tiger Rag
1918    After You've  Gone
1919    Royal Garden Blues

Others include: My Honey's  Lovin Arms, China Boy, Chinatown My Chinatown,
Sensation Rag, Take Me Out  To The Ball Game, Dallas Blues, Peg O' My Heart,
Ballin The Jack, I Ain't  Got Nobody, Pretty Baby, Poor Butterfly
SNIP

All 1922 or prior and in public domain for whenever the Tune  Nazis are out
and about. 
All these tunes are indeed 1922 or prior but before one can say with
confidence that they are PD one must ascertain if the copyright was renewed
at  any time after that.  A quick rule of thumb to determine if the
copyright  was renewed would be to look at a current copy of the music, if
there are TWO  dates or a date after 1922, the copyright has been renewed
and the work is NOT  in public domain.

I do  over 100 concerts a year with over 200 people in attendance,
some with 5000  in the audience and so Ray's $35 fee would become $3500 to
$5000 a year.  That's a lot of money for a scam.
First of all Steve, it is not a scam, it is the law.  If a song is  under
copyright you have to pay to use it. Period.  Secondly, YOU, as an
independent contractor hired by a group or facility do NOT have to apply for
a  license.  
It is the responsibility of the presenter or sponsor or whatever  you want
to call it to obtain a license.  Anytime I hire hall to play a
self-sponsored concert where the band keeps the ticket money, I pays the
bucks,  knowing I have taken care of my responsibilities to my fellow
musicians who  wrote the songs I am performing.  If we are hired to come
into a venue  and play as a hired hand for the night, you or I need not pay
a thing.

And if  you've licensed songs for a CD, it's approximately $80 per song, 3
minutes  or less, so if Billy Joel paid $500 for a multi thousand audience,
the rest  of us get screwed licensing 15 songs for a 1000 CD run. (Costs
over $1200  for the license)

We do this daily at my little record company, where we issue about 75
records a year.  I don't handle this part of the business but let's look at
Steve's numbers since I have no reason to doubt them.  You've pressed  1000
CDs that you are going to sell for $15 a pop at your gigs.  $15,000 in  my
book.  A quick check of the Internet shows you can get a short run of  1000
CDs for $1,200.  With Steve's figure of $1,200 for licensing that  leaves
you with over $12,000 profit.  Even if it cost you $2500 to record  it,
you've still made $10,000 on the venture.  Not a bad return on your
investment.
 
Everyone is making ASCAP out to be Joseph Mengele and it is not  the case.
They will not show up at your gig and buy a CD and ask if you  have the
proper licensing.  If you market your CD with a national retailer  you may
attract their attention.  But where most of us are concerned, ASCAP  has
bigger fish to fry.

And  what to do if playing for free? Pay a license fee? I don't think  so.
Once again, you do not have to pay the fee unless YOU are the presenter and
you are CHARGING for the concert.  If Steve and Ray's Comatose  Syncopators
are hired to play the Milk of Magnesia Room in the Bruno  Hauptmann Towers,
it is up to the hotel to have an ASCAP License, not the  band.
 
The simple fact is, if a tune is under copyright, you have to pay to use
it. 
Don't get me wrong, I am not on a soapbox here, I have performed songs
without proper clearance in my questionable past.  But to do so is breaking
the law and to call it a scam doesn't make it right.  Many feel income tax
is a scam, but one is still required to pay.
 
Recap:
Just because a tune was written in 1922 or earlier does not automatically
mean it is in the PD.  Its copyright may have been renewed or  reassigned.
Some of the tunes on Steve's list may indeed be  protected titles.  if I
were issuing them on CD for national  distribution, I would investigate each
one further.
 
You as a performer are not responsible for obtaining a license.  The
presenting organization or venue should already have a license.  If you
hire a hall, charge for the tickets and keep the proceeds then YOU are the
presenter it would be in your best interest to pay the modest fee and not
have  to worry.  
If you don't chances are you are breaking the law.
 
Licensing tunes for CD production, particularly if the CD is to enjoy
widespread distribution is a cost of doing business.
 
Paying people for the use of their intellectual property is not a scam, it
is the law.  No matter how you try to justify it, if you use a protected
tune without paying you are committing a crime.
 
I am not being judgmental, just trying to set the record straight.  It  is
amazing how little working musicians know about copyright law.  Make a
phone call or spend an hour on the web.  It can't hurt.  And don't  take the
word of one of these Royalty-Free Music sites that proliferate the  Internet
who are interested only in your using their site.  They all  conveniently
leave out the fact that if copyright has been renewed on a pre-1922
composition it is NOT in the public domain.  Here is a good article for a
starting point:
 
  http://www.multcolib.org/guides/copyright/public_domain.html
 
Clear and concise, here is the phrase Steve and the "free music" websites
omit:
 
"If published in 1922 or earlier, without two dates in  the music score
indicating a copyright renewal (1922 c.1945),  the music falls within the
public domain and there are no conditions attached to  use in the United
States."
 
Respectfully submitted,
 Ray Osnato
Currently Doing Nine-toTen in Leavenworth

***************************************************************
Hope this helps.
Andy Ling's reply to your email, with a suggestion for searching the DJML
Archive is a good one and worth following.
If you want a list of Public Domain songs/tunes go to
   http://www.pdinfo.com/
In the right hand column click on the heading 'List of Public Domain Songs:
List of thousands of songs and musical works in the public domain in the
US.'
This opens up the listing arranged alphabetically and with the type of
music. It is all there, but with some important qualifications.
Best used if you are checking a particular song/tune, but can be used in
reverse as a comprehensive list.
Also good (although not a complete source) for checking composers
names/dates.
It should help with your list.
Kind regards,
Bill.