Songwriter’s Corner
Songwriter’s Corner is a collection of articles from the archives of both the original newsletter version of Law on the Row and from its online sibling. These articles will be of particular interest to songwriters.
Music Publishing 101, Part 4: Show me the money!
Section 106 of the Copyright Act gives the owner of a copyright a bundle of rights which includes the rights to 1) reproduce the work, 2) prepare derivative works, 3) distribute copies of the works, [...]
Music Publishing 101, Part 3: Pieces of the Publishing Pie
Once a music publisher begins to receive income from the exploitation of the copyrights it has acquired, it must begin to distribute the income to the appropriate writers. Understanding the basic principles of copyright ownership [...]
Music Publishing 101, Part 2: Forming a publishing company
From a legal perspective, the formation of a music publishing company is, in most respects, very similar the formation of any other type of company, except that the documentation is tailored specifically for the business [...]
Music Publishing 101, Part 1: A brief history
This blog series will explore music publishing, giving a little bit of history and outlining the basic steps necessary to form a music publishing company. Part 1 looks at a brief history and background of [...]
Last Man Standing – collaborating with other songwriters
See Jane. See Jane write lyrics. See Dick. See Dick write melodies. See Dick meet Jane. See Dick and Jane combine their efforts and collaborate together to write a song. This is one frequent story [...]
Holy Copyright, Batman! The Legal Doctrine of Scenes a Faire
This article originally appear in the print edition of Law on the Row, Volume 2, Issue 1 on September 9, 2002. Imagine two musical works written in a minor key using a standard jazz progression [...]
Taming the “Big Bad Record Company”
What songwriters can do to improve their negotiating strength in an entertainment deal A very common theme among my songwriter and artist clients is the subject of how they were "ripped off" by their record [...]