Dealing
with Artwork
Legal Disclaimer
While
entertainment law is not rocket science – it can quickly get complex.
Hopefully this article will help you stay out of trouble by
providing enough information to allow you to ask the right questions.
To cover all these topics in this article I’ve played fast and
loose with some complex legal issues so do
not rely on this article for legal advice.
Check out the books I’ve listed and
talk to more experienced musicians. And
if you’ve got questions regarding these issues, contact an attorney
familiar with entertainment law, your state law, and your particular
situation.
Artwork
The
recording is proceeding nicely, everybody’s being normal, now it’s
time to look ahead to those other creative details - album name, cover
art, and liner notes.
·
Album name.
Picking an album name is important and, luckily, it’s not very
dangerous. Since song or
album titles are not subject to copyright protection, you can even choose
an album name that has already been used by someone else, but definitely
stay away from trademarked names. Even
if you think a trademark infringement case is unlikely, you don’t need
to buy that headache.
·
Cover art.
This includes any artwork, group logo, photographs, etc., that find
their way onto the completed project.
Again, if you’ve done all the artwork, congratulations.
Skip the rest of the topic.
·
Original artwork.
Your cousin likes your music and has drawn a picture for the album,
developed your logo, or otherwise contributed to the project.
What now? “Thanks Cuz – here’s a couple of free CD’s for
your trouble.” Not so fast.
If it’s an original expression fixed in a tangible medium it’s
– yep – subject to copyright protection.
Not to repeat myself (too late), but make sure anyone who
contributes to the project agrees, in writing, signed, that you have all
the rights to the contribution. For
artwork, make sure that the agreement includes all potential uses of the
contribution. For example,
your cousin said you could use the picture on the CD but she never thought
it would show up on posters or tee-shirts.
Now if the artist really does not want you to use the picture for
anything other than the CD itself, that’s fine, but it is crucial that
everybody clearly understand what they get and what they give up - in
writing, signed.
·
Non-original artwork. You’ve found the absolutely perfect photograph in a
magazine for your CD cover. Can
you use it? Maybe.
Photographs, just like songs, are subject to copyright law.
Either the photo you want is in the public domain or somebody has
the rights to that photo. If you want to use the photo you must first find out if
it’s protected under copyright. If
it is, then find the copyright holder and negotiate a license.
Again, make sure that the license covers all the potential uses of
that photo.
·
Indemnification.
Once again, regardless of whether the artwork is original or not,
have the artist or other copyright holder indemnify you in case of
copyright or other intellectual property infringement.
·
Liner notes.
If you create your own liner notes, you’ve got the copyright to
those notes. (That’s
assuming that the notes are creative or original enough to copyright.) If
you decide to use your favorite poem or quote in the notes, you’re back
to the public domain/copyright license issues discussed earlier.
·
Song lyrics.
If you hold the rights to all the song lyrics, congratulations.
Print them on the liner notes.
If however, you’ve recorded a cover and got a mechanical license
from Harry Fox, that license does not include permission to reprint the
lyrics. You must negotiate
directly with the copyright holder for the right to reprint lyrics.
·
Copyright Notice.
Make sure that you include the copyright holders name, year
copyrighted, and, although no longer required under copyright law, the
copyright symbol ©, and publishing symbol (P)
on the CD itself and the liner notes.
·
Include publishing and record company information.
It’s important to ensure that your publishing information is
included on both the CD and on the liner notes.
This information should include:
·
the name of your publisher,
·
the performing rights organization that your
publisher is affiliated with, and
·
the year of publication.
What?
No publisher? Relax,
we’ll discuss music publishing later in this article.
Also, some states require that
you include the name and address of the record company or recording
studio.
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