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Actually, this is something that have I wondered about (sometimes, I have too much free time on my hands). If you were to record a public domain song (like Amazing Grace or Pachelbel's Canon in D major), what happens to the songwriter's cut of the royalty check? Does it get deducted (probably) and, if so, to whom does the money go? Well, it seems that there is an answer to the question:
"When a song is in the public domain and you record it, it's standard practice in the music industry to say 'adapted and arranged by' whoever sings it," Seeger said in a recent interview. "Why let the record company keep all the royalties? They didn't write the song."
But who did? The answer isn't always clear. Seeger said he was once told by Joseph Shabalala of the South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo that when the word "traditional" is used, "it means the money stays in New York."
So there you go....
Posted by Casper at May 12, 2004 04:49 PM