The rip-off labels

[Brad]

I hear what Chuck is saying but I have to side with Brownie on some of his points. Lonehill has been putting out material that I've never heard of. Both of what Chuck and Brownie are saying is the Best of the West which Michael C was going to put out I believe but Lonehill beat him to it so now he's not going to do it. If it's legal in Europe, why not? The answer would be to standardize the laws internationally but I doubt that's going to happen. I don't buy Definitive but I have no trouble buying Lonehill even though they're the same company. Fresh Sounds is bringing out things not otherwise available I believe and it sounds good to me. Unfortunately, as with most issues there's no right or wrong side on this issue.

[Chuck Nessa]

One difference is Uptown made a financial agreement with Lorraine Gillespie for the Town Hall concert. She received an advance and (since she has now died) her heirs will stand to get royalties. The European companies will not be bound by this agreement.

[couw]

so, will this particular Uptown release see better distribution in Europe? Or will it only be available as an import?

[neveronfriday]

Whose music is it anyway?

By Norman Lebrecht / April 13, 2005

 

Pity the poor judges. Hardly a month passes without someone in a black gown having to lay down the law on matters so fluid they might be more fittingly served in a saloon bar. At stake is our access to musical heritage and unless some judge draws a line in the sand pretty soon we could all go blundering back to ignorance and deprivation.

Last week in Albany, the Court of Appeals of the state of New York ruled unanimously that old recordings could be issued on compact disc only by their original label. Sounds reasonable? Wait for the handcuffs.

Over the past decade we have enjoyed a renaissance in the appreciation of historic performances. Naxos, the impulse-buy classical label which sells discs at five pounds, dollars or euros the world over has been reissuing early recordings that had been long deleted by the music biz, which functions on a flow of hyped-up novelty. Ownership of these antiques was uncontested, their perceived value meagre.

Using mint exemplars from Yale University Library, Naxos restored to circulation the imposing sound of Rachmaninov in his own concertos and the more hesitant tones of Prokofiev at the piano. The proud voices of Elisabeth Schumann and Kirsten Flagstad found new admirers; the formative conductors Felix Weingartner and Willem Mengelberg returned to our shelves. These recordings had gathered dust for a generation. Some had never been transferred onto LP, let alone CD. Their restoration was revelatory.

So long as Naxos messed with esoterica, the major labels turned a deaf ear. But Klaus Heymann, the Hong Kong-based label’s German owner, was keen to prove a point. He encroached on such EMI memorabilia as Menuhin in the Elgar concerto, Artur Schnabel in the Beethoven sonatas and Casals in the Bach suites, which had never fallen out of print.

Suddenly, 50 years of mechanical copyright, which is the European norm, did not seem such a long time. Kathleen Ferrier, one of Decca’s all-time bestsellers, is out on Naxos. The debut operas of Maria Callas – I Puritani, Norma, La Sonnambula – are also there and Glenn Gould’s inimitable 1955 account of the Goldberg Variations will fall free come New Year. Callas still sells more CDs than any opera singer alive today and Gould’s icon has pervaded contemporary art and film. Naxos may have begun with educative intent but now it was peddling prime product.

EMI took the case to the US, where mechanical copyright is protected for 75 or 95 years at movie industry insistence. The victory won last week by its Capitol subsidiary has drastic implications. Even if copyright expires, the court ruled, common law can be applied to assert the rights of the original owner. That means, in effect that EMI regains perpetual control of all recordings all the way back to Edison.

Heymann is hoping to overturn the verdict at the US Supreme Court, but the process will be costly and long. EMI, triumphant, is returning to Albany to seek ‘substantial damages’ against Naxos and the destruction of its historical stock. It will also mount a massive lobbying campaign in Brussels to harmonise European copyright with US law, arguing that in an MP3 world rights protection must be universal. EMI bosses are absolutely gung-ho. Quite apart from securing the Callas jewelbox, the judgement protects the early Beatles releases from potential predators in eight years’ time.

The losers, apart from Heymann, are millions of listeners who regained access to treasures of the past only to have them locked away again. EMI promise to keep more oldies in circulation but, without competition from Naxos, prices will rise and the glories of past masters will be constricted to a moneyed minority.

That reversal could be compounded by a judgement expected imminently in London. In May last year, a small and rather beautiful record label, Hyperion, was sued by an academic, Dr Lionel Sawkins, who demanded royalties for recordings of music by Michel-Richard de Lalande. The once eminent French composer died at Versailles in June 1726 and cannot, even under New York appellate law, hold claim to any copyright.

Dr Sawkins, however, edited the modern edition of his score and claimed to have made enough of a contribution to be its beneficial owner. After a six-day hearing last year, Mr Justice Patten agreed that although Sawkins had not altered any of Lalande’s notes, his edition was ‘sufficiently original in terms of the skill and labour used to produce it.’

Hyperion is now awaiting a Court of Appeal decision, originally due this week but now postponed for a month. The case may ultimately hinge on the musical meaning of the word ‘realisation’. If Sawkins wins again, the case will cost Hyperion a million pounds, jeopardising its survival.

Musicians await the decision with trepidation. Without invading matters that are rightly sub judice, many Baroque practitioners have rallied to Hyperion’s side, praising the label for bringing the past to light by reviving the likes of Lalande who, the least of three fine composers at the Sun King’s court (Lully and Charpentier were the more prominent), might never had been rediscovered but for its advocacy.

They fear that if copyright in a long-dead composer were granted to a note picking editor, vast swathes of heritage might fall into private or corporate hands. The Austrian government could, for instance, by virtue of the manuscripts it owns, assert its legal writ over performances of Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms.

No-one envies the judges their headache for the field of copyright has become quagmire. What was once a simple acknowledgement of reward for creative effort has been complicated by such metaphysical concepts as ‘moral’ rights and intellectual ‘property’. Much of what is being argued in court strays beyond the original intention of legislators to balance the rightful authority of a creator with the need to allow the public proper access to the essentials of civilisation.

In an unrelated case in California, lawyers for various interests are trying to copyright the term ‘yoga’, restricting access to corporately sanctioned practitioners. There are passages in these court documents where the law is made to look like a braying ass.

That is what judges are there to stop. Whoever ends up owning what, the law must make common sense and must ensure that the protection of copyright does not block the public footpath to cultural enlightenment.

Source: http://www.scena.org/columns/lebrecht/0504...historical.html

[AmirBagachelles]

If there is no mechanism to pay the artist, and the artist or the estate is not OK with the situation, then it is most likely theft, I don't give a shit what the law says. These European labels, and their customers, seem pretty scummy on this point.

[brownie]

The Uptown CD will be superior in every way to the ripoffs and I doubt that the ripoffs will seriously damage the sale of the Uptowns. As long as the Uptowns are well distributed around these parts, which has not been the case for a long, long time.

OK now you can start throwing the bricks! I have a  thick head 

So why would a French distributor have a business relationship with Uptown if budget versions of the same material will be available shortly?

The Dizzy/Bird discovery is exciting news for any distributor who knows one's business. Sales prospects warrant investing in distributing the Uptown release. Profits should be made before the budgets releases make their appearances...

Hope whichever company takes care of distribution over here does a good job with it!

Uptown releases appearances in the record shops around these parts are just above the zero level so far

[EKE BBB]

Uptown releases appearances in the record shops around these parts are just above the zero level so far

In fact (and unfortunately), I´ve never seen a single Uptown disc in Madrid jazz stores.

[sidewinder]

I've been looking for that Uptown 'Baron Mingus' over here but so far without luck..

[AllenLowe]

my impression is that every label, big or little, legit or not, trys to get away with whatever it can get away with it. My only "major" release was with Enja Records, who had a great reputation - well, I agreed to let them handle the Euro publishing, and I never saw a dime (I was paid domestically by Sesac, approx. $1500 dollars) - my feeling is, sh*t, some day I'll just reissue the stuff myself, as I feel morally in the right. I called Fantasy a while back because I've been trying to locate Al Haig's widow,and I figured, well, they must be dealing with his estate, as they have some releases in his name. No, they told me, they have no contact, and no one is being paid.

[Dan Gould]

my impression is that every label, big or little, legit or not, trys to get away with whatever it can get away with it.

This is true, Allen, but before you joined our happy little community, over on the BNBB, there was a wonderful post from Tom at Blue Note about getting contact info for Jutta Hipp, who was living somewhere in the five boroughs, Brooklyn, maybe, and how stunned and thrilled she was when a fairly sizeable check was personally delivered to her.

So, some labels do try to do right.

[WD45]

Do the folks that avoid the grey market labels avoid promo-marked items as well?

[chris]

Do the folks that avoid the grey market labels avoid promo-marked items as well?

I don't-- but after receiving a *CD-R* a few days ago of a Brad Mehladau promo I ended up placing an order for three of his discs. I guess that's kind of what promos are for...

[mikeweil]

I'm pretty much with brownie here - I was willing to shell out four or five times the amount by getting the original Uptown CD - and I never regretted it. I got it from Jazz Is Beck, who have a nice stock even of rare items, but are rather expensive.

But that was before I joined the BNBB - now I would buy this from Chuck ...

[wolff]

If there is no mechanism to pay the artist, and the artist or the estate is not OK with the situation, then it is most likely theft, I don't give a shit what the law says.  These European labels, and their customers, seem pretty scummy on this point.

Yep!!

I really do not see any grey areas. Either you own or license(and all that that involves) the performance before you release it, or you are ripping off/stealing.

The public domain labels that market their stuff in the USA are no better.

Edited May 6, 2005 by wolff

[brownie]

I am a tax-paying law-abiding citizen. The law in my country allows me to buy records by companies that also pay the required taxes.

The law in my country also can be pretty strict with labels that do not play by the rules as happened with the Esoldun albums that were released with the help of the government-owned INA (Institut National de l'Audiovisuel) back in the late eighties.

I bought these when they were being sold in all the regular stores. I must admit that I did not return those CDs when the law declared they should not have been released. Nobody asked me to do that!

With the exception of a couple of CDRs - provided by board members who will remain nameless - that were copies of ultra rare dates, 99 percent of the albums I have in my collection have been bought in stores. I have paid my dues and helped some of the best jazz labels by buying their stuff when they were releasing them which allows me to proclaim my grief against Blue Note/EMI which releases copy-controlled CDs of favorite albums that cannot be played in my car

My mind is at ease. I am waiting to see what Lonehill and JSP and some others are preparing to release next!

[Fer Urbina]

I called Fantasy a while back because I've been trying to locate Al Haig's widow,and I figured, well, they must be dealing with his estate, as they have some releases in his name. No, they told me, they have no contact, and no one is being paid.

I have taken part in discussions about this elsewhere, and the picture I'm getting, IMHO is that the legal implications are too difficult to clear up and thus litigation is not an easy option, either because the labels cannot afford it, or because (the majors) can take the possible losses due to the dodgers, who sometimes are well-known people, not too difficult to reach.

The only solution seems to take a personal stand against certain labels (or in the case of JSP, certain releases, which would required some sort of informed black list), and sometimes that's even more difficult when they release material not readily available.

The other one is as easy as when someone reviews a Lonehill Jazz CD stating that they contain "collectors' items on CD for the first time ever" and it is not true, do say so.

Reading Allen Lowe's post, the other question is that, if you enter this fight and try to uncover the dodgy labels, who you're fighting for? The musicians or the owners of the masters, who sometimes couldn't care less? (there are plenty of examples, but Woody Herman-Blowin' Up A Storm by Sony/Legacy is up there with the worst)

My two cents.

F U

PS In all honesty, when I got my copy of the Early Mingus CD by Definitive, I didn't even know about the Uptown CD (was in Spain or UK then)

PPS I agree with what "neveronasunday" said about the "hollier than thou" attitude.

[king ubu]

brownie, how about the case won against the copy-controlled DVD of "Lost Highway" (or what film was it again?) in France? I though copy protection was illegal anyway, in France... let's hope this will have some positive consequences in other European countries! And let's hope EMI cuts those shitty discs!

I can assure you that the only EMI disc I bought since they went cactus is "Dance of Death", and I got that from CDUniverse (who demand too much for too slow shipping, btw). I have simply stopped buying EMI discs, but I'm afraid I'm quite alone. However, as Zurich's only jazz fan and willing buyer of CDs, I guess the stores did still notice

On the serious side: my EMI purchases went from prob. 50 discs to 0 [edit: annually, that is!] - and that only as a result of their copy-protected discs

No RVG you could get as a CD here, no Conns... it sucks bigtime! And it *is* directed not against those that copy the music or download it illegally, but at those customers that actually bought the real thing.

However, the problem here is that the fellows distributing/selling discs are too stupid to realize Lonehill or Freshsound are rip-offs. The prize for a Lonehill disc is the same as the prize for an OJC or BN (24 CHF, roughly 20$), and the prize for a Freshsound is the same as for full-prized Universal discs (33-36 CHF, roughly 25-30$).

If the Lonehill releases were sold for what they're worth (a bit more than shit), I'd definitely go for them, though. Same for Freshshound. But with the current situation, I simply stopped checking in with BN at all, and have no idea what they release, and also stopped caring, alltogether.

Edited May 6, 2005 by king ubu

[EKE BBB]

On the serious side: my EMI purchases went from prob. 50 discs to 0 [edit: annually, that is!] - and that only as a result of their copy-protected discs

Same here, Flurin. I bought two or three of those copy-protected discs at the beginning (among them "Search for the new land"), but not any more! When I really need a RVG or a Conn, I´d rather go to amazon marketplace, ebay or CDUniverse.

[brownie]

brownie, how about the case won against the copy-controlled DVD of "Lost Highway" (or what film was it again?) in France? I though copy protection was illegal anyway, in France... let's hope this will have some positive consequences in other European countries! And let's hope EMI cuts those shitty discs!

The French court ruled against copy protection.

The AP story on this (date April 26)

A French court has ordered DVD vendors to pull copies of the David Lynch film "Mulholland Drive" off store shelves as part of an unprecedented ruling against copy prevention techniques.

The appeals court ruled Friday that copy prevention software on the DVD violated privacy rights in the case of one consumer who had tried to transfer the film onto a video cassette for personal use.

The ruling could be a major setback for the DVD industry, which places lock software on disks as part of its battle against piracy. The industry blames illegal copying for millions of dollars in lost revenues each year.

"This ruling means that 80 percent of DVDs now on the French market are equipped with illegal mechanisms," said Julien Dourgnon, spokesman for consumer advocacy group UFC-Que Choisir, which brought the case.

"Stores will probably not have to send back products already in stock," Dourgnon said Tuesday. "But in the future, no DVD or CD that has the device can be sold."

France, along with other European Union members including Germany and Spain, has laws guaranteeing the right of consumers to copy recordings they have purchased for private use.

Lionel Thoumyre, a lawyer for the artist rights group Spedidam, said the ruling sets a new precedent in the European Union, where intellectual property laws are nearly identical among member states.

"This is brand new," he said. "I think this is the first judgment in Europe going in this direction."

The consumer group filed the suit on behalf of a man who bought the "Mulholland Drive" DVD and then wanted to copy the movie onto a videocassette so he could show the film at his mother's home.

The ruling overturned a lower court's decision in favor of the defendants, co-producers Alain Sarde Films and Studio Canal and distributor Universal. The suit was filed in 2003.

The defendants also were found guilty of violating French consumer protection laws, which state that a vendor must notify consumers of a product's essential characteristics.

The only notification of the copy prevention software on the DVD in this case were the letters "CP," short for "copying prohibited," in small print on the cover, a warning that the court found insufficient.

Copy-control is - at long last - coming under control. Hopefully...

I'll get my money back from EMI. Hopefully

[David Ayers]

I have simply stopped buying EMI discs, but I'm afraid I'm quite alone.

Not alone. I now find it quite easy to ignore all EMI jazz issues and reissues. I don't even consider them. It's not as if there is nothing else in the shops.

I see this has become a hot topic over at bluenote.com: review of Sonny Clark RVG

Edited May 6, 2005 by David Ayers

[king ubu]

I see this has become a hot topic over at bluenote.com: review of Sonny Clark RVG

Let's just hope anyone reads those posts there!

[king ubu]

browsing around on the BN site (hasn't happened for two years, btw...), I found a very funny review here.

[David Ayers]

I found a very funny review here. 

[chris]

I won't buy any music with copy protection or digital files with DRM. Regardless of sound quality, just on principle. I refuse to feed that animal, where technological applications are driving de-facto legislation on what I Can do with my music!

[Claude]

Copy-control is - at long last - coming under control. Hopefully...

I'll get my money back from EMI. Hopefully 

I don't think this will happen. The ruling will probably be overturned. The decision is strange, because there has never been in copyright law an enforcable right to make private copies. Copying is just permitted.

The only way to fight copyprotection legally is on the grounds that the CDs are technically flawed, because many players won't play them.

Edited May 6, 2005 by Claude