Musical works (songs) and sound recordings are both
categories of copyrightable works. However, they are separate
categories and protect different content. People tend to confuse the
two since we're most familiar with recordings of songs (as opposed to
other sounds) and because we tend to assume that the author of the song is
the same as the artist that records the song (sometimes, but by no means
always, true). Even if the author of a song records the song,
copyright ownership may be transferred by the author to other parties such
as a
music publisher and a
record label.
According to
section 101 of the U.S.
Copyright Act, sound recordings are "works that result from the
fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds, but not
including the sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual
work, regardless of the nature of the material objects, such as disks,
tapes, or other phonorecords, in which they are embodied."
The table below describes
the basic differences and some examples are provided
here.
Musical Work
(Song)
Sound Recording
Definition
An original work of authorship consisting
of music (melody, harmony, rhythm) often combined with lyrics.
An original work of authorship consisting of
musical, spoken or other sounds (other than sounds accompanying an
audiovisual work).
Various individuals (depending on
the circumstances) including the featured
artist, background musicians and vocalists,
record producer,
and mix engineer.
Who owns
copyright?
The songwriter or songwriters
unless they transfer ownership to a publisher or publishers (or
create as a work made
for hire work made for hire)
Any authors (as specified above)
although if an artist is signed to a record label, the label will
obtain transfers (assignments) of copyright from authors (or create as
a work made for hire).
Degree of Protection?
Right to prevent
unauthorized reproduction, distribution, adaptation, and public
performance. Rights subject to some limitations (compulsory mechanical
license, various exemptions from public performance right, fair use,
etc.).
Right to prevent
unauthorized reproduction, distribution, adaptation & public
performance by digital audio transmission (no public performance right
for analog transmission such as radio and television broadcasts).
Rights subject to some limitations (copying for personal use, fair
use, etc.).
The hugely popular song Umbrella
was written in a few hours by songwriters
Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and
Terius "The Dream" Nash at an
Atlanta recording studio. It was
initially intended for
Britney Spears as a potential comeback
song. However, Spears
had already begun recording her new album
and all of the songs were already chosen.
The writers then pitched it to
Island Def Jam and A&R rep Karen Kwak
believed it would be a good song for
Rihanna,
who was recording songs for her third album,
Good Girl Gone Bad. Around the
same time, the song was also pitched to
Mary J.
Blige. Reportedly, music
industry big-wig L.A. Reid exercised some of
his clout and persuaded the writers to let Rihanna
record it. After Rihanna's recording,
an rap intro. was added by
Jay-Z and Umbrella was
the first single released in early 2007.
Needless to say, Umbrella became a
huge hit and made Rihanna a superstar
artist. Umbrella was the #1 song on the
Billboard Hot 100 for 7 weeks.
It was also #1 on the
UK Singles Chart for 10 weeks and topped
the charts in most areas of the world (see
Umbrella Charts). In addition to
the catchy hook of the song, a flashy video
featuring Rihanna is silver body paint
helped drive the song's popularity. Due to its huge popularity, it is no
surprise that Umbrella has been recorded
("covered") and performed by many other
artists all over the world.
According to
ASCAP's
online
search database The copyright in the
song Umbrella is co-owned by 7 music
publishers, reflecting publishing and
co-publishing deals the writers have.
The copyrights in the various sound
recordings of Umbrella are owned by either
the recording artist (if the artist isn't
signed to a record label) or the artist's
record label.
