WHAT ARE THE COPYRIGHTS IN MUSIC?

   WHAT ARE THE COPYRIGHTS IN MUSIC?

Music is unique in that every track has two copyrights. One of these is a copyright in the song, i.e. the musical composition, which consists of the lyrics and underlying music (beat, instrumental). The other is a copyright in the sound recording or “master recording” itself. For example, “All Along The Watchtower” was originally written and composed by Bob Dylan. It has been subsequently performed and “covered” by several artists, including Jimi Hendrix. In this situation, the copyright in the underlying musical composition (the lyrics and musical arrangement) is owned by Bob Dylan (or his Publishing Company); while, the copyright in a particular sound recording, such as the Jimi Hendrix version of this track, is owned by Jimi Hendrix (or his record label).

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