Question about re-recording a classic album to avoid a bad contract ...

The original version of Hold On made an appearance on a V/A comp CD ("25 Years of Rock 'n' Roll colume 2 1980", Connoisseur Collection WRRT CD 80).

 

Re-recording the songs is to avoid the situation of the record company owning the master tapes. If they are re-recorded, they aren't the same master tapes, and the band is free of the contract stipulation that states they own the original master tapes.

 

Publishers rarely own master tapes (and songwriters rarely own all of their own publishing). Record companies do, and regardless of how many times a song is re-recorded (even a million), the publishing royalties remain the same as those royalties aren't based on master tapes, but rather use of intellectual property.

 

As I stated before:

To use a music track in a video or film you need two sets of rights: Sync rights, which are granted by the entity that controls publishing. And master rights, which are granted by the entity that controls the master recording you wish to use. Those are typically two separate entities, they often do not negotiate in tandem, each can create their own asking price, there are no mechanical rates (both entities can ask whatever amount they wish), and unless you have both, you can't use the song. This creates both logistical and financial issues when attempting to license a particular recording for video use.

If the artist already controls publishing, and they then go about re-recording the music so that they can deliver a set of acceptable master recordings (though not the hit versions, similar enough), then A) negotiations are very much simplified, as they go through a single entity; B) total licensing cost can be appreciably lower, as the artist will be receiving a portion (or all) of the publishing license fees and (typically) all of the master licensing fees.

 

I remember all the re-recordings from 50's & 60's artist when CDs first appeared. There's
also the route of artist putting out live versions of songs on Greatest Hits comps, like with
the Sony/BMG 'Extended Versions' series.

 

Yes. The usual problem is the entity that owns the original master tapes is reluctant to license them for a reasonable fee, or won't let the artist do what they want with them. Even though the artist owns the master tape if they re-record the songs, the publishing end can still be difficult as it takes a team of people to process the paperwork, and it wouldn't be a single entity as the artist usually has an outside publisher who administers their catalog (with a sub-publisher that the artist named). So, negotiations for sync, or mechanical licensing is pretty complex no matter who owns what. Re-recording the songs just gives an artist more control over what is done with their songs.

 

LOL! True story.. as a kid I would see this album and wanted to buy it for "Still The One" but already knew I was gay and thus I was too embarrassed, thinking it would reveal too much about me. Same thing with that Scott Baio album (I assume there was only one) .... but in Scott's case I actually did want it for the cover

 

The Rumour recorded their third and final album Purity Of Essence for Stiff records in the UK in 1980.

Stiff wanted too much money to licence the recording to Hannibal Records in the US, so the group hastily rerecorded the album with a couple of different tracks for release as Purity Of Essence: The American Edition in 1981.

 

KISS also released the remix of Destroyer a few years ago, too....loosely falls into this catagory...

 

I have to say...the cover of Orleans kind of falls into the "what were they thinking?" category if they wanted to appeal to boys who weren't gay. I'm sure some people didn't care but I will say I thought that album cover was a bit out there at the time even more so if any members of the band WERE gay.

I have the feeling if the original line up got together to re-record it, they would have their shirts on at this point in their lives (and I would REALLY hope so).

I could see that they were trying to do the "beef cake" cover for the girls and for anyone who was gay (although I don't think at the time that they were the intended audience).

There are a couple of other album covers that fall into that category of what were they thinhking as well...

 

Graham Parker re-recorded some old songs not to release them but specifically for movie/TV licensing purposes. He blogged about the experience, including not being thrilled when someone bootlegged the re-recordings: "One-Stop Clearance, aka "Stick It to the Man"

 

I think these are the guys who sang the 70s soft rock song 'Dance With Me.' The album artwork is definitely not geared toward straight men, but to each his own. The guy on the far left looks like a thin Ron Jeremy.

 

Happened to me the other week - listening to Atlanta Rhythm Section on Spotify. Something didn't seem right during "Doraville" then realized I had selected a re recorded greatest hits comp.

Put on my LP and all was corrected...

 

Paul Collins' 2014 album "Feel The Noise" was recorded twice. Apparently, Collins wasn't happy with the first attempt. The second sessions were done about a year later and produced by Jim Diamond (White Stripes).

 

I fell for one of those compilations a while ago. Promptly returned it to the store!

 

i agree other than the 3 singles. dee could no longer handle the range of "the price" and the other 2 hits are so burned into my brain that it just sounds wrong. i also dislike the vocal part in "burn in hell" where dee embellished the word "one". the rest was great. i enjoyed having a full out studio version of "come back" and liked "heroes are hard to find" being included as i missed the soundtrack it was on