informant38
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...But of these sophisms and elenchs of merchandise I skill not...
Milton, Areopagitica

Except he had found the
standing sea-rock that even this last
Temptation breaks on; quieter than death but lovelier; peace
that quiets the desire even of praising it.

Jeffers, Meditation On Saviors


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10.11.02

Senator Kevin Murray, leading the initiative for artists' rights, claimed the that Cary Sherman, Chief Counsel for the RIAA himself, said to him in an interview, that RIAA members (the major labels) would sue any artist that broke ranks and shared information with the Committee. This claim was rejected by Sherman but supported by others in the room. Don Henley, among them, outwardly dared his record company to sue him for bringing royalty statements to the hearing. He presented his most recent royalty statement for "Hell Freezes Over," which showed the panel that even though his contract called for a no more than a 10% "reserve" on sales of records shipped, Universal Music had held back more than that for eleven pay periods (roughly under three years) and that, even though his contract calls for no free goods in Europe, they had deducted $87,000 in free goods charges to Europe.
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Artists' lawyers have reported that they are having "some tension" with the tradition of getting better terms for their clients after they have a proven hit. In a shocking statement made by Back Street Boy Kevin Richardson, he testified that they have NEVER received a royalty check, and that they only took a large advance after their third hit album in a row failed to earn them a penny in royalties. (Case in point, three albums on a major label is generally about 5 contract years into the term.)

Also, the wife of Lester Chambers, of The Chambers Brothers, claimed to have never received a royalty check, nor an advance, in upwards of 30 years. Ms. Chambers claimed that Columbia told her there were no overseas sales to report because The Chambers Brothers records were never licensed to an overseas distributor. She believed them until she started seeing her product on E-Bay and found 22 different foreign pressings of Chambers Brothers recordings, all by foreign affiliates of her label, Columbia Records, a subsidiary of Sony. Similarly, a member of The Olympics, of the hit "Hully Gully," was present and complained that he found his recording on 94 different compilations world-wide, yet has never received a royalty check.

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