Music Attorney Ron Bienstock (Goo Goo Dolls, Billy Joel, etc.) returns to Getsigned.com this week to answer your Biz/Legal questions including: "Should I sign with an indie or major record label?", "Who do I need permission from to record a cover song?", "How do I become a record label mogul?" and much more!

* Terms of Use: This column and the information contained within is presented to our readers as a reference tool. The short answers given to these questions are not intended to constitute full and complete "legal advice." The answers given here do not constitute an attorney/client relationship. Getsigned.com will not be responsible or liable for any damages arising from the information posted here. We strongly advise setting up an appointment with Mr. Bienstock to discuss your problems in more detail. He can be reached via his website at www.musicesq.com

Q: Hey Ron, thank you for helping out indie bands! Everything I have read points to not signing with a major label. I have read that most bands that signed either get dropped or are broke. How is it possible to make a decent living after signing with a major label? Also, how does one go about getting a booking agent without being signed to a major record label? --Thanks, Kent

A: Dear Kent:

We could talk about this all day - but I require lunch sometime. :)  Signing with a major may not be the brass ring of yore, but then it never really was. The odds that all of the factors align that make a successful record - great song, great recording / performance, a lot of radio play, good tours, television performances, excellent press, powerful label push and a lot of luck - have always been somewhat unlikely to occur. While you can control your destiny to a greater extent with releasing your own product and/or an indie, you are then bound by your or the label's finances. However, by starting your career off with an indie and getting to achieve a "buying" fan base and some radio play, you will only enhance the possibility of success upon reaching the major plateau. So, you can make a living playing with or without a major label deal as long as you put together a great band behind great songs and play great shows.....

Q: Dear Ron;

I was wondering if you can tell my what I need to do to become a record label executive, like what degree I need to receive in college. I am planning to attend college next year and I need to know what degree I need to become or help me become a record label executive. --Thank you, Megan

A: Megan:

Label executives have many varied backgrounds and education. For example, the VP of Marketing for one label at a major was a former Assistant District Attorney in Brooklyn. What you should do is look for a school that offers quality music business programs, like NYU or another school in a similar urban setting, where you could intern at a label while you are getting such a degree. By the way, it is not mandatory nor required to go about a music exec gig in this fashion. It is just an idea. Really, all you need is drive, desire and passion. All are ingredients to personal success.

Q: Hey Ron, our punk band is getting ready to go into the studio to record for the first time. One of our songs is "Wind Beneath My Wings" and we are unsure as to what legal precautions we need to take to record this song and put it on the album.

I was under the impression that filling out the PA form for copyright was enough, but what about *permission* to use the lyrics and music? Since someone else wrote them, I know we have to have permission to use them. What forms need to be filed? --Thanks, Ellie.

A: Ellie:

You are about to record a "cover song." Since the copyright holders of this song retain all interest and title, you cannot use Form PA since Form PA covers the copyright in the composition. Since it is a recording, your proper step here is to use Form SR to indicate that you are the copyright owners of the sound recordings, but not this song embodied in your recording.

As to other steps, you need to contact the copyright holder of "Wind Beneath My Wings" - whomever "administers" the copyright is the term applied in the business. You will need to pay mechanical royalties via a mechanical license either through a licensing organization such as Harry Fox, or directly through the publisher. I would love to hear this cover!

Best Regards,
Ronald S. Bienstock, ESQ.

This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  Website Back	Attorney Ron Bienstock
	Ronald S. Bienstock is Senior Partner at Bienstock & Michael, P.C. in New York City. Ron received his J.D. from California Western School of Law in 1981. He is admitted to practice in New York, New Jersey, and Washington State. Ron was editor-in-chief and publisher of International Musician & Recording World and was general counsel to Hoshino, U.S.A., manufacturer of Ibanez Guitars, Electronics, and Tama Drums. In 1991, Ron was voted as one of the top 100 "Most Influential People in the Music Business", by BAM Magazine. Recently, Ron has been music business commentator for CNN and has been a guest lecturer at New York University, Benjamin Cardozo School of Law, and Quinnipiac School of Law. Ron has been published in the New York Law Journal, New York State Bar Association Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Journal, and has contributed to Getsigned.com since 1998. A performing and recording musician for over 25 years, Ron continues to perform and record with his band, "The Suits", who's debut LP on Viceroy Records secured them appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and CNBC. Ron is also Co-Chair of the NYSBA committee on the recording industry and the Internet. Ron has scored and composed for off-broadway, film and tv including the 100th anniversary of the Dodgers video and the award winning play "Two" by Romulus Linney. He and his firm have proudly represented Getsigned.com, Inc. since 1998.
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