Let Us Now Praise Phonoluxe

I love used record stores. My favorite job ever was working at the Great Escape in Nashville where my duties included running the store’s rare record auctions. Accordingly, I have been honored to represent Phonluxe Records since the company’s founding in 1987. The store is run by Mike Smyth, an Englishman who knows more about American music than anyone I know and Jeff Knutson, ably assisted by a dedicated group of music aficionados, who are friendly and lack the whole High Fidelity vibe.

Mike is one of those people who truly understand the consumer side of the record business. When the CD revolution began in earnest in the early 90’s, Mike began buying the vinyl records everyone was so happy to get rid of. Now, having carefully preserved these treasures, he’s happily selling them back to these same people. I imagine that he’s now buying up used CD’s patiently waiting for the day that America’s youth tire of MP3’s.

Earlier this year, the store switched from a traditional 7 days a week schedule to being open only Friday through Sunday. The results appear to be really positive; it somehow emphasizes the special, rewarding experience of shopping at Phonoluxe. I love the fact that I can go in there with a record in mind and leave with something else that I didn’t know I needed until I found it.

Here’s to another 25 rockin’ years.

A Seminar on Covering Your Assets

I received an email from the Nashville Arts & Business Council regarding an upcoming seminar on artists of all types protecting their assets in the even of an emergency. Given the floods of last May, tornadoes and the horrible disasters we are witnessing in Japan right now this seems like a timely topic, so I wanted to pass the information on:


Cover Your A's (Art, Assets, and Archives)
Emergency Preparedness for Artists 101

Were the May floods in Nashville a wake-up call for you? Can your
career sustain the losses of a flood, studio fire, tornado, or burst
water line? Did you know that most homeowner's and renter's insurance
does not cover losses or liability for your art business?

What: The Arts & Business Council's April Seminar
When: Saturday, April 9, 2011, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Where: The new auditorium in the Howard School Complex (700 Second Avenue South)
To attend: $15 (includes brunch and free copy of Studio Protector).
Register now. Attendance limited to the first 25 participants.

This workshop will help you get started in protecting your career from
losses from both natural disasters and individual emergencies. Most of
the preparedness steps involve a little time and little or no money.
We will have an insurance expert on hand to demystify the topic of
business insurance and to answer your questions, and an artist who was
affected by flood to share lessons learned from the experience. Craig
Nutt, an artist and Director of Programs of CERF+ ( Craft Emergency
Relief Fund + Artists' Emergency Resources) will lead the session and
talk about emergency resources that are available to artists.
Participants will each receive a free copy of the Studio Protector:
The Artist's Guide to Emergencies®.




Presented in partnership with CERF+, Metro Nashville Arts Commission and Tennessee Association of Craft Artists with support from: Windgate Charitable Foundation, Nathan
Cummings Foundation and the Joan Mitchell Foundation.

Charles Lamb Said It

"Lawyers, I suppose, were children once."

-Charles Lamb, from the epigraph to Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird" (1960)

The Sincerest Form of Flattery

I have been following with interest the case of Robinson v. Petty in which the heirs of the late great Marty Robbins sued Jason Petty over his portrayal of Robbins in the tribute performance “Marty’s El Paso.” This case, which was pending in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, settled on June 7. At issue in this case was not only the rights to such songs as “El Paso” and “White Sport Coat,” the renewal rights of which are owned by the Robinsons, but also the use of Robbins’ name, image and likeness, which are protected somewhat by a Tennessee statute passed in 1984, after the death of Elvis Presley. The Plaintiff also sued for federal trademark infringement, common law trademark infringement, and violation of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act and Tennessee common law of unfair competition. Marty Robbins died in 1982. Musical tribute shows of all types are becoming an important facet in the entertainment economy, from Beatles tribute bands to the successful run of “Million Dollar Quartet” on Broadway, from “Always… Patsy Cline,” to the legendary Cheap Trick performing the even more legendary “St. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” in its entirety. All of these examples, with the exception of the Cheap Trick performance, have engendered some sort of litigation. The Beatles’ company Apple is notorious for protecting its trademarks, as it probably should be. The common element uniting each of the presentations is that they require some degree of licensing from the underlying rights holders. Performers need to be sure that if their show is a dramatic/musical performance, that they have secured the grand performance rights from the appropriate music publishers. They also have to figure out if there are trademark issues or name, image and likeness issues involved. Although the various elements of these types of issues have been around forever, as performers seek new ways to earn a living playing music, the intersection of these rights will present a fascinating and complex emerging development in entertainment law.