Paul McCartney - John Lennon: Endless Legacy?

                     

                                                 by  L.S. Heatherly

This duo, ranks at or near the top of great songwriting duos e.g. Rodgers and Hammerstein,

In a 2015 Esquire  interview, McCartney covered many topics. Here are the gists of three themes.

On Lennon and McCartney vs. McCartney and Lennon. Their manager, Epstein, and Lennon got to a meeting of the three early; and when McCartney arrived, was told the two had decided that Lennon and McCartney was good. McCartney said OK; but "McCartney and
Lennon is good too" McCartney said thinking he had Yoko on his side (that the order should depend on the song); when she called to change her view-- that Lennon and McCartney was the right credit!

His efforts to get his name first on songs he alone wrote, like Hey Jude, Yesterday, Let It Be, were met with considerable, public disapproval. Lennon had become a Martyr, Many fans complained e.g., "What a big head! Why does he want [on some songs] his name in front of John's?".

McCartney: "But is was nothing to do with big head, It's just to do with identifying who wrote
what. John did a real good Playboy interview [saying] "This is mine, this is Paul's." ..He said it.
"I thought it perfectly reasonable...and still do today. But I don't think it's achievable for some
reason."

ESQ: " 'Yesterday,' 'Hey Jude,' 'Let it Be.' Is it possible to conceive of you[r] writing anything
of that impact again. Perhaps no one could now."

McCartney: " ...we don't live in that culture anymore, that's true....we wrote good stuff... our
own...didn't have writers...happen again?...don't know...wish people well, but I have a feeling
it couldn't [happen again]."

ESQ: "...cosmically: how in the hell did you four [Beatles] manage to bump into each other?"
McCartney: "Cosmic, man. It is! Dead cosmic. I know that."

McCartney can't imagine retirement. Asked if he felt he still had something to prove?...
"But, then, I still enjoy writing. I still enjoy singing.....and maybe I could write something that's
just more relevant, or new!...

*           *          *          *

What a Coincidence (not really)! Over the last six years, The Author of this blog has TOTALLY rewritten -- transmuted and transformed -- the lyrics in 28 classic hit songs, including FOUR of McCartney/Lennon's top songs and one of George Harrison's!

This is called transforming a song to where it  meets all legal requirements for
"Transformativeness"!

This re-creation keeps and credits the McCartney/Lennon music (or Harrison) to them through
lyrics meeting "Fair Use by means of achieving transformativeness; and thereby, being
FAIR USE.

The owner(s) of the music, (and arrangement of music) still  receive their profits from these transformative, fair use, songs, when and if, they are released in the future!

Transformative-Fair Use; this entails different and unique CONTENT, MEANING, MESSAGE, PURPOSE and AUDIENCE, as well as, new, unique contribution to human well-being/the arts and social discourse/commentary!

To date, the lyrics of 28 classic,  hit songs have been totally rewritten to achieve "transformativeness "fair use via transformativeness!" They have been sang, recorded and produced in Heatherly's
bare bones home studio! And the (1) lyrics, (2) sound recording, (3) performance and (4). production rights, all are Registered in the US Copyright Office by Yours Truly..

The FIVE Beatle's songs, thusly transmuted thoroughly are:
Hey Jude    Let It Be   Yesterday   Imagine   Something    (Titles themselves cannot be Copyrighted.). Anyone can title their new song Yesterday, or Let It Be,  for example.

McCartney, INDEED, has first opportunity to purchase non-musical rights to the new transformative fair use derivatives of these songs. This includes First Release Rights.
All artists, who would, thereafter, cover his first release of the transmuted songs,
would pay him a cover royalty for his music..

This will be, of course, after McCartney buys back many of the Beatles top, hit songs, which
were sold under financial stress. He has benefited by the passage of time. Around 2017-18 (if memory serves this blogger) time opens this door to him. He has stated his intentions.to recover ownership of these song rights! [2018 Update: McCartney has reacquired ownership of his previously sold songs.]


( For clarification on "fair use," in the above context, Google this  "fair use does not require permission" You will get about 24 results affirming this statement.
And about 17k  results with a "fair use" "transformative purpose" "no permission" search.


Copyright 2016-18  L.S. Heatherly

Revolution by Songs: Love, Peace, Earth, Children (transformativeness - fair use)

In late 2010, L.S. Heatherly,  added songwriting and recording to his life-
long mission for humanity's development, well-being and sustainability.

[update] As of [2018], Heatherly has written, sang, recorded and produced [29] songs
(in his bare-bones home studio). None have been released; as his purpose, here, is
writing songs to inspire improvements in all of humanity's well-being and peace;
while, having no aim at becoming a noted, recording artist.

Each of Heatherly's songs have US Registered Copyrights (in the Library of Congress),
granting him four ownership rights: Lyrics (transformative, fair use), Sound Recording, Performance, and Production.

These transformtive, fair use songs were inspired by songs consistently found
on most lists of {top 100,  200 or 500) All-time Classic Hit Songs. In fact, many
of Heatherly's songs are transformatives derived from the top 70 songs found on many of these lists.

Copyright and Fair Use: The Transformative Factor

In a 1994 case, the Supreme Court emphasized this first factor:
The Transformative Factor: the  Purpose and Character of Your Work;
as being a primary indicator of Fair Use.

. Has the material you have taken from the original work been transformed 
by adding new expression or meaning? 
. Was value added to the original by creating new information, new aesthethics, or new insights, and understandings?

Fair use Copyright Law also emphasizes creation of new meaning and message to
individuals and society..


Meeting the four factors required for Copyright fair use, and more; Heatherly has, through
serious, transformtive fair use creation, authentically created
28 transformative fair use songs-- derived transformatively --  from Great Pop,
Folk and light Rock classics. These transformative fair use songs include
transformative, fair use derivatives of/from songs of such artists as

5 of McCartney-Lennon
1 of Geaorge Harrison
3 of Elton John
2 of Stevie Wonder
1 of Neil Young
1 of Bonnie Tylers
1 of Whitney Houston's
2 of Bob Dylan's
1 of Billy Joel
and
8 Holiday and Spiritual Songs now in the Public Domain

ALL have BECOME, through fair use transformativeness,  songs of Earth, Love, Children, and Peace
and all have 3-4 of these 4 words in their (US Reg Copyright) titles and lyrics (Titles themselves cannot be copyrighted.)

Ideally, all of Heatherly's rights to these tranformative fair use classics will be sold to the artist(s) of the original hit songs. Excepting, of course, those with Public Domain music.

A few of these having PD music, Heatherly plans to release himself.

Copyright 2016 L.S. Heatherly