Incorporating song lyrics - copyright/legal problems?

On the verso of the title page of a book that incorporates lines from a copyrighted poem or song, there is always a notation of copyright and the words "used by permission." This holds true even if only two lines are included.

(Sidebar: The copyright to "Happy Birthday" is owned by Warner Bros. Any movie that isn't distributed by Warners must pay a licensing fee to include it.)

That said, copyrighted material used for educational and/or analytical purposes is quotable, within reason. Example: for my classes in media literacy, I compiled a series of clips from "Superman II" to highlight the product placement of Marlboro cigarettes some 12 times in the film--and to point out that Lois Lane, a role model for bubble-gum set girls, is seen as virtually the only smoker.

Bottom line, were I you I'd contact the copyright holder and ask for permission to use the lyrics. I suspect that he or she'd grant it without charging a fee; after all, it amounts to free advertising.

Using song lyrics is not that simple. There's been a lot of discussion in the past. I found this thread (not sure if it's the same as Katiemac's):

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8231

For more discussions, do a search of the site on lyrics and copyright.

JD

General procedure is to get permission or not use lyrics (excluding song titles). The law may well allow broader 'fair use' but so far nobody seems willing to risk it

Just don't do it. It isn't worth the trouble, and the legal issues put publishers off. Be original. Make up some lyrics of your own or paraphrase the lyrics you want to quote.

IMHO if the reader doesn't know the song, the lines don't add much--and if they do, the lines may not need to be quoted. I used Bonnie Tyler singing Total Eclipse of the Heart in my novella 'Eclipse of the Heart'. But I didn't quote the lyrics. If I had my publisher would have required them to be removed. As, I suspect, would pretty much any publisher.

Steve W said:

Hi,

Thanks for the responses.

Tish, thanks but, like I said, the 'Just don't do it' option isn't one I want to take, hence the question. Made-up lyrics won't work if you're talking about a real band/event/memory evoked by particular music, especially if you want the reader to know that music and get the same kind of feeling. Of course I could just delete that section, but, there again, that isn't something I want to do. I'd rather solve the problem and get a definite answer, one way or the other, than dance around and avoid it.
Cheers,
Steve

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This was discussed a while back and it turned out that songs authors thought "everyone" knew or that sparked a universal memory or emotion turned out to be unknown to many/most readers of the thread and definitely did not spark the kind of emotional response the author intended.
Just keep in mind that most reputable publishers will require either that you get permission to quote even a line or two or a song (an expensive and time-consuming process) or they will require that you remove it, or most likely, unless the piece is totally brilliant, they simply will reject it to avoid the hassle of lyrics. I know that you think you can quote a line or two legally, but its what the publishers think that matters. I understand this isn't the message you want to hear, but it is the reality of the situation. Do a search on song lyrics on this board, and you will see that this issue comes up over and over and over, and the answer is always the same - using song lyrics presents more problems than it solves. You should know this before you try to publish your piece, and then if you still feel the lyrics are essential, go ahead and use them and see whether publishers will okay the use.

fair use

veinglory said:

General procedure is to get permission or not use lyrics (excluding song titles). The law may well allow broader 'fair use' but so far nobody seems willing to risk it

Click to expand...

This is because fair use law doesn't even mention using someone else's copyrighted material in your own fiction. It simply isn't mentioned in allowable use, and because of this, it isn't allowed. Fair use is fuzzy on how much of something you can use, but it's perfectly clear on when and where something can be used.

If you're writing anything other than a parody, fair use does not allow using copyrighted material in fiction, at all, without permission.

Short answer:

You can't even quote a line or two without permission.

1. It isn't legal to; it isn't included in "fair use," and, even if it were, you have to go to court to determine if a use is fair or not. Mind you, you might be ok, but publishers aren't going to risk a "might."

2. Publishers are going to either tell you to get the permissions, and pay the fees, (it isn't cheap; I've done it) or cut the quotation.

3. You can allude to the song, you can name the title, and paraphrase the lyrics, if you must.

This is like the nth time this question has come up. See these posts (and the threads containing them) from Jaws, an attorney who has extensive expertise in copyright issues:

http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showpost.php?p=110949&postcount=29

http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showpost.php?p=584397&postcount=25

If it's a common song, you can get away with just using the title and allow your readers to fill in the blanks. "John walked down the street singing the old Beatles tune "Yesterday" softly to himself. Almost everyone know the words without you quoting them. I've done that a couple times.

The following was taken directly from the US code on copyrights:
In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include —
(1)In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include —
(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;
(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.
Rather vague, but using one or two lines should be workable, especially if you can manage to work in attribution.