Does drums matter?

J

jmbriley

New member
Is it me or does it seem like drums don't really matter as far as being copyrighted and reused. I mean it seems like I can find at least 10 different hip hop songs made in the last year with the same basic drum pattern with sligh variations. Are drum patterns fair use?
 
The only parts of written music that can be copyrighted are the melody and the lyrics so you would be quite within your rights to completely lift the drum rhythm from another tune but you would have to use your own drum samples and program it yourself as opposed to sampling it cos then there are a whole other set of laws that apply...
 
Arrangements are protected. You can use the same patterns, but you have to program them yourself.

You can get away with a short melody line if you play it yourself, as long as the rhythm underneath it is different. You have to change the context of the music you borrow.
 
black american records have always been the most reliable source of dance groove. these records down through the years have inevitably laid so much emphasis on the altar of groove and so very little into fulfilling the other golden rules that they very rarely break through into the u.k. top ten, let alone making the number one spot. a by-product of this situation is that gangsters of the groove from bo diddley on down believe they have been ripped off, not only by the business but by all the artists that have followed on from them. this is because the copyright laws that have grown over the past one hundred years have all been developed by whites of european descent and these laws state that fifty per cent of the copyright of any song should be for the lyrics, the other fifty per cent for the top line (sung) melody; groove doesn't even get a look in. if the copyright laws had been in the hands of blacks of african descent, at least eighty per cent would have gone to the creators of the groove, the remainder split between the lyrics and the melody.
Click to expand...
The Manual (on how to get a #1 hit the easy way)
 
Did you read the whole thing alex?
I stopped like a few pages in, pretty retarded imo :(

Any gems inside of all his crap?
 
one thing is that if you can play the melody what ever or what ever you can do that because your not using a sample of the artist so thats just one way around it
 
Lokness42 said:
one thing is that if you can play the melody what ever or what ever you can do that because your not using a sample of the artist so thats just one way around it
Click to expand...

that's not a way around it homey, replaying it is called an interpolation. You still gotta pay up if you replay something.

sorry to let you know that but thats how it is.

Peace
 
do u think 2-Short paid he has a band and they play old funk music.
 
I was wondering, if for example i remake the drums from the intro of the Queen song "We will rock you" won't anybody get ©Copywrite pissed off?
I mean, those few drum hits build the character of the whole song and everyone remembers them by heart
 
like i say just listen to music you'll hear the same pattern in music...cept rock used more toms and cymbals...more fills...were as hip-hop only uses mainly 4 bars
 
Iceberg-Slim said:
Did you read the whole thing alex?
I stopped like a few pages in, pretty retarded imo :(

Any gems inside of all his crap?
Click to expand...

loads. its worthwile to read

(thanks alex. thers like 5 texts that i love/need/use/(could have been extracted from my subconcious). this is one)
 
its the drum sounds that make that beat not the pattern. Taking a drum pattern is perfectly legal.

Also you can't copyright chord progressions or basslines unless the bassline itself is playing such a distinct melody.

You can copyright a specific arrangement/sound recording but not the actual pattern.

Peace
 
KomplexBeats said:
its the drum sounds that make that beat not the pattern. Taking a drum pattern is perfectly legal.

Also you can't copyright chord progressions or basslines unless the bassline itself is playing such a distinct melody.
Click to expand...


I think you're overly optimistic here...

As to the original posts concern that drum lines aren't very original, well, they tend to have a kick on 1&3, a snare on 2&4, and high hats on the 1/8ths or 1/16ths. Beyond that there is some variation (accenting kicks, and syncopated snares, etc.), but within that framework, a lot of beats are going to sound the same.

There are certain patterns (chord progressions, bass lines, drum patterns) that have been used since time immemorial. Think of the standard 12 bar blues pattern, or common walking bass lines, and standard meathead rock drum beats. That doesn't mean that if you take the same patterns from an old Motown song (He's So Fine), change everything around and record your own version of it (My Sweet Lord), you won't get taken to court over it (? vs. George Harrison).

As far as basslines, well, if you steal one of Bootsy's bass lines, even if you program it yourself, you're probably in for a legal battle. Typical rock/hip-hop drum patterns are probably safe, but if there's something truly unique about it (e.g. Queen's We Will Rock You, or Frida's I Know There's Something Giong On), you're stealing someone else's creative work, and may rightfully be sued over it.

You can copyright a specific arrangement/sound recording but not the actual pattern.

Peace
Click to expand...

Dude, have you ever read sheet music? Like h3!! you can't copyright the actual patterns. If you can express it in terms such that it can be reproduced, you can copyright it. End of story.

Seriously, you may want to look up some legal references if you want to reuse anything that you don't have explicit permission to reuse (e.g. royalty free samples). Save yourself some money in the long run...
 
maybe you misunderstood me i was specifically talking about drums when i said copyright a pattern.

KICK KICK SNARE KICK KICK SNARE

thats the basic pattern for "we will rock you"...

now tell me someone else hasn't used that pattern before. There is nothing truely unique about it. The actual kicks and claps are a different story.

And also I'm not saying you can just go and rip chord progressions from songs but a lot of genres use almost the same chord progression in every song.

About the bassline thing is the bass is playing a melody like in the song "celebration" then you're in for a legal battle.

I was referring to the basic basslines that accompany a lot of rock/hip-hop songs...Many of them are identical.

Peace
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top