In the Licensing songs thread, I asked about obtaining a license to record a Carter Family song, "In the Valley of the Shenandoah."



Happy Otter replied that the Bear Family collection of Carter Family recordings has a booklet that explains that A.P. Carter copyrighted a lot of songs that should be in the public domain. Here's what I found at http://countrymusic.about.com/library/blam2000b.htm:

The story is told of the Carter Family's "discovery" in 1927 by RCA Records field recording supervisor Ralph Peer. They were directed by Alvin Pleasant (A.P.) Carter, but were dominated by the brilliant singing of his wife Sara (who played guitar and autoharp) and the stunning guitar playing of her cousin Maybelle Addington (who married A.P.'s brother Ezra). With the advent of the Carter Family (and Jimmy Rodgers, also "discovered" by Peer), country music leaped from the string band tradition to focus on distinctive vocals with instrumental backing, putting the music on competitive footing with other popular styles. As Ed Kahn's liner notes explain, A.P. was a master at scouring British and Appalachian balladry, 19th century music, spirituals, even blues, looking for songs in the public domain that he could attach his name to for copyright purposes, a strategy pioneered by Peer. The Carter Family had become established stars by May 1935, when the first 17 tracks here were recorded during a week of sessions in New York. Many of these sides, especially "Can The Circle Be Unbroken," "I'm Thinking Tonight Of My Blue Eyes," "River Of Jordan" and "The Storms Are On the Ocean" were catalog staples, issued and reissued on ARC's Banner, Melotone, Oriole, Perfect, Romeo, Conqueror, Okeh, and Columbia labels. The final three tracks were recorded in Chicago in October 1940, less than three years before the Carter Family's final performance together. Maybelle, of course, went on to tour and record with her daughters Anita, Helen and June -- who married Carl Smith in 1952 (their daughter Carlene was born in 1955) and later wed Johnny Cash in 1968.

the song my friend wants to record is "In the Valley of the Shenandoa" (sic - this is the "Legal Title"), which the Carter Family recorded in 1941. Is it traditional, or is the copyright valid?

-Joe Offer-