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21 Oct 20 - 05:11 AM (#4076254) Subject: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: GerryM This has appeared on Tom Lehrer's website : DISCLAIMER STATEMENT I, Tom Lehrer, and the Tom Lehrer Trust 2000, hereby grant the following permission: All the lyrics on this website, whether published or unpublished, copyrighted or uncopyrighted, may be downloaded and used in any manner whatsoever, without requiring any further permission from me or any payment to me or to anyone else. Some lyrics written by Tom Lehrer to copyrighted music by others are included herein, but of course such music may not be used without permission of the copyright owners. (The translated songs may be found in their original languages on YouTube.) In other words, all the lyrics herein should be treated as though they were in the public domain. In particular, permission is hereby granted to anyone to set any of these lyrics to their own music and publish or perform their versions without fear of legal action. This permission applies only to the lyrics on this website. Most of the music written by Tom Lehrer will be added gradually later with further disclaimers. Note: This website will be shut down on December 31, 2024, so if you want to download anything, don’t wait too long. |
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21 Oct 20 - 12:33 PM (#4076302) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: keberoxu ... and him still alive to tell the tale, bless him. |
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21 Oct 20 - 01:54 PM (#4076314) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: EBarnacle A fuller statement. Remember, though this is only good through 2024. Tom Lehrer's Bequest No, don’t worry. He’s still here. But, at 92, that is not likely to remain the case indefinitely, so the renowned mathematician, pianist, lyricist, satirist and pigeon poisoner has decided to take care of a few housekeeping details. As of this afternoon, the professor has formally and officially released all of his musical works into the public domain. This deeding appears to include the sound recordings of his compositions, which he has posted, free for you to download, on the website tomlehrersongs.com. The compositions include the original selections from "Songs by Tom Lehrer," noted as the single most profitable and recouped record of all time, recorded for a total cost of fifteen bucks in a bare bones “record your voice” studio and eventually selling millions. Under the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1988, Lehrer’s compositions would have remained the property of his heirs and assigns for 120 years from creation or 70 years after his passing. Lehrer’s donation to the public domain of his copyrights allows anyone to use his compositions for any purpose immediately. It should be noted that Professor Lehrer’s largesse is not quite unlimited, and his site contains the warning that recordings and lyrics will be downloadable only until the year 2024. Something to light a fire under you procrastinators. I understand few people are, like me, actually googling the professor every couple of weeks to make sure he still walks among us, so the news of his gift may have escaped notice. |
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21 Oct 20 - 02:09 PM (#4076318) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: leeneia Now I can sing "Fight Fiercely Harvard" while cleaning up the kitchen with no fear of repercussion. Thanks, Gerry. What is a recouped record? |
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21 Oct 20 - 03:19 PM (#4076334) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Nigel Parsons Looking at the cost of recording ($15) I'm guessing 'recouped record' is a record for sales value compared to initial outlay. |
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21 Oct 20 - 03:21 PM (#4076336) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Nigel Parsons Also, good to see that this has been linked (above the discussion) to lyrics we already hold at Mudcat. As the website availability may only be to 2014, are there others we need to copy/paste onto this site? |
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21 Oct 20 - 07:09 PM (#4076368) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Lost Chicken in High Weeds I'd never heard of this fellow before other than vague recollections of having seen the name mentioned here or there, knowing nothing at all beyond. After seeing this I went to investigate a little, read, listening on YouTube Music, and discovered a rather interesting artist. Much appreciated. |
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21 Oct 20 - 07:43 PM (#4076370) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Sandra in Sydney my favourite is The Hunting Song as illustrated by Mad Magazine sandra |
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21 Oct 20 - 11:17 PM (#4076389) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Stilly River Sage This story was on NPR this evening. They predict more use (and just in time for the 2020 election - who know how these songs will be used?) "Helen Gahagan Ronald Reagan?" |
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22 Oct 20 - 06:45 PM (#4076487) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: EBarnacle Three game wardens, seven hunters and a cow. |
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22 Oct 20 - 08:07 PM (#4076494) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: GUEST,Jon Bartlett Tom's generosity ought to encourage well-known lefty outfits (looking at you, The Richmond Organization)to follow suit. Fraternally, Jon Bartlett |
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22 Oct 20 - 10:03 PM (#4076500) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Mrrzy Well, bully for the old rhymester! Smut but shut uncut unsubt (tadadada ta) Tle |
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23 Oct 20 - 03:32 PM (#4076564) Subject: Tom Lehrer's Bequest From: Haruo A very interesting bit of news about the copyright status of Tom Lehrer's songs: Tom Lehrer puts all his songs in the public domain. |
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26 Oct 20 - 10:02 AM (#4076903) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Donuel If you're in the mood https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ALeKk02rkp9xjPPn4wMlyLl8_5T4Ype3Lw:1603720213975&q=Tom+Lehrer+We+Will+All+Go+Together+When+W |
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26 Oct 20 - 10:27 AM (#4076906) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Richard Mellish I have downloaded some of the sets of words and found them far less funny than when Lehrer sings them. It must be a combination of the words themselves, the accompaniment and the delivery. |
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17 Dec 22 - 07:19 PM (#4159578) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Jack Campin This has resurfaced. Has he added more? |
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17 Dec 22 - 07:59 PM (#4159581) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Joe Offer Hi, Jack - I think the collection he posted is complete, but I haven't thoroughly checked. https://tomlehrersongs.com/ |
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18 Dec 22 - 05:00 PM (#4159660) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: GUEST,Peter I don't know if anything has changed but I think the buzz is because a guy with a big social media following came across the statement on the website. His tweet as gone viral. |
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19 Dec 22 - 10:31 AM (#4159707) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: GerryM I haven't checked, but I thought the news was that not only the lyrics and sheet music, but now the recordings are available on that website. |
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23 Dec 22 - 05:32 PM (#4160051) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: Jack Campin all his sheet music in one indexed file |
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24 Dec 22 - 04:25 AM (#4160083) Subject: RE: Tom Lehrer lyrics to public domain From: NightWing It looks like it depends on the ownership situation of a particular song. Some of the songs are on recordings that he is the sole owner of. Those songs are available for download or streaming on that website. Other songs that he wrote have more complicated ownership. If the song was commissioned for something (e.g., the Sesame Street and Electric Company songs), then he is not the only party with ownership, so those songs do not have recordings. Where he wrote words for existing tunes, the same situation applies. IOW, some songs have recordings, others do not. BB, NightWing |