For my recent full-length release, “Fast And Curious”, I covered not one, not two, but THREE songs.  Yep, I was in full-on nostalgia mode when I was working on this project which in itself is an homage to music of the 80s, and I decided to cover songs that fit in that perspective; songs that meant something to me.

Of course, I was in complete “artist mode” while working on the album. I hadn’t given a thought to things like mechanical licenses. I was too busy having fun recording obscure tunes by Billy Ocean, The Rah Band and Teena Marie’s biggest hit.  But when the time came to release the album, I was nearly held up by these three tunes.  Not really held hostage, but I needed to get the proper licenses in place so that the appropriate parties would be compensated as my album sold.  This is only fair, right? But I’d never had to deal with this before and had no idea to whom a sista could run! Enter Limelight. To the rescue. Just like an old black & white movie with the damsel in distress.

The process was quite easy actually.  I went to www.songclearance.com, through which Limelight processes license requests.  I filled out all the information regarding the songs I’d covered, paid for the licenses in advance (based on projected sales, which is a nice touch), and waited. It didn’t take long and I was able to check the progress of my requests anytime right there at the website.  The songs were cleared within about two weeks and my stress levels were reduced to my norm.

Now I was able to release “Fast And Curious” complete with The Rah Band’s cult classic “Messages From The Stars” (by Richard A. Hewson), Teena Marie’s “Lovergirl” (mine was recorded just two days after her untimely passing) and Billy Ocean’s obscure floor-stomper “Nights (Feel Like Gettin’ Down)”, a duet sung with my good friend Rahsaan Patterson! These songs are constantly noted as “standouts” by many of the music critics and my fans absolutely dig these renditions. I don’t think my project would even be the same if they hadn’t been included, and I’m glad that I was able to take the proper steps for inclusion. The whole situation reminded me of Annie Lennox’ famous words, “Sisters are doin’ it for themselves!”  In this case, I’m singing, “Indies are doin’ it for themselves!”

Thanks Limelight for giving me and all other indie artists the channels through which we can stand on our own two feet and ring our own bells!

- Sy Smith
www.sysmith.com

About Sy Smith:
Sy Smith has long since solidified her place in underground soul music. This Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter/producer helped cultivate the nu-soul scene more than ten years ago, a scene which now easily boasts some of the most progressive artists of that genre to date, some of whom came directly from Sy’s own band line-ups.

Sy has provided supporting vocals for a range of artists from Whitney Houston and Usher, to Chris Botti and Sheila E, as well as appeared as a featured guest and/or co-star on The Monique Show, The Tonight Show (sitting in with The Rickey Minor Band), and CBS “How I Met Your Mother”.

Sy performs at DROM on May 3rd. Her 4th album “Fast And Curious” is available at iTunes, CDbaby.com, Amazon, www.sysmith.com and indie retail outlets worldwide.

The official announcement:

Boston, MA (March 26, 2012) Berkleemusic.com, the online school of Boston’s renowned Berklee College of Music, is debuting the new course Music Licensing for their upcoming spring term, beginning April 2nd, 2012. Students will learn how to create new avenues for placement of their own music, identify current opportunities for their copyrights, and understand how to use online resources to introduce their music to music supervisors, ad creatives, video game producers, and more. This course was authored and is being taught by executives from RightsFlow, a licensing and royalty service provider acquired by Google in 2011 to work within the YouTube environment. RightsFlow’s core focus is to identify content, license, account, and pay songwriters and publishers globally for YouTube, Google Music, and others.

“Each week we focus on a different area of licensing within the music industry, whether it’s mechanical or performance royalties, or international rights societies,” says Scott Sellwood, Strategic Partner Development Manager for RightsFlow at YouTube and lead-author of Music Licensing. The course starts with the conceptual framework that licensing is built on, and as we progress, we dig in deeper and look at the nuances, challenges, and opportunities available for independent musicians in each of the main licensing verticals. We teach practical, feet-on-the-ground tips to help musicians and music business entrepreneurs become successful with licensing music. I think we’ve developed a really fantastic course.”

Music Licensing includes a mix of real-world examples and hypothetical situations, in-depth explanations, and review of agreements, alongside a wide array of exclusive video interviews with music supervisors, licensing society speakers, and experts in the publishing world. Successfully completing the course will enable you to monetize your creative IP across various licensing uses, whether you are a songwriter, artist, record label, or publisher. You will know how to register your works with relevant performing rights organizations, understand the differences between master/publishing revenue streams, identify opportunities to create new avenues for placement, and use online resources to introduce your music to potential placement agents.

To learn more, visit berkleemusic.com

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Katie Reilly of Intern Like a Rockstar

Some of life’s best moments are connected to music and a song that can always take us back to relive some special memory. There’s the Billy Joel song my friends and I played on repeat while driving around on warm summer nights with nothing else to do. The ‘N Sync song for which I’d rather not admit I know all of the dance moves (though I’m open to guesses). Or the Ting Tings song that will always remind me of studying abroad because the professors couldn’t pronounce one classmate’s name and “That’s Not My Name” became a running joke.  Sometimes though, the best songs take on a life of their own.

The Clash is a band I grew up not realizing I knew. Despite their anti-establishment origin, their songs are now so ingrained in our culture that it’s hard to recall a time I didn’t know the classic hits like “Should I Stay or Should I Go” or “Rock the Casbah.”

It wasn’t until I was older that I was able to appreciate the history and context of their music and one of my favorites became “I Fought The Law,” originally written by Sonny Curtis of The Crickets and first covered by Bobby Fuller Four. The song truly is an anthem of rock n roll ideals, but The Clash elevated it to the next level with their signature drum intro and edgier performance.

I admit I’ve rarely heard “I Fought the Law” played on the radio and I’ve never had the chance to see it performed live. In fact, I’ve never had the opportunity to see The Clash perform live at all. I was born too late for that. So, I can’t share tales from back in the day or lament about how music just isn’t quite the same anymore because I’ve never known it any other way. But, in a way, isn’t that the point?

The Clash’s “I Fought Law” is my favorite version of this song, but part of what makes it so interesting is that it’s a song that went on to be covered by countless artists and remade to fit many genres. Thanks to covers, a great song that could have gone unheard after it’s initial success has been heard by countless music fans and become a rock classic even the most casual listener is likely familiar with. It’s survived the generations and it’s message still resonates as strong as ever but finds new meaning and cultural context with each cover and each new fan that experiences it.

Out of the mayhem of the 70’s in the UK, came the anti-establishment antics of punk bands like The Clash. They valued a return to unpretentious rock ideals and music that was accessible to and playable by everyone.  In a similar way today, through changes in technology and business models, the one thing that truly remains constant is music’s ability to speak to people and play an important role in the listener’s life. Cover songs, like the punk music ideals, provide an ideal opportunity to introduce new talents, genres, and perspectives to songs both previously underappreciated and priceless classics.

Katie is the Community Manager/Founder of Intern Like A Rockstar, a site that connects music industry students with career development tips and opportunities. She has an MBA and a background in online marketing for both indie and major musicians and is currently seeking new opportunities. You can learn more about Katie’s experience here or connect with her on Twitter or LinkedIn.

Steven Maglio Singing Sinatra

A late starter, Steven Maglio‘s professional career began in his Forties as lead vocalist for Joe Battaglia’s New York Big Band, playing numerous dates at New York City’s “Tavern On The Green” and “Rainbow Room.” Steven is not an impersonator, but rather a singer who recreates the classic repertoire of Frank Sinatra in his own voice and style.

I’ve been a fan for quite a few years, and enjoy hearing Steven perform live delivering a bit of the swagger of the Chairman of the Board coupled with the swingin’ sounds of the Great American Songbook. Obviously Sinatra is not only a legendary icon regarded as history’s greatest vocalist, but perhaps he also performed more covers during his career than any other artist — many of which became regarded as the definitive versions of those compositions. We’ve asked Steven to share his thoughts on these classic covers over the course of a few weekly columns called Frank Friday.

One last note, if you find yourself in NYC on a Saturday night, Steven has a standing gig at the Carnegie Club in midtown. One of the last smoky bastions to the decades of the past, the Carnegie Club features Steven with the Stan Rubin Orchestra performing actual charts used back in the heyday. Order a martini and swing-a-ding-ding… And now, on to Steven’s latest, and final, guest post. For now. Special thanks to Steven for sharing! — Michael K.

“Put Your Dreams Away” from the CD, “Songs For Sinatra Lovers”

by Steven Maglio

“Put Your Dreams Away” was written by Ruth Lowe, Paul Mann, and Stephen Weiss in 1945. Frank Sinatra recorded it many times, and would adopt it as his theme song, using it to close his radio and television shows. The first studio recording was on May1, 1945 for Columbia Records, and then re-recorded for Capitol on December 11, 1957. On April 30, 1963, Sinatra made another studio cut that would have a spoken introduction, added at a later date, so it could be used as the opening song of the 1965 album, “Sinatra: A Man And His Music,” which was the album that got me interested in Mr. Sinatra at the ripe old age of seven years old.

This song was also part of a series of recordings that were called “V-discs,” which were recorded with the sole purpose of being distributed to U.S. service men during World War II. All the big musical stars of the time made V-disc recordings, not only to benefit the troops, but because they were the only recordings that were permitted by the musician’s union to be made with live musicians during their strike that was going on at the time. The V-disc collection was only recently released for sale to the general public, as were many new-found old recordings, with the introduction of CDs.

“Songs For Sinatra Lovers” is a CD that was meant to be just that, for “Sinatra Lovers,” so “Put Your Dreams Away” had to be included. So many Sinatra tribute albums, unfortunately, pass over this song. I used it as my closing number, as Frank Sinatra used to do, so as to pay a little tribute within the tribute.

I was lucky to have an arrangement written by Billy VerPlanck, who used to play trombone and write arrangements for The Dorsey Brothers Band, when Tommy and Jimmy reunited in 1950s. Billy, who passed away in June 2009, was the husband of singer Marlene VerPlanck, who was the Dorsey Brothers last female vocalist.

Since “Put Your Dreams Away” was the last song on “Songs For Sinatra Lovers,” that means that this is the last installment of the “Frank Friday” blog. I’ve enjoyed writing these notes and would like to say, THANK YOU to Michael Kauffman, RightsFlow, and Limelight for giving me the forum. I’ll say “THANK YOU” to all the readers too with Frank Sinatra’s most common toast, “I wish you everything you want in life for you and your families. Lots of huggin’ and kissin’, and sweet dreams.”

“I’ll Be Seeing You,”

Steven

Be sure to follow Steven Maglio on Facebook and check out his website! In case you missed them, you can also check out previous blog entries from Steven’s “Frank Friday” series on the Limelight blog.

Steven Maglio Singing Sinatra

A late starter, Steven Maglio‘s professional career began in his Forties as lead vocalist for Joe Battaglia’s New York Big Band, playing numerous dates at New York City’s “Tavern On The Green” and “Rainbow Room.” Steven is not an impersonator, but rather a singer who recreates the classic repertoire of Frank Sinatra in his own voice and style.

I’ve been a fan for quite a few years, and enjoy hearing Steven perform live delivering a bit of the swagger of the Chairman of the Board coupled with the swingin’ sounds of the Great American Songbook. Obviously Sinatra is not only a legendary icon regarded as history’s greatest vocalist, but perhaps he also performed more covers during his career than any other artist — many of which became regarded as the definitive versions of those compositions. We’ve asked Steven to share his thoughts on these classic covers over the course of a few weekly columns called Frank Friday.

One last note, if you find yourself in NYC on a Saturday night, Steven has a standing gig at the Carnegie Club in midtown. One of the last smoky bastions to the decades of the past, the Carnegie Club features Steven with the Stan Rubin Orchestra performing actual charts used back in the heyday. Order a martini and swing-a-ding-ding… And now, on to Steven’s latest guest post. — Michael K.

“Too Marvelous For Words” from the CD, “Songs For Sinatra Lovers”

by Steven Maglio

“Too Marvelous For Words,” has lyrics by Johnny Mercer and music composed by Richard Whiting. It’s considered to be one of those songs that put the “pop” in the expression, “Popular Song.” It’s been recorded and/or sung live by just about every singer of any worth, and I’m proud to be a member of that club.

Written in 1937, Frank Sinatra sang it many times live, and on television and radio, but his only studio recording of it was done on January 16, 1956. It was included on the album, “Songs For Swingin’ Lovers,” which with arrangements by Nelson Riddle, is considered by many to be Frank’s best swing album, and the album that changed the way swing albums would be made in the future. To use an analogy the baby boomers will understand, “Songs For Swingin’ Lovers” did for swing music, what The Beatles’ “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band” did for rock & roll.

When I made my CD, “Songs For Sinatra Lovers,” I used the same color background and the same style lettering as “Songs For Swingin’ Lovers,” as well as making a play on words with the title. I didn’t want to copy the cover completely, but I wanted everyone to see the cover and immediately feel comfortable with it. If you want to accuse me of shameless subliminal advertising, OK, I’ll admit it. I’m guilty.

“Too Marvelous For Words” is the only song I’ve included on the CD “Songs For Sinatra Lovers,” that is also part of my weekly show at The Carnegie Club in New York City. During that show I sing all of Sinatra’s biggest hits (New York, NY, My Way, Fly Me To The Moon, That’s Life, etc), so on the CD , I wanted to do all different songs. I didn’t want people to feel as though they were buying The Carnegie Club show, I wanted to give them an entirely new show to bring home. I made the exception with “Too Marvelous For Words” because it’s a dedication to the audience. I can’t be an entertainer if I don’t have an audience, and I will never be a truly successful entertainer without an appreciative audience.

After my shows, people come up and pay me some of the most wonderful compliments. I’d be too embarrassed to repeat most of them in this blog, as they actually are “Too Marvelous For Words.” So I use the song to say Thank You to everyone who has been supportive to me in my short career. It will be 10 years in June.

Next week, we’ll talk about track eleven, “Put Your Dreams Away.”

“I’ll Be Seeing You,”

Steven

Be sure to follow Steven Maglio on Facebook and check out his website! In case you missed them, you can also check out previous blog entries from Steven’s “Frank Friday” series on the Limelight blog.

Roadarmel grew up in Hagerstown, MD. His grandfather taught him the rudiments of traditional country and primitive gospel music, and as a child Roadarmel performed countless old gospel songs alongside his grandfather in church. Many of these songs re-emerged on PHT’s third record entitled Satan on the Run (2009). During an on-air interview with Roadarmel, WSM 650′s famous DJ, Bill Cody, mused with pleasure, “the gospel songs came to you honest.” To be sure, Roadarmel’s catalog of primitive gospel songs, alone (the origins of which are largely unknown), makes him a national treasure.

As a teenager, 60s and 70s-era garage punk crept into his soul and, to this day, remains a strong influence in Roadarmel’s performances. The Holy Trinity for Roadarmel is Jesus, Jones, and Johnny Thunders–and each member of this holy trinity inhabits Roadarmel’s creative drive–each figure emerges in one way or another during every performance. This entirely unique blend of traditional honky-tonk, punk, and primitive gospel merges in unpredictable ways. Once in Raleigh, NC during a PHT show in front of an audience of approximately 200 people, Roadarmel introduced “a Jesus song,” as he often does. When an audience member booed, Roadarmel reacted fiercely, “You don’t like Jesus? Well, then fuck you,” immediately launching into the song “Satan on the Run.” Roadarmel’s unpredictable blend of honky-tonk swagger, holy-roller praise, and punk-rock destructiveness onstage continues to compel both fans and critics alike.

NPR’s David Greenberger described PHT’s debut record Welcome to Porter Hall Tennessee (2002) this way: “The songs on Welcome to Porter Hall Tennessee revisit the common themes of fractured relationships and dashed hopes as well as an unshakeable need for home and connection. Occasionally dark but always grippingly real, it is the mark of a strong songwriter to recast the familiar and make it seem honest and new. Porter Hall Tennessee has two such songwriters: Gary Roadarmel and Molly Conley.”

Roadarmel’s punked-up cover of Jim Carroll’s “People Who Died” landed on Bloodshot Records’ double-disc compilation record For A Decade of Sin: 11 Years of Bloodshot Records,
and remains the benchmark version that has compelled so many bands since to cover the song.

Roadarmel is currently gearing up for several solo acoustic tours. He is hitting the road with his grandfather’s Martin and performing wherever he finds an audience. Check out his Reverbnation page to hear a handful of acoustic tracks recorded live, in one sitting, at his home studio. What you hear is what you get, and these recordings prove that what you get is not just a Nashville treasure, but a national treasure.

Name: Gary Roadarmel

Hometown: Nashville, TN

Influences: George Jones, David Allan Coe, Rodger Miller, Hank Williams Sr, Hank Williams III, Johnny Thunders

Cover Song Licensed: Spotlight

Story Behind the Cover: Gary was already planning to do his first solo recording while he was recording fellow songwriter Eddie Holly. Late one night after a recording session they were strumming guitars around a campfire and Eddie began playing an old David Allan Coe song “Spotlight” that he had heard Coe play one time in a little place in the middle of nowhere Wyoming. The song was just perfect with the time period. Nashville had been recording all slicked up production and Gary wanted to do something simple. That sound of a guitar and vocals around the campfire that night was just the sound he was looking for. The lyrics to this unknown David Allan Coe song “Spotlight” was perfect addition to that type of recording. Later that month with one microphone and one guitar Gary recorded a 12 song CD “Yesterday Bitter Forgotten” . Simple straight to the point no fancy production . Just as the song says “Spotlights ain’t nothing but jive”

Check out Gary Roadarmel at http://www.reverbnation.com/#!/garyroadarmel

A late starter, Steven Maglio‘s professional career began in his Forties as lead vocalist for Joe Battaglia’s New York Big Band, playing numerous dates at New York City’s “Tavern On The Green” and “Rainbow Room.” Steven is not an impersonator, but rather a singer who recreates the classic repertoire of Frank Sinatra in his own voice and style.

We’ve asked Steven to share his thoughts on these classic covers over the course of a few weekly columns called Frank Friday.

RightsFlow’s Alex Holz answers this question and more for users of Limelight (www.songclearance.com)

Limelight is the easiest way for artists, labels, school groups, choirs, and musicians to clear cover songs for physical and digital release in the United States!

Be sure to check out Limelight’s FAQ and Limelight’s YouTube channel for more information!

Steven Maglio Singing Sinatra

A late starter, Steven Maglio‘s professional career began in his Forties as lead vocalist for Joe Battaglia’s New York Big Band, playing numerous dates at New York City’s “Tavern On The Green” and “Rainbow Room.” Steven is not an impersonator, but rather a singer who recreates the classic repertoire of Frank Sinatra in his own voice and style.

I’ve been a fan for quite a few years, and enjoy hearing Steven perform live delivering a bit of the swagger of the Chairman of the Board coupled with the swingin’ sounds of the Great American Songbook. Obviously Sinatra is not only a legendary icon regarded as history’s greatest vocalist, but perhaps he also performed more covers during his career than any other artist — many of which became regarded as the definitive versions of those compositions. We’ve asked Steven to share his thoughts on these classic covers over the course of a few weekly columns called Frank Friday.

One last note, if you find yourself in NYC on a Saturday night, Steven has a standing gig at the Carnegie Club in midtown. One of the last smoky bastions to the decades of the past, the Carnegie Club features Steven with the Stan Rubin Orchestra performing actual charts used back in the heyday. Order a martini and swing-a-ding-ding… And now, on to Steven’s latest guest post. — Michael K.

“YOU MAKE ME FEEL SO YOUNG” from the CD, “Songs For Sinatra Lovers”

by Steven Maglio

“You Make Me Feel So Young” was always one of my personal favorites and it must have been one of Frank Sinatra’s personal favorites too because he recorded it multiple times and almost always included it in his live performances.  Written in 1946, with music composed by Josef Myrow and lyrics by Mack Gordon, Frank made his first studio recording of it on January 9, 1956 and the last studio recording was done on July 6, 1993 for his first “Duets” album.  An additional vocal by French singer Charles Aznavour would be added to the “Duets” version at a later date.  The live and televised versions are too many to list.
This song’s appeal is in it’s swing.  Sinatra alway looked happy, and on recordings, sounded happy when he was swinging this tune.  This was one of the numbers I wanted to do with the big band.  Although it is versatile enough to do with any size group, I wanted the full, rounded sound of the big band to create a wide swing, rather than a small, tight, spiral-type swing. If you’re not tapping your feet and/or snapping your fingers to this arrangement, check your pulse, because you may be dead.

You might think that being in a church hall, early in the morning, with 17 half-sleepy musicians, would make it difficult to jolt the tune the way it should be jolted, but it was rather easy.  Once the music started, we all kind of looked at each other through the corners of our eyes, as if to say, “Yeah, we got it.”  We ran it through three times, and then had a hard time trying to decide which version to put on the album because all three were virtually identical.

All the guys had that great Nelson Riddle arrangement engrained in their brains, and I of course, had been listening to Sinatra sing this all my life, so there was very little variation from what we all already knew and loved about the song from the very start.  The idea of a cover song is to take what you like about the original style and then re-create the secondary aspects to fit yourself.  But, sometimes you’re in clothing store and you try something on and it just fits right, no alterations needed.  That’s why I wanted to record “You Make Me Feel So Young.”  Because it fits just right.

Next week, we’ll talk about track nine, “Cycles.”

“I’ll Be Seeing You,”

Steven

Be sure to follow Steven Maglio on Facebook and check out his website! In case you missed them, you can also check out previous blog entries from Steven’s “Frank Friday” series on the Limelight blog.

RightsFlow’s Alex Holz answers this question and more as part of the Limelight FAQ (www.songclearance.com)

Limelight is the easiest way for artists, labels, musicians, and more to clear cover songs for physical and digital release in the United States!

Be sure to check out Limelight’s FAQ and Limelight’s YouTube channel for more information!