Originally posted by Sleepwalker:
Is it not the case "Bootlegs" are known as such, because they are not offically licensed releases..?
Not neccesarily, although I can kind of see where you would head with this. Although they are usually unlicensed recordings, certain artists
have released officially sanctioned recordings and classed them as bootlegs (Paul McCartney and Midge are the two that immediately spring to mind, although Peter Gabriel, Duran Duran, Moby and a host of other artists have teamed up with companies such as
this to offer concert recordings to a good standard through the internet direct to fans without higher record company involvement). I've always thought the term to mean things that are being made available without the record company or artists agreement, knowledge or control - it does not neccesarily mean that the original recordings themselves are unlicensed, just that an illegal copy of a recording (whatever that is) is being made available outside of normal control and distribution procedures. A good example of this would be a licensed album that is available for commercial release in a shop that has been copied cheaply and the artwork reprinted and sold, say, on a market stall for half the price with no proceeds touching company or the artist alike. The recording originally was technically legal - the distribution as such far from...
One other issue you have with bootlegs is that there is usually a reason a recording did not make it to official release stage. If someone gets this and lets it out into the world unbeknown to the artist or without his agreement (although it is true sometimes that an artist can be being held contracturally if a record company is hell bent on doing so against his wishes...), it is not legal. It may be what the fans want, but that doesn't make it right to just let it go out there.
Originally posted by Sleepwalker:
Tricky one, although I agree with what Pete Townsend says, none of the members of UV have the mula that Pete Townsend has!!!
He talks a lot of sense, but interestingly, money does not always come into play on this issue. Common sense and the threat of action is more likely to see things taken down by people selling or offering recordings rather than the artist reaching for the phone to instruct the lawyers. Recent episodes on sites such YouTube, Ebay and MySpace are good examples of how the threat saw sites retreat where neccesary.
Originally posted by Sleepwalker:
Mr Currie will be on the rampage!!! 
Aye, maybe...maybe. Best batten down those hatches chaps. Just in case...
EG
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