(172) RECORDING INDUSTRY OF AMERICA (RIAA)

Click on the title above to get to the official web site of RECORDING INDUSTRY OF AMERICA, a trade group that, like ASCAP andBMI, is involved in supporting and protecting the intellectual properties of music makers in the United States. One of the ways they do that is by certifying a record as certifies Gold®, Platinum®, or Multi-Platinum™. That means they watch sales. This site has lists of music that has recently gone Gold or Platinum as well as information for parents, educators, and young people, about Music and the Internet.

These days there is lots of controversy about the Fair Use of sound clips (usually a few bars attached to an educational site is fine, like RCS Discography does) and downloads of music and videos. YouTube, the site we've been leaning heavily on for the videos we attached to our commentary is one of the most successful and we are truly grateful to the contributors who have allowed us to do this so we can allow our readers to actually see and hear performances in historical context. Because of these videos we have also been able to show you the differences between black and white versus color telecasts.

Some artists object to downloads of music for free, some do not, seeing the interest in their music to be a positive thing, part of their celebrity, and sound sampling this way to only lead to more sales. At the same time many artists (including me) have had intellectual properties deliberately stolen and used without benefit of approval or seeing a dime on sales, and seen their work pirated through various methods. Let me tell you it doesn't just hurt in the wallet.

On this blog we attempt to follow the guidelines for Fair Use in the United States of America as understood legally at this time. (And as we post on our own Rights information, anyone who objects to us linking to their site, please get in touch with us, and we will respectfully take it down.)

At the same time, several of my friends mentioned on this blog have thanked me and feel excited to be remembered and linked to. This blog has been an opportunity for a number of my old friends and me to be reunited after taking separate paths years ago. I feel so lucky when that happens.