Variety (October 1952)

Wednesday, October 22, 1952 PTBsnsfr . OIICHESTHAS-MUSIC 89 4' Rude Awakening Technological progress takes its toll in show biz as it does , elsewhere but, eventually, the bane usually proves a boop. What the end result of the current ASCAP-BMI hassle will be is a matter for the crystalball-gazers. But it may be history re- peating itself. The talkers kayoed vaudeville and the silents. Next came color. Coincidentally came radio, next TV, and on the horizon is Cinerama. In the music biz there were the million-copy Woolworth (10c) bestsellers. Then came 1,000,000-copy hits at 25c and 35c a sheet. Now it's the jocks, the jukes and the disks. This technological evolution is, perhaps, a rude awakening for ASCAP. Perhaps, too, it will startle the old guard into post- midcentury realities. One disk jockey makes no bones about it; Savannah deejay John Wrisley, with his carping and captious criticism of Tin Pan Alley, as it has been under ASCAP domina- tion, and how it is today with the enterprise of an emergency- created BMI.) ASCAP, of course, differs from BMI in that it is more strictly a performing rights collection agency and, as the title clearly states, a society of songsmiths and publishers—but not a pub- lishing operation. BMI is both. It is this aggressive difference which spells out greater enterprise for deejays and amateur songsmiths in their relations with Broadcast Music, Inc., which is both a performing rights organization and an underwriter not only for one but any number of music publishing operations. However, ASCAP may have to rewrite the rules in order to play the current game. Tiffany, Cartier’s, and kindred staid houses have found that they, too, had to match the aggressive- ness of more enterprising little jewelers from the West 47th St. "jewelry row,” Maiden Lane and Bowery sectors in the metro- politan New York area. ASCAP may not mean to remain smug, but if that impression persists, then the Society, which is so concerned with its “service” to the trade, should manifest some showmanship and tell its publisher-members how to go about more judicious songplugging. Abel. Irving Caesar Alleges BMI Practices Of monopoly’ in Links to Networks Hollywood, Oct. 21. The strongest and most specific blast to date against alleged links between Broadcast Music, Inc., and the broadcasters and the. disk companies was sounded, by.vlrying Caesar at the semi- annual meet- ing of the American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers at the Beverly Hill Hotel, Beverly Hills. Speaking off the cuff, Caesar indicted BMI for what, he .called, "monopoly practices and discrim- ination.” Caesar’s thesis was that BMI exerts pressure on deejays around the country to play down ASCAP tunes. He also charged that RCA Victor, because of-its NBC tie, and Columbia Records, because of its CBS link, are re- cording more BMI tunes than ASCAP offerings. (In New York . Dave Kapp, Victor’s pop artists and reper- toire chief, categorically de- nied any discrimination in favor of BMI tunes. Kapp said “we don’t care what the affili- ation is; we are only interested ‘ in the quality of the song.” Kapp also said that an exam- ination of Victor’s current re- leases would disclose no par- tiality one way or another ;) Another angle stressed • at the ASCAP meeting was the need for divorcing BMI from the broad- casters. Songwriters Walter- Gross and Ted Snyder, and Ruby Co- wan, a former publisher, .-ham- mered away on this theme as the ASCAP conclave showed more sensitivity to the BMI chalfenge than at any other time since BMI’s formation in 1940. L. Wolfe Gilbert, ASCAP’s Coast rep, also hammered away in this groove, flaying ASCAP writers who flirted with BMI. Gilbert said it was “downright ingratitude” for longtime ASCAP members to work wilh BMI and warned that such activity is “vitiating the bargain- ing strength of ASCAP.” Gilbert said that the subject of loyalty to ASCAP has been long discussed in private ' but never previously brought into the open. And, he asked, “Is it ethically and morally honest to serve two mas- fers or two wives?” He added, lwo wives I know is tough.” Jules Stearns, Broadcast Music, jnc.. professional manager, re- urned to N. Y. this week after a midwest plugging trip on “Stay where You Are.” Kosty Batons Israel Orch Andre Kostelanetz has been set to conduct the Israel Symphony Orch next spring when he will tour Europe and the Near East. Kosle- lanetz will also maestro in Oslo, Amsterdam, Paris and London, where-' he will conduct the Royal Philharmonic in a special Corona- tion Week concert. After returning to the U. S., he will head for South Africa in Au- gust to conduct the Johannesburg Symph. Stafford Tops Femme Vocalist Contingent With 4 Current Clicks With four platter releases rack- ing up big sales around the coun- try, Jo Stafford on Columbia Rec- ords is currently the top femme vocalist on wax. Miss Stafford has topped the disk field for more than six weeks with her waxing of “You Belong to Me.” Combined sales of “Belong to Me” and previous release, “Jambalaya,” have passed the 1,000,000 mark. Her etching of “Early Autumn” has been build- ing steadily while latest release, “Settin’ the Woods on Fire,” in which she’s teamed with Frankie Laine, racked up 200,000 sales in three weeks on the market. Col estimates - * that Miss Staf- ford's waxings sell on an average of 2,000,000 annually. The disk royalties and personal appearances give her a yearly gross of $300,000. Commodore Music Claims Infringement on ‘Honky* Peer International, Decca, RCA Victor and Columbia were named defendants in an infringement suit filed In N. Y. Federal Court Mon- day <20) by Commodore Music. It’s charged that Peer’s tune, “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels,” which was recorded by the diskeries named, is a piracy of “The Wild Side of Life,” tune as- signed to Commodore. “Honky Tonk Angels” was writ- ten by J. B. Miller while William Warren and Artie A. Carter eol- labed on “Wild Side of Life.” Com- modore is seeking an injunction and damages sustained. THIN6-DISKEHS From the diskers’ point of view, Dave Kapp, RCA Victor’s pop artists and repertoire chief, is of the opinion that the present Tin New ASCAP Payoff Plan (or Pubs Draws Lotsa Kudos, Some Squawks Young Chi Bandleader Killed in Brawl Mixup The revised payoff system for publishers in the American Sotiety of Composers, Authors & Publish- ers, which went into effect with the dividend checks mailed last Pan Alley situation is not a case of ASCAP vs. BMI but of writer against writer and publisher against publisher. And that’s the way it should be, says Kapp. The Victor exec points out that where writers used to be counted in the hundreds now they are counted in the thousands. A pro- portionate hike from tens to hun- dreds goes for the publishing pic- ture. Each one is trying to get his share of the music dollar, resulting in the highly competitive status of the music business today. For Kapp, one of the key differ- ences between the bygone and modern-day music eras is the lack of a concentrated plugging me- dium. In contrast to the 1930s when air plugs by two such artists as Bing Crosby and Kate Smith could make a song, the current business is dependent on 2.000 disk jockeys, each one of whom re- ceives from 60 to 75 disks a week. It is this diffusion of plugs, Kapp claims, which has made obsolete' the old publisher methods with the large professional staffs and the heavy nut, from $5,000 to $40,- 000, needed to put over a, plug song. A publisher today can’t risk this type of investment on any one song, according to Kapp, because there is no assurance that he can get it across enough times to enough customers. The conflict in the business, as Kapp sees it, is more between the different approaches to writing thgin between the different licens- ing societies. “I don’t care what the licensing affiliation of a tune is,” Kapp said, “I am only inter- ested in its potential to become a hit.” In the Modem Idiom The newer writers, many of whom are in BMI, have come up with a bigger sharqyjf hits these days because they are writing in a contemporary idiom, Kapp con- tends. “They seem more attuned to the new generation of music buyers than the veteran writers who still think in terms of writing great standards.” Kapp believes, however, that the vet ASCAP writers can once again assert their dominance if they would tailor their tunes to the market of today and not of yester- day. “ASCAP still has the great talents,” Kapp said, “and they can still turn out the songs that will sell. It’s wrong to say that only bad songs are selling today. Give the public what they want in a language they can understand and they will buy the good songs too, such as ‘Too Young’.” Kapp be- lieves that one of the remedies for the vet writers is a recognition of the condition and demands of the present market. After all, Kapp said, ASCAP writers were responsible once for such numbers as “Barney Google,” “Yes, We Have No Bananas,” “Flat Foot Floogee” and “I’m Dancing With Tears in My Eyes.” Kapp pointed out that the latter tune is the yesteryear version of “Tennes- see Waltz,” and was a hit because it was in the popular idiom of its day. Must ‘Stun 'Em* One factor in the current idiom, Kapp says, is that a tune must be literally “stunning” in order to get a hearing. The new writers un- derstand this need as do the disk- ers themselves in the struggle to get an audience. Without that (Continued on page 47) John Abbott Due in U.S. London, Oct. 21. John Abbott, exec of Francis, Day & Hunter, is due in New York early in November, accompanied by his wife. It is essentially a holiday visit to renew old U. S. friendships. Chicago, Oct. 21. Raoul Mendez, 21, a bandleader here, was accidently shot and killed early Saturday morning (18) by a watchman who thought a group of men were attacking him. Mendez, who was featured at the Preview Lounge recently, was at- tending a dance at a place near the shooting. Victor, Without Investing, Nabs‘Hazel Flagg’for Wax; May Cut Bette Davis Show RCA Victor will do the original cast album of the new JuJe Styne- Bob Hilliard legit musical, “Hazel Flagg,” musicalization of “Nothing Sacred,” which Chappell Music* is publishing. Cast Includes Helen Gallagher, Benay Venuta and Thomas Mitchell. Consistent with new RCA policy, neither the com- pany (nor veepee Manie Sacks, through whom it sometimes oper- ated) is investing in the show. Sacks handled this deal but also isn’t investing personally either. Songsmith Styne and George .Ab- bott are producing. RCA will probably also disk the original album of “Two’s Com- pany” by Charles Sherman, Ver- non Duke, Ogden Nash and Sam- my Cohn, with Bette Davis mark- ing her Broadway musical debut. RCA also is waxing “My Darlin Aida.” LESTER SUES CORAL FOR 5G ROYALTIES Jerry Lester filed suit in N. Y. Supreme Court Monday (20) against Coral Records for royalties allegedly due him from four sides he etched for the diskery. Lester claims that a little more than $5,000 is due him under a 1950 pact with Coral for his waxings of “Orange Colored Sky,” “Time Takes Care of Everything,” “Bean Bag Song” and “Your Sister Knocks Me Out.” Coral asked for a dismissal of the complaint claiming that a Cali- fornia court, which had been ap- pointed receiver of Lester’s assets, had requested that they withhold any monies due him. Col GearsOkeh Subsid Okeh Records,- Columbia Rec- ords’ blues and rhythm subsid, jte being - geared • by- the; -parent com*, pany into a quasi-independent op- eration .With, a. .separate dlstrty) setup. Move is a result of the in- ability of regular pop - labels to crack the b&r market via the regu- lar distrib channels. In fact, most of the top sellers in the b&r field currently stem from indie diskeries that shoot exclusively for the spe- cialized retailers and customers. As the initial step, indie. distrib outlets have been pacted in three c i t i e s, Detroit, Cincinnati and Cleveland. Col’s Boyd Push Hollywood,'Oct. 21. Jimmy Boyd, 13-year-old- singer from Mississippi, is being set for a major promotional push by Colum- bia Records with a new Christmas etching, “I Saw Mama Kissing Santa Claus.” Mitch-.Miller, Col’s artists and repertoire chief, cut the tune on his current stay here .and the side has'been pre-sold to dis; tribs with a 100,000 advance order. Boyd appears .daily on the A1 Jarvis show on KECA-TV, Holly- wood, and will star in the “Peck’s Bacl Boy” video series now In prep- aiatioij»j j c i, < •>, o •»j < *« * -».nsv’ week, resulted only in minor alter- ations in income received by each publisher. The failure of some of the smaller firms to receive sub- stantial increases caused antici- pated squawks but, on the whole, ASCAP publishers appear to be overwhelmingly favorable to the new system. The new system has put an end to the old arbitrary “availability” ratings by giving the availability factor, which accounts for 30% of the total publishers’ melon, on a strict mathematical base. Availabil- ity is now rated on a five-year performance average of all songs more than two years old in each publisher catalog. The new system was devised as a result of per- sistent squawks by some publishers that they were being short-changed in their dividend payments. South- ern Music cracked the situation by winning a promotion in its rating after appealing to an outside arbi- tration board set up as a result of the antitrust decree. Some of the smaller publishers are still unhappy and want the establishment of a 100% perform- ance basis for the payoff regardless of the age of the songs performed. They claim that even if they get a smash hit, it still doesn’t hike their availability rating in view of the two-year limitation. The medium-sized pubs, how- ever, endorse the new system be- cause they see the possibility for steady growth within the ASCAP system. They point out that the powerhouse pubs, like the Music Publishers Holding Corp., the Big Three and the Chappell eombine, would still get the bulk of the coin whatever plan was adopted. Under the new system, however, even the smaller-pubs can advance through strengthening of their catalogs and plugging staffs. These publishers also contend that the stress on old songs, via the two-year proviso in the availability factor, is right since * ASCAP is based on the old songs. It’s argued that ASCAP’s best bargaining fea- ture is its vast reservoir of -oldies, whose value to the broadcasters is far more than the current clicks. If ASCAP's payoff were based exclusively on current plugs, pubs fear it would lead to inflated and artificial performance ratings via hypoed plugging and outright pay- ola. The current system, however, allows for the growth of a standard catalog with an ever-increasing value. t* Pubs in N.Y. Meeting To Discuss Need For Revision of 1909 Law Need for revision of the Copy- right Law in the light of the re- cently enacted Geneva Universal Copyright Convention will tfe dis- cussed at a conference of music publishers at the Hotel Warwick, N. Y., Nov. 12. Leonard Feist, prexy of the Mu- sic Publishers Assn, under whose auspices the confab will be held, said, “we operate, in 1952, under laws based on a 1909 dollar and a 1909 culture. We are going to de- velop a longterm campaign to modernize obsolete sections of the law.” Mitchell Miller Guests Longhair Oboe Concert Mitch Miller, Columbia Records artists & repertoire head, will be guest oboist with the Saidenbei^ Little Symphony at a YMHA, N. Y., concert Nov. 2. Incidentally, Miller’s monicker i when he switches tor longhair oboe [is Mitchell.Miller.