Originally Posted by
ShaolinGirl
A couple of minor corrections: Public domain covers material that nobody can lay claim to, usually because it's so old. Like the nursery rhyme "A tisket, a tasket, a red and yellow basket...." I could use that as the theme song to a TV show without having to pay royalties to anyone. But then that particular recording/version/arrangement of the song is copyrighted. Which means that particular recording cannot be played in a commercial setting, like a club, for example, for free; the club has to pay royalties (usually with a blanket license). But anyone else can still cover the original Tisket Tasket song with their own instruments, arrangements, etc., and record their own version.
If an artists cuts a song, it does not enter into the public domain (Yoko would have a friggin' heart attack). When Aerosmith covered the Beatles song Come Together, Aerosmith paid royalties to the owner(s) of the song AND had to get permission to release it as a cover. When the Republican party tried to use John Mellencamp's Pink Houses, he successfully told them to cease and desist.