here's the way the majors worked in regard to the infamous cut out....primarily made up of returns, etc, the royalty was paid on the original sale(back when the lp was sold the first time at the regular price) the royalties (performance/publishing mechanicals/etc per unit. when returns accumulated that were not believed to be re-sellable, they were stamped or cut in some manor and sold for a fraction of the normal whlse price. the accounting to the artist and their management would reflect all sales, less returns, and inventory. most artist agreements allow the label (even today) percentages and reserves to cover everything from promos to future returns. clauses for liquidation and recoupment of advances and production costs make getting on the gravy train tuff. today its even tuffer with digital delivery (is anyone making anything on this?). i admire your company patrick, and wish you the best. i still work in the industry on the licensing side, and i have dealt with all the majors over the last decade in some form or another(a&r,production,sales,marketing,management,you name it.. i do know that the major labels relunctantly make vinyl and sell it one way, or license it to outside companies who pay royalties on gross receipts...not to mention guarantees.....the stories i've heard and people i've worked with over the years in every capacity of the business (several folks in the book 'hitmen'), make for some great stories.....as to the history of royalty payments, lets just say leadbelly wasn't the only artist who got screwed. the good news is companies today play tuff, but play by the rules......KEEP BUYING NEW VINYL!!!!!
