Argh!

Oh, it's that time of the week again, isn't it? I have to confess, I've not done anything at all in the last week. Nothing at all. I've not watched any films, read any books, listened to any music. Work has certainly drained my creative soul.

In arts news, one of the Bs* from ABBA is mighty relieved that he won't have to hear Dancing Queen, Waterloo or Fernando used in an advert for Twix, Pampers or the BNP. It's some copyright issue, whereby performers lose the rights to their work 50 years after its written, whereas songwriters who don't perform their work only lose the rights after they're dead and frankly don't care any more.

One of the main guys campaigning for more milk out of his cash cows is Sir Cliff Richard, who is now incredibly relieved that the ruling has been changed, and that his recordings will continue to be used only for Christian purposes for another 20 years. Cliff will presumably use that twenty years to challenge the present ruling.

The practical upshot for you and me is this: all that old music we were looking to start playing commercially without asking anyone? Can't do that any more. Not until 2044, when the floodgates will open to ABBA-obsessed advertising executives, and everything from abaci** to zebras will be marketed to us while Waterloo jangles on in the background.

See, this was one of the Bs issue with the rights expiring. He didn't want to hear it on an advert. I'm not sure that's what convinced the EU Council to change their mind, but if it did, I see their point.

I don't want to be grumpy, but I am, and I've got to live with it, and if you've read this far, so do you. My point is this: 70 years is a very long time. If you're not Cliff Richard, who is exempt from the ravages of time due to being on first-name terms with Jesus, it's pretty much a lifetime. Seventy years after I write and perform my number one hit "10 Minutes Longer Than It Needed To Be and Lacking Structure", nobody will remember or care.

This ruling effectively stops the music being used ever again, unless the artist condones the purpose and has been paid handsomely for his vocal/pianoic*** efforts. I don't really think that can be a good thing.

And now, what you've really been waiting for: the footnotes.

*I do know which one of the Bs it is. If your issue is with my punctuation, Bs is correct, as there are two Bs in ABBA but only one Bjorn and only one Benny. I do know which one it is, but I'm not telling you, for no other reason than I don't really feel like it today. Think of it as a treasure hunt, lacking any obvious material or even spiritual reward.
**I have no idea if this is the correct Latin plural of the word abacus. I never did Latin. If you did, and I've got the wrong declension, please email me and set me straight. I'm just trying to overuse Latin plurals really. I think it adds spice, even if it's not any more right. I had fun saying "spatulae" the other day. Again, don't know if it's right, but not excessively fussed.
***You try thinking of an adjective meaning "the manner in which things are done by a person who is playing the piano". If I use it often enough, it will become real.