The music industry agreed yesterday to pay the piper and cough up nearly $50 million in unclaimed royalties to thousands of unknown artists – as well as such superstars as P.Diddy, Dave Matthews and David Bowie.
New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said a twoyear investigation by his office found that many artists had not been paid because the record labels lost contact with them and stopped cutting checks.
Under the new agreement, royalty windfalls ofmore than $19, 000 will go to psychedelic pioneers Jefferson Airplane, $2,625 to Frank Sinatra’s estate, and $71,000 to the 1960s softrock trio Three Dog Night, among others.
Regis Philbin, who once recorded the song “Pennies From Heaven, ” is also due $7,255 – and the late Blues Brother John Belushi’s estate should expect a check for $3,365, Spitzer’s office said.
Actor Yul Brynner – who talked his way through Broadway’s “The King and I ” and died of cancer in 1985 – is still owed $12,000, and Bowie will be getting a little over $10,000.
Spitzer’s office said companies including Sony, Warner Music, Universal, EMI and BMG had also agreed to establish new procedures to ensure musicians and their descendants get their due.
“This is a victory for many, many artists who are finally getting their reward, ” said Bob Donnelly, a musicbiz lawyer who cooked up the deal with Spitzer, whom he described as a Springsteen fan and Grateful
Deadhead.
“This recognizes the debt we have to the music folks who make the engine run and get the train moving, ” Donnelly said.
Spitzer, who said he was a music “dilettante,” added that the industry had initially been reluctant to pay up.
“They didn’t jump for joy and greet us with open arms, but they didn’t push back vigorously, ” he told The Post.
“Once we had subpoenaed their records, it was hard [for them ]not to acknowledge the debt.”
Other artists owed money include Dolly Parton, Harry Belafonte and the Louis Armstrong estate.
Under the settlement, the companies agreed to try to track down artists to whom royalties are due, and their Web sites will list the names of artists and writers who are due royalties.
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Artists who are owed royalties
Tommy Edwards $229,723
The Fontaine Sisters $106,787
Gerry Mulligan $78,133
New Edition $72,157
Three Dog Night $70,988
Doc Severinsen $42,106
Earl Scruggs/Lester Flatt $40,140
Guy Lombardo $30,180
Public Enemy (G.Rinaldi) $22,766
Jefferson Airplane $19,820
John Mellencamp $18,771
Tcharkorsky Charles Orchestra $18,370
Dolly Parton $17,568
Jim Croce $16,403
Tom Jones $16,399
Vince Gill $15,889
Ethel Merman $14,197
Dave Matthews Band $14,135
Alfred Drake $14,104
Yul Brynner $12,442