BMG acquires John Fogarty’s Minder Music in UK

PRESS RELEASE:

New model music company BMG has acquired leading London-based independent music publisher Minder Music and its catalogue from its owner and founder John Fogarty.

Minder’s diverse catalogue ranges from works recorded by Cult Band The Fall (a 30 year relationship with Mark E. Smith) to the music from the 1950’s UK children’s TV series Watch With Mother (‘Bill & Ben’, ‘Andy Pandy’ and ‘Time To Go Home’).

Most notably, Minder owns rights in seminal R&B bands The Gap Band (pictured) (‘Oops Upside Your Head’, ‘Outstanding’ and “You Dropped A Bomb On Me”), The Fatback Band (‘I Found Lovin’’, ‘Bus Stop’) and Jimmy Castor (‘It’s Just Begun’ and ‘Troglodyte’), Rufus & Chaka Chan’s ‘Once You Get Started’ and ‘First Impressions’ by The Impressions as well as perennial favourites like Ace’s ‘How Long’ (for which it controls both publishing and recording), Yarbrough & People’s ‘Don’t Stop The Music’ and ‘Denise’ (notably performed by Blondie as ‘Denis’).

The catalogue is one of the most sampled in music industry history with The Gap Band’s ‘Outstanding’ alone used by artists ranging from Madonna to Shaq’ O’Neal, Kylie Minogue, Usher, R. Kelly, Blackstreet, Soul for Real and Tina Turner and others.

Other artists to have sampled Minder copyrights include Snoop Dogg, Puff Daddy, Nas, Spice Girls, All Saints, Dr Dre, Erik B & Rakim, Groove Armada, Snap, George Michael, Christina Aguilera – and even Bob The Builder.

Administered catalogues include works recorded by Elvis Presley, Bob Seger, Frank Sinatra, and ‘Sleep Walk’ by Johnny Farina, currently being used in a television commercial for UK supermarket giant Tesco.

Most recently The Gap Band’s ‘Oops Upside Your Head’ has been credited on the Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars worldwide smash ‘Uptown Funk’ which is not immediately included in the deal. BMG already represents Bruno Mars’s share in the song.

A number of works will be retained by another company owned by John Fogarty including 1920’s music hall and children’s favourite ‘The Laughing Policeman’ as well as Python Lee Jackson/Rod Stewart classic ‘In A Broken Dream’ which has recently been reworked by A$AP Rocky and features on his No 1 US Album At Long Last—A$AP.

Minder Music was founded in the 1980s by former accountant and tour promoter John Fogarty and Beth Clough. Following the acquisition, Fogarty will act as a consultant for BMG.

BMG UK Executive Vice President Alexi Cory-Smith said, “Minder truly is a wonderful catalogue and exemplifies the power of great songs to inspire new generations again and again. John Fogarty has a well-deserved reputation as a formidable defender of copyright and we are delighted that he will be joining us as a consultant.”

John Fogarty said, “In just a short space of time, BMG has emerged as an effective digital age alternative to established music companies. Building Minder has been a labour of love, and there is a story behind the acquisition of each song. These songs were like my children and so I wanted a good new home for them and I know that they will be well looked after by BMG.”

The deal also includes the acquisition of Minder’s sister company Cavalcade Recordings, (apart from three recordings by Python Lee Jackson ft Rod Stewart – ‘In A Broken Dream’, ‘The Blue’ and ‘Cloud 9’). Cavalcade has a catalogue of around 50 albums including three albums each from The Gap Band and Ace, and albums from The Fall, Billy Paul, Pennye Ford, Cado Belle and Yarbrough and Peoples.

Terms of the deal, which takes effect immediately, are not being disclosed.