Acuff-Rose Music

For the Uncle Tupelo song, seeAnodyne (album).

Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.

Company type	Division
Industry	Music publishing
Founded	October 13, 1942(1942-10-13),inNashville, Tennessee,U.S.
Founder	Roy Acuff Fred Rose
Headquarters	United States
Parent	Sony Music Publishing

Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.was an Americanmusic publishingfirm formed in 1942 byRoy AcuffandFred RoseinNashville, Tennessee,United States.Currently, the company's catalog is owned bySony Music Publishing.

Early history

Acuff-Rose was formed bycountry musicperformerRoy AcuffandFred Rose,a major Nashville music-industry figure and songwriter, who had a respected ability as a talent scout.Many country performers had been badly cheated in the past with regard tocopyrightand other rights to their creations. Many were unsophisticated and naive and were taken advantage of by unscrupulousagents,attorneys,record promoters, record labels and others. When they started their publishing company, a condition to the gentleman's agreement between Acuff and Rose was that "our company would be honest. The writers would always be taken care of. No one would act in a shady way."Acuff-Rose Publications, Inc. was affiliated withBMI,while Milene Music, Inc. handled music fromASCAPmember composers. Both firms initiated business in 1943 with Fred Rose compositions; Acuff-Rose Publications, Inc. copyrighted four songs (under Rose's pseudonym 'Floyd Jenkins') on January 28,while Milene Music, Inc., published "We Live In Two Different Worlds" in July.

Acuff-Rose had its headquarters on 8th Avenue South in the Melrose district of Nashville and was something of a landmark to those knowledgeable of the music industry. It was here thatHank Williams,to prove his ability to Rose, wrote what would become a major hit ( "A Mansion on the Hill") while Rose went out to a nearby restaurant for a cup of coffee. Williams proved to be a significant signing, by subsequently releasing a string of both country, and pop hits.

Catalog growth, 1954–1984

On Fred Rose's death in 1954, his sonWesley Roseserved as president of Acuff-Rose.Wesley Rose led the publishing company for the next 30 years. He was instrumental not only in the success of Acuff-Rose but also in the growth of country music outside the U.S., being the first country music publisher to establish offices overseas. Acuff-Rose Music flourished throughout this period.Lefty Frizzell,Felice and Boudleaux Bryant,Roy Orbison,Don Gibson,The Everly Brothers,Mickey Newbury,Dallas Frazier,andWhitey Shaferwere some of the significant songwriters signed exclusively to Acuff-Rose in the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.

Acuff-Rose Music also operated a record label,Hickory Records, Inc.,until 1987. It still exists as a label of the parent corporation, Sony/ATM, which relaunched the dormant label in 2015.

Sale to Gaylord Entertainment Group, Sony/ATV

Recognizing the frailty of their health and that the company he and Fred Rose had founded in 1942 was in steady decline, Roy Acuff approached Wesley Rose late in 1984 and suggested that it was time to sell the catalog. They did not have to look very far for a buyer. By May 1985,Grand Ole Opryparent companyGaylord Entertainment Companypurchased the catalogue for $15 million.The company returned to prominence during this time under the guidance ofMusic Rowveterans Jerry Bradley andTroy Tomlinsonand acquiredTom Collins Music.However, finding itself in need of cash in order to complete construction of one of its trademark convention hotels in Texas, Gaylord sold the publishing company toSony/ATV Music Publishingin 2002.Sony/ATV Music Publishing had previously purchased Acuff-Rose's main Music Row rival,Tree International.The combined catalogs continue to dominate the country music publishing industry. In 2007, Sony/ATV Music Nashville became the first publisher in history to capture BMI Country Music Publisher of the Year,ASCAPCountry Music Publisher of the Year,SESACCountry Music Publisher of the Year, andBillboardCountry Music Publisher of the Year.

Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.

Acuff-Rose Music was involved in a landmark copyright infringement case in the 1990s:Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc.(510 U.S. 569; 1994). In dispute was the use byrapartistLuther Campbell(then using the alias "Luke Skyywalker" ) and his band2 Live Crewof a substantial amount of theRoy Orbisonhit song "Oh, Pretty Woman"in aparody.Claiming their version of the song fell under thefair usedoctrine of the Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. 107, Campbell prevailed in theUnited States district courtinNashville.However, this was reversed at the appellate level by theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.The case was argued before theUnited States Supreme Courton November 9, 1993. Handing down its ruling on March 7, 1994, the court held that the appellate court placed too much emphasis on the commercial nature of the parody. The opinion of the appellate court was reversed and the case was remanded for further proceedings.Subsequently, the parties agreed to settle the case to avoid further legal expense.