Have you recorded some cover songs you think are worthy to sell to your fans?  Then, you need to set-up an account with The Harry Fox Agency - registration is Free and only takes a few minutes.  Once you have an account, you can search to see if the song(s) you want to release are available for licensing - most are as they are the largest clearinghouse for licensing music in the US. But, sometimes there are legal issues surrounding a particular song that prevent it from being available so you want to check first before spending the money record it. 

Here's how it works:

1) Login to your HFA account

2) Go to new license search

3) Select either a Physical Product license (e.g. CD), or Digital Phonerecord Delivery (a.k.a. digital download)... please note, if you plan on selling the song(s) in both formats, you will need to purchase a license for both

4)  If selecting Digital Phonerecord Delivery, you will then estimate the maximum number of digital downloads of the song you anticipate on selling during the next 12 months. It doesn't have to be accurate because if you are under you will just pay more in royalties the following year... please note, you are solely responsible for ensuring that you are paying the copyright owner (the individual or company that owns the rights to the song) the correct amount for each song per year

5) Next, you will enter the name(s) of the website(s) that you will be selling the song on (e.g. Apple iTunes)

6) You will then provide the name of the song, and/or the songwriter(s) for the song you wish to record... if there is a match, HFA will find it and let you know who the publisher(s) are, and if it is available for licensing.

7) Then provide the ISRC Code if you know it (not required), the name of the musician/band recording the song (that's you), exact recording length (i.e. how many minutes/seconds is your version of the cover song), release date, and any additional comments

That's it! If the song(s) are available, you then provide your credit card and purchase the license, and then HFA emails you a copy of the agreement. The whole process takes less than 15 minutes per song.

In case you are wondering how much it might cost, here's a real example. To license "With a Little Help From My Friends" from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles, the total cost of the license for a 5 minute version that is expected to generate 500 downloads in 12 months was $60.50 - that's cheap!

Of course you can always release your cover songs without purchasing the licenses, but you run the risk of being sued...

As always, I welcome your comments.

Peace