Bachman backtracks after criticizing PM

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This article was published 16/09/2014 (3118 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — Winnipeg-born performer Randy Bachman backtracked Monday after lashing out at Prime Minister Stephen Harper for using one of BTO’s songs at a political rally.

Harper used Takin’ Care of Business by Bachman Turner Overdrive as his exit music Monday after delivering a rallying speech to the Conservative caucus at the Ottawa Convention Centre ahead of the return of Parliament.

Bachman initially told the Huffington Post Harper hadn’t asked for permission to use Takin’ Care of Business and that had he asked, the answer likely would have been no. Bachman is upset Harper hasn’t stepped in to support musicians in a fight with the Copyright Board of Canada over royalty fees for digital-music streaming.

Bachman and his representatives didn’t respond to requests for interviews but he took to Twitter Monday night to acknowledge his criticism of Harper was misplaced.

“Was wrong to imply @PMHarper did not correctly license use of my song,” Bachman tweeted. “It was in a SOCAN licensed facility so it was covered.”

But he is still upset about the royalties.

“But I’m still ticked about copyright board disrespecting musicians,” he tweeted. “Their Tariff8 decision is bad for all artists. That’s the real story here.”

The decision Bachman is upset about, known as Tariff 8, involves royalties from digital streaming music sites like Pandora or Songza. In May, the copyright board ruled those companies have to pay artists the equivalent of slightly more than one cent every time a song is played 100 times. Re:Sound, the non-profit music licensing company that collects the royalties on behalf of musicians, argued the rates should be the greater of a per-play rate or a percentage of an individual company’s total revenue. That is how it is set in the United States, where digital-streaming services must pay royalties of either 25 per cent of their total revenues or 13 cents US for every 100 plays — whichever is the higher amount. In the United Kingdom, the royalties are about 13.6 cents CDN for every 100 plays.

Re:Sound filed a judicial review to have a federal Canadian court review the decision.

‘I’m still ticked about copyright board disrespecting musicians. Their Tariff8 decision is bad for all artists. That’s the real story here’

— Randy Bachman

Bachman is upset Harper has not done more to advocate in favour of musicians. The two previously appeared to be friendly. In 2011, Harper hosted both Bachman and bandmate Fred Turner at 24 Sussex Drive for a concert and jam session. The following night, Harper and his wife Laureen attended the Bachman Turner concert at the National Arts Centre. Laureen bought the prime minister the tickets for his 52nd birthday.

A Conservative party spokesman said only the party had paid the appropriate SOCAN fee so playing the song at the event was legitimate.

mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca