I am wondering if anyone here has any advice on this:
 
I wrote a bunch of songs for a video game for Disney Interactive way back in 1997. They were work-for-hire; I got paid for them and relinquished ownership. I supplied Midi and lyrics and their music guy did the arrangement and production. The game didn't make much of a splash, was never heard from again, and none of the team who worked on it were still around much after its release, (though there is a tiny smattering of fans who still remember it).
 
Fast forward to now - I have re-written one of these songs a bit, recorded my own version of it, and hope to release it in my next album later this year. I would be extremely surprised if anyone at DI who was involved with that game is still there or has ever even heard of the game. My album will be released on a local boutique label, and while it will be an official release, with some physical discs produced, reviews solicited, and available on iTunes, Spotify, etc., very very few people will buy it or even know it exists.
 
Questions: Do I need to bother to Harryfox this old song? Is there some kind of rule that says if you wrote it for hire twenty years ago and it has never seen the light of day and almost no one will hear your new version of it, that you can do so? Should I let sleeping dogs lie and hope Disney never notices? It seems so unlikely that someone who knows I wrote the song for them AND cares if I acquired the rights would ever catch wind of it. If I contact them to go the legal route, am I just asking for a huge hassle that could be avoided by flying under the radar? In the event that I strike gold and the song or album gains a lot of attention for whatever reason, am I going to be in trouble then?
 
I wrote a piano piece based on the Windows XP startup sound, and other Windows sounds, and it's gotten significant attention online over the years - I happened to work at Microsoft when I first released it, so I asked their legal people whether I should track down the people who wrote those original sounds (NOT Brian Eno, contrary to popular myth!), and they told me to ignore it, that I should only involve legal if someone takes notice and inquires, otherwise probably no one wants to take it on as part of their busy work lives. Which is why I'm wondering if that's the case for this song too.

Get in touch with Disney and ask for permission.

I am not a lawyer, but I'll throw down a "common sense" argument.  If the song does not attract any attention and just sinks away, nothing will happen.  If it gains any buzz or glory, you will be sued by Disney (not a good thing).
So your efforts will get you nothing or trouble.  Sorry not to be more upbeat here.

You should treat this like any other song you do not own the rights to because at the end of the day you don't own the rights to it. Do it the right way just in case. A lawsuit is not something you want to deal with no matter how unlikely it may be.

if u wrote it, did they give u any writing credit?  if u don't expect it to get big, then go for it and hope they don't want the small amount of money it made... but i would try to ask them for written permission.  

Well... it just all depends.....
 
You sold the rights to the songs to Disney and relinquished ownership so they, Disney, now own the rights no matter how long it has been setting on a dusty shelf. The copyright they own is still valid. You have no claim to the song. So any cover or adaption would be a copyright violation. Disney is one of those companies that has lawyers on staff.... (fair warning)!!!
 
Then you said this:  "I have re-written one of these songs a bit."  Well, this could be trouble brewing or a clean path. The question is how much of a rewrite did you do? Does it still follow the same melody line? If someone who had never heard either was to listen to both, would they get the feeling that the two are similar or perhaps even twins or that yep, those are the same underlying songs with just a slightly different take on the theme?
 
To proceed forward, the safest option, especially if the song is similar, would be to get your legal ducks lined up in a row by calling Harry Fox. Don't call Disney, HFA is the company that generally handles the licensing of copyrighted material. The price you pay is well worth the peace you will gain having done it legally and knowing a lawyer representing Disney Corporation won't be calling you to discuss infringement.
 
Another option..... write a new song.

If you actually re-wrote it it would be a different song.
 
If you re-arranged it, it's the same song.
 
If it's the same song (lyric & melody) then you have no right to record and sell it without paying royalties to the owner of the song.
 
Do what Herb (guitarhacker) says.

I rewrote the lyrics significantly, and a completely new arrangement, but it's obviously the same song. 
 
Good idea to contact HFA instead of Disney. I suspect Disney's take would have been "Well, we certainly wouldn't have pursued it if you'd just done it, but now that you contacted us we HAVE to follow through."

Harry Fox.  As above, you aren't likely to get in trouble, but you'll do yourself a favor by buying mechanical rights at about 8.5 cents a copy.  That is $85 or so for a 1000 CDs, if you print that many.
 
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