I made this new song with a sample from "The Cantina" in STAR WARS song using less than 6 seconds of the original...does this constitute an original track I could sell Royalty-Free???? 

Would George Lucas Sue Me???

I think it's worth the chance. Give it a whirl 'n' let me know what you think...stealing or creating or both???

:) SHAWN

http://soundcloud.com/shawn-lee-farrell/the-bar

nope .... using a sample of another composer's work requires you to pay the license fees to be legal. 

No matter how short..... still required. The so called "fair use" exemption is mostly a bogus claim. It is available to educators to use in a classroom setting in something like a music appreciation class...... not something a composer can use to grab samples at will to use..... 

Contact Harry Fox Agency and work out the license with them if you plan to release it commercially.

Interesting question Shawn... I'm pretty sure GL is not going to sue you, unless you're generating money from his property... Then again, if he hears it, and is offended, he might just arrange to have you ... ... ... disappear...
He certainly has the resources to do whatever he likes... 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7kIclA4yq4

I heard Vanilla Ice didn't pay David Bowie a cent for "Under Pressure"...what about a sampled drum hit???

George Harrison was successfully sued in a prolonged suit that began in 1971 for plagiarizing the Chiffons' "He's So Fine" (1963) for the melody of his own "My Sweet Lord" (1970).

This song, to me, is original. It's also entertaining & deserves to have a life. Subconciously more people will be introduced to the original STAR WARS movie. If I did get a cease order on the song in my library that crisis would be an opportunity to meet & do custom soundtracks for George Lucas.  "The Bar" will be included in SoundTraxx Volume II. It's worth the risk. I must think about it! -=*>)Shawn

As far as the one shot drum hits being sampled and used..... yeah there was a BIG flap over that topic.... it was happening on a number of rap CD's and the rappers who owned the copyrights were suing the ones who "appropriated" the samples..... one hit.... lawsuits and gun shots abounded....

Now days, if you are placing any of your music with music libraries the question that is asked on every single song submitted before it is accepted into the library catalog.... "Do you own ALL the rights for your samples?" 


releasing it with that sample in it will probably not attract the attention of the owners for small releases to the net.......... but if that song is ever used commercially.... get the license before it goes public such as TV or film. 

Legal issues aside, this brought a smile to my lips.  You caught a mood and conveyed it very well.  Fun!

Dude, you are so far over the line on that it is not even funny. Just pay the license fee which is not much if you really want to do something with it. That will catch someone's attention for sure if it was ever used any place other than here or in you own car. You are asking for a lawsuit. Most likely you would get an order to simply stop using it unless you sold it and then its game on. I am not trying to knock you down or anything but if you really want to use it just pay the fee and be safe from any headaces down the road. BTW. if I remember right Vanilla Ice got his butt sued for that.