A music publishing house in the United States has offered to pay all future royalties on the song Wimoweh to the family of its South African author, lawyers for the late composer Solomon Linda said on Monday.
New York-based TRO/Folkways has also offered to contribute to the erection of a memorial structure for Linda, law firm Spoor & Fischer said in a statement.
A settlement was ”on the brink” of being concluded, it said.
Copyright lawyer Owen Dean said an agreement had been reached in principle, and was expected to be formalised ”within a week or two”.
The song Wimoweh was spawned by Linda’s 1939 song Mbube. Mbube also gave rise to the well-known tune The Lion Sleeps Tonight — the subject of a separate copyright battle between the Linda family and Disney Enterprises.
TRO founder Howie Richmond signed a folk group, The Weavers, to record a version of Mbube around 1951. It became known as Wimoweh and rose to number six on the United States music charts.
Dean said TRO was initially under the impression that the tune was a traditional Zulu folk song, its author unknown. Royalties were thus paid to The Weavers.
In 1971, the company acknowledged that the song was based on Linda’s original work. Since then, his family, who live in Soweto, has been receiving royalty payments amounting to 12,5% of Wimoweh‘s overall earnings.
But these payments did not amount to the full composer’s royalties due, Dean said. Once the deal is signed, Linda’s heirs are to receive the full amount — estimated at R20 000 a year.
The statement quoted attorney Hanro Friedrich, who represents Linda’s three surviving daughters, as saying his clients were struggling to pay their rates and electricity bills. The local council was threatening to attach their family home.
”For people in their position, Folkways’ offer means a great deal.”
In July, Dean obtained a Pretoria High Court order attaching 240 Disney trademarks, including Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse, pending the outcome of the family’s claim against the company.
Earlier this month, Disney lost a bid to have the attachment order set aside.
The Linda family is claiming damages totalling R15-million for copyright breaches against Disney Enterprises, Nu Metro Home Entertainment, the David Gresham Entertainment Group and David Gresham Records, as well as an interdict restraining the four companies from continuing to use the song.
The tune has reportedly been modified by more than 150 artists and generated more than R100-million in royalties for its copyright holders.
Among others, it was used in the Disney movie The Lion King.
The Linda family relies on provisions of a Commonwealth law in force at the time the song was first recorded, in terms of which the rights to a song revert back to the composer’s heirs 25 years after his death. Linda died penniless in 1962. – Sapa