Yeah, I read that, too. Artists like Grateful Dead and Jimmy Buffett who made most of their money from concerts make less in royalties from tribute bands than other artists who sold a lot of singles. Still, it’s hard to feel sorry for the Dead or Buffett, seeing how much money they made in their careers.
How? They weren’t represented by those agencies, those agencies weren’t who I paid, and I’m not paying the licensing fee again just because they weren’t available to collect. My money went to the copyright office, as far as I know.
Not everyone is available through the HFA. I’ve licensed songs where HFA represented 50% of the rights, and songs that they had no rights to. If they do represent the rights completely, HFA can be easy. If they don’t, I advise using a broker that will license across the agencies for you.
I’ve taken my daughter to see a Beatles tribute band (Raiin) a couple times. They were fantastic. We also saw the Led Zeppelin band Zoso. They were great.
There used to be a bunch of Doors tribute bands touring the country. I think there are only a couple now.
I read somewhere that Margaritaville is the single most lucrative song ever written, having spawned restaurants, frozen food, and even a clothing line, I think.