THE LAST DATE

Floyd Cramer's iconic instrumental 'Last Date' was fixed in 1960, a critical period for sound recording copyright in the United States. Prior to the Music Modernization Act (MMA) of 2018, sound recordings fixed before February 15, 1972, were generally protected by a patchwork of state laws rather than federal copyright. The MMA significantly reformed this landscape by bringing these 'pre-72' recordings under federal protection. Specifically, the MMA, codified at 17 U.S.C. § 1401(a)(2)(D), grants federal protection to recordings fixed between January 1, 1957, and February 14, 1972, for a term expiring on February 15, 2067. Since 'Last Date' was recorded and released in 1960 by RCA Victor, a major label, it falls squarely within this timeframe. This means the sound recording is currently protected by federal copyright law and will remain so for several more decades. As a result of this federal protection, anyone wishing to reproduce, distribute, or publicly perform the specific sound recording of Floyd Cramer's 'Last Date' must obtain a license from the copyright holder, typically Sony Music Entertainment (which now owns the RCA Victor catalog). This federalization of pre-1972 recordings provides a consistent legal framework that did not exist before the MMA, offering clear rights and responsibilities for classic recordings like Cramer's. Without such a license, uses of the sound recording would constitute copyright infringement.