October 2000:

Sadly, I have noticed that some tabs I have shown other Joni tabbers have wound up on their sites, giving me absolutely no credit whatsoever. I don't believe I have EVER done this, as I feel it is a collective collaboration (or as my friend Chris Erswell from England puts it "successive approximations") and I ALWAYS credit the original tabber. I will not mention who these people are, but I have corresponded with them in the past, even sent them the tabs in question and they are both high profile Joni tab sites that are in my links section ... 

June 2000:

Looks like OLGA won their battle against the Harry Fox Agency. Thanks to all those who signed the petition, and to the ACLU for fighting a difficult, but worthwhile battle. Onward to save Napster!

September 1998:

Basically, what I'm trying to point out below is that it is my belief that no publishing company has any right to stop a web site such as this one.  The only person who has any right to do that is Joni Mitchell herself, and if she asked me to do so, I would.

The issues on this page have to do with publishing companies and licensing agencies, namely, the Harry Fox Agency, which is suing the Online Guitar Archive for publishing words and chords to the songs they "own." They have no ownership of Joni Mitchell's material and have nothing to do with Siquomb Music Publishing, Joni Mitchell Music Publishing, or Crazy Crow Music Publishing whatsoever, nor have any of the above-mentioned publishing companies taken any actions against anyone to my knowledge.

The following is an excerpt from a letter I sent to the Harry Fox Agency, and also included the information in the comments section on the petition for OLGA. If you agree, please visit the site and sign the petition (see the links page for more info).

1. First of all, anyone who can write and hear, can listen to a song and write down lyrics.  90% of the time, they are supplied for you with the CD.
2. Second, almost anyone who plays a musical instrument can figure out the chords to a song, or, at the very least, has a friend who could do it.
3. Third, 50% of the time, the words and chords supplied by publishing companies represented by agencies like the Harry Fox Agency are incorrect.
4. Fourth, there is little-to-no alternate tuning information with their associated alternate chord formations on  sheet music published.
5. Lastly, most sheet music is for piano players. It is totally unusable and obsolete for most of today's guitarists.

If the Harry Fox Agency's business is dropping off, perhaps they should take a look at HOW the publishing companies they represent are issuing forth their product. Considering the majority of musicians play guitar, they have completely neglected this fact and done NOTHING to change the way they have issued sheet music for almost 100 years. If I was to buy the sheet music for a song, and the song was written in an alternate tuning, then I want the exact tuning for the guitar and the chord formations in the proper key. I want to buy something that looks like someone actually listened to the piece of work they are transcribing.  Instead, I look at something that will sound absolutely nothing like the original piece of work. They have not made any attempts to correct this, and THAT is why OLGA is so important.

Let Harry Fox's clients present their information in any poor form they like. It in NO WAY resembles what is in OLGA. OLGA information is transcribed with love and caring for the music, not by someone paid to do this for a living, who has 50 other pieces to transcribe that day. The information in OLGA should be free because charging for it would be wrong. If OLGA did charge, then, the Harry Fox Agency would have a case. But as long as they give credit to the author of the musical work, and give the info away for free, the Harry Fox Agency should look at what they do, and figure out what THEY are doing wrong, and why the world needed OLGA to replace the garbage they dish out.

P.S. I wrote the Harry Fox Agency once because I needed information on what to do IF I wanted to use one of their songs.  I NEVER said I was DEFINITELY using one of their songs. Well, they hounded me for 3 YEARS, sending me contracts and letters in the mail, even after I called and wrote, telling them I did NOT use their song AT ALL!