Editing MPL Communications

{{Short description|Holding company owned by Paul McCartney}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox company
| name = MPL Communications
| logo = MPL Communications logo.svg
| logo_upright = 0.5
| logo_caption = Logo since 1982
| type = Music publishing activities
| foundation = {{Start date and age|1968|12|30}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=MPL Communications Ltd - Company Profile and News |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/0228679D:LN |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}</ref>
| founder = [[Paul McCartney]]
| location_city = [[London]], England<br />[[New York City]], United States
| website = {{URL|mplcommunications.com}}
}}
'''MPL Communications''' (which stands for '''McCartney Productions Ltd.''')  ([[NAICS]] 512230, SIC 2741) is the umbrella company for the business interests of [[Paul McCartney]] and was established in 1969. In addition to handling McCartney's post-[[The Beatles|Beatles]] work, MPL is one of the world's largest privately owned [[Music publisher (popular music)|music publishers]] through its acquisition of other publishing companies.<ref name="MPLpublishing">{{cite web|url=http://www.mplcommunications.com/|title=Music Licensing for Film, TV, Web, CDs, Performance and Merchandising - MPL Music Publishing Inc. - MPL Communications |access-date=19 November 2016}}</ref>

==Profile==
The company was founded in February 1969 as '''Adagrove Limited''' but changed its name to McCartney Productions Ltd. in August 1969.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wiener |first=Allen |date=1992 |title=The Beatles: The Ultimate Recording Guide |location=New York |publisher=Facts On File |pages=39, 42 |isbn=0-8160-2511-8 }}</ref> One of the company's first projects was the purchase of the rights to a film adaptation of ''[[Rupert Bear]]'' in early 1970.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=McCartney's Own Projects May Break Up Beatles |work=The Times |location=San Mateo, California |date=7 April 1970 }}</ref>

==Music publishing==
MPL publishing owns a wide range of copyrighted material – covering nearly 100 years of music – by composers including McCartney, [[Buddy Holly]], [[Carl Perkins]], [[Jerry Herman]], [[Frank Loesser]], [[Meredith Willson]], [[Harold Arlen]] and many others,<ref name="MPLpublishing"/> with songs, such as "[[Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody]]" (made famous by [[Al Jolson]]), "[[I'm Glad There Is You]]", "[[Blue Suede Shoes]]", and "[[That'll Be the Day]]". [[Lennon–McCartney]] songs such as "[[Love Me Do]]" and "[[P.S. I Love You (Beatles song)|P.S. I Love You]]" became part of the catalog in the late 2010s after McCartney reached a settlement with longtime Beatles catalog holder [[Sony/ATV Music Publishing]] allowing the co-author to reclaim his songs fifty-six years from their initial publication.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jul/04/beatles-song-rights-dispute-paul-mccartney-and-sony-atv-work-it-out|title=Beatles song rights dispute: Paul McCartney and Sony ATV work it out|agency=Agence France-Presse|date=July 3, 2017|website=the Guardian}}</ref> MPL also controls 25 subsidiary companies.<ref name="MPLsubsidiary">[http://www.mplcommunications.com/subsidiaries.asp List of MPL subsidiary companies] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061106170235/http://www.mplcommunications.com/subsidiaries.asp |date=2006-11-06 }}</ref>

In 1976 MPL bought the North American rights to the Edwin H. Morris & Co. catalogue from Morris himself,<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=1996-04-08 |title=Edwin H. 'Buddy' Morris; Founded Music Publishing Firm |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-04-08-mn-56125-story.html |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> and most of Buddy Holly's compositions,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.shutterstock.com/editorial/image-editorial/paul-mccartney-pictured-with-the-crickets-during-buddy-holly-week-the-annual-commemorative-week-was-organised-by-mccartney-after-he-bought-the-rights-to-hollys-music-in-1976-1087814a|title=PAUL MCCARTNEY PICTURED CRICKETS DURING BUDDY Editorial Stock Photo - Stock Image}}</ref><ref>Sanjek, t. l. R. (1988). American Popular Music and Its Business: The First Four Hundred Years, Volume III: From 1900-1984. United States: Oxford University Press. p.539</ref> and in 2003 the rights to Carl Perkins' works.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2003-04-05/mccartney-buys-rights-to-carl-perkins-catalogue/1830512|title = McCartney buys rights to Carl Perkins' catalogue|newspaper = ABC News|date = 4 April 2003}}</ref> The Holly acquisition was followed by McCartney's launch of 'Buddy Holly Day' with a concert presented annually from 1976 to 1999.
Additionally, MPL has acquired rights to other cover songs recorded by the Beatles, and solo recordings by [[John Lennon]], McCartney, [[Ringo Starr]], and [[Denny Laine]] as follows:
 
=== Buddy Holly songs ===
*"[[Words of Love]]" (''[[Beatles for Sale]]'', 1964)
*"[[Crying, Waiting, Hoping]]" (''[[Live at the BBC (Beatles album)|Live at the BBC]]'', 1994)
*"[[That'll Be the Day]]" (''[[Anthology 1]]'', 1995)
*"[[Peggy Sue]]" (Lennon's ''[[Rock 'n' Roll (John Lennon album)|Rock 'n' Roll]]'', 1975, ''[[John Lennon Anthology]]'', 1998, ''[[Instant Karma: All-Time Greatest Hits|Instant Karma]]'', 2002, and ''[[Gimme Some Truth (box set)|Gimme Some Truth]]'' box set, 2010)
*Denny Laine's album ''[[Holly Days]]'' (1976)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/holly-days-mw0000538847|title=Holly Days - Denny Laine &#124; Songs, Reviews, Credits &#124; AllMusic|website=[[AllMusic]]}}</ref><ref>Madinger, C., Easter, M. (2000). Eight Arms to Hold You: The Solo Beatles Compendium. United States: 44.1 Productions.</ref>

=== Carl Perkins songs ===
*"[[Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby]]", (''Beatles for Sale'', 1964, and ''[[The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl|Live at the Hollywood Bowl]]'', 2016)
*"[[Honey Don't]]" (''Beatles for Sale'', 1964)
*"[[Matchbox (song)|Matchbox]]" (''[[Long Tall Sally (EP)|Long Tall Sally]]'' EP, 1964 and ''[[Past Masters]]'', 1988)
*"[[Sure to Fall (In Love with You)|Sure to Fall]]" (''Live at the BBC'', 1994, and Starr's ''[[Stop and Smell the Roses (Ringo Starr album)|Stop and Smell the Roses]]'', 1981)
*"[[Blue Suede Shoes]]" (''[[Anthology 3]]'', 1996, ''[[The Beatles: Get Back]]'', 2021, Lennon's ''[[Live Peace in Toronto]]'', 1969, ''[[Lennon (box set)|Lennon]]'' box set, 1990, and ''[[Instant Karma: All-Time Greatest Hits|Instant Karma]]'', 2002)

=== Other songs ===
*"[[Twist and Shout]]" (''[[Please Please Me]]'', 1963, ''[[The Beatles at the Hollywood Bowl]]'', 1977, ''Anthology 1'', 1995, ''The Beatles: Get Back'', 2021)<ref>[https://www.mplcommunications.com/music-search MPL Communications music search]</ref>
*"[[Till There Was You]]" (''[[With the Beatles]]'', 1963, ''Live at the BBC'', 1994, ''Anthology 1'', 1995)
*"[[Ain't She Sweet]]" (''Anthology 1'', 1995, ''Anthology 3'', 1996, and the ''John Lennon Anthology'', 1998)
*"[[Hi-Heel Sneakers]]" (''The Beatles: Get Back'', 2021, and McCartney's ''[[Unplugged (The Official Bootleg)]]'', 1991)
*"[[Bluejean Bop]]" (McCartney's ''[[Run Devil Run (album)|Run Devil Run]]'', 1999)
*"[[Let's Have a Party]]" aka "Party" (McCartney's ''Run Devil Run'', 1999)
*"[[Sentimental Journey (song)|Sentimental Journey]]" (Starr's ''[[Sentimental Journey (Ringo Starr album)|Sentimental Journey]]'', 1970)
*"[[Blue, Turning Grey Over You]]" (Starr's ''Sentimental Journey'', 1970)
*"[[Blue Christmas (song)|Blue Christmas]]" (Starr's ''[[I Wanna Be Santa Claus]]'', 1999)
*"[[Carolina Moon (song)|Carolina Moon]]" (''The Beatles: Get Back'', 2021)

==Trademark==
In October 2006, the [[Trademark]] Registry in London reported that MPL Communications had started a process to trademark McCartney's name on saleable goods.<ref name="Business">{{cite news |last=Muir |first=Hugh |url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1922412,00.html |title=McCartney bids to trademark his name |work=The Guardian |date=14 October 2006 |access-date=20 July 2012}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[:Category:Music published by MPL Music Publishing]]
*[[Calderstone Productions]]

==Notes and references==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|http://www.mplcommunications.com/}}

{{Paul McCartney}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Music publishing companies of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Paul McCartney]]
[[Category:Soho Square]]
[[Category:Entertainment companies established in 1969]]
[[Category:Mass media companies established in 1969]]
[[Category:IFPI members]]