I am trying to find out who owns the copyright to the popular song known
variously in English as "The Lion", "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", "Wimoweh"
and, in Zulu, "Mbube (The Lion)". (In English, the first words of the
song are: "In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight .
. . .")
The song was first written and recorded in 1939 by South African
composer Solomon Linda, under the title "Mbube (The Lion)". In the
1950's it became a hit in the U.S. when it was recorded by, among
others, a group called The Tokens. The question of copyright ownership
is therefore possibly quite complex.
I have sent an e-mail to the South African Music Rights Organisation and
to an American music production company which recently used the song in
a movie CD. After several days I have not heard back from either
source.
Does anyone have any ideas on how to pursue this further?
Janet Darby
Supervisor, Legal Library
The Dow Chemical Company
Midland, MI
ph. 517-636-6648
fax 517-636-3771
jdarby@dow.com
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