Lennon's son sells Beatles stake http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6553113.stm Julian Lennon has sold a "significant" stake of his share in the songs his father John wrote for The Beatles. John Lennon's songwriting royalties passed to his family when he died, and Julian has sold a slice of these to US music publishing company Primary Wave. The firm will now receive payments when Lennon's compositions are sold on CD, performed live or played on the radio. But it does not mean Primary Wave owns the songs or recordings themselves and it cannot decide how they are used. The catalogue includes classic tracks such as All You Need Is Love, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, which was inspired by a picture Julian drew as a child. Julian Lennon will release a new album later this year "We are thrilled to be partnering with Julian Lennon and to own a piece of music history," Primary Wave's chief executive Larry Mestel said. The company, which will also market Julian Lennon's new music project, declined to reveal how much the deal was worth. Julian Lennon said: "I felt it was the appropriate time to take on a partner for both my interest in my father's legendary music and for my future music endeavours." Julian Lennon has had mixed fortunes with his own music career - he is his best-known chart hits were Too Late For Goodbyes in 1984 and 1991's Saltwater. His new album is due out later this year. Primary Wave owns several other music catalogues including those of Kurt Cobain and Nirvana, which it bought last year. The rights to The Beatles' recordings are owned by EMI, while the publishing rights are jointly held by Michael Jackson and Sony.
