Songs with No Copy-rights

 

Pro Tip: To use these songs for free in a video or project, you must either perform them yourself or find a royalty-free recording of the public domain work (like those found in the YouTube Audio Library).These songs were published in 1930 and their 95-year copyright term has ended:

• "Georgia on My Mind" – Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell (famously covered by Ray Charles)

• "I Got Rhythm" – George and Ira Gershwin

• "Dream a Little Dream of Me" – Fabian Andre, Wilbur Schwandt, and Gus Kahn

• "Embraceable You" – George and Ira Gershwin

• "Body and Soul" – Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, and Frank Eyton

• "On the Sunny Side of the Street" – Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh

• "But Not For Me" – George and Ira Gershwin

• "Walkin' My Baby Back Home" – Fred E. Ahlert and Roy Turk

---

🎻 Classical Masterpieces

Almost all "famous" classical music is in the public domain because the composers have been dead for centuries. Note that while the music is free, a specific recording by a modern orchestra is likely copyrighted.

• "Für Elise" – Ludwig van Beethoven

• "Clair de Lune" – Claude Debussy

• "The Four Seasons" – Antonio Vivaldi

• "Ode to Joy" – Ludwig van Beethoven

• "Canon in D" – Johann Pachelbel

• "Ride of the Valkyries" – Richard Wagner

• "The Blue Danube" – Johann Strauss II

---

🪕 Folk, Traditional & Blues

These songs are so old that their original authors are often unknown, making them free for anyone to use.

• "House of the Rising Sun" – Traditional (The melody and lyrics are free; the 1964 version by The Animals is not).

• "Amazing Grace" – John Newton

• "Auld Lang Syne" – Robert Burns

• "When the Saints Go Marching In" – Traditional

• "Scarborough Fair" – Traditional

• "Danny Boy" – Traditional

• "St. Louis Blues" – W.C. Handy

---

🎂 Celebratory & Holiday Songs

• "Happy Birthday to You" – (Declared Public Domain in 2016 after a long legal battle).

• "Jingle Bells" – James Lord Pierpont

• "Deck the Halls" – Traditional

• "Silent Night" – Franz Xaver Gruber and Joseph Mohr

---

⚠️ The Golden Rule: Composition vs. Recording

It is vital to understand the difference between the two types of music copyright:

1. Composition (Lyrics & Sheet Music): If the song is on this list, you can record your own version of it for free.

2. Sound Recording: You cannot use a specific recording (like Ray Charles singing "Georgia on My Mind") just because the song is public domain. That specific audio file is owned by a record label.

Pro Tip: To use these songs for free in a video or project, you must either perform them yourself or find a royalty-free recording of the public domain work (like those found in the YouTube Audio Library).