As of January 1, 2026, U.S. copyright will expire for works published in 1929, including the following songs:
Beyond the Blue Horizon
Body and Soul
But Not for Me
Dancing on the Ceiling
Embraceable You
Exactly Like You
Fine and Dandy
Georgia on My Mind
Get Happy
I Got Rhythm
I'm Confessin' That I Love You (music 1929, new lyrics and title !930)
Just a Gigolo (music and German lyrics 1928, English lyrics possibly 1930 or 1931)
Get Happy
Love for Sale
Memories of You
Mood Indigo
On the Sunny Side of the Street
Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone
Rockin' in Rhythm
Ten Cents a Dance
Them There Eyes
Three Little Words
Time on My Hands
Walkin' My Baby Back Home
You're Driving Me Crazy
2026 is another very good year for public domain! Some of the most significant works are "Body and Soul," "But Not for Me," "Georgia on My Mind," "I Got Rhythm," "Love for Sale," and "Mood Indigo."
This list includes mostly jazz-oriented and jazz-adjacent songs, and was selected from lists found on Wikipedia and on Jazzstandards.com. Please let me know of any errors.
Further detail on most of these songs is available on Wikipedia.
For more popular, jazz, and classical pieces entering the public domain, see the Wikipedia article 1930 in Music.
United States copyright law is quite restrictive as compared to many other countries. According to the provisions of the Copyright Act of 1976 and the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 (aka "Mickey Mouse Protection Act"), works published or registered before 1978 remain under copyright for 95 years.
With the passage of the 1998 law, the cutoff date for works entering the public domain became 1922, with any works published in 1923 or later remaining under copyright. Beginning in 2019, however, the clock began running again, with each new year bringing one more year of songs and other works into the public domain. Over the next 20 years or so, most "Golden Age" jazz standards will lose copyright protection.
Many other countries have shorter terms of copyright; one common formula is the life of the author plus fifty years (see this table). For example, in Canada you can record pieces written by Wes Montgomery (d. 1968) John Coltrane (d. 1967), Igor Stravinsky (d. 1971), Louis Armstrong (d. 1971). Lee Morgan (d. 1972), or Kenny Dorham (d. 1972).
Many other countries have shorter terms of copyright; one common formula is the life of the author plus fifty years (see this table). For example, in Canada you can record pieces written by Wes Montgomery (d. 1968) John Coltrane (d. 1967), Igor Stravinsky (d. 1971), Louis Armstrong (d. 1971). Lee Morgan (d. 1972), or Kenny Dorham (d. 1972).
1n 2024, Mickey Mouse entered the public domain. Below is an excerpt from a previous post on copyright expiration, regarding the Mickey question.
However, if you are thinking of utilizing Mickey's image in 2024, you should consider that copyright will only expire on images from cartoons released in 1928, such as Steamboat Willie. In those early images, Micky had a somewhat different visage, with a longer, rat-like nose. He did not not yet have his white gloves or red shorts; they came later. If you want to use the white gloves or red shorts, you will have to wait a few more years.Here's an interesting article on the subject, with an image of Mickey as submitted for copyright in 1929. It looks to me as though Mickey's nose had been altered a little by then, closer to its current look. He has his white gloves, too. The image is in black and white, so I don’t know about the red shorts.By the way, Minnie Mouse also appears in the 1928 cartoons, though I don't think she is credited by name.In addition to copyrighting Mickey, The Walt Disney Company has also registered him as a trademark. US trademarks can be renewed every 10 years, potentially going on forever. Disney has a strong case for Mickey as a trademark, but less so for many of their other characters, who will be falling out of copyright in the next few years. Here is an article from the Western New England Law Review that covers in depth the legal standing of Mickey and other Disney characters.
Here's an article on the evolution of Mickey's image through the years. Anything through 1930 should be fair game.
This 1928 image from an advertising poster would seem to indicate that the white gloves and red shorts are PD now, but better do your own legal research:
.jpg)
More links:
Copyright Law of the United States (Wikipedia)
