Opinion ID: 737229
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: to Down Home/Roots and Rhythm

Text: 23 MCA submitted the deposition of Franklyn Scott, the president and vice-president of Roots and Rhythm, Inc. and formerly an officer of Down Home Music, Inc. Roots and Rhythm and Down Home are a mail order and retail record business, respectively, and both are located in El Cerrito, California. Scott testified that Down Home (and later Roots and Rhythm) had been selling Charly recordings in California since the formation of Charly in the 1970s. Charly Records, Ltd. was incorporated in 1981 and began releasing Chess recordings in August 1988. Since that time, Charly Records' recordings, including Chess recordings, have been among those sold by Down Home in California. 24 Prior to 1988, Down Home bought its Charly products from a company called Street Level Trading Co. Although MCA submitted evidence indicating that Street Level was not completely independent from Records, this evidence is largely irrelevant because Records did not produce Chess recordings until August 1988. About that time (August 1988), and lasting until early 1990, Street Level and Records began having problems. When Street Level and Records were having problems, Down Home would purchase directly from Records in London. Included among these direct purchases were seventeen Chess recordings (totalling pounds sterling59.50) ordered on September 19, 1988, and fourteen Chess recordings (totalling pounds sterling49.00) ordered on November 25, 1988. 25 In early 1990, Street Level and Records terminated their relationship. In an April 11, 1990 letter, Records informed Down Home that it should thereafter order directly from Records, with the export invoicing to be handled by Expan Marketing, Ltd. At the time of Scott's deposition in April 1992, Roots and Rhythm continued to place orders directly with Records, which would then fill the orders via Expan Marketing. Orders from May 7, 1990 to February 4, 1992, indicate that Down Home ordered over 452 Chess recordings directly from Records. 26