I want to do some reissues. Now what?

========I want to have a CD label dedicated to reissues. It will be direct reissues of in and OOP albums. What would be the point in reissuing a CD that's still in print? When it is mastered in a high quality fashion, especially titles which have not been touched since the late 80's/early 90's. I do know that many labels, both indie and major, are often sent requests by labels who specialize in reissues. As an example, let's say my label was called Boobies, and my slogan was "fun to look at and oh so much more". I happen to like Atlantic Records, which is a Warner entity. Primary reissues would go on Rhino, but they also license their work to others on a selective basis. I send them a list of records I'd like to reissue, let's say a list of 40 titles. Most of them are denied, but they give me 12 to choose from. My question is, where do I go from there, and how much, in terms of raw material, can I ask for?================Here's my rough list so far:1) Obtaining album master. Do research and make sure that master is of the best quality, not something that's a 5th generation dub, or something that was remixed in recent years.2) Licensing. Obviously a deal has to be made, maybe two to three years. This would eventually lead to...3) Royalties/clearances. If it is something that's been out of print, I want to make sure everyone is paid properly, or to update any out of date publishing information. Knowing how many copies I will press up, I will also want to know how much is due to the artists, songwriters, and publishers. Are there extra fees involved when I turn a recording "OOP" to "in print"? I want everything spelled in front of me before moving on.4) Mastering. The easiest and cheapest route to reissue CD's that are out of print would be to extract the old CD, peak the levels, and maybe EQ it a bit (we all know about all that high end that plagued CD's in the late 80's). But I don't want that. If I can obtain the actual master tape, I would want it done professionally. I have a few people I am considering for this, and I want to use them for their work. There are some remaster engineers who are known for their work enough to where they have a fanbase, so that could easily become a selling point. Not everyone in the target audience may know who that person is, but they would buy a CD knowing it is of top quality. Not everyone outside of the target audience may know who the artist is, but they would buy a CD knowing it has the "trademark of quality".5) PackagingI would have to deal witha) CD booklet printingDo I want to print it with the same company as the CD's, or would I be better if I went elsewhere to print them? Would it be cost effective to have them done in different spots, or would the insert fee be too much?b) Liner notes. Since I can write, I would do the liner notes.c) Disc design. I would want an eye-catching design for the discs themselves. While it isn't as important as the music, I do want to give the discs a visual identity as well.6) RESEARCHa) interviews with artistb) interview with producer and engineer of original recordingc) obtaining any extra photos which may be used within the CD booklet.As a lot of you know, I'm into research. Someone tells me they're looking for a song, I will do my best to not only find it, but tell you who did the demo, when and where, and why acetate #7 is still the best version. Musical history, especially recorded musical history, is something I thoroughly enjoy. ?uest writes liner notes on his CD's for people like me, liner note junkies, who enjoy the legitimate information and the cryptic tales. It may be, in the end, useless information, but for those who want to get in-depth with the music and try to figure out, piece by piece, what makes it tick, I want to be able to put my love of not only the music, but the research element, into my reissues.For me, I would want to interview any surviving members of a group, as well as the producers and engineers who were there. To be able to capture a moment on tape that would be prized by music fans, was there a sense that it would be special someday, or was it just "part of the job"? I want to know all that and more, and I would hope people buying my reissues would expect the same. If someone sees a CD with my label on it, they can perhaps say "I will get this by default, I know it's not just the music". While all of that information would mean added costs for a CD booklet with more pages, I would like to have that option. If I have to have a page limit, then I will stick to that.The album cover is the packaging. While it is about the music, it is the album cover that gives the overall album a face. When you hear Led Zeppelin's "The Rain Song", you may automatically get visions of orange and blue hues. When you hear "Miuzi Weighs A Ton", you may see that lightbulb, or the expression on Chuck D. and Terminator X's faces. Just as much as I enjoy hearing outtakes and alternate takes of songs on the album, I also like to see any existing photos which came from that same session. I remember seeing outtakes of photos in Spin magazine 20 years ago from the shoot that gave us Fishbone's first EP. Or when you come across a webpage of photos taken on the day which gave us the cover for ABBEY ROAD. Even if it's one extra photo that I am able to obtain, I would like to use that within the CD booklet. I would have to find the original photographer, find if (s)he has the original negatives, and if so, how much would it be to obtain the negative for use, or for him/her to print up a photo for my use. Is there a one-time fee, and if not, what other fees are involved?I would also like to know of any existing photos of the artist in the studio during the recording of the album. I am sure the group would want to use it for their own use, a future book or something, but to have one or two photos would be a nice addition. Again, not important, merely something extra.7) CD manufacturingI've done this before, so it's just knowing how many copies will be made, and do I make a separate run for promotional copies, or just make a pressing big enough where it would involve having extras for promotional purposes.=======Then there's distribution. Knowing my target audience helps, and it would also help in knowing who would be the right distributor, when they are selling my product to stores and online merchants who can get my discs to the people.Advertising in magazines would be essential, key magazines read by people who may be a part of my target audience. It creates word of mouth, and with luck a demand for the product.Sending promo CD's to magazines/publications/newspapers for review.Publicity, sending press releases to various media outlets. In the past when I have done publicity for others, my method had always been to send it to as many small outlets as possible, so that it will appear to be more widespread. Yet by doing that, it doesn't guarantee that it will be covered. The same can be said for a better method, which is to send it to quality, large media outlets. In other words, taking a risk and hoping one of the "big boys" will bite. NPR may not feel it is of interest, but maybe CNN will. If there is any small chance that it can be covered by a big outlet, that will result in more attention than 50 top quality small outlets. Then again, it is about "target audience", but if promoting it in a big outlet helps bring it to the attention of those outside of the target, maybe that risk can be made.=============Of c
ourse, the big issue here is money, but by knowing some of the steps involved, I can create a budget that would suit these reissues. If there was an outside party that was interested, then I would have to come up with a plan that would show that it would make money not only for me, but for them as well. To find out what is cost-effective and what is wasteful.The music I want to reissue were released on indie labels. Most of them have not had any major label exposure, with the exception of one. However, that album was just "distributed by Warner Bros." and I know Warner Bros. does not own the rights to that album (I believe it was for a three year period, and it has been released by a certain label ever since).I believe these are the basics. What have I missed, what are some other important factors to consider?