Stevie Wonder on Sesame Street

Courtesy of BoingBoing I came across this totally mad set performed by Stevie Wonder on Sesame Street - two of my favourite things in one!

First, a funky take on the sesame street theme (link):

Second, the sweetest "Superstition" jam ever (link):

So that makes me think about copyright and fair use (remembering, of course, that there is no such concept of "fair use" here in Australia). Even the world's richest man has admitted to viewing copyrighted works illegally uploaded to youtube (Bill Gates' piracy confession). In this case, there is no obvious financial damage caused - there's nowhere I can go and buy a DVD of Stevie Wonder on Sesame Street. In fact without this person uploading these videos I would probably go to my grave never having enjoyed this. Now I will probably get to enjoy this articular Wonder magic a number of times, which I am honestly sure would make Stevie Wonder happy. In addition, after browsing a few more "lost" Stevie Wonder videos, I'm sure I'll end up buying some more tracks on iTunes that I don't yet have.

Of course just because the outcome is good for the copyright holders doesn't make the original act any less illegal, but it really does make the position of the medial labels and the lawmakers look quite foolish and untenable in the long term.