When providing everything from our CD duplication to our DVD replication services, there are many legal aspects which one must be aware of, so as not to overstep and infringe on any laws. One area of music that seems to be hit by repeated legal disputes is the use of sampling or perceived musical similarities.
Recent news hit the music world of Jay-Z and Timbaland being cleared of liability for an uncleared sample they’d used in their 1999 single Big Pimpin’ – namely the 1957 track Khosara Khosara by Egyptian composer, Baligh Hamdi. With the rapper-producer duo being cleared, we thought we’d take an amble back through history and take a peek at a couple of other famous musical legal ‘disputes’ that have hit the music world.
Huey Lewis and the News vs Ray Parker
We’ve always wanted to write those words…
When Mr. Lewis and his Newsly fellowship declined to write the Ghostbusters theme song, the subsequently Oscar-nominated Parker agreed, and tackled the job pretty darn terrifically. The only issue being that once Huey Lewis declined, Ray Parker was handed a song to give him an idea of what the film’s producers were looking for… that being I Want A New Drug by Huey Lewis and the News. See where this is going? Once it was released – and Lewis spotted the similarity – the two settled the dispute outside of court, only for Lewis to later break a confidentiality agreement in discussing the case on VH1… which in turn led to Parker suing Lewis! Convoluted, ey?
Have a listen and see if you can spot the *ahem* similarities:
The eagle-eyed Radiohead fans among you may have noticed that Radiohead’s single, Creep, is co-written by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood. The reason for this is that when the duo heard the vocal melodies and guitar line, they noticed the remarkable (/suable) resemblance to their 1972 track, The Air That I Breathe. Subsequently, they sought to sue the band and earned themselves a co-writer credit. Ironically, the original is copyrighted so we are unable to embed it, so have a listen to a live version with Leo Sayer and see what you think:
There are some undeniable similarities between both songs and their more contemporary equivalents, so you can see why the original writers may have been a little peeved! It just shows that it pays to be careful when you are writing and releasing your music. When it comes to duplication and replication you need to be ultra-careful so as not to infringe on the numerous laws that exist surrounding it. So, if you are in any doubt, or would like to discuss our replication and duplication services, then don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can contact our friendly team on 0208 963 3555, where we will always be eager to help meet your individual requirements.