Can anybody think of a song that was stolen from another (and would wind up in a lawsuit)? One example is "La Vida La Voca", in which Ricki Martin enunciates the lyrics the same way Ozzy Osborne did with the song "Paranoid".
I don't know if you meant a style of singing specifically, or also melodies and chords. But for what it's worth, "Taurus" by Spirit first came to mind. Give it a listen and tell me if it reminds you of any Led Zep tune.
When it comes to Led Zep, there have been a bunch of lawsuits over the years, IIRC.
A notorious case is the similarities between "He's So Fine" by The Chiffons and "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison.
A copyright infringement lawsuit ensued. The judge ruled against Harrison:
Did Harrison deliberately use the music of "He's So Fine"? I do not believe he did so deliberately. Nevertheless, it is clear that "My Sweet Lord" is the very same song as "He's So Fine" with different words, and Harrison had access to "He's So Fine". This is, under the law, infringement of copyright, and is no less so even though subconsciously accomplished.
Aside from similarties between the lines "he's so fine" and "my sweet lord," I have never been able to detect anything else that would warrant a plagiarism charge. And there is nothing in "He's So Fine" to equal the glorious musical "swoop" at the lines "But it takes so long, my Lord."
But staying on a Beatles track, what about this pair?
A notorious case is the similarities between "He's So Fine" by The Chiffons and "My Sweet Lord" by George Harrison.
Did Harrison deliberately use the music of "He's So Fine"? I do not believe he did so deliberately. Nevertheless, it is clear that "My Sweet Lord" is the very same song as "He's So Fine" with different words, and Harrison had access to "He's So Fine". This is, under the law, infringement of copyright, and is no less so even though subconsciously accomplished.
George Harrison was totally stitched-up on that case. Another version of He's So Fine was recorded using the Harrison slide guitar sound, & I believe that was the version they played in court. The story gets very complicated & wasn't finally settled until the 90s! George Harrison ended up paying out, but nothing like the amount he was first fined, & he ended up owning the rights for both songs in the UK and North America.
Aside from similarties between the lines "he's so fine" and "my sweet lord," I have never been able to detect anything else that would warrant a plagiarism charge.
To my ears there are a lot more similarities than those lines. I remember when "My Sweet Lord" was released I immediately thought of "He's So Fine." Oh well... In any case, Harrison's version is a masterpiece.
As for the Clapton vs. Starr songs, you're right. Especially the rhythms. It's most likely another example of an artist inadvertently copying another.
Childish Gambino/Donald Glover was accused (and I agree) of stealing from New York rapper Jase Harley's song "American Pharao" for their hit song "This is America". And at that level of resemblance, there's hardly any doubt. But what's interesting and people aren't aware of is that the composer arranger for Childish Gambino is a certain Ludwig Göransson...
Lalo Schifrin may have been "inspired" by Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" when composing his score for Dirty Harry, which influenced John Carpenter when he was composing Assault On Precinct 13.
Lalo Schifrin may have been "inspired" by Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" when composing his score for Dirty Harry, which influenced John Carpenter when he was composing Assault On Precinct 13.
The vocalizations in Lalo's Magnum Force theme were also obviously inspired by Morricone's westerns.
And of course, there was the case of the famous three notes in Walter Schumann's "Dragnet" theme, which was taken from the opening credits in Miklos Rozsa's score for "The Killers".
Eric Carmen openly took Rachmaninoff melodies for "All By Myself" and "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again." They were in the public domain stateside, but unknown to him, still under copyright in the UK.
It reminded me of Barry Manilow using a classical piece (the name of which escapes me at the moment) as a basis for "Could This Be Magic". But I guess that would be different because I think Manilow gave credit for the inspiration.
I seem to remember that Ray Parker, Jr. was taken to court after his massive hit Ghostbusters caught the attention of Huey Lewis and the News. HL sued for the striking similarity between the Parker song and HL's I Want a New Drug. I'm sure there was a settlement.
I seem to remember that Ray Parker, Jr. was taken to court after his massive hit Ghostbusters caught the attention of Huey Lewis and the News. HL sued for the striking similarity between the Parker song and HL's I Want a New Drug. I'm sure there was a settlement.
I seem to remember that the judge threw out the lawsuit, telling both of them that their songs ripped off Chuck Berry. Probably apocryphal, now that I think of it.
Look, I have no time for this nonsense, so could someone please post a video of Michael Jackson's 1991 song "Heal the World" and tell me that it's not quite similar to a bit in a popular 1970s film about a shark? Thanx!
