Plagiarism

[SpacedX]

Sometimes artists copy others subconsciously - it may be a riff, a lyric a refrain or a melody. On other occasions it's a blatant rip off and as a consequence winds up in court. Place your examples of either here. (Props to @ealingfox).

 

I'll start:

 

Elastica forged an entire career imitating their idols, Wire...

 

 

 

This pretty much sums it up...

 

 

I think some of this theft at least resulted in an out of court settlement. 'Lowdown' and  'Human' is particularly ridiculous. The Stranglers had them too for 'Waking Up'. 

[SpacedX]

This always amused me...

 

 

They got away with it, because no one had heard of this...

 

 

[foxfanazer]

In before someone says everything Oasis did

[SpacedX]

 

And she "would have gotten away with it too if it wasn't for those meddling" ...copyright laws...

 

 

Edited 26 February 2022 by Line-X

[SpacedX]

24 minutes ago, foxfanazer said:

In before someone says everything Oasis did

Last time I went there I upset too many people. There are some hilarious examples though. What's that ridiculous one that nicked the melody from 'I'd Like to Teach The World to Sing'?

Edited 26 February 2022 by Line-X

[Fox92]

When I first listened to Green Day's greatest hits I was amazed at how 'Warning' sounded so much like 'Picture Book' by the Kinks.

 

 

 

[purpleronnie]

 

 

 

[Mark_w]

Not really plagiarism, but I still can't get over how close this sounds to a lot of early Pixies/Black Francis (released in 1981).
 

 

Edited 26 February 2022 by Mark_w

[Raw Dykes]

Great topic! Was just talking about this the other day when I heard Dave Chappelle recite the opening lyrics to 1999 by Prince (1982).

 

 

Reminded me that the last time I heard Sussudio (1985) by Phil Collins, it was the first time I'd heard it since I was a kid, and I couldn't believe the nerve.

 

 

 

 

Here's a really blatant one. Jimmy Eat World, 2001

 

 

Kelly Clarkson, 2015.

 

 

[Raw Dykes]

I saw a bit of an interview with Hall and Oates the other day. He said Michael Jackson once said to him that he hoped he didn't mind that he ripped off I Can't Go For That when he wrote Billie Jean.

 

 

I'd never noticed before. Don't think they're that similar.

 

 

 

 

 

Here's the Marvin Gaye track the interviewer from that clip was talking about.

 

 

And the cheap copy...

 

 

[pSinatra]

 

I think Ray Parker Jnr lost his case

[urban.spaceman]

 

[Raw Dykes]

1 hour ago, pSinatra said:

 

I think Ray Parker Jnr lost his case

Good call! Never noticed that before. It's also a rip off of this...

 

 

[Bellend Sebastian]

I think it's an 'inspired by' rather than 'ripped off', but that's a fine line isn't it?

 

 

 

 

 

[SpacedX]

8 hours ago, Mark_w said:

Not really plagiarism, but I still can't get over how close this sounds to a lot of early Pixies/Black Francis (released in 1981).
 

 

Love this band

[Fox92]

13 hours ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

I think it's an 'inspired by' rather than 'ripped off', but that's a fine line isn't it?

 

 

 

 

 

 Why have I never caught onto this. Now you've said it all I can hear is T Rex.

[Dr Marco]

 

 

 

[ozleicester]

This INSANITY.. that eventually "probably" led to the death of Greg Ham.
 

 

[Dr Marco]

 

 

[Finnegan]

On 26/02/2022 at 10:43, Fox92 said:

When I first listened to Green Day's greatest hits I was amazed at how 'Warning' sounded so much like 'Picture Book' by the Kinks.

 

Green Day are fvckers for it, they spent the start of their career desperately pretending not to be a Stiff Little Fingers cover band. 

[RoboFox]

There was this from a few years back. I think it was settled out of court. 

 

Lana Del Reydiohead. 

 

 

On 26/02/2022 at 10:43, Fox92 said:

When I first listened to Green Day's greatest hits I was amazed at how 'Warning' sounded so much like 'Picture Book' by the Kinks.

"Waiting" from the same album is quite similar to Petula Clark's "Downtown" 

[Fox92]

44 minutes ago, Finnegan said:

 

Green Day are fvckers for it, they spent the start of their career desperately pretending not to be a Stiff Little Fingers cover band. 

I've only listened to 'Dookie', as I picked that record up for a fairly decent price, but other than that I've just got their greatest hits which is where I picked up that comparison/plagiarism from. 

[Raw Dykes]

1 hour ago, RoboFox said:

There was this from a few years back. I think it was settled out of court. 

 

Lana Del Reydiohead. 

 

 

"Waiting" from the same album is quite similar to Petula Clark's "Downtown" 

That's funny, as Creep itself is suspiciously similar to The Air That I Breathe by The Hollies. That was settled out of court and Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood were given writer's credits on the track.

 

 

[SpacedX]

 

Perhaps the greatest example of outright theft in the history of rock music. When Led Zeppelin IV was released they sued accordingly - but Jimmy Page denied it, despite the fact that Spirit had supported them many times, had played the song live, whilst and even the amp top theremin gimmick was also stolen from Randy California by Page. Astonishingly, it wasn't until 2018 that the verdict was overturned by appeal by which time the song's composer had been dead for 21 years. 

 

He had history for this. Amongst others, check out Black Mountain Side on Led Zeppelin I and Black Waterside by Bert Jansch.