KVR Audio

ouroboros · Post by **ouroboros** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 6:39 am

What is the legality of quoting a line from another song in your own song (obviously with selling the song n mind vs. personal use). So for instance, if I write a song, and then wholesale quote a chilipeppers lyric, "can't stop the spirits when they need you", is this legit? I don't want to take the vocal sample, just the words.

Borogove · Post by **Borogove** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 6:56 am

ouroboros wrote:What is the legality of quoting a line from another song in your own song (obviously with selling the song n mind vs. personal use). So for instance, if I write a song, and then wholesale quote a chilipeppers lyric, "can't stop the spirits when they need you", is this legit? I don't want to take the vocal sample, just the words.

Happens all the time. I imagine more than a couple lines might be something someone could try and bring a case against, but one line is certainly legit.

xoxos · Post by **xoxos** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 4:55 pm

as long as that one line isn't like a career-making kinda line

afa bastard lyrics, 'ouroboros borogove' is enuff to make me want to sit down.

donkey tugger · Post by **donkey tugger** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 5:08 pm

xoxos wrote:
afa bastard lyrics, 'ouroboros borogove' is enuff to make me want to sit down.

Let's be having the rest then birthday boy!

Palagarizing lyrics is cool, do it loads, only a line at a time though, and completely obviously. In one track I managed to rip lines from;

all things bright and beautiful
american pie
the sound of music
onward Christian soldiers

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 5:10 pm

ouroboros wrote:...and then wholesale quote a chilipeppers lyric, "can't stop the spirits when they need you", is this legit?

Text copyright laws always have provisions for quotations and intertextual associations. You could mess the line up a little and call yourself po/mo avantgarde. You could also credit them like you would a quotation in a book without having to pay royalties.

Sadly, no such provision exists in sound recording copyright laws.

Cheers,
Steve

Steven West · Post by **Steven West** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 7:47 pm

Yeah, I think it's cool if you can work them in too. I've used The Killer's famous 'You shake my nerves, and rattle my brains - ol' Louie Louie just drives me insane...' for an old tune called Hologram Dreams I'm quite proud of.

It's respect to your inspirations, and gives fans and non-fans some insight to your tastes and varieties. Plus, they can immediately indentify with certain lines - which draws their interest into what else you're saying.
(Hologram Dreams isn't quite as 'happy' as you'd think it would be lyrically.

)

Go for it - and even better if you can deliver that line in kinda Anthony's singing style. Just a slight inflection if you can. Imitation is the best form of flatery... Nudge nudge, wink wink.

Sepheritoh · Post by **Sepheritoh** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 7:54 pm

Well I remember some instance long ago when Rod Steward unintentionally quoted Bob Dylan in his Forever Young and it ended it court, Rod had to pay Bob his fair share and name him as co-writer.

I would guess that there are many more examples, but also just as many examples where the original writer never bothered.

Please quote me and make lots of money. I will wait until you are stinking rich before I sue you

dystonia_ek · Post by **dystonia_ek** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 8:19 pm

Lots of people have done this and gotten away with it, most notoriously Jim Thirlwell (Foetus/Wiseblood) who did it in pretty much every song he ever wrote... that Doors 'Roadhouse Blues' quotation in Wiseblood's 'Motorslug' single being one of the more blatantly obvious.

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 8:42 pm

Sepheritoh wrote:Well I remember some instance long ago when Rod Steward unintentionally quoted Bob Dylan in his Forever Young and it ended it court, Rod had to pay Bob his fair share and name him as co-writer.

I have a vague recollection of something related to this, but All Music has Rod Stewart's Forever Young written by Jim Cregan/Kevin Savigar/Rod Stewart, while Bob Dylan's Forver Young (a different song) also appears there, but not as performed by Rod Stewart.

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 8:52 pm

Further, as an interesting case study, here are the lyrics to both songs:

Bob Dylan wrote:May God bless and keep you always,
May your wishes all come true,
May you always do for others
And let others do for you.
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous,
May you grow up to be true,
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you.
May you always be courageous,
Stand upright and be strong,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy,
May your feet always be swift,
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift.
May your heart always be joyful,
May your song always be sung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

Rod Stewart wrote:May the good Lord be with you
Down every road you roam
And may sunshine and happiness
surround you when you're far from home
And may you grow to be proud
Dignified and true
And do unto others
As you'd have done to you
Be courageous and be brave
And in my heart you'll always stay
Forever Young, Forever Young
Forever Young, Forever Young

May good fortune be with you
May your guiding light be strong
Build a stairway to heaven
with a prince or a vagabond

And may you never love in vain
and in my heart you will remain
Forever Young, Forever Young
Forever Young, Forever Young
Forever Young
Forever Young

And when you finally fly away
I'll be hoping that I served you well
For all the wisdom of a lifetime
No one can ever tell

But whatever road you choose
I'm right behind you, win or lose
Forever Young, Forever Young
Forever Young ,Forever Young
Forever Young, Forever Young
For, Forever Young, Forever Young

There are similarities, but no direct rip-off. All my googling hasn't turned up any reference to the lawsuit, rather just some folks expressing outrage at what they perceived to be a blatant rip-off.

Discuss.

Cheers,
Steve

Steven West · Post by **Steven West** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 9:06 pm

I never heard that about Rod Stewart either? But I wouldn't put it past Bob's managers and agents to have roasted Rod's ass over it.

But that's the one thing that irks me - there seems to be ALOT of artists using the same popular song titles now. I noticed it first when Leonard Cohen came out with his 'Closing Time' song - nice smokey little ditty... Then everyones talkin' about Stereophonics and their hit 'Closing Time'. Did they do a cover version? What the hell is this shit?

Six Pence None The Richer with 'There She Goes', cool - a VU cover tu... WRONG!

And now with these young pop skanks, EVERY song title is the same on Britney's, Jessica's, Christina's, Hillary's, Ashlee's CD's.... 'My Heart Is Yours', 'Your Heart Is Mine', 'Our Hearts Are One', 'You're In My Heart', 'My Hearts For You'... WTF!

All it takes is 2 seconds to think and one more word to stand out.... 'Our Hearts Are FOREVER One', 'My Heart Is ALWAYS Yours', 'I Wholeheartedly Give My Heart To You'.... SOMETHING to say 'Oh that's a LITTLE different atleast'.

But M's old song 'Made In Munich' uses lines from Dylan, Bowie, Gene Autrey - you name it!... And he got off 'Scott' free.

(Robin Scott was 'M' pretty well - get it?....

)

Sepheritoh · Post by **Sepheritoh** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 9:08 pm

You had me searching the internet. The only place I could find giving credits to both is

http://ntl.matrix.com.br/pfilho/html/ly ... _young.txt

Modeler · Post by **Modeler** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 9:12 pm

Too many artists wrote:Just put your hands in the air and wave 'em like ya just don't care

ouroboros · Post by **ouroboros** » Wed Jan 19, 2005 9:25 pm

Steven West wrote: It's respect to your inspirations, and gives fans and non-fans some insight to your tastes and varieties. Plus, they can immediately indentify with certain lines - which draws their interest into what else you're saying.

exactly. I love, too the possibility to layer associations, and draw upon other works and play upon their meaning. It's a very poetic function and expresses a lot more than a four line verse might otherwise allow!

Bastardizing Lyrics