# Is this the world's most ridiculous copyright lawsuit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 31, 2009, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854 "2009-07-31T07:58:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/21 "2009-07-31T13:03:17Z")
Suing for the use of a key on the keyboard activating a function in a program is stupid as hell too, but it’s happened. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/22 "2009-07-31T13:44:57Z")
No, the stupidest is the lawsuit [on whether a silence infringed on a silence of 4’33’'](http://classicalconvert.com/2007/07/the-stupidest-music-lawsuit-ever-infringing-on-cages-433/). ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/23 "2009-07-31T13:56:21Z")
I think it’s pretty clear that it’s a deliberate echo of the song. It’s about Australia, so they’d do that as a kind of obscure reference. But I can’t see why it matters to anyone, or should be pursued as a copyright infringement. A good ten percent of the population of this planet needs to be bitchslapped. ---
**Author:** ![Teacake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Teacake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teacake)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/24 "2009-07-31T13:57:53Z")
We used to sing it at Brownies in the early to mid eighties, and I remember the Men at Work song very clearly too. It used to be on BFBS (the British Forces Broadcasting Service) all the time. I learnt both songs at about the same time. I never caught any kind of similarity between them. However, you’ve all missed out a verse. Kookaburra sits on the railway track Along comes a train and squashes him flat Splat, kookaburra, splat, kookaburra. That’s the end of that, ha ha. (We always sang the “ha ha”. Children are sick.) ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/25 "2009-07-31T15:43:14Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > I think it’s pretty clear that it’s a deliberate echo of the song. It’s about Australia, so they’d do that as a kind of obscure reference. > > But I can’t see why it matters to anyone, or should be pursued as a copyright infringement. > > A good ten percent of the population of this planet needs to be bitchslapped. That’s prolly a good tack for the arguments to take; that this is similiar to the “oriental” musical theme meme thingy. Musical satire, perhaps, which evokes an image of Australia (or some such… it’s early yet for me). ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/26 "2009-07-31T15:47:14Z")
> [@Damfino](#): > > We were singing the kookaburra song in school in the 70’s (UK). So did we, small town in Texas in the 70’s. Cute song. ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/27 "2009-07-31T15:51:19Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > By the way, a Kookuburra is the bird that makes a sound kind of like Fran Drescher’s (in the Nanny) laughter. > > Edit - Nevermind I believe that can be used to get a UN resolution to bomb Australia. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/28 "2009-07-31T15:54:12Z")
Kookaburra?! Seriously? Even if you could hear it in “Down Under” (which I CAN’T), I can’t believe it’s still even under copyright. We used to sing that in 4th grade, right here in the US! ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/29 "2009-07-31T15:56:09Z")
I’ve been listening to this song on and off for 24 years, and never noticed the connection between the Kookaburra song and the flute riff before I read this thread. :smack: Now I like the song even more. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/30 "2009-07-31T16:17:38Z")
I can definitely hear the similarity, and always thought it was intentional. I remember when the song came out - I thought, “Hey, it’s the kookaburra song!” That said, this is a ridiculous lawsuit. Twenty-six years later? You snooze, you lose. We sang the song here in the US; at summer camp and in elementary school (this would have been mid-late 70s). ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/31 "2009-07-31T16:23:13Z")
Okay, I’ll admit, now that my aural memory has caught up to the rest of my brain and actually supplied my inner ear with the actual flute riffs, that it IS similar…but I would have never caught that on my own if I hadn’t read this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/32 "2009-07-31T16:49:24Z")
I love Kookaburras - they’re awesome. The best are located in Canberra, laughing at Parliament. Wish we had Kookaburras in D.C. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/33 "2009-07-31T17:03:41Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > By the way, a Kookuburra is the bird that makes a sound kind of like Fran Drescher’s (in the Nanny) laughter. > > Edit - Nevermind [holy shit!](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fc_-icFHwQo&feature=fvw) This is about the most annoying bird I have heard in a LONG time … if one was sitting outside my window doing that for long, the shotgun would be coming out ASAP! ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/34 "2009-07-31T17:13:51Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Kookaburra?! Seriously? Even if you could hear it in “Down Under” (which I CAN’T), I can’t believe it’s still even under copyright. We used to sing that in 4th grade, right here in the US! You probably owe copyright royalties from your last [birthday party](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_birthday_song#Copyright_status), btw. My Australiophile (?) 5th-grade teacher had us singing Kookabura in 1988. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/35 "2009-07-31T17:18:51Z")
Kookaburra sits on an old gumtree Counting all the monkeys he can see Stop! kookaburra, Stop, kookaburra That’s not a monkey, that’s me! ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/36 "2009-07-31T17:33:30Z")
I always heard it, and recognized it, but a lawsuit? Obviously it was intentional. It was a song about Australia and a reference to an Australian bird. Not only that, but a reference a lot of people would actually get. It was a lot clearer to me than “Sweet Talkin’ Guy” in “My Sweet Lord” but I figured the Kookaburra song was in the public domain, hence no problem. I can think of tons of examples in jazz where there’s a little riff of something else. Why is this not okay in rock ‘n’ roll? Yeah, it’s ridiculous, but not as bad as the rock star who got sued for plagiarizing hismelf.\* ETA: John Fogarty, as someone else said. Also: We sang the Kookaburra song in grade school _in the '50s._ Beat that, you guys. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/37 "2009-07-31T18:29:29Z")
As I said upthread, I remember singing it in Music class in elementary school, in the “Music from around the World” units. I think \*Kookaburra \*and \*Waltzing Matilda \*were the full extent of Australia-themed songs. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ReuvenB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@ReuvenB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReuvenB)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/38 "2009-07-31T18:34:54Z")
Huh. I always figured a kookaburra was some sort of koala. You learn something new every day. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/39 "2009-07-31T19:07:23Z")
If the Kookaburra song is still under copyright, aren’t we infringing it by posting the lyrics here? I smell a lawsuit! ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2009, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854/40 "2009-07-31T21:26:03Z")
In the US, in order to get statutory damages and attorney fees, you have to file [in a timely manner](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_infringement#Infringement_suit_in_U.S._law). If this was true down under, then the guy is going to lose money on the case. OTOH, in the UK, they’re [still fighting](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8176352.stm) over “A Whiter Shade of Pale.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-worlds-most-ridiculous-copyright-lawsuit/504854.md?page=3)