I wrote a song that I and my business partner are planning to record. It’s been copyrighted but, to make sure everything was Kosher we took the thing to a musicologist. It turns out that three bars of the introduction are identical to the bridge of one of the lesser-known tunes of a famous Broadway musical.:smack: Everything else as far as we know is original including the main theme. I could rewrite, but what I have sounds so perfect for what I’m trying to evoke that I’d like to avoid it if I can. So, my question is this: How much of a song has to sound like another in order for it to legally count as plagiarism?
They lyrics, for whatever it’s worth, are guaranteed 100% original.
‘Three bars are identical’? Really? I’d seek a second opinion. Using the same chords, for example, wouldn’t necessarily make them identical. Literally thousands, if not millions, of pieces of music use a handful of harmonic progressions. Plenty of musicologists have a slightly geeky enjoyment in identifying influences and suchlike (guilty as charged ), but this doesn’t necessarily mean it’s an accusation of unoriginality in any way.
It all depends on whether the copyright holder wants to push the issue. It doesn’t seem likely that three bars would be enough, especially since the rest of the song is not plagiarized, but ultimately, that would have to be determined by a court.
I’d say under the circumstances you outline, it’s unlikely to be a problem, but nothing’s 100% certain.
I downloaded the song in question and the son of a bratwurst right. For three lousy bars the melodies are dead ringers after the first few notes. Then the tunes veer off in their own special directions. So, what I need is a legal loophole.
Here’s a test. Let me hear the song (got a MP3 URL?) and see if I can guess which musical. If it was one in the last 65 years, I should be able to ID it. And even if I can, there might be some subtle diffs I can point out.
Of course, you can always modify a note/rhythm/harmony here & there. It might even improve it!
And don’t tell me which bars – more than you already have – if you can post the whole thing, to make a better test for my ears.
How much is a bar? That’s like four notes or so, right? I’m no lawyer, but I don’t know if there would be any legal problems or not. I can only think of three things:
A woman sued John Williams claiming that he stole the first seven notes of the E.T. theme from one of her songs. Although they were pretty much the same, she lost, since the rest of the song was different.
A man sued Coca-Cola, claiming his song was plagarized for the “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” jingle. Although the notes were different, the style of the song was similar (almost as if one was a parody of the other). He lost.
Irving Berlin’s estate never sued the state of New York, despite the fact the four-note “I Love New York” jingle has the same four notes as the “land that I love” part of God Bless America.
Thanks for the offer, Musicat, but I’m afraid that’s beyond my puny capabilities. I’m not a real songwriter. The idea just popped into my head and I liked it enough to sit down and put it down on paper. I don’t have all that high-fallutin’ techno jazz a serious songwriter would naturally have available. I will say that the context is quite different.
I guess I’ll have to try and find a lawyer who handle’s this stuff in the Seattle area.
Three bars isn’t much. And Broadway musical songs don’t tend to have overwhelmingly original changes and melody lines. What I mean by that is when you hear one, you say, “That must be a show tune. It kind of reminds of the other 10,000 show tunes I’ve heard.”
Did you see “When Harry Met Sally”? They saw Phantom of the Opera. There’s a repeated theme, stated in a big song, “Music of the Night.” In the movie, Harry (Billy Crystal’s character) thought it was silly because it sounded just like “School Days” ("Dear old golden rule days. . . "). (In fact it was slightly different but the similarity is comical.)
By all means talk to a lawyer but it sounds like your’re on fairly safe ground.
I encourage you to talk to a lawyer licensed in your jurisdiction about this. I am not your lawyer; you are not my client; this is not legal advice; these aren’t the droids you’re looking for; He can go about his business.
I’ve heard of the three-bar rule, and it doesn’t seem to make much sense outside of Broadway musicals and pop music from the pre-rock era. Chords, beat, and other textural elements play such a significant role in characterizing a song that just the melody alone is hardly sufficient.
Yet the rule seems to persist. The Beatles were successfully challenged* because Come Together is melodically similar to Chuck Berry’s early hit You Can’t Catch Me. I don’t know if Berry initiated this suit, or if it was his publisher or record company, but in my opinion the two songs are as different as night and day. As part of the final agreement, Lennon had to perform the Chuck Berry song for a solo album. And he did, but by an ironic twist, he made it sound very much like Come Together.
*I don’t remember if this dispute made it to court or was settled.
), but this doesn’t necessarily mean it’s an accusation of unoriginality in any way.