Did Coldplay rip off Satriani?

[RexNFX79]

I ran across this article today on yahoo. Anbody have any thoughts?

Los Angeles (E! Online) – "Viva La Vida" is turning even more loco for Coldplay.

Having already denied in public the plagiarism claim and declared that the perceived similarities between their hit song and Joe Satriani's 2004 track "If I Could Fly" should be chalked up to nothing more than coincidence, Chris Martin and the boys have now taken their denial to federal court.

In court papers filed in Los Angeles Monday, Coldplay responded to Satriani's copyright-infringement claim, saying the 52-year-old guitarist's song "lacks originality" and therefore was in no position to receive copyright protection.

Furthermore, the British rockers' attorneys claimed that any similarity was so minimal that it did not warrant the legal action.

Back in December, Satriani claimed the group, who incidentally won the Grammy for Song of the Year for the in-question tune, had repurposed "substantial" portions of his song for their hit.

At the time of the original filing, Coldplay issued a statement on their website refuting the rocker's claims, saying he "did not write or have any influence on the song."

"If there are any similarities between our two pieces of music, they are entirely coincidental and just as surprising to us as to him."

The band is currently in the midst of a world tour in support of the album Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends.

[braz_b2]

i saw the video on youtube.. seems coincidental.. theres millions of songs out there its bound to happen

[cmewhinney]

It's not a matter of ripping anybody off, it's just whether the songs are sufficiently similar to constitute copyright infringement. Satriani's music is is widely distributed enough that it is impossible for the Coldplay guys to prove that they never heard it, so the only thing that would keep Satch from winning is if a music theorist says that the melodies aren't sufficiently similar. IMO, they're very similar.

[two fingers]

Yes. They did.

[cmewhinney]

Originally Posted by braz_b2

i saw the video on youtube.. seems coincidental.. theres millions of songs out there its bound to happen

It doesn't matter if it's coincidental- infringement has a negative connotation (like "ripping somebody off"), but it doesn't have to be intentional to constitute infringement.

[cbanker]

Complete coincidence. But hey, it got Satch back in the papers!! Now he is with members of Van Halen and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. (chickenfoot). A poor choice of band name, if you ask me.

[markdavid]

Satriani knows that Coldplay didn't rip off his song , hes just spotted a similarity in the 2 songs and hes trying to make some money out of them.

[Buskman]

Originally Posted by markdavid

Satriani knows that Coldplay didn't rip off his song , hes just spotted a similarity in the 2 songs and hes trying to make some money out of them.

You think Satch is hard up for cash?

He might not have Coldplay money, but I don't feel he's at the point where he looking to make money off of anyone from this kind of standpoint.

But like it was said earlier, it doesn't have to be intentional for it to be deemed infringement. I think the average person (or judge, in this case ) can hear the similarities in the main melody. I'm curious to see how this one plays out...

[musicelectronix]

Originally Posted by markdavid

Satriani knows that Coldplay didn't rip off his song , hes just spotted a similarity in the 2 songs and hes trying to make some money out of them.

Like Satriani needs any of this (money or additional reputation, especially this kind of rep)... I don't think Coldplay ripped off Satch, but in papers Satch may win this one.

[ErebusBass]

Oh yeah they did.

Listen to both tracks, there's no way that's a coincidence.

[Jim Carr]

Originally Posted by cmewhinney

It's not a matter of ripping anybody off, it's just whether the songs are sufficiently similar to constitute copyright infringement. Satriani's music is is widely distributed enough that it is impossible for the Coldplay guys to prove that they never heard it, so the only thing that would keep Satch from winning is if a music theorist says that the melodies aren't sufficiently similar. IMO, they're very similar.

+1

There is literally thematic identity in a section of each work. Coldplay will lose this one, no doubt (IMHO ).

[emblymouse]

They also ripped off Kraftwerk. 'Computer World'. I don't know what they called it but it was even more blatent. Shame They didn't even change the key.

[onlyclave]

Originally Posted by Jim Carr

+1

There is literally thematic identity in a section of each work. Coldplay will lose this one, no doubt (IMHO ).

See also: George Harrison "My Sweet Lord".

[CharlieDog]

Wait...Coldplay said that someone else's music "lacks originality?"



Oh, man.

[scotch]

I'm not an entertainment attorney, but my understanding is that the complaining party not only has to demonstrate better than 90% similarity in the published work, but also must prove with certainty that the 'plagiarist' had listened to the work. There's the sticky part. Somehow I doubt Chris Martin has a "Flying in a Blue Dream" poster hanging in his bedroom, if you get my drift...

I agree that the bulk of the melody is virtually identical, but there is a lot more for Satriani to prove. The judge isn't just going to use his own 'gut reaction' to come to a ruling. There are going to be a whole cavalcade of "experts" and attorneys making the case for each side!

I think this type of thing is going to keep happening more & more in popular music as time goes on.

[The Birdman]

The main theme in Coldplay's song is totally identical to one of the main passages in Satriani's. If Harrison lost for "My Sweet Lord", then Coldplay has to lose to Satriani.

Did Coldplay consciously steal from Satriani???? I doubt it.

Roger

[scotch]

Originally Posted by The Birdman

The main theme in Coldplay's song is totally identical to one of the main passages in Satriani's. If Harrison lost for "My Sweet Lord", then Coldplay has to lose to Satriani.

Did Coldplay consciously steal from Satriani???? I doubt it, but I don't think intent has to be proven.

Roger

I could be wrong, but that's what the attorney on NPR said.

Times have changed since the 70's, with the tidal-wave of music on the radio/internet/tv, there's no way you could ever hear it all!

[Mikio]

Originally Posted by CharlieDog

Wait...Coldplay said that someone else's music "lacks originality?"



Oh, man.

LOL, SAME THOUGHTS XDD


anyway, If Satch's song did lack originality, theirs is in the same case or even worse


intentional or not, they are messing with copyrights issues, so they'll definetively lose, and I'm glad

[spideyjg]

Originally Posted by CharlieDog

Wait...Coldplay said that someone else's music "lacks originality?"

Oh, man.

I read that and had to make sure it wasn't still April 1st.

You just can't make stuff up like this.

Jim

[cmewhinney]

Originally Posted by scotch

I'm not an entertainment attorney, but my understanding is that the complaining party not only has to demonstrate better than 90% similarity in the published work, but also must prove with certainty that the 'plagiarist' had listened to the work. There's the sticky part. Somehow I doubt Chris Martin has a "Flying in a Blue Dream" poster hanging in his bedroom, if you get my drift...

I agree that the bulk of the melody is virtually identical, but there is a lot more for Satriani to prove. The judge isn't just going to use his own 'gut reaction' to come to a ruling. There are going to be a whole cavalcade of "experts" and attorneys making the case for each side!

I think this type of thing is going to keep happening more & more in popular music as time goes on.

The parts in bold are incorrect, although I do agree with much of the rest of your post. Satriani's music is distributed widely enough that there's no way for the Coldplay guys to prove that they never heard "If I Could Fly", so the only point that's left for debate is whether there is a "striking similarity" between the songs.