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A good composer does not imitate; he steals, Igor Stravinsky once said.
Later scholars say Handel heavily borrowed from many other works.
A button on Handels coat saved him from Matthesons sword.
1783Mozart debuts his Symphony No.
37 in G major.
Its mostly copied from Haydns Symphony No.
25 in G major, written that same year, though the copying isnt discovered until 1907.
1844Millettv.Snowdenbecomes the first known music-copyright-infringement case in the United States.
1969The Beatles Come Together features John Lennon singing Here come ol flattop, he come groovin up slowly.
Over several decades, they settled a series of lawsuits and awarded writing credits.
1970George Harrisons first solo single My Sweet Lord is noted for similarities to the Chiffons Hes So Fine.
A legal battle ensues.
The drawn-out lawsuits werent settled until 1998.
1985John Fogerty releases The Old Man Down the Road.
The case was ultimately settled in his favor by the Supreme Court in 1994.
1988Rod Stewart already had a copyright issue with his song Da Ya Think Im Sexy?
after it was found he copied parts of Brazilian musician Jorge Ben Jors Taj Mahal.
That was settled amicably, as was Stewarts next dustup, this time with Bob Dylan over Forever Young.
Stewart agreed to the charge, splitting royalties with the Bard down the middle.
Regardless, the classic rockers are awarded an out-of-court settlement for royalties and given songwriting credit.
They settled peacefully, sharing writing credits and an undisclosed sum.
Verve singer Richard Ashcroft called Bitter Sweet Symphony the best song Jagger and Richards have written in 20 years.
He also claimed that Hovas lyrics infringed on Hamdis moral right to not be associated with anything objectionable.
Both claims were dismissed.
Another came from Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens) over Foreigner Suite.
Noting the similarities, Madonna called Gagas hit both interesting and reductive, but didnt sue.
Four Times Ed Sheeran Borrowed Too Much
By Wayne Marshall
