"Down Under" flute solo copies 70 year old song, suit alleges

[Ar-Pharazon]

LINKY

Basically, a company which owns the rights to a 70 year old campfire song claims the flute melody in the 1983 Men At Work song is this other song (or a part thereof).

Now, I've never heard this campfire song (Down Under was probably my favorite 80's song, or at least top 5), and it may well be true, but how the hell can a suit be filed 27 years after Down Under came out.

Is there no kind of statute of limitations on this kind of thing? And/or how could they not have noticed in any of the 27 years before this?

Just a play for money perhaps?

 

[Jono]

Actually they have decided that "Down Under" did copy from the other song. Personally I can't hear the similarities when they are played so I think it is all bullshit, but apparently I was wrong.

 

[Marc]

Actually they have decided that "Down Under" did copy from the other song. Personally I can't hear the similarities when they are played so I think it is all bullshit, but apparently I was wrong.

No it's fairly obvious so while it's there, I think it's a very bad decision that by the court that royalties are due.

The copyright of the song "Kookaburra Sits In The Old Gum Tree" changed hands in 1989 after the death of the author (who wrote if for the Girl Guides in 1935).

Down Under originally came out in 1979 but got a resurgence in 1983 when used by Australia II team in the America's Cup.

Even allowing for the time the courts can take to hear cases, this is a matter than's been settled 30 years after the song came up, and after a 10 year period during which the original copyright holder could of persued for royalties.

Basically what we've seen here is the music industry equivalent of patent trolls get a win (and as The Verve can you tell it's not the first time - even when the artist has thought they'd licenced accordingly though I believe in this instance the MaW believed the song to be public domain).