U2 is getting sued, accused of ripping off guitarist's song for "The Fly"

[Dude111]

Ah man!!

 

[purpleoscar]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/accusation-of-stolen-riff-wont-fly-with-u2-gm5w9k27w

I guess there was a response but I don't have full access to the article:

a lawyer for U2 said the works were “entirely different, and as a result, sound nothing alike”.

 

[vandesa]

26 odd years later. What, was he in a coma for most of them? Why Now?

 

[Jarvio]

They barely sound alike to me. Maybe the intro, but this happens with music.

If this guy can sue them, then I sure as hell can sue U2 for some of my own songs lol. But I would never, because, THIS HAPPENS WITH MUSIC ALL THE TIME.

 

[Mack_Again]

U2 can technically sue lots of post rock bands if this doofus can sue U2

 

[Y2K]

U2 have asked the judge to drop the suit.

U2 urges end to Achtung Baby lawsuit

 

[Mack_Again]

Im pretty sure Jimmy Page is laughing somewhere. he should be sued so much that he would be bankrupt at this pt.

 

[Super Yo]

U2 is getting sued, accused of ripping off guitarist's song for "The Fly"

https://twitter.com/u2_uruguay/status/958438486654291969

U2 defeats lawsuit claiming it stole part of 'Achtung Baby' song

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit accusing U2 of lifting part of a British songwriter’s work for a song on the Irish rock band’s 1991 blockbuster album “Achtung Baby.”

U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan rejected Paul Rose’s claim that U2 willfully copied from a 13-second guitar riff near the start of his 1989 instrumental “Nae Slappin,” to create a 12-second segment featuring a guitar solo for its song “The Fly.”

Rose, who lives in New York, claimed that U2 copied from his song “virtually note-for-note,” and also used a tambourine and the same drum, percussion and bass line without permission.

But the judge said the riff was not a “sufficiently substantial” portion of “Nae Slappin,” a 3-1/2-minute composition that “demonstrates the plaintiff’s impressive guitar skills,” to be a protectable “fragment” of the work.

She also said that even if the riff were protectable, a reasonable jury could not find that U2 copied it.

Rose had been seeking at least $5 million in damages from U2 lead singer Bono; bandmates The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr., and UMG Recordings Inc, a Vivendi SA unit that releases records under U2’s label Island Records.

He claimed he had given Island a demo tape of “Nae Slappin” that was later incorporated into “The Fly.”

A lawyer for Rose did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Lawyers for the defendants did not immediately respond to similar requests.

The case is Rose v Hewson et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 17-01471.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

I like how U2 is "Hewson et al"

Like... Bono and those other guys.

 

[Sickly Vulpine]

Good, I'm glad this did not become a bigger thing and that judge threw it out. They don't need any negative publicity right now. The parts do sound somewhat similar but also coincidental. The guy was just looking to cash in. Nice victory for the band. Good for the judge for not pushing this forward any further.

 

[mama cass]

 

[Hewson]

I like how U2 is "Hewson et al"
.

So do I.

 

[TheGeekyU2Fan]

Nice.

 

[Jim]

On a similar note.... I loved the 'first' 'No Line on the Horizon' or NLOTH2 cut that didn't make the album and can't find it anywhere other than youtube.. Then I heard a while ago (and again yesterday) ZZ Top 'Legs' and the riff is almost identical. Do you think that's part of the reason the NLOTH2 has vanished from history?

 

[BVS]

On a similar note.... I loved the 'first' 'No Line on the Horizon' or NLOTH2 cut that didn't make the album and can't find it anywhere other than youtube.. Then I heard a while ago (and again yesterday) ZZ Top 'Legs' and the riff is almost identical. Do you think that's part of the reason the NLOTH2 has vanished from history?

Vanished from history? What are you talking about?

I think it was just too rushed, and vocally wasn’t a song they thought would fit.

 

[Jim]

I don't disagree with you BVS ... maybe it just didn't fit in the end.

When I say vanished from history, I am referring to the fact that the version isn't available anywhere as far as I know (iTunes, spotify, cassette etc), which is a shame because I love it, especially for those direct and dirty bass shifts from Adam.

The comparison to ZZ Top is a gas though don't you think?

 

[mama cass]

I don't disagree with you BVS ... maybe it just didn't fit in the end.

When I say vanished from history, I am referring to the fact that the version isn't available anywhere as far as I know (iTunes, spotify, cassette etc), which is a shame because I love it, especially for those direct and dirty bass shifts from Adam.

The comparison to ZZ Top is a gas though don't you think?

i just had a listen on youtube (been a looooong time!) and the description says it was a b-side to the Get on your boots single?

 

[BVS]

When I say vanished from history, I am referring to the fact that the version isn't available anywhere as far as I know (iTunes, spotify, cassette etc), which is a shame because I love it, especially for those direct and dirty bass shifts from Adam.

The comparison to ZZ Top is a gas though don't you think?

Well it wasn’t on many formats then, so YouTube or your own download are going to be the only places you’ll find it.

I did laugh at the ZZ Top thing.

 

[TheGeekyU2Fan]

On a similar note.... I loved the 'first' 'No Line on the Horizon' or NLOTH2 cut that didn't make the album and can't find it anywhere other than youtube.. Then I heard a while ago (and again yesterday) ZZ Top 'Legs' and the riff is almost identical. Do you think that's part of the reason the NLOTH2 has vanished from history?

I don't think that's the reason, I guess they scrapped NLOTH2 to make a better version of the song. I think its a b side to the GOYB single.