Thing 000850 - My Sweet Lord

Shelf:

Jurisprudence:

Bright Tunes Music Corp. v. Harrisongs Music Ltd

Presentation

In 1962 Ronald Mack composed the song He’s So Fine, and it was recorded by the singing group called the Chiffons recorded it. The Chiffons were an all-girl group from the Bronx, including Judy Craig, Patricia Bennett, Barbara Lee and later Sylvia Peterson. In December 1962 Bright Tunes Music published He’s So Fine as a single by the Chiffons on Laurie Records. The song has a tune consisting essentially of four repetitions of a very short basic musical phrase, “sol-mi-re,” (motif A), altered as necessary to fit the words, followed by four repetitions of another short basic musical phrase, “sol-la-do-la-do,” (motif B). In addition, in the second use of the motif B series, a grace note is inserted, so that making the phrase goes “sol-la-do-la-re-do.” He’s So Fine was a best selling record. After Ronnie Mack’s death, the copyrights of the song He’s So Fine were owned by Bright Tunes Music Corp.

In December 1969 George Harrison, a former member of the British pop group The Beatles, composed the song My Sweet Lord with lyrics praising the Hindu god Krishna but including the Hebrew word “Hallelujah” as well as the mantra “Hare Krishna.” In January 1970 My Sweet Lord was recorded in London by Billy Preston. In September 1970, My Sweet Lord was released by Apple Records as part of Preston’s album Encouraging Words and as a single. The music was then transferred to paper by someone who prepared a lead sheet containing the melody, the words and the harmony for the United States copyright application. The deposit melody was four repetitions of a very short basic musical phrase, “sol-mi-re,” (motif A), modified to suit the words, followed by another short basic musical phrase, “sol-la-do-la-do,” (motif B), repeated three times. In the second repetition of motif B, there was a grace note inserted, making the phrase go “sol-la-do-la-re-do”. In November 1970 George Harrison released his own version of My Sweet Lord on his first solo album All Things Must Pass. In his version the little grace note dropped out. Also in the printed sheet music that was issued of his version the grace note was absent. Harrison’s single My Sweet Lord became very successful.

On February 10, 1971, Bright Tunes Music filed suit against Harrison’s company Harrisongs Music, claiming that the song My Sweet Lord was plagiarized from He’s So Fine. Referring to the altered note, Harrison stated that his song is that which he sung at a particular moment and not something that is written on a piece of paper. On August 31, 1976, the court case Bright Tunes Music Corp. v. Harrisongs Music Ltd. was heard at the United States District Court in New York. Judge Owen stated that:

The harmonies of both songs are identical. [...] It is apparent from the extensive [discussion] between the Court and Harrison covering forty pages in the transcript that neither Harrison nor Preston were conscious of the fact that they were utilizing the He’s So Fine theme. However, they in fact were, for it is perfectly obvious to the listener that in musical terms, the two songs are virtually identical except for one phrase. There is motif A used four times, followed by motif B, four times in one case, and three times in the other, with the same grace note in the second repetition of motif B. [...] I conclude that the composer [...] was working with various possibilities. As he tried this possibility and that, there came to the surface of his mind a particular combination that pleased him [...]. Why? Because his subconscious knew it already had worked in a song his conscious mind did not remember. [...] Did Harrison deliberately use the music of He’s So Fine? I do not believe he did so deliberately. Nevertheless, it is clear that My Sweet Lord is the very same song as He’s So Fine with different words, and Harrison had access to He’s So Fine. This is, under the law, infringement of copyright, and is no less so even though subconsciously accomplished. [...] Given the foregoing, I find for the [Bright Tunes] on the issue of plagiarism [...].

Harrison was found to have “subconsciously” copied He’s So Fine. The requirement of fixation in copyright, acknowledges the recording and not the interpretation. The one moment of performance of Harrison’s composed melody song by Preston became the fixed song.

Physical copy box present Publication text unverified Presentation text unverified Specimen present Jurisprudence unverified Research documentation unverified Other contents

Digital copy file present in the hard drive Publication text present in en, fr, nl Presentation text present in en Specimen image present Jurisprudence present Research documentation present Comment: images : record covers by George Harrison, Jonathan King, Jody Miller, Billy Preston, The Belmonts, The Chiffons and others ; concerts pictures with George Harrison ; drawings of musical notes. sound & video : The Belmonts - My Sweet Lord ; Billy Preston - My Sweet Lord ; Boy George - My Sweet Lord ; George Harrison - My Sweet Lord ; Jody Miller - He's So Fine ; Jonathan KIng - He's So Fine / My Sweet Lord ; Mi dulce señor ; The Chiffons - My Sweet Lord. text : article "The role of the subconscious in intellectual property law" by Robin Feldman ; article "Does that sound familiar ? : Creators' liability for unconscious copyright infringement" by Christopher Brett Jaeger ; record cover "The Story behind "this song" " produced by George Harrison ; law review article on the case. Other media 5 different texts (in english, dutch and french) that seem like drafts for the presentation / publication texts.