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Solo forums => John Lennon => Topic started by: Bobber on December 22, 2009, 10:04:05 AM

Title: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Bobber on December 22, 2009, 10:04:05 AM
Seems that John got his sources in the late '60s. Do you think he was just inspired? Compared to George's My Sweet Lord/He's So Fine for example...

Come Together vs You Can't Catch Me

Chuck Berry - You can't catch me (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8-NqsY46PY#normal)



Give Peace A Chance vs Om Shanti Om

Om Shanti Om mantra (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jf8bHBzzfD8#)



Happy X-Mas (War Is Over) vs Stewball

Stewball -Traditional by Anja & Bernd (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsWc42TS0vQ#noexternalembed-normal)


May I have your votes please?
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Kevin on December 22, 2009, 10:20:02 AM
Mmmm. The Beatles always were masters at "absorbing influences." John and George seem to have been particularly good at this. But inspiration or stealing???
Am I right then that Paul was the only songwriting Beatle not to face plagarism litigation? Other than the frankly silly Ob La Di thingy I can't think of any real accusations against him. And that's quite ironic, because he of all of them was the most diverse in his influences, openly attempting to improve on the  works of others.
I digress. Were they theiving b*stards? Yes. But more so than anyone else at the time? I don't know, because I'm not as familiar with any other artists works.
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Mairi on December 22, 2009, 04:46:27 PM
John was always pretty open about who he was nicking from. I recall a story about him going to a radio station interview with a big stack of records, poiting out each and every thing he had stolen.
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Bobber on December 22, 2009, 08:44:31 PM
John was always pretty open about who he was nicking from. I recall a story about him going to a radio station interview with a big stack of records, poiting out each and every thing he had stolen.

Really? Never heard that before!
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Sondra on December 24, 2009, 11:18:51 PM
Really? Never heard that before!

I know I've either read or heard him talk about "stealing" from others somewhere. None of them really hid it and everyone was doing it. The Brits always gave credit where credit was due. Plus, I think there are only so many chords and combinations, so eventually...

I like it when Pete Townshend's girlfriend was talking about how some new song had the same chords (or something) as one of his old songs and she was all excited like they took from him. Pete goes: "well I didn't invent them."
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: alexis on December 25, 2009, 02:49:35 PM
I think it would have been more fair/square if the writing credits for  "Happy Christmas" song had been written as "Words John Lennon; Music Traditional".

I've never heard that Jewish song before - I suppose if it came before  "Give Peace a Chance", the writing credits should reflect that.

John lost a lawsuit on that Chuck Berry song, that's how John's "Rock and Roll" album came to be. For my bit, though I hear similarities, they sound different enough to me that I would not have voted to convict John of musical plagiarism on that one. I suppose Paul took a hit on that one too, being a "Lennon-McCartney" song!

 A little OT, but I feel the same about the song George lost a lawsuit on, "My Sweet Lord" (he lost because some judge/jury thought it sounded too much like "He's So Fine", by the (?)Chiffons). They sound different enough to me that I wouldn't have convicted.

Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Jane on December 25, 2009, 07:05:41 PM
I think it would have been more fair/square if the writing credits for  "Happy Christmas" song had been written as "Words John Lennon; Music Traditional".

Yes, the two songs sound similar. I wonder who was the first to write the music? The two guys look quite modern, though, from our time.
And if John was the second it means that he made a Christmas song out of a Jewish Hanuka song.
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Bobber on December 28, 2009, 01:50:38 PM
I think it would have been more fair/square if the writing credits for  "Happy Christmas" song had been written as "Words John Lennon; Music Traditional".
Although the guys performing the song look quite modern, the song itself is a traditional, meaning it has been around for quite some time and certainly before John composed Happy Xmas.

I've never heard that Jewish song before - I suppose if it came before  "Give Peace a Chance", the writing credits should reflect that.
It's not Jewish, but an Indian mantra. These are usually ancient old 'songs' and not protected by copyrights. The Indian who produced this piece is convinced that the melody has been around long before Give Peace A Chance was recorded.

John lost a lawsuit on that Chuck Berry song, that's how John's "Rock and Roll" album came to be. For my bit, though I hear similarities, they sound different enough to me that I would not have voted to convict John of musical plagiarism on that one. I suppose Paul took a hit on that one too, being a "Lennon-McCartney" song!
The funny thing is that I feel that this song of the three mentioned is the one that sounds most different comparing to the other two. Of course there's the 'old flat top' words and the lawsuit. And it is the one that is the best known example of John's plagiarism. The lawsuit was solved in a nice way tho, unlike George's case.
Title: Re: Lennon: An Inspired Thief?
Post by: Andy Smith on December 31, 2009, 12:18:04 AM
well Paul thought that Yesterday was not his and it was some old song he remembered.