Trials, especially civil ones, are generally dry affairs. And while much of the recent Ed Sheeran copyright infringement case was no different, it did have a "wish you were there" moment. Sheeran was sued by the descents of Marvin Gaye's co-writer for the 1973 smash "Let's Get It On." They alleged that he had stolen "the heart" of the song for his 2016 Grammy winning "Thinking Out Loud." The smoking gun was a recording of a 2014 concert in Zurich, where Sheeran segues seamlessly between the two tunes. Ergo, said the lawyers, they are essentially one and the same, and Sheeran was a thief.
Sheeran admitted that while he had of course heard "Let's Get It On," it was not the influence, let alone a copy. He said he merely used common chord progressions and musical building blocks, some of which were the same. And to reinforce the point, he picked up a guitar and gave an impromptu mini-concert from the witness box, running through a mashup of similar tunes from Van Morrison as well as Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, Bill Withers and Blackstreet. It would have been a sellout if Ticketmaster had been involved.
Sheeran eventually won, proving (at least in this case) that musicians using the foundational elements of other songs does not make them copycats. And mashing up bits and pieces of similar tunes, something the artist does frequently in concerts and on recordings, is not plagiarizing but honoring the originals by making a new connection. Sheeran at the trial: "If it's a love song, you might mash it up with another love song." He suggested that Elvis Presley's "Can't Help Falling in Love" or Whitney Houston's rendition of "I Will Always Love You" would also mix well with "Thinking Out Loud." Online you can find endless other examples of different artists and tunes: my favorite might be combining Pink Floyd and the Bee Gees as "Stayin' Alive In The Wall."
Music is just one place where creators mash up multiple things to create something new. Fashion is another: virtually every time you get dressed you combine different items that are similar or complimentary to one another to make a new outfit. Cooking is nothing if not an endless mashup of cuisines, ingredients and methods. You also do it in home decorating, in landscaping, indeed in writing columns.
While often one and done, these combinations can also have staying power and prove as durable as the component parts. That top might actually work well with those pants, you grow to like that vase on that shelf, or you're surprised how good the chicken tastes with an extra shot of Siracha. And then there's pickleball. A mashup of tennis, ping pong and badminton, it started as a child's game in 1965, but has since become the fastest growing leisure activity in the country with an estimated 4.8 million players.
Some companies have started to offer the ability to make mashups not just as a service, but as a way of testing consumer tastes and creating new products. Coca-Cola launched its Freestyle machines in 2009, and they are now standard at movie theatres and fast foods outlets. Pick a base like Coke or Sprite, then add your favorite additive such as vanilla or cherry. The frequency of some choices has led to new products on the shelf, such as Coke with Cherry Vanilla or Sprite Cherry. Getting in on the act this past week was Kraft Heinz, which is introducing its Remix sauce dispensers. Select a base of ketchup, ranch, 57 Sauce or BBQ sauce, then add "enhancers" that include jalapeno, smoky chipotle, buffalo and more. The most buzz around corporate HQ? Mango ketchup.
For sure, there can be outright theft in any arena, and intent counts. But inspiration is just that. John Lennon admitted to basing "Come Together" on Chuck Berry's "You Can't Catch Me," and Curt Cobain said that "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was ripping off the sound of the Pixie's "Debaser." Or as Tom Petty said (and his "American Girl" was very much the inspiration for The Strokes "Last Nite") "If someone took my song note for note and stole it maliciously, then maybe. But I don't believe in lawsuits much. I think there are enough frivolous lawsuits in this country without people fighting over pop songs."
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Marc Wollin of Bedford loves mixing stuff up. His column appears regularly in The Record-Review, The Scarsdale Inquirer and online at http://www.glancingaskance.blogspot.com/, as well as via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
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