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Post by Chesapeake on Jan 30, 2015 21:50:16 GMT -5
The Tom Petty thread reminded me of a copyright case from another era that had a less nice outcome. In 1944 the Andrews Sisters charted a mega-hit with “Rum and Coca-Cola,” a somewhat naughty song that grew out of the U.S. Army’s wartime occupation of the island of Trinidad – to keep it from falling into the hands of the Nazis, don’tcha know. Among the many side benefits of such duty, the soldiers were able to strike up friendships with some of the local ladies. The song was written by American comedian Morey Amsterdam after he visited the island with a USO troupe to entertain our fighting men. Well, that was Morey’s story, and he stuck with it pretty much until the day he died, notwithstanding several lawsuits that indicated otherwise. Actually the song was written by local calypso composer Lionel Belasco, and a Port of Spain band leader known as Lord Invader.
The story is told in great detail here by Kevin Burke, a freelance photographer from Cambridge, MA., and self-described calypso lover, who obviously became obsessed with it.
Calypso on Trial |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2015 23:45:27 GMT -5
Interesting article. I'm not sure that "obsessed" is quite the word.
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Post by Chesapeake on Jan 31, 2015 0:09:29 GMT -5
He did a lot of research on it, to his credit, that's for sure.
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Post by Marshall on Jan 31, 2015 1:26:38 GMT -5
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Post by Chesapeake on Jan 31, 2015 10:34:26 GMT -5
Either old Morey was delusional, or this was one of the worst cases of exploitation on record. The evidence suggests he shamelessly ripped off the song thinking of it as a product of a third-world artist and no one would either notice or care. Once caught in the lie, he probably felt he had no choice but to continue lying. Compare/contrast Pete Seeger's ready acknowledgement of Solomon Linda as the author of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Wimoweh)," once he was apprised of the fact that it wasn't a traditional song in the public domain. Linda still got ripped off, but at least Seeger tried to make things right.
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Post by John B on Jan 31, 2015 15:55:39 GMT -5
Fascinating story. Calypso music is pretty interesting stuff - a blend of social commentary, sunny melodies and catchy rhythms. I got turned on to Lionel Belasco from the Ghost World soundtrack:
Bob Brozman introduced me to Calypso music via "Down the Road," "Cinemascope" and other songs. I think I used to have a Lord Invader CD at one point, but it must have disappeared at some point because I can't find it in iTunes.
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