They fought the law : Rock music goes to court / Stan Soocher.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Soocher, Stan.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Music--Law and legislation--United States.

Music.

Rock music--History and criticism.

Rock music.

Music--Law and legislation.

United States.

Physical Description:

xvi, 252 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Other Title:

Rock music goes to court

Place of Publication:

New York : Schirmer Books ; London : Prentice Hall International, [1999]

Summary:

It's Perry Mason-meets-Billy Joel in this account of the most famous lawsuits in rock history. They Fought the Law traces the difficulties rockers have faced dealing with bad contracts, personnel problems, litigious fans, and crooked managers and accountants. While it's the music that counts, the music-makers are often robbed of their rightful share of the profits that the music creates -- and may spend decades sorting out ill-considered contracts signed in the heat of their early careers. This book pulls back the veil on the often shady business practices that characterize the rock world -- and shows how some courageous artists have fought the system and won.

Elvis Presley was one of the most successful rock stars of all time -- but he died nearly penniless thanks in large part to the skullduggery of his manager, "Colonel" Tom Parker. The story of how Elvis's estate promoted and protected his image -- and broke new legal ground that, even after his death, Elvis's estate had the right to protect his image -- is one of the most amazing "comeback" tales in all of rock.

The Beatles were also hugely successful -- and they also suffered from poor business dealings that left their songs, recordings, and images in the hands of less-than-scrupulous owners. The group's legacy was a decade of lawsuits over whether their record label -- Capitol Records -- had illegally deprived them of millions of dollars in royalties. The settlement of this case enabled the Beatles finally to renew their creative partnership in the widely successful Anthology recordings and television specials.

Among the other fascinating stories you'll read about in this book are: the lawsuit against Michael Jackson for allegedly plagiarizing for his smash hit "Dangerous"; the claims by the parents of troubled teens that Judas Priest's and Ozzy Osbourne's music led their children to commit suicide; the 2 Live Crew's battle at the Supreme Court over their right to parody an existing song, Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman"; Billy Joel's struggles with bad management that almost left him penniless; and many more.

Based on firsthand accounts, interviews with the participants, and detailed study of court records and documents, Stan Soocher brings new light to the often tangled legal problems faced by rock artists. In doing so, he shows another -- less-glamorous -- side of the rock business.

Contents:

1. Elvis Presley: In His Own Image 1

2. Billy Joel: "Honesty Is Such a Lonely Word" 21

3. George Michael: Don't Let The Deal Go Down On Me 43

4. The Shirelles: Will You Pay Me Tomorrow? 65

5. The Beatles: "I Should Have Known Better" 85

6. Michael Jackson: Dangerous Similarities 109

7. The 2 Live Crew: Nasty Accusations 129

8. Judas Priest: Suicide Mission 153

9. The 2 Live Crew: Supreme Highs and Lows 171.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [193]-221) and index.

ISBN:

0028647319

OCLC:

38595465