Joe Satriani Accuses Coldplay Of Plagiarism
Did you hear about how everybody wrote "Viva La Vida" before Coldplay wrote "Viva La Vida"? This summer Creaky Boards took to the internet to take the public's temperature on their claim of having written a preexisting song substantially similar to Coldplay's iTunes anthem. According to Reuters, today's allegation is a little more legal...
Satriani's copyright infringement suit, filed on Thursday in Los Angeles federal court, claims the Coldplay song "Viva La Vida" incorporates "substantial original portions" of his 2004 instrumental "If I Could Fly."The 52-year-old guitar virtuoso is seeking a jury trial, damages and "any and all profits" attributable to the alleged copyright infringement.
And according to YouTube, it's a little more substantially similar:
To prove an allegation of musical plagiarism, Plaintiff Satch must demonstrate that Defendant Coldplay had access (hello iTunes, hello irony) to his work, and that Coldplay's composition is substantially similar (hello identical melodic motif and chord progression). Seems Joe's got a case, at least, for a moment there it does sound like a shred-version of Coldplay. It'd help Chris Martin's cause if his song was built of more than one chord movement. Viva and learn. If this doesn't work out, Joe, there's always Creaky Boards to sue.
Posted at 11:51 AM by amrit in Video
Tags: Coldplay | Joe Satriani
because, as we all know, coldplay probably listens to nothing but joe satriani.
Score = 20
0:14 in the video ha!
Score = 9
I think creakyboards version was more similar than satriani's little riff. I would assume coldplay never listened to satriani before this lawsuit
Score = -8
a - Satriani's such a douchebag that he should lose anyway. b - It sounds like they raised the pitch of Viva La Vida in the video a little bit, I can't tell.
Score = -35
you are a douchbag sir or maam!
Score = 1
you're a douschebag. Coldplay's Jonny Buckland needs to take a lesson from Satriani....he already has the bald thing going.
Score = 1
They definitely raised the pitch to match the Satriani song...having said that, I wonder how he'll lose? It sounds almost identical. It will probably be pretty difficult to prove that they ever heard the song though and that might be their saving grace. Pretty interesting that this one song has spawned two claims of copyright infringement! Coldplay - the gift that keeps on giving.
Score = 5
i sincerely doubt that anyone in coldplay was more than vaguely aware that joe satriani existed before this mess. Also, yes they're very similar but it's not like the similarity is between a seriously complex or original part of the song. i'm sure there are plenty of other songs in the world that have that same riff. satch should find another way to afford a hair transplant.
honestly, though, i'm more dissappointed in the fact that Stereogum was the last place to carry this story. mtv, rolling stone, spin, and even wikipedia had it before stereogum. lame-o
Score = -10
you don't have to prove that coldplay listened to satriani, although it helps, just access (wide dissemination of satchs records) plus similarity. George Harrison got wrung up for infringement under similar circumstances
Score = 2
Never heard of him? He's had 14 grammy nominations, 3 billboard 200 records ( in the top 30 I might add), and played in G3 concerts, something coldplay hasn't had the honour of yet. So yes, coldplay has heard of him.
Score = 5
Never heard of it?! right! tell me one single good guitar player that never heard of joe satriani!!! he's the master of guitar, among with steve vai, malmsteen, macalpine, paul gilbert, etc, ett! so many others! any musician entitled to call himself a musician knows about Satriani! But probably you're right, coldplay has insignificant guitar players that never heard about Satriani! I hope Satriani wins in court! Cheers!
Score = 0
Wow anybody who thinks satch sucks has obviously never listened to him. He has more talent in his pinky than those fags from coldplay have in their holy body.
Score = -1
I don't think it is plagiarism. Similar of course, but the melody isn't the same. The "I use to rule the world" line/melody is the only thing that is the same, but a couple notes doesn't not constitute plagiarism. And similarities fall of pretty quickly after that. Chord progressions have natural melodies built into them and it is not plagiarizing if you use those.
Score = 5
Coldplay should twitter "Who the Fuck is Satriani?"
Score = 38
done.
http://twitter.com/Coldplay_
Score = 0
Come on, Joe Satriani isn't even the kind of music I listen to (neither is Coldplay) and even I know who he is and have heard some of his music. It's entirely plausible they heard this song, and they do sound strikingly similar.
Score = 13
It's just a snippet of the song that sounds the same, the rest of it is cheese-tastic late 80s hair metal guitar "jamming". Really, it's just a three note melody that is similar.
Score = 3
this is really gonna screw with chris martin's campaign to be considered godlike
Score = 23
God, even as the chords supposedly "trail off" Chris Martin's voice rises as Satriani starts moving into higher notes. Coldplay, you have enough $...just pay the man and keep ripping the benefits of your plagiarism.
Score = 1
SAL, you are a douche.
Score = -18
Yes, no one has ever used those 4 chords together in that order before. And by no one, I mean everybody.
Score = 16
Coldplay sucks.
Score = 8
I didn't know that Joe Satriani actually had any songs. Doesn't he just noodle away at the guitar for days on end?
Score = 1
both bands could or even should be sued for using pretty generic harmonies and melodies.
Score = 13
oh damn - blokes done jacked that one.
Score = -2
Joe Satriani sucks.
Score = -22
I have heard of Joe Satriani before (as I am sure most everyone has, including Coldplay), but come ON, dude (satriani). It's not like most everyone has heard your music, including that song. Since when has instrumental rock ever made for hit songs that most everyone has heard? Yeah, Sat has a lot of fans that buy his albums, but give me a fucking break. Just because Coldplay probably heard of Satriani doesn't mean they ever listened to his shitty hair (or lack of hair) metal instrumental music. I hope he loses so bad that his hands are paralyzed from the shock of NOT being the most awesome guitar player on Earth, and he can't play his fuckball music anymore. Fuck him and his gold-digging ass.
Score = -18
Heh. "fuckball music". Fitting description.
Score = -13
Chord progressions are not protected by copyright laws. Melodies are, however.
Coldplay doesn't have to own the entire catalog of the greatest guitar virtuoso ever (according to all of the douchebags that frequent guitar websites). They could have had a friend say, "hey, listen to this, it sounds pretty cool." Like we all have. I don't know how many Snow Patrol songs I've heard because a friend thought I should have a listen.
We as music fans should file a class action lawsuit against all of their suck.
Score = 7
They ripped off kraftwerk last go around. I can't wait for them to take hits from the 80's and do 'em sound so crazy.
Score = -6
Since XY, Coldplay has been lifting little melodies and riffs from other bands. Listen to "Talk" and Kraftwerk's "Computer Love" or "Square One" and U2's "New Years Day" (bass lines).
Score = 10
Crap! I've been racking my brain for years trying to figure out what song "Talk" was stealing. It's was right there all along. My beloved "Computerliebe". I hope Joe wins this, simply because the robots in Kraftwerk can't sue them because of our ridiculous discrimination againts machines.
Score = 16
I would think Coldplay got permission for "Computer Love" because it's been going on 4 years since X&Y came out. Plus, I really like that song. :\
Actually I wish more bands referenced Kraftwerk. I'd pay good money (99 cents) for like a System of a Down cover of "Numbers" or some shit.
Score = -7
Not to defend Coldplay here, but "Talk" is credited officially, as it always has been, to both the guys from Coldplay AND Kraftwerk. They got permission and share royalties.
Score = 6
if i was coldplay i would be pissed at my producer for this one.
Score = 4
well this would be different from the "talk"/"computer love" thing because with "talk," they actually used (and acknowledged/cleared) a sample of "computer love" and gave kraftwerk a songwriting credit.
Score = 11
it's possible that coldplay have never listened to joe satriani but maybe the person who writes all the songs for them does...
Score = 0
I don't see what the big deal. Combining the two songs into one actually sounded better than both the originals. I'm rooting that they settle this out of court by adding "Viva La Vida+, feat. Satriani" to both their next EPs. Anyone? Bueller?
Score = 9
that satriani song gets played on every lame AAA radio station right along side coldplay. I bet they heard it and ripped it!
Score = -4
Please tell me which AAA station plays Satriani...
Score = 0
And it took Satriani HOW MANY MONTHS to file this? Sounds like a lucky break and a chance at some money-grab for a certified douchebag now. Come on Joe, who are you fooling?
Score = -9
I'd argue that it's not like he rushed out to hear every album that could possibly be plagiarism, but this song was on TV every 5 minutes a few months ago...
Score = 7
fooling? did you listen to it? its remarkably similar not just in melody but chord progression as well. I doubt Coldplay consciously did this, but nipple-dick definitely has a case.
Score = 1
I'm sure Satriani's legal advisors attempted to settle this out of court with the Coldplay camp before ever taking it to the courts. Stuff like this takes time. The courts have have actually required both parties to engage in arbitration before the suit was accepted. Joe Satriani wrote the song "If I Could Fly" for his wife. The song is extremely sentimental in nature and I certainly would not stand by and let some fag-pop band rip it off and then accept a Grammy for it.
Score = 3
So, why do people like Coldplay?
Score = 4
because you're gay.
Score = -4
Both are just unoriginal pop songs. What if U2 sued every person who used 1-5-6-4 chord progression from With or Without You? We're dealing with a type of music that involves mimicking and playing with basic forms, of course songs will sound similar sometimes.
Score = 6
every pop-punk band ever would be done for.
Score = 9
Joe - Lighten up and get a sense of humor. Why take this seriously? As far as I'm concerned, you've made a career on not being taken seriously.
Coldplay - Get a new formula. If you want to avoid the U2 comparisons then maybe you should stray away from Brian Eno. It'd be the best thing for both parties.
Score = -7
Ridiculous! Absurd! Preposterous! These are some of the words that come to mind when I think about Joe the shredder. His style, most truthfully classified, would fall into the "musical masturbation" genre, methinks.
Appropriate, since I've always imagined his key demographic to be males between the ages of 29 and 60, who only like to talk with their friends about "badass guitar solos," think bands like Arcade Fire are "gay," and spend their time not writing original material, but hunched over some aquamarine-sunburst-fancy-inlay Paul Reed Smith, practicing scales through a cranked full stack with their sweaty KFC-soaked fingers.
If they aren't doing that, then it has to be lots of dirty dirty streaming porno.
Score = -11
You seem like the kind of person, that mocks people for masturbating and having KFC hands, then you go to church on sunday and then proceed to have homosexual intercourse with the neighbours gay son Barney. So, how does it feel? LOL, ROTFL,IMHO.
Score = 3
Do a google search - people started posting online about how Vida was a Satriani rip six months ago.
Coldplay should pull a Jagger ('Oh, we ripped off Constant Craving? So sorry, K.D.') and write a big apologetic check to Satriani, along with revising the credits on future pressings of Vida.
Grammy voters aren't known for giving awards to people being sued for plagiarizing the songs they've been nominated for.
Score = 7
Please. I'm sure there are 100's of similar melodies and for this very common chord progression. Satriani can't possibly think the song was knowingly cribbed from his. This is friggin' pop music, anyway. It's all coming form the same pool of 40 year old ideas.
Score = -5
The difference here is that no one gives a fuck about Joe Satriani, whereas Mick Jaggar has a little more clout.
Score = -1
When they play them togther at the end, and joe really starts shredding....not bad. They should roll with that.
Score = 5
You know how I know Chris Martin's gay? He's in Coldplay, and he listens to Joe Satriani. Oh, and he sucked my dick.
Score = -8
and how is this juvenile, homophobic, remark relevant? or tolerated?
Score = 0
Darn, it does sound almost identical!
The thing about these plagiarism lawsuits is: how does he prove that Coldplay had heard his song before they released this record? It can be a mere coincidence you know.
There have been plenty of times when I've designed something then later see elements of my design somewhere else but I don't assume that this person decided to copy me.
Again, a tough one to prove!
Score = 4
I love how some people are bashing Satriani and praising Coldplay when the two songs sound the same.
Score = 7
SAY IT AIN'T SO, JOE!
Score = -1
There are only SO many different melodies and many songs have the same chord progressions, just different melodies. It's bound to happen that two songs are going to sound similar.
Score = 0
Imitation is the highest form of compliment, anyone?
So...if Coldplay is a Joe Satriani cover band, does this make them...more, or less cool?
Score = 0
This case was filed in LA.
I've been a juror in LA twice. Based on what I've seen of the jury pool, I'd say there's a good chance the jury who will ultimately decide this case may have never heard of either Coldplay or Satriani.
Score = 0
I think the court should rule that neither Satriani nor Coldplay should be allowed to ever record their music again.
Score = 6
"Viva La Vida" is just a big rip off of "Staralfur" by Sigur Rós to begin with. Sorry Chris, but try as you might and Brian Eno or not, you'll never come close to their grandeur.
Score = -1
Totally! I hear it, too! Both in the same key... and... oh.
I assure you, Staralfur is not the first song in that key that has that style violin playing, but it is hardly a "big rip off" just by being in the same key.
But--you are right that Coldplay won't come close to the grandeur of Sigur Rós, but that's sort of the point of Sigur Rós, isn't it? Lyrics that 99% of their fanbase can't understand (if not 100%), and epic, droning music?
Score = 0
I can't believe this is anything but a coincidence for this simple reason: it's a 2004 Satriani song. I find it very hard to believe that Chris Martin is such a huge shred guitar fanboy that he would listen to anything by Satriani, and even if he were, why would you listen to anything after Surfing with the Alien, his only claim (unrightful, but still) to any kind of relevance. This is clearly a coincidence and a money grab by Satch. Next thing you know, Yngwie Malmsteen will be suing Travis, or Buckethead will sue Radiohead. This had better be thrown out because of how unlistenable Satch's "elevator shred" music is.
Score = 0
I truly believe Chris Martin didn't rip off Satriani on purpose. The four chords in the progression are very common, and the melody is so simple in nature that it can be assumed it was written without knowledge of Satriani's little riff, which you heard quickly evolve into more ornamented variations than the original. If you gave 100 songwriters this chord progression, I would be willing to bet at least 25% of them would come up with a melody similar to or exactly like this one. The greater crime here is not plagarism, but rather melodies lacking expression, emotion and variety. Despite my view on whether this was plagiarism or not, I still hope this ruins Coldplay's chances of winning a Grammy. Coldplay is just another example of media corporations selling something that appeals to the lowest common denominator in order to make as much money as quickly as possible. They prey on the fact that people aren't intelligent enough to appreciate real innovation. Other examples of this include the books Twilight and DaVinci Code, movies National Treasure and Hancock and douchebag singers Norah Jones James Blunt.
If people are into the whole singing piano player thing, buy and Elton John or Billy Joel album. Those guys have more talent in their right pinky finger than Chris Martin could ever hope to have.
Score = -1
amen !
Score = 0
I am really considering going out and recording a 25 minute long guitar session where I can play every possible chord progression one after another while wearing sunglasses. Then I could just sue everyone that ever writes a song again. Or it could backfire and I could be sued by everyone that has ever written a song before already. Wow, this is why being a muscian is the hard!
Score = 6
IT IS 3 NOTES!!!!!!
Score = 1
If nothing else, this video proves what a huge difference instrumentation can make in a song.
Sure, the chord progression / melody lines are similar, but viva la vida sounds far better. IMO.
Score = -5
All three of the songs (Coldplay's, Satriani's, and Creaky Boards') are predated by the Los Enanitos Verdes (a famous Argentine rock band) song "Francis Limon" : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G57CgtX-BsI
The plagiarism charges are bullshit, any musician with the least bit of training in music theory knows these are incredibly common chord progressions and melody segments.
Score = 11
yeah woah
Score = -1
Mr. Martin, I feel your pain (from beyond).
My Sweet Lord/He's So Fine
Score = -1
Which are, I believe, three notes.
Score = 2
Following this discovery The Ramones is suing every band that has formed since the '70's.
Score = 0
And then the Modern Lovers are suing the Ramones...
Score = 0
sucksucksuckfuckfuckfucksuckfucksuckfuck...radiohead!
Score = -6
You're retarded.
Score = 0
When I was 12 years old and first learning to play the guitar I wrote a song.
I can still remember the heart break I felt when one day I was listening to the radio and heard a song that sounded very similar to my own. So much so that I abandoned ever playing the song again and didn't write another one for ten years. The band on the radio was U2. That made me realize, if there are only so many ways to play the guitar, and thereby only so many chord progressions one can make - then eventually some popular songs will sound similar.
Satriani plays the guitar so much that many of his tangent solos must sound similar to other songs that have been written or will be written.
That begs the question: will we ever run out of original music?
Score = 5
Blindly assuming Coldplay would never listen to music like Satriani's is just narrow minded and ridiculous - composers regularly listen to all forms of music , even forms that are not their favourites for musical and also music production ideas. Hell i even listed to katy perry for production.
Apart from melody and harmony simularities, there is also the rhythmic aspect - the notes of the melody have the exact same rhythm as Satriani's song. With serious simularities on all three counts it doesnt look good for Coldplay. Despite some comments to the contrary here in this forum, in the real world there are thousands of possible chord/melody/rhythmic combinations - what are the chances of someone independantly coming up with something so similiar on all three counts? In my view, the chances are not high. Besides, if the musical "pallette" was SO limited as some here argue then there would be thousands more songs that sounded the same - everyone would be in court constantly. Whilst there are some inherant limitations there are still so many possibiilities.
Score = 5
Simular? No doubt. Conscious or unconscious rip? Possible. Another explanation is they were both in a cheesy "Top Gun VH 5150 spiritualy inspired state of mind.Can Eno sue Bono for "Another Green World"? See my point? The last big one of these was "Dani California"/"Last Dance with Mary Jane" The chord progressions the same in the verses for sure and even the vocal phrasing has the same sort feel. Both tracks even share the same producer! The saving grace might be that the thing overall owes WAY more to Jimi. John's just that type of good. Surfin with the alien joe? Whatever. Man's got to eat I suppose.
Score = -2
For anyone who wants to inulge their inner IP Lawyer:
The state of the law, post-Bright Tunes v. Harrison (nearly identical case):
Copyright law still permits independent creation (so a million monkeys retyping the the bible, or THE DIVINCI CODE, would not infringe --but certainly would be suspect), but the line has become increasingly blurred.
Unconscious copying is the current state of the law--Ie/ Can show infringement (copying) through conscious appropriation ("I totally copied that, sue me") OR unconscious copying (so similar that we assume defendant must have heard the tune/melody, and unconsciously copied).
The problem is that the unconscious copying doctrine gives priority to melodies that enjoy more commercial success, and hence had more of a chance to be heard, rather than ones that could just have easily been heard, but enjoyed less commercial success. Still, the law is ultimately about independent creation: so why should Coldplay, who may have never heard the Satriani bit be treated any differently than what Will Butler of the Arcade Fire ( http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/sashafrerejones/2007/10/thats-all-folks.html ).
Alas, this blog entry -- http://madisonian.net/2008/12/05/joe-satriani-and-coldplay-the-chiffons-and-george-harrison/ -- has a pretty good summary of the law and where things stand now.
Score = 1
Thanks!
Score = 0
I think we're all forgetting a little Vanilla Ice/Queen incident. If Vanilla can throw in a little high-hat difference, than Coldplay could not sing Joe's wretched guitar solo note for note. Plus the fact that its definitely pitch shifted to match the Joe's song in the video. However, Coldplay will still not win the Album of the year and if they do over Radiohead or Robert Plant & Alison....I hope they loose this case...
bitch titties
that is all.
Score = 4
People who hate Coldplay suck.
Score = -12
People who like Coldplay suck.
Score = 13
Listen to the piano in The Potbelleez "Are You With Me", released 2008. It is IDENTICAL to Coldplay's "Clocks", released 2002. Far more of a rip off than what this Satriani guy is alleging, and I dont think Coldplay have taken the Potbelleez to court over it. Whether or not there are similarities in the riff, and there do appear to be a few chords, which is inevitable in music, Satriani didnt bother putting any lyrics or anything else to it, so you can hardly compare the entire package that is Viva La Vida with a solo guitar. Get over it!
Score = 2
even if someone only played the piano by ear and you gave them this chord progression and just let them noodle around aimlessly for 4 minutes this melody segment would come up numerous times because it is such a generic, natural melody.
satriani played it once and goes on to play a bunch of other random stuff throughout the song, coldplay used it as the melody for the verse, then its followed by a chorus, etc... because they had a fully-realized idea and proceeded to write a song, you cant just record every variation of melody possible on four chords that have been used endlessly and try and copyright them. thats like when scientist try and copyright DNA, this music is already there and two bands just happen to pick out the same notes.
Score = 2
People have to be considered to be stupid if they don't see these songs are identical.... hm let's see, almost same melody, same tempo, same meter, quite similar chord progression.... geee, what are the odds of that happening ? I will tell you, zero !
Actual musican... it is not just the progression, it is the tempo, the meter, the vocals, the rhythm of the melody, the texture of the composition. I'm a musician but also a scientist... just use simple combination from probabilistic to see the odds for someone to create very similar music material are indeed .. well pretty low
Score = 3
1.
Both songs are not in the same key or tempo; the guy who made the YouTube video pitch-shifted Viva la Vida and sped up the tempo to fit into the Satriani "song". They both both use a similar chord progression and three notes. That's it. Do you know how many songs both use similar chord progressions and notes? For example, Linkin Park's "Shadow of the Day" uses the same 1 - 5 - 6 - 4 progression and tempo as "With or Without You", but I don't see U2 suing. Do you know how many metal bands have rampantly ripped-off riffs from other metal bands over the years?
2.
Why would Coldplay (and their legion of corporate expert lawyer)s) go to such lengths to legally get permission from, share royalties, publishing rights, and give full credit to Kraftwerk to use a melody line from "Computer Love" in "Talk", then proceed to blatantly and illegally use copyrighted material from a washed-up former guitar hero for the title track and massively-promoted big single from their latest Grammy-nominated album? Total logical failure.
3.
It's fashionable to accuse Coldplay of plagiarism.
Score = 2
This riff as been around since '73 in Cat Stevens's "Love/Heaven". Get over yourself, Satriani.
Score = 0
I like both, so I won't take sides here. But Satch doesn't need to sue musicians for fame or furtune as he is a legend in the guitar world.Just let it go Satch, you don't need to priove a thing.
Score = 1
I think coldplay ripped it off but who cares. I don't listen to coldplay anyways. I have listened to Joe Satriani. I do play the guitar and have done so since 1984. They will settle out of court and life will go on. But to all of you dumb asses who have nothing better to say but lame comments about both bands, kiss off and fade away into oblivion.
Score = -5
The Kinks should be suing Coldplay for nicking the verse melody from Waterloo Sunset, one of the best songs ever written.
Score = -1
Coldplay also ripped "Yellow" from Pavement's "Here":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jr3N12veTAA
Score = 3
Anyone over the age of 22 who ever took a guitar lesson knows who Joe Satriani is.
Score = 6
really? i've always thought viva la vida and sigur ros' vid spilum endalaust sounded similar.
Score = 0
likome someone earlier said, but you guys are too stupid to realize
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G57CgtX-BsI
that song predates both joes and fagplays.
Score = -1
I am not a fan of coldplay but I dont have anything against them either. I told a few people recently that, "there is one song coldplay has that I really like", that "to rule the world song" sounds great. Now I know why I like it so much, its not theirs. Although I like what they did with it more than the song before. Its not that bad, people use material and go from there. I like what they did, but they do owe the guy his due.
Score = -1
HAAAAAAAAA!!!!!
Just like ICE ICE BABY and Under Pressure.
Looks like Coldplay is turning into Clamplay!
Score = -1
Funny to see Joe Satriani connected to Coldplay on Evri. Obviously the guy has some serious guitar talent, but so does most guitar store workers that like to shread. The similarity is striking, but is using the same chord progression & tempo is a crime, then a lot of Punk bands are pretty screwed.
I hope Satriani's case gets tossed out solely for his video of "Always With Me, Always With You." Check it out on his Evri page, now this is criminal - http://www.evri.com/person/joe-satriani-0x1a50d.html
Score = 2
I wonder if he'll claim this is an identical melody to one of his songs next.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu_moia-oVI
Score = -1
Best of luck Satriani....
Score = 0
Radio Exile is having a contest to embarrass Satriani. Find a song with the same melody as If I Could Fly, Viva La Vida, and Song I Didn't Write but which predates all of them, and we will give you your choice of any 10 CD's we're reviewed this year and Creaky Boards (who are awesome btw) have thrown in some cool swag too. Just e-mail us at radioexile@gmail.com
http://radioexile.com/2008/12/08/douchebag-alert-a-point-by-point-rebuttal-of-joe-satriani’s-interview-with-musicradar/
Score = -1
There are a lot of ill informed people on this board who think that joe Satriani is some obscure artist with no pedigree. Widely acclaimed and one of the most enduring guitar players in modern popular music, he has sold millions of albums and is probably one of the most influential guitar players of the last 20 years.
It wouldnt suprise me at all if Chris Martin as a guitar player had heard Satriani as frankly anyone who has picked up a guitar with any seriousness has.
If i was Satch and had written that tune only to see it become a worldwide hit under someone elses name - id be pissed off too. You Satriani haters are only showing your complete lack of knowledge and empathy for a songwriter who has been ripped off.
Score = 4
you're 100% right! If a guitar player never heard about satriani, then they don't know what tha hell a guitar is! Let the ignoratns speak! We will laugh when Satriani wins in court! Satriani doesn't have to prove nothing to anyone who loves music! People that doesn't have a clue about musical knowledge will not know who Satriani is! He has more concerts than Coldplay would have any day!
Cheers!
Score = 1
can you have quadruple negatives? i guess so...
satriani is a douche-whistle, and chris martin is an arrogant prick
i'm still pulling for Vanilla Ice to win this suit
Score = -2
I think this forum may contain the most pathetic douche bags ever assembled in one location(me included) That being said, Joe is completely in the right here. It's not so unbelievable that whoever wrote the song for Coldplay had heard this song and subconsciously mimicked it. I have done this many times myself, thinking I have created something original, only to have friends point out that it sounds like somebody else's tune. I of course go back to the drawing board, not record and publish it as my own. I'm not a skeezy song stealing lowlife without any morals, like some people we all know…
Score = 1
Someone call Girl Talk, 0:58 of this video seems like an awesome mash up for his next album.
Score = 2
Did Coldplay copy Satriani? Who knows. But if Joe wins, then maybe Cat Stevens should sue for ripping off his song Love/Heaven. No kidding. Go to about three mins in. My opinion: It's f-ing music man. It's not a blatant rip off. They didn't cover your song and not give you credit. They didn't rip your lyrics. Is it similar? Yes. But I promise you that you can find a melody in ANY song that is similar to something. GUARANTEE you. I'll even bet money. Anyway, Cat, you should get in on this and make this interesting.
Score = -2
It is most likely semblance even though I like Satriani better.
On that same note, I caught myself on the realization that Beyonce's "If I were a boy" sounds a whole lot like "Lady in red" at times. But it does happen without any plagiarism, happened to more than one person I know personally.
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The REAL question is why the hell anyone would plagiarize such a terrible, boring song. They both suck very much, let's hope while they're in court the building burns down.
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Satriani is the master of douchey, self-congratulating guitar noodling. Martin is the master of douchey, self-congratulating tape on his fingers.
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similar? obviously... but keep in mind that those four chords make up one of the most utilized chord progressions OF ALL TIME!!! Even Satch's grandparent's know that. Satch is just shamlessly looking to cash in due to his inevitable irrelevance. Hopefully, Coldplay's lawyers will do the smart thing by researching, finding and presenting dozens of songs with the same similarities that came out LONG BEFORE satch's, pointing out the idiocy of the old douchbag...satch that is.
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This argument RULES ALL OTHERS...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XnhFR73wOs
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This is the last website I expected to see a bunch of cheesy guitar-shredder fanboys. Go masturbate to "steve vai, malmsteen, macalpine, paul gilbert, and Satriani" somewhere else, because that music is one dimensional SHIT and so are you for listening to it.
Just because they play fast doesn't mean they're the best. They have ZERO soul or emotion, it's all technique, and I'd rather listen to 100 different blues or jazz guitarists than that CRAP any day.
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So Alizee had the rhythm before Satriani can claim it. - - - http://youtube.com/watch?v=240S04eCCC0 - - - and Los Enanitos Verdes had the guitar verse before Satriani can claim it. - - - http://youtube.com/watch?v=G57CgtX-BsI - - -Satriani, you're a great guy and musician, but it's best to let this one slide. You'll already see record sales increases from people googling your name because of the 'drama'.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QNHJtFfr4U
Check that out, Satch, you gold-digging motherfucker.
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Joe Satriani is a Dbag. honestly, who cares. the direction music is going on is just disgusting. its not longer an art and its douches like joe satriani that show and prove the greed of musicians out there today.
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No doubt Coldplagiarism happened here. Coldplay’s arrogance will bite them in the ass. Get the shirt!!
http://www.zazzle.com/coldplagiarism_viva_la_fraude_t_shirt-235701356821717844?gl=monkeyclown&rf=238266558925436073
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Though I like Joe Satriani as well as Coldplay, it doesn't matter whether someone raises or lowers the pitch of one of the song to match the other. it's still plagiarism. If I'd play Kiss' "I was made for lovin' you" in E instead of D#, it would still be plagiarism as well. Sometimes however, you can come up with a good riff or lick and it turns out it's quite the same as some existing material. I'm not accusing anyone of anything (yet), but Coldplay has been sued before for plagiarism: for the song "clocks". If I wasn't a fan, this would look like a nasty plagiarism habit. To react to the comment of "yeah, Coldplay probably listens to Joe Satriani all day long" (or something like that) posted by Murph, I'd say that both Johnny Buckland and Chris Martin (also) play guitar, and most modern day guitarists have heard of Joe Satriani, easpecially his mainstream work. Then again, we could also keep going on about how Coldplay got there inspiration for Viva La Vida from Alizée's song "J'en ai maré".
As I've played both songs with different bands, I realise there are so many similarities to these songs that Coldplay shouldn't have released, though I think Viva La Vida is a great song.
I'm truly sorry for Coldplay, but I think Joe Satriani is going to win this.
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How can you say you are a fan of both? DISGRACEFUL.
That's like saying you support Heather Mills AND Paul McCartney.
Do you even have a brain? This is NOT sport, this is MUSIC.
Joe Satriani is ONLY doing this because of the credit crunch - he CLEARLY needs the money.
I simply do NOT understand how people can't see this.
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In my opinion, ne-yo (and NKOTB's), "Single," has a melody that is far closer to viva la vida. But I haven't seen the point raised anywhere...
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Bloody silly nonces, both of them. Clear as pie Satch was hummin' his ditty while tossing Gwyneth in her bum and Chris heard her whistlin' whilst she was fryin' up some eggs and chips. 'Appens to the best o' us.
Still, I've 'ad turds to splash with more distinctive melodies.
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The signature melody-- which is the part protected under copyright law, not key and tempo-- is the same with minor variations. Whether it's a coincidence or not, if Joe Satriani loses this case it will set a dangerous precedent because it will suggest that the courts don't take copyright law very seriously.
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SHUT UP NERDS!
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I think I am going to sue cold play for fukin up Joe excellent masterfull melodic piece. Everytime I play "If I could Fly" in my mind, i just can't seem to block that fag voice of Chris Martin singing in the background ...if i could rule....
Damm YOU Chris!! your elevator music sucks ass. You should have never fuk'ed with satch's music like that.
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Can't wait for the Joe Satriani/ Chris Martin collab. after this all blows over. Maybe they'll get Ringo Starr to play timpani?
I wonder if Creaky Boards are upset that Joe Satriani ripped-off their idea...or that they both ripped of Killing Joke and "In Bloom"?
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YOUTUBE DELETED IT WTF??!!?!??
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Why is everyone insulting Joe Satriani? He has pushed lots of music into the next era. He gave lessons to the guitarists of the bands you DO listen to, and has never pulled a stunt like this before.
I think he is justified. Coldplay has had trouble like this before. Is someone gets arrested for drunk driving a second time, don't you think it is likely they are an alcoholic?
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Check out these other songs that sound similar to coldplay - did coldplay copy rush song with their clocks song? Possible. Or how about Coldplay violet hill and the similaritiies to Phantom Planet's song. I know there is no absolute proof, but it seems possible that they have copied quite a few hooks from other songs. If that is true I think in all fairness they need to give credit where credit is due - however I do like these coldplay songs at the same time - just give credit for your inspiration.
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Before I say anything, I'd like to mention I was a Coldplay and Satch fan before this whole mess started. I'm sick of people slamming the other side for how much they suck or whatever. It's not relevant, this is about a copyright case. And as for the "There are so many songs out there songs are bound to sound the same argument," then what is the point of copyright? If you have that mindset I can write whatever the hell I want and just say, well there are a lot of songs, I was bound to sound similar to someone. Plain and simple, the songs sound very similar, and I thin it is very plausible that Coldplay unintentionally ripped it off of Joe. Oh, and as to why Joe took so long, he was trying to settle this outside of court. Unfortunately Coldplay turned a cold shoulder and he felt he still had to do something about it.
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this chord change and melody are so simple and basic,
i bet there has to be hundreds of songs that sound like these two.
i think that anybody could have come up with this melody without listening to satriani's song(which sound quite cheesy by the way...),
but that's pop music , it's completley Plagiarisded ,coldplay know it and satriani knows it.
it's easy to convince the general public that it was stolen but as musicians they know that when you come up with a melody this simple you might be borowing it as millions of songwriter do everyday.
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If Joe Satriani sais it , its true he is the ruler of the guitar universe and a pure modern musical genius to say the very least. Get em Joe!!!
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Coldplay?? These guys need to get a real singer in there band and turn up the guitar and turn down the crappy sound they have now.. Satriani is a better musician that any of those guys put together....
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If I were OldPlay I would settle out of court. They suck and Joe has the grammys. What a blow to the OldPlay ego.
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I can't believe how a topic that is about two songs sounding very similar, has turned into a flamewar. Yes, this is teh internets, I'm well aware of it, but please people, think twice before you write inane remarks about musicians you very clearly don't know. It's all well and good not to like Satriani's music, but at least listen to it before you comment. He is neither a shredder with no compositional skills nor does he play metal. Just listen to the song(s) that started this issue. Also, as a musician he has more integrity than most people who get the kind of airplay Coldplay does. To question whether he is in it for the music or for the money is truly a no-brainer: if he were in it for the money he wouldn't still be recording instrumental guitar albums! Get real people!
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Yeheha! its the same thing/
and they should pay about the mistakes .
when you do mistake you pay .
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When you can't speak correct english, you pay.
Ah, thats funny, very funny.
For the record, Coldplay is one of the biggest bands in the world, get over it, sit back on your couch, and listen to Coldplay, because you're going to be listening to them for a long time to come.
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Oh my god!!! Same melody !! i used to love coldplay but now i see that they are just losers !!
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Coldplay SUCKS! Chris Marten needs to shut up! JOE IS GOD!!! And to the loser who asks why Joe took so long...Who want's to sue a guy after he sells one album??? Rack it up Baby!!!
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Thank you for telling it how it is. All guitarist who are any good know Joe Satriani. He is a legend.
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I love how everyone assumes that Satriani is just trying to "mine for gold" with this lawsuit. If someone were to steal my work, I'd a least, the very least, want them to not have profited from my stolen work. I think if they had ripped, intentionally or otherwise, any other Satriani song, he might not have noticed so much, but he worked on "If I could fly" for quite some time. I believe he said that he toyed around with it for a decade before he released it in '04. Coldplay's cold reaction to Satriani's claims just makes them look more the villains, they should talk to the guy and acknowledge that his melody is in their song, give him credit for it, and move on. I can see the rationale of both sides, but I am with Satch on this one.
On another note, there is absolutely nothing wrong with liking any combination of music, jazz to metal or country or classical or quiet ambient gaelic chants. Music is music, it is there to be enjoyed. It is merely my sincere hope that people will stop using the music that they listen to as a means of defining who they are. Define yourself by who you are, and not what you listen to. It would end a lot of petty arguments.
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Im getting sick and tired of the people on here who talk about the irrelevant bullshit, the chord progression, who listens to who, who copied who...FACT OF THE MATTER IS...It doesn't matter whether Coldplay heard Satriani or not!!! They're song has portions in it that sound EXACTLY like his portions in his song, they sound alike for a good 15 seconds, the odds of coming up with the same melody, timing, and notes in that given amount of time are astronomical!!!
Heres a little example of what is relevant to the case...Say some guy comes from China and moves to USA, sits down and comes up with this idea...He decides to come up with two rotating handles you do push-ups with and when you go up and down they have a rotational movement that works out several muscle groups, he puts it out on the market and calls it..."The Precise Push-up"...Well little does he know theres already a product out there that has the exact same features his push-up device has and has been on the market for several years now...Its called "The Perfect Push-up", he may have heard about it, he may have not...The creators of the Perfect push-up nevertheless can sue this guy for all profits because of copyright infringement...
Same applies here in the Satch/Coldplay case...It doesn't matter whether they heard his music or not, the fact it they used a melody he had already put in his music...So these queers need to sit down, shut up, and pay up...He tried reasoning with them about it, so Satch is bringing the thunder on their gay asses...
Im aware that some douche(s) will probably comment behind me and bash me for my comment, thats why I'll use this paragraph and respond in saying "Shut up, your gay, kiss my ass, fuck off, you giant douche" Peace..
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There are only so many notes on the scale, and so many rhythms you can choose. If Coldplay did steal, they can claim they didn't. Anyway, they sound different enough. This is definitely not a case of Vanilla Ice!
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the irony of course would be if ZZ top sued joe for Big Bad Moon.
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If George Harrison were alive today, he would tell you the certain outcome of this pending verdict/case; Coldplay's going down like Linda Lovelace.
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Being in Brazil, I just read about this surfing the web. The first comparison I heard was a mash-up on YouTube and I thought - "jeez, that's so obvious". But since Coldplay gave credits to Karftwerk etc on other songs, why didn't they do so with Joe? They don't exactly need the money. Doesn't make sense.
And the mash-up itself doesn't say too much, it's not too difficult for a DJ to get even dissimilar songs, beatmatch them and let them run together to good effect.
After listening to the Joe song alone, there is a melodic rift that sounds similar but come on, there are dozens of songs that do that.
Verdict from Brazil? = No go Joe
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EVIDENCE!!! It's called evidence folks! You know, it really appeared to me that OJ Simpson killed two people, but the evidence did not convince a jury of that(one can argue the sanity of the OJ jury, but I digress). Did someone overhear a conversation between Chris Martin and someone else wherein he discussed taking parts from Satch's song? Are there written notes that can be subpoenaed that indicate that Coldplay were basing their song on Satriani's? No? Well then what is the case? "Gee, it sure sounds a lot like Satriani's song." doesn't cut it in a court of law!! The funniest development in this case is that Yusuf Islam is now weighing whether or not he should sue Coldplay for stealing HIS song. Q: If Coldplay ripped the song from Satch, why doesn't Cat Stevens go after Satch instead of Coldplay? A: Because Coldplay sells way more records!!!
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Coldplay even named Satriani as one of their inspirations in an interview
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well, it's not a particularly original chord sequence anyway..it doesn't matter what key you're in but it's a basic kind of 'c; d; g; e minor' thing which has been kicked around for ages in virtually every shape or form with a few variants and some related chords thrown in and changed around a bit for good measure..it limits what one would choose for a melody by definition, as all the chords are derived from the same major scale..practically any musician could write some sort of tune around this chord sequence, and there are many examples if one cares to listen to enough music, and, yes, they're all similar..a fuss about nothing really!
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