Musicology

The Ed Sheeran “Thinking Out Loud” v “Let’s Get It On” trial is really about just a couple of things, a video of him segueing from “Thinking” to “Let’s” in concert, called a “smoking gun” and tantamount to “a confession” by Ben Crump, and the musicologically important part, the accompaniment that the plaintiff believes Sheeran could not have …

It all comes down to Thing 1 and Thing 2, both easily explained in under three minutes. Ed Sheeran is headed to court next week to defend against the claim that he copied Marvin Gaye and Ed Townsend’s “Let’s Get It On” when he wrote “Thinking Out Loud.” My opinion (not one bit iffy on …

A forensic musicologist explains! And does it in about three minutes, hopefully. Super quick on the draw with this one. I’ve only spent about three minutes considering the matter and started right up trying to get this out on day one. I’ll think it through as I type. Always the chance I’ll have to rethink …

How do these things happen, and where on earth did they come up with that $10 million number? No point in burying the lede here. It sure appears an Obrafour sample is in “Calling My Name.” What’s “Calling My Name?” It’s a deep deep cut that I’d never heard of and nobody I asked had …

Not even if that rhythm takes over the world. The strongest force in the universe? No need to look it up; it’s Reggaeton.  (Okay, I’ll look it up… The actual strongest force in the universe is not gravity, but the strong nuclear force that holds atomic nuclei and individual protons and neutrons together.) Reggaeton is …

When I first heard the so called J6 Prison Choir’s singing I admit I didn’t give the matter a thought. But then I was asked to do a little “fact-checking.” It has been about a month since this production jumped briefly to the top of iTunes sales lists. And Billboard’s too. “Justice For All,” if …

In 2020, the Ninth Circuit famously found that Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway To Heaven” was not an infringement on Spirit’s “Taurus,” and the decision included that they were tossing out the so-called “Inverse Ratio Rule.” And I applauded. But now I’m reconsidering. When I began to research new ideas about it, I was faced with my …

Basic facts and key questions surrounding Ed Sheeran’s “Let’s Get It On” vs. Marvin Gaye’s “Thinking Out Loud.” The Cheat Sheet. When and where is the trial? Lower Manhattan (the familiar movie courthouse steps) on April 24th? Who is the plaintiff suing Ed Sheeran for copyright infringement? The plaintiff is NOT the family of Marvin …

The internet is right once in a while. Observers noticed that Toshifumi Hinata’s “Reflections” is sampled in TikTok standout Trefuego’s 90Mh. And after issuing takedowns back in August (to apparently limited effect) Sony has now sued Trefuego. “Reflections,” according to the complaint is Hinata’s most popular work and has over 53 million streams on Spotify …

It would appear that toward the end of April, Ed Sheeran is going to be in court defending “Thinking Out Loud” against a claim that it infringes on Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On.” It’s been a long time coming, years in fact, and in that time, I’ve written quite a lot about it, because …