From goffmac747@aol.com Wed Dec 20 08:20:25 2006
Subject:Re: Whiter Shade of Pale Lawsuit

Producer royalties maybe. Songwriter royalties, not unless he actually wrote the song. Granted Mathew's classic organ parts are a big part of the song as it was released and contributed to the hit factor, but Annie Lennox's version doesn't share the organ parts and the song still was a hit. Whomever wrote the song whether one, two or more, who came up with the melody, who came up with the lyrics, those are the songwriters. Perhaps a separate arranger's royalties should be considered or a new separate category of royalties for forming the recorded hit, apart from the songwriter's royalties. If Matthew actually had a hand in penning the melody as it sits under the lyrics, then he is a co-writer. Tough call.

-----Original Message-----
From: StanForeman@comcast.net
To: CloneWheel@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wed, 20 Dec 2006 7:44 AM
Subject: [CWSG] Whiter Shade of Pale Lawsuit

Procol Harum Organist Wins Court Case
By JENNIFER QUINN, Associated Press Writer
39 minutes ago

LONDON - A judge awarded a 40 percent share in the copyright of "A
Whiter Shade of Pale," one of the most famous pop songs of all time,
to a former organist for Procol Harum.

Lead singer Gary Brooker and lyricist Keith Reid always claimed
credit for the hit, which became part of the soundtrack for the
hippy "summer of love" of 1967.

But in his ruling, the judge decided that organist Matthew Fisher
was entitled to both credit and royalties.

"I have come to the view that Mr. Fisher's interest in the work
should be reflected by according him a 40 percent share of the
musical copyright," the written judgment said. "His contribution to
the overall work was on any view substantial but not, in my
judgment, as substantial as that of Mr. Brooker."

The judge said the song's organ solo "is a distinctive and
significant contribution to the overall composition and quite
obviously the product of skill and labor on the part of the person
who created it."

The judge said Fisher, 60, was entitled to royalties from May 2005,
when he began court proceedings.

"A Whiter Shade of Pale," famous for its cryptic lyrics _ "We
skipped the light fandango, turned cartwheels 'cross the floor" _
topped the British charts for five weeks in 1967 and was a Top 5 hit
in the U.S.

Rolling Stone magazine has ranked it 57th in a list of the 500
greatest songs of all time.

Brooker says he and Reid wrote the song before Fisher joined the
band in March 1967. It was released in May.

Fisher, now a computer programmer living in south London, left the
band in 1969. Brooker, 61, still tours with Procol Harum.

In a statement, Brooker and Reid said Fisher's court victory created
a dangerous precedent because it meant any musician who had played
on any recording in the past 40 years could claim joint authorship.

"It is effectively open season on the songwriter," they said. "It
will mean that unless all musicians' parts are written for them, no
publisher or songwriter will be able to risk making a recording for
fear of a possible claim of songwriting credit."

They intend to file an appeal.


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