Chrome Posted August 1, 2005 Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 No copyright violation in 'Fixin' to Die Rag'-court Mon Aug 1, 2005 11:32 AM ET SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court has rejected a lawsuit charging 1960s psychedelic rocker Country Joe McDonald with copyright infringement for his 1965 protest song "Fixin' to Die Rag," which became a rallying cry for opposition to the Vietnam War. In a decision made public on Friday, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected an appeal from Babette Ory, who said McDonald's song infringed on jazz standard "Muskrat Ramble," credited to her father, Kid Ory. Ory sued in September 2001, claiming that "Fixin' to Die Rag" was similar to and infringed on "Muskrat Ramble." Kid Ory, who recorded with jazz great Louis Armstrong, died in 1973. The appellate judges upheld a lower-court decision saying there was too long a delay in bringing the copyright lawsuit and awarded McDonald his attorney fees. Ory obtained copyright to "Muskrat Ramble" in 2001. McDonald wrote "Fixing To Die Rag" in 1965 to protest the nation's escalating military involvement in Vietnam and the song's refrain: "And it's one, two, three, what are we fighting for?" quickly turned into a rallying cry against the war and figured prominently at the Woodstock music festival in 1969. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christiern Posted August 1, 2005 Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 A well deserved defeat--this was a pointless lawsuit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosco Posted August 1, 2005 Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 GIMME AN F!... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosco Posted August 1, 2005 Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 If anyone should sue over that song surely it should be the estate of Bukka White? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenLowe Posted August 1, 2005 Report Share Posted August 1, 2005 actually that chord progression and basic melodic outline was around for quite awhile, probably derived from ragtime - somewhere I have a recording of a South American string band playing with that chord progression prior to 1920 - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted August 2, 2005 Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 If anyone should sue over that song surely it should be the estate of Bukka White? ← Booker wasn't old enough to claim this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalo Posted August 2, 2005 Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 Try reading Chaucer to this melody... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalo Posted August 2, 2005 Report Share Posted August 2, 2005 Not that I don't love Bukka... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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