Republicans steal ANOTHER song...

Posted about 1 year ago

Artist:

Heart
Album:

Little Queen
Track:
- PLAY
- QUEUE
Barracuda

So, years ago, the Repubs wanted to use Born in the USA for a Reagan campaign, and Brooce said no - and he also said that obviously they hadn't listened to the lyrics.

Last month, Jackson Browne sued the McCain campaign over their use of Running on Empty in an ad.

It appears that the GOP haven't yet learnt the lesson.

Rock group Heart says Barracuda use is fishy
[Reuters]
The rock group Heart, angry that its '70s hit Barracuda is being used as the unofficial theme song for Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin, is taking aim at the Alaska governor.
The song, a nod to the "Sarah Barracuda" nickname Palin earned on the basketball court in high school, was dusted off for her appearance at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul on Wednesday.
Heart singers Ann and Nancy Wilson said a "cease-and-desist" letter has been sent to the Republicans asking them not to use the song.
"The Republican campaign did not ask for permission to use the song, nor would they have been granted that permission," according to a statement issued late on Thursday on behalf of the sisters.

There was no immediate comment from the Republican camp.
Last month, rocker Jackson Browne sued Republican presidential candidate John McCain, the Republican National Committee and the Ohio Republican Party, accusing them of using his 1977 hit Running on Empty in a campaign ad without permission.
Copyright law may not be on the Wilsons' side as the song is licensed for public performance under a blanket fee paid by the venue to ASCAP, the firm that collects royalties on behalf of composers and copyright owners.
Despite the Wilson sisters' objections, one of the song's co-writers said he was "thrilled" that the song was used.
In an e-mail to Reuters, the band's former guitarist, Roger Fisher, said it was a win-win situation. Heart gets publicity and royalties, while the Republicans benefit from "the ingenious placement of a kick-ass song," Fisher said.
But in a subsequent email, Fisher said he strongly endorsed the Democratic ticket, and would donate a portion of royalties he receives from the Republicans' airing of Barracuda to the campaign of Sen. Barack Obama.
"With my contribution to Obama's campaign, the Republicans are now supporting Obama," he said.
Fisher and the Wilsons wrote Barracuda with drummer Michael DeRosier. It appeared on the group's second album, Little Queen in 1977. The song was inspired by the band's anger over an obnoxious record label executive.

Incidentally, it's worth tracking back to that video on YouTube, and reading some of the comments, such as:

musicprodave

I love it!! All these liberal leftist socialist mal-contents are afraid of Sara Palin. I love her! She is awesome, smart, a great speaker, and the best thing about her is that she is the opposite of Hillary and the blow hard Obama. She is a real American Patriot.

Comments (6)

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fairportfan says
Another view (from E! Online):

Republicans Take Heart; Heart Takes It Back
Ann and Nancy Wilson are hoping the Republicans change their tune—and aren't planning on waiting until November to find out.

The sisterly duo known as Heart sent a cease-and-desist notice to the McCain-Palin campaign Thursday afternoon after their hit "Barracuda" was used—twice—without permission as the official rallying cry for the vice presidential candidate after her nomination acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention.

The song was chosen as a would-be cute tie-in to Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's past—"Barracuda" was her high school nickname.

Only problem, campaign officials failed to ask either the group, Universal Music Publishing or Sony BMG whether the song was fair game to use. It wasn't.

"We have asked the Republican campaign publicly not to use our music," the Heart duo said in a statement. "We hope our wishes will be honored."

The Wilsons added that permission to use the song was never requested, nor would it have been granted.

Then came Thursday night, and following John McCain's acceptance speech at the RNC, Palin joined her running mate onstage, once again to the strains of the '70s classic.

The Wilsons wasted no time in getting to the, well, heart of the matter in a rant to Entertainment Weekly.

"I think it's completely unfair to be so misrepresented," Nancy Wilson told the magazine Thursday night. "I feel completely f--ked over."

Her reaction was followed up by an email sent by her and Ann to EW.

"Sarah Palin's views and values in NO WAY represent us as American women. We ask that our song 'Barracuda' no longer be used to promote her image...[It] was written in the late '70s as a scathing rant against the soulless, corporate nature of the music business, particularly for women...There's irony in Republican strategists' choice to make use of it there."

There's also a bit of precedent.

John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne and Boston have all previously made noise about the GOP's unauthorized use of their songs during this year's campaign.

(I forgot about Mellencamp and Boston.)

Permalink posted 09/05/2008
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ongoingly says
I was SO wondering when Ann and Nancy were gonna get on that.

Permalink posted 09/05/2008
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deadmandeadman says
Its considered fair use as long as its not used in an add. The lines are blurry.

Permalink posted 09/05/2008
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ongoingly says
hmm. well, I've always wanted to send someone a cease and desist letter.

Permalink posted 09/05/2008
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RobP says
I dunno, 'Running On Empty' seems pretty appropriate for the "clean" campaign McCain promised to run. And I have no difficulty seeing Palin as a barracuda. Although, of course, when Colbert first ran a photo of Palin and referred to her as "the hot librarian" - now, if there was just a song with that title by some real cool indie band for the Republicans to rip off. Preferably a band that was pro-choice with environmental concerns.

What the Republicans really need to do is rip off some hip-hop artists and claim to be sampling. Because that's all they really do anyway; why take the full idea when you can steal the beat and throw in a catch phrase of bad sitcom quality?

I think they should just use Alice Cooper's 'Elected.' And I would love it if someone with graphics skills took that idea and ran with it, take that generic McCain clip and mix it with Alice. Music and snakes.

Permalink posted 09/05/2008
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Anna says
There is a lake filled with hungry barracudas somewhere...

Permalink posted 09/06/2008