Alicia Keys Sued Over 'Girl on Fire'

After reading that the Grammy-winning singer supposedly had repurposed his song "Hey There Lonely Girl," Earl Shuman files a copyright infringement lawsuit.

The plaintiff is Earl Shuman, an accomplished songwriter who in 1962 co-authored the composition, "Lonely Boy," a song that reached No. 2 on Billboard's chart in 1970 after being recorded by Eddie Holman as "Hey There Lonely Girl."

Shuman believes there's something about Keys' song that sounds too familiar. Unfortunately, his lawsuit is rather bereft of important details, substituting an entertainment blogger's ear in lieu of any demonstration of substantial similarity between "Girl on Fire" and "Lonely Boy/Girl."

That's not to say there won't be people out there who won't compare the two songs (here and here) and spot a likeness, particularly in the way that Keys intones three notes while singing the words "lonely girl."

One of the people who noted a supposed similarity was Roger Friedman at Showbiz411, who wrote in late November of what he believed to be an uncredited sample. "In the middle of the song, Alicia sings a couplet or so from Eddie Holman’s 1970 classic 'Hey There Lonely Girl,'" he wrote. "The song was written by Leon Carr and Earl Shuman, who are both gone to rock 'n' roll heaven."

Instead, in Shuman's lawsuit against Keys, Sony Music Entertainment and others, the plaintiff points to Friedman's blog, saying, "While the Showbiz411.com statements that Shuman has 'gone to rock and roll heaven' and concerning 'two seconds' of use are not accurate, Plaintiff alleges that the above observations by Showbiz411, in their essence, are apt."

Shuman's lawyer, Philip Kaplan of Los Angeles, attaches a copy of his client's songsheet but hardly goes into any discussion of Keys' song except to spend a few graphs on its international success and the allegation that it includes a drum sample from another song.

Should plaintiffs have to do more than merely citing a blogger's word of similarity? A copy of the complaint is below.

Read More: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/alicia-keys-sued-girl-fire-403147