Prince co-write on Stand Back?

[bombaysaffires]

Originally Posted by sorcerer999

There are some bands (U2 for example) that come together and create a song which all 4 band members share the credit.

Then there are some solo artists, like Stevie, who write a song on piano or guitar or whatever. They essentially write the lyrics and melody (the skeleton of the song, if you will) and later have other musicians flesh out drums, bass, synth, strings, etc. These musicians (bass, guitars, etc) essentially are only creating "counter melodies" and the drummer is only really creating the rhythm cycle that compliment the original song. They don't get songwriting credit because they didn't write the words or the melody, which is really the only thing BMI/ASCAP, etc cares about when submitting a song to be copy written.

If this were not the case, then there would be no such thing as a "recorded and released" song solely by Stevie. Each song would share co-writing credits with Lindsey, Waddy, Benmont, Roy, etc. But such is not the case.

Stevie has always been one to give credit where it is due. Roy Bittan wrote the bridge to "Think About It" and is credited. Sandy Stewart gets credited for writing the music to "Nightbird", "If Anyone Falls", etc.

I agree with KarmaContestant that the melody for "Stand Back" bears no resemblance to the melody for "Little Red Corvette". Sure you can sing the chorus of both songs over each other, but that's only because the notes fit the melody...and one can do that with ANY song if they think about it. Try singing the lyrics to MGMT's "Kids" over the music of Coldplay's "Life In Technicolor". It fits perfectly. Yet they are two different melodies.

Sorry to rant, but like Jondalar said, Stevie gave Prince the option of being CREDITED as a co-writer, since she was "inspired" by LRC , but he declined the CREDIT. Still pretty sure he's getting paid royalties for it though, because he played on it.

I agree with most of your post, but if he's getting royalties it's because he's getting credit as a writer. as a musician you get paid for your services and that's it.

She wrote a NEW melody to HIS chord progression, that's why SHE would get half credit and he the other. On the version that is HIS music and HIS lyrics/melody, he gets full credit. No one is saying she didn't create a melody, but she built it off his music and chord progression, that is why he would have written half of it and why she could not list herself as sole writer (music and lyrics). for whatever reason he has said he doesn't want/need the public recognition on the label, but if he's getting royalties, he is indeed listed as cowriter on the legal paperwork.

Roy Bittan got credit because he rewrote a whole section of her song.
Sandy Stewart gets credit NOT for "performing" the music but because she WROTE the music. She wrote it, Stevie listened to the tracks and wrote a melody/lyrics on top of it. Same with Rick Nowels, Mike Campbell and others who have cowriter credit. Neale Heywood wrote the music to New Orleans. If Stevie writes the music and the lyrics/melody, and someone helps her refine it, then there can be a bit of a grey area about do you give them credit or not.. and it's a bit of a judgement call based on how different the song would be without that additional part. For example, Stevie claimed c0-writing credit on Seven Wonders, which was written music and lyrics/melody by Sandy Stewart. Stevie rewrote (actually mis-understood Sandy's lyrics) from "all the way down the line" to what we hear on the record "All the way down to emmeline" which frankly doesn't change the song at ALL, but she claimed co credit and got it because she's Stevie but Sandy was NOT pleased to give up half her royalties. (edited to say she may not have gotten half).

Also, Stevie heard a Tom Petty track (by accident, it was on a tape Mike Campbell gave her) and she wrote lyrics and melody to it and took it to Fleetwood Mac. Tom Petty heard, was furious, and in her words, called her screaming at her that she could NOT use that music-- she had not asked his permission, and it's his intellectual property. He told her she had to give it back. She tells the story of how she had to go back to FM and in her words "tell them I was a thief" (a little humor on her part) and that FM could not use the song because she did not write the music AND more importantly did not have Tom's permission to use his music (if he had said ok she could have used it, would have had to list him as cowriter and paid him half the royalties). Prince could have done the same thing, but he did not.