The fine line between inspiration and total ripoff has always been a source of contention in every artistic medium. From Banksy/Mr. Brainwash “expounding on” the Warholian canon to Madonna’s producer being accused of borrowing too much of the horn section for “Vogue,” the gamut of entitlement to a particular work has been known to cause many a flare-up between the “sensitive” temperaments of artists. But the latest one to receive heavy attention in the public eye seems more than slightly hypocritical on the part of the band suing: Radiohead.
Now relegated to the genre of “dad rock” in their middle-agery, maybe Thom Yorke and company has seen fit to stir the pot a little so as to remain vaguely in the collective consciousness. Yet it’s no secret that in the early 90s when “Creep” was released, Radiohead themselves were caught in an imbroglio with the band that they plucked (no pun intended) the riff from, The Hollies. “The Air That I Breathe,” which came out in 1974, was originally written by Mike Hazelwood and Albert Hammond (performed initially by the latter on his It Never Rains in Southern California record). And ultimately, Radiohead surrendered by splitting the royalties from the song and crediting the two songwriters in the liner notes of Pablo Honey (with the order appearing as “Albert Hammond, Mike Hazlewood, Thomas Yorke”). So why can’t that be the extent of what Lana Del Rey has to do in Lust for Life (or is it that Radiohead knows no one reads liner notes anymore)?
While, undeniably and despite what Del Rey herself says, “Get Free” possesses more than overt traces of “Creep,” it isn’t so overt that the band should demand one hundred percent of the publishing. And though Del Rey has tried to play nice by offering forty percent, “they will only accept 100. Their lawyers have been relentless, so we will deal with it in court.” What’s more, as Oscar Wilde may or may not have once said (he could have nicked it from someone else), “Talent borrows, genius steals.” “Get Free” is, in most fans’ opinions, an example of the final quality. At this point, after all, it’s a fairly safe assumption to declare, “It’s all been done” in the art world, and all artists have, as a result, is the ability to mutate and remake what’s already been done into their own. This is something Del Rey has been known for from the outset of her career, extrapolating more lyrics from songs of the 50s, 60s and 70s than any modern pop artist–including “Ground control to Major Tom” (seems applicable to York right now), “rosemary and thyme,” and lifting Carnival of Souls dialogue for “13 Beaches” (specifically “I don’t belong in the world, that’s what it is. Something separates me from other people. Everywhere I turn, there’s something blocking my escape”).
One of her most valuable talents, in fact, is creating amalgams of pop culture and funneling it into her own persona for a new and original effect. Most of her early videos are an example of this gift for montage, most notably “Video Games,” which she “edited” herself via hand-picked clips from YouTube.
And even if Radiohead is somehow altruistically just trying to finagle some more royalties for Hazelwood and Hammond–while also in their own pot calling the kettle black way taking a stand for artistic merit and ownership–the lawsuit just feels a touch petty. Even more so because Del Rey didn’t even release the now ironic in its shackling implications “Get Free” as a single. But in taking on Radiohead, maybe she’ll fulfill the lyric, “I’m doin’ it for all of us who never got the chance” in a different and even more profound way. And if nothing else, let this be a lesson to all future musicians: steer clear of drawing influence in any way from “Creep”–or rather, “The Air That I Breathe.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wACCgCCjRc
