The Talking Heads used to eat lunch at the restaurant where I worked many years ago in West Hollywood. Always pleasant, good tippers – good job memories. And only memories. Visiting the area after being away for so long felt like being awakened from decades of deep sleep. The restaurant was completely remodeled, the people were all different, nothing was the same, and yet the street names were the same. – Ilene
TLP: Don’t Republicans Have Any Good Music of Their Own ?
Courtesy of Jr. Deputy Accountant
Ronald Reagan tried it. Twice. And got smacked down by both John Cougar Mellencamp and Bruce Springsteen. John McCain even got bitchslapped by Jackson Browne when he used "Running on Empty" in a campaign spot.
Now, it’s Florida Governor Charlie Crist’s turn.
Former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne sued Florida Governor Charlie Crist for using the band’s song “Road to Nowhere” in a campaign ad without permission.
The complaint against Crist, a longtime Republican who’s now running as an independent for U.S. Senate, and his campaign was filed today in federal court in Tampa, Florida, said Byrne’s lawyer, Lawrence Iser. Byrne seeks $1 million in damages based on the estimated value of the licensing rights to the song, Iser said in a telephone interview.
Byrne said in statement that he has never licensed a song to be used in an advertisement.
“I’m a bit of a throwback that way, as I still believe songs occasionally mean something to people,” Byrne said in the statement. “A personal and social meaning is diluted when that same song is used to sell a product or a politician.”
Reagan tried to campaign on the imagery of Mellencamp’s "Pink Houses" —Ain’t that America? — and Springsteen’s "Born in the U.S.A. — obvious, duh — and was shut down by both rockers. McCain apparently also went for "Pink Houses" and his lawyers had to juggle Mellencamp and Browne.
Crist’s campaign had no immediate comment on the Byrne burn.
Psst, David! You wouldn’t sue a fringe financial blog, would you?
