We may never hear Frank Ocean perform “American Wedding” again. The Odd Future affiliate took to his Tumblr yesterday and stated that the Eagles’ Don Henley had threatened legal action over the song. Ocean said he thought Henley was “intimidated” by his version and found the whole matter “awesome.”
Larry Solters, the spokesman for Irving Azoff's Front Line Management that manages the Eagles, offered the group's response to the use of the famous melody. He insists that Don has not threatened legal action, but now the band is considering it. Read what else Solters had to say in an email to the LA Times:
"Frank Ocean did not merely 'sample' a portion of the Eagles’ Hotel California; he took the whole master track, plus the song’s existing melody, and replaced the lyrics with his own. This is not creative, let alone 'intimidating.' It’s illegal. For the record, Don Henley has not threatened or instituted any legal action against Frank Ocean, although the Eagles are now considering whether they should. Any further questions regarding this matter should be directed to Warner Music Group as it is the entity that currently owns the master recording and made the contact with Frank Ocean’s representatives concerning his infringement of the master recording."
Fans looking for the commercial release of Nostalgia, Ultra may not get "American Wedding" in the final tracklist if this further develops.
[via LATimes]
