Sam Smith's "2014" was one one of the bestselling songs of 2014, and perhaps its had a little too much in common with "I Won't Back Down," another classic by Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers. It was revealed earlier this week that the soul vocalist has been paying royalties to Petty as a songwriter for the song, although not with all of the legal drama we often associate with similar tunes, such as the ongoing lawsuit between the Marvin Gaye estate and Robin Thicke comparing the 2013 hit "Blurred Lines" with that soul singer's "Got To Give It Up."
"When Sam's track was originally released, it was clear to a lot of musicians that there were notable similarities between the tracks," noted a source familiar with the situation cited by NME. "After it was pointed out to Sam's camp, they didn't try to fight it and amicably dished out royalties. It wasn't a deliberate thing, musicians are just inspired by other artists and Sam and his team were quick to hold up their hand when it was officially flagged."
Normally when we report that two parties "settled out of court," there are still assumed to be gritted teeth through the process. The Smith and Petty parties apparently had no such issues and came to a deal as far back as October. The ASCAP listing for the song now includes both Petty and Jeff Lynne (better known as the frontman for the Electric Light Orchestra) as 12.5 percent songwriters, totaling 25 percent.
Might not seem huge but that adds up when a single is as big as "Stay With Me" has been, and you haven't had to do any actual work on the project, it's a nice boost to your ASCAP check. The song sold more than four million copies in the United States alone so, depending on how much Smith et al are getting paid per download, Petty and Lynne may have made as much as $45,000 from the UK performer's hit (based on iTunes payout numbers). And at least a handful from streaming royalties as well.
