Document Type
Article
Publication Date
3-13-2014
Abstract
The story of Jonathan Coulton and song copying on Glee was one of the biggest copyrightrelated stories of 2012, with plenty of media coverage (and even a fictionalized TV adaptation). For the uninitiated: In 1992, Anthony Ray, a.k.a. Sir Mix-A-Lot, released the song “Baby Got Back.” The song, a “chart-topping multi-platinum Grammy-winning hip-hop celebration of female pulchritude,” is widely considered a modern classic. In October 2005, an artist named Jonathan Coulton released a humorous “cover” arrangement of “Baby Got Back” that retained Sir Mix-A-Lot’s lyrics, but also added new melodic and rhythmic material set against a smooth, folk-style acoustic guitar-led accompaniment. Coulton’s “joke” arrangement became an overnight viral hit due to the absurd juxtaposition of Sir Mix-A-Lot’s lyrics and Coulton’s crooning.
This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on March 13, 2014. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link button above.
Recommended Citation
Newman, Joe, "“Look What They’ve Done To My Song, Ma” – “Baby Got Back,” Glee, and Moral Rights" (2014). AELJ Blog. 37.
https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/aelj-blog/37
