Link courtesy of The Friends of Tom message board:
Canadian punk princess Avril Lavigne is being sued by U.S. songwriters who claim her smash hit Girlfriend sounds suspiciously like a track they took up the charts in the 1970s.
Lavigne's manager, Terry McBride, said the pop starlet is one of several people named in a lawsuit filed July 2 that alleges striking similarities to the 1979 Rubinoos song I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend.
The group's founder, Tommy Dunbar, filed the suit in California's Northern Federal District Court. It also names Lavigne's publishing company, Avril Lavigne Publishing, and her songwriting partner, Dr. Luke, as defendants.
McBride said from Vancouver the claim is baseless, noting that a musicologist he hired to study both tracks has deemed them completely different songs.
Still, McBride, also CEO of Nettwerk Music Group, admitted he would consider settling the suit out of court if the costs of defending the case prove too high.
Original article
The Rubinoos (a band that in some ways, for better and worse, epitomized the power pop movement of the late 70s) have the song on their myspace page if you want to give it a listen. I must admit that the choruses are strikingly similar but we can give Ms Lavigne credit for coming up with lines like "She's like so whatever" with only the assistance of highly paid professional songwriters.
Perhaps the Ramones should sue Rubinoos.
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