I DID NOT PLUNDER LAND DOWN UNDER; Scot sued for 'theft' of Oz anthem.

Byline: Mark McGivern

SCOTS musician Colin Hay is being sued for stealing Australia's "other national anthem" - 28 years after he made it a worldwide hit.

Colin, 56, who wrote and sang Men At Work's 1981 hit Down Under, has been accused of nicking it from a folk song.

And defending the case, which came to court in Australia last week, could cost him millions.

The court case was sparked when a quiz show linked Down Under's flute riff to the folk song Kookaburra Sits In The Old Gum Tree two years ago.

Share

Norman Lurie, boss of small music publishing firm Larrikin, realised his company owned the rights to Kookaburra, written by schoolteacher Marion Sinclair in 1934.

Lurie's lawyers fired off letters to Sony BMG Music Entertainment and EMI Music Publishing, who own the rights to Down Under, pointing out the similarity.

When the case came to court last week, Larrikin and their lawyers called it a"David and Goliath" battle. They said they would have expected a 40 to 60 per cent share of rights to Down Under if the band had sought permission to use Kookaburra.

Colin, who was born in Kilwinning and lived in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, until his family emigrated when he was 14, was called to give evidence at the Federal Court in Sydney - armed with his guitar to play his song to the judge.

The musician, who moved from Australia to California 20 years ago but still speaks with a Scottish accent, was asked if his royalties from Down Under had been spent. He replied: "I tend to make a good dent in it."

He admitted the flute riff was "unmistakably" the same as Kookaburra but denied he was aware of any breach of copyright.

He said he had never given a thought to the melody his bandmate Greg Ham was playing on the flute, adding: "I never actually thought to myself he was playing Kookaburra - ever, during that time."

Colin, who returns to Scotland for a series of gigs next week, was questioned about the video for the song, in which Greg Ham plays the riff sitting in a tree.

He said: "For me he was just sitting in a tree - it wasn't a gum tree for one thing."

After playing an acoustic version of Down Under to the court, he agreed the flute riff made the song "more special" but said the "anthem" of Down Under was its chorus.

He said he had played Down Under without the riff during solo gigs and added: "Nobody's come up to me and asked me where the flute was."

Larrikin are restricted to claiming six years worth of royalties if the court finds the band stole from Kookaburra.

CAPTION(S):

HITMAKERS: Colin Hay, centre, with the other members of Men At Work