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All I Want For Christmas Is…To Sue?
So, I was watching TV one morning, and I discovered that two very popular Christmas songs were actually feuding. What in the world? Follow along as we examine a Christmas song lawsuit.
Two Songs, One Title
There is a light at the end of the tunnel… hopefully its not a freight train! ~Mariah Carey
| 1989 | 1994 |
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| 👉🏿 Click Here For the Vince Vance & The Valiants Lyrics | 👉🏿 Click Here for the Mariah Carey Lyrics |
It’s a fair bet that you’ve already heard both of these songs numerous times in the last few decades.
The Vince Vance version isn’t played nearly as often as Mariah’s but, as an avid fan of all things Christmas, I can attest to the fact that both feature prominently in retail store playlists and the Christmas music radiothons that make my holidays merry 24×7 throughout December.
The earlier version of ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ is a great song. It’s got a sort of bluesy country feel to it and Lisa Layne (formerly Lisa Burgess Stewart) does a great job belting out this Christmas classic.
The newer version of ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ is more upbeat and more difficult to get out of your head. The fact that it is played several times an hour over the radio and in retail establishment playlists throughout the holiday season, ensures that you can’t get away from this peppy song even if you wanted to.
Personally, I don’t want to.
I’ve got a number of personal reasons for enjoying the latter version, but I understand how people might be sick of it. There is actually too much of a good thing.
Don’t believe me? Try eating a whole fruitcake in one sitting.
Even so, I think most people would have a hard time not tapping their toes when Mariah’s song comes on.
The Vance version, however, has more of a Blue Christmas feel to it. It’s a great song, but it’s bittersweet rather than overwhelmingly sweet.
The lyrics of both songs express basically the same sentiment: I don’t want all of the standard trappings and gifts associated with the holiday, all I want is you. A winning formula for a Christmas song.
So, why the lawsuit?
Legal Analysis
Music Lawyer Reacts | Mariah Carey Sued For “All I Want For Christmas Is You” | Copyright Lawsuit
So, what’s the claim here, anyway?
Songwriter Andy Stone (whose stage name is Vince Vance) is suing Mariah Carey and her co-writer, Walter Afansieff, in the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Louisiana. The suit claims that Carey and Afansieff “intentionally engaged in a campaign to infringe” on his intellectual property.
There are some problems right off the top.
For one thing, you literally cannot copyright a title. In fact, there are 177 songs with this very same title.
If the later song had sampled some tunes or had directly plagiarized some of the lyrics, one could suppose he had some standing. Unfortunately, while the songs are similar in message, the lyrics are completely different as are the musical arrangements.
It stands to reason that with a title like ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’, the lyrics will center around the singer wanting “you” and nothing else as a Christmas gift.
Another matter in this centers in the timing.
In law, there is the concept of “Statute of Limitations“. There are stated time periods during which a crime can be prosecuted or during which one person can sue another for damages.
This period begins on the date when the harm is done or upon discovery of the harm. In this case, the “harm” would have occurred in 1994 when Carey’s song became popular. The statute of limitations would have expired a few years after that, certainly still in the 20th Century.
On the other hand, you could suppose that if the date of discovery was as recent as the time when Andy Stone filed the suit, he would have to prove that he had no idea that Mariah Carey’s very popular and widely broadcasted song existed for the last 28 years and suddenly discovered who had stolen his thunder all this time. Dude, seriously?
On the face of it, he seems to have no standing whatsoever.
That being said, this is the kind of things that some lawyers live for. Presumably, the lawyer who filed this suit feels that there is some way in which he can achieve damages from Carey and Afansieff. It’s possible that they could be looking for an out of court settlement to simply go away.
It remains to be seen how this will proceed. I’d be very surprised if it wasn’t thrown out on the grounds I’ve already mentioned.
Personal Perspective
A smile is the light in your window that tells others that there is a caring, sharing person inside. ~Denis Waitley
Personally, I don’t understand the motivation of launching a suit like this.
Most people believe that we’re already too litigious. We can all think of frivolous lawsuits we’ve heard of. 🔥 The coffee ☕ is too hot! 🔥 Everybody is sue-happy.
Whether he’s looking for an easy payoff or earnestly seeking recompense for perceived harm, it seems to be too little too late.
You cannot copyright a title.
Even if he could prove direct harm from the newer song, he probably ought to have launched this lawsuit within a year of her version of the song becoming a huge, decades-long hit.
On the face of it, the whole thing seems fairly petty and lacking in Christmas spirit. It doesn’t make me like his version of the song any better or garner any sympathy for him.
Personally, I would think that the schadenfreude that came from watching her epic failure to perform some of her signature songs on New Year’s Eve 2016/7 would be all the recompense he’d ever need.
Mariah Carey New Years Performance | Reps: ‘Ear Piece Was Not Working’ New Year’s Eve
I think it’s probably going to be all the recompense he’s likely to get.
Hopefully, he won’t decide to sue me for publishing my Holiday Season Serial Romance, All I Want, in 2021. I guess we’ll find out in 2041…
It’s not often that public grinchiness mars the jolly holiday season but when it does, it sure does generate some news, views and maybe even some boos. We hope your holidays are more joyous and less contentious than this.
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