by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
SDNY COURTHOUSE, April 27 – In 2017 Ed Sheeran was sued for allegedly infringing the copyright of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" in his 2014 song, "Thinking Out Loud."
On April 24, 2023 the jury begins before U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Louis L. Stanton. Inner City Press will cover it.
The actual Marvin Gaye recording may not be played for the jury. But a 2014 YouTube concern clip of Sheeran breaking into Let's Get It On while (singing) Thinking Out Loud may be - the clip is here, at 4:29.
The plaintiff is not Marvin Gaye but rather Kathryn Griffin-Townsend as heir of Ed Townsend, Gaye's co-writer on "Let's Get It On." Among plaintiffs' counsel is Ben Crump.
On April 24 for jury selection, Crump was there. In the jury pool were a musicology, a mother with two daughters who are Sheeran fans, and a woman who had Sheeran's "Perfect" as her wedding song. Thread here. The jury was picked and sent home; chords - four or six was the debate - were played.
On April 25, opening arguments and witnesses including Ed Sheeran (who later left court without comment). Inner City Press was there, thread here.
After a musicology and the plaintiff rested, on April 27 Ed Sheeran took the stand. Inner City Press was there and live tweeted, thread here:
The defense case has begun... with Ed Sheeran on the stand. Counsel: Who is Just Jack? Sheeran: He took my on my first big UK tour. My cousin worked in a studio in London. What I recorded then were like sketches before a painting, not in my discography
Counsel: When did you get a manager? Sheeran: At 16. He found me on MySpace. It was 2007. I released five EPs & I got signed in 2011.
Counsel: What is grind? Sheeran: It's like hip hop but faster, like 140 beats per minutes instead of 90 or 100. I grew up with it
Sheeran: I was brought up on Elton John, Van Morrison. Stevie Wonder, I love. Counsel: How has your songwriting changed? Sheeran: You get better with time.
Sheeran: You put your foot on the gas when you make an album then you take your foot off the gas. That's usually when good things happen. Counsel: Who is Amy Wadge? Sheeran: I went up to co-write with her. We wrote four or five songs the first day.
Counsel: When did you write Thinking out Loud? Sheeran: In February 2014. With Amy Wadge.She was staying with me, to catch up
Counsel: What was going on in your personal life? Sheeran: My grandfather had recently died. My grandmother had cancer. A new relationship
Counsel: That's visit, did you two write any other songs?
Sheeran: Yes, a song I did with a Dutch artist that never got released. And maybe one other one. Counsel: Do you recall what time of day? Sheeran: Evening, because we broke for dinner.
Sheeran: I came out of the shower and heard the chords Amy was playing. I thought, we need to do that. After dinner, we did. Counsel: Did you use guitars? Sheeran: I have a lot of guitars in my house. We went back and forth on the chords for the bridge.
Sheeran: It's a collaboration. The melody changes. You discuss. I find when I write vocal melodies, I do it phonetically. At first it was, I'm singing out now. Which is like "I'm thinking out loud."
Sheeran: My Irish grandfather passed away. My other set, my grandmother, she'd lost the ability to walk. I thought, what must they be feeling. I've got another song about my grandfather's Alzheimer's.
Counsel: Who came up with the chords? Sheeran: Amy.
Counsel: You heard Doctor Stewart? Sheeran: Yeah. Counsel: He said the second chord is different in the first 24 seconds - what do you have to say?
Sheeran: He's saying it because it helps his case. I'm not the world's most talented guitarist... [Plays]
Sheeran (singing) "When your legs don't work" Judge Stanton: Let's end here. See you Monday. Have a good weekend.
and more including on testy on Substack here
Team Crump email on Patreon here
More after Sheeran on defense case on Substack here
The case is Griffin, et al. v. Sheeran, et al., 17-cv-5221 (Stanton)
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