British high-voiced, annoyingly overplayed, Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Sam Smith will be paying Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne royalties from his hit “Stay With Me” after it has shown a very striking resemblance to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 1989 hit “I Won’t Back Down.” They will also be listed as co-writers of the track.
There was very little resistance by Smith which goes to show that even he can hear that he wrote the same damn song, even though he and the writers of “Stay With Me” claim they never heard “I Won’t Back Down.”
“Recently the publishers for the song ‘I Won’t Back Down,’ written by Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne, contacted the publishers for ‘Stay With Me,’ written by Sam Smith, James Napier and William Phillips, about similarities heard in the melodies of the choruses of the two compositions,” Smith’s rep told Rolling Stone. “Not previously familiar with the 1989 Petty/Lynne song, the writers of ‘Stay with Me’ listened to ‘I Won’t Back Down’ and acknowledged the similarity.”
Smith’s rep added, “Although the likeness was a complete coincidence, all involved came to an immediate and amicable agreement in which Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne are now credited as co-writers of ‘Stay With Me’ along with Sam Smith, James Napier and William Phillips.”
Really, bro? You’re going to claim you never heard “I Won’t Back Down?”
Horseshit.
I’m really stoked for Sam Smith’s follow up “European Girl” or “Learning To Buy.”
At least he did the right thing, I guess.
