RUSH Says Rand Paul Campaign Has No Right To Play Their Songs
June 2, 2010, 14 years ago
James R. Carroll from Courier-journal.com is reporting:
In web ads and at campaign appearances, Republican US Senate candidate Rand Paul sometimes has called on the music of the band RUSH to give his message a little pop.
But it turns out the Paul campaign wasn't using the music with the band's permission, according to Rush's attorney, Robert Farmer.
Farmer, general counsel for the Anthem Entertainment Group Inc. in Toronto, which is Rush's record label, has sent a letter to Paul campaign officials informing them that they have violated copyright laws - and urging them to stop.
"This is not a political issue - this is a copyright issue," Farmer said in an interview. "We would do this no matter who it is."Besides, all three members of Rush - Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart - are Canadians, not Americans, he pointed out.
They declined to be interviewed.
Jesse Benton, Paul's campaign manager, said in an e-mail: "The background music Dr. Paul has played at events is a non-issue. The issues that matter in this campaign are cutting out-of-control deficits, repealing Obama Care and opposing cap and trade."
He did not say whether the campaign would stop using the band's music.
Farmer said his next legal step depends on the formal response he gets from the Paul campaign. Defendants in civil suits over copyright infringement can be subject to damages and fines.
Rush, founded in the late 1960s, starts a summer tour late this month. But the closest the musicians will be to Kentucky is Chicago.
In his letter, Farmer cited the Paul campaign's use of a Rush song, 'The Spirit Of Radio', to pump up a rally.
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