[Kathleen]

December 5, 2008, 10:45 am

Joe Satriani Sues Coldplay for Cold Plagiarism
By Dave Itzkoff

While it’s hard to imagine that anyone could effectively imitate the sound of the rock-guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, Mr. Satriani seems to hear more than just his influence in the music of others. Reuters reported that on Thursday, he filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the British rock quartet Coldplay, which says that the Coldplay song “Viva La Vida” makes use of “substantial original portions” of his composition “If I Could Fly,” an instrumental track. The suit, filed in federal court in Los Angeles County, is asking for a jury trial, damages, and any profits Coldplay gained from the song. On Wednesday, “Viva La Vida” was nominated for Grammy Awards for song of the year and record of the year.