Marvin Gaye’s family has accused Robin Thicke’s smash single “Blurred Lines” of plagiarizing “Got To Give It Up,” the 1977 R&B dance song. Thicke has stated he was inspired by “Got To Give It Up,” and “Blurred Lines” evokes 70’s funk music, but does it go to far?
Documentary filmmaker, photographer, landscape designer, author, and illustrator. "Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly" currently airing on PBS. Current film projects include Piping Plovers, Gloucester's Feast of St. Joseph, and Saint Peter's Fiesta. Visit my websites for more information about film and design projects at kimsmithdesigns.com, monarchbutterflyfilm.com, and pipingploverproject.org. Author/illustrator "Oh Garden of Fresh Possibilities! Notes from a Gloucester Garden."
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17 thoughts on “Blurred Lines: Plagiarism, or Not?”
Boy, men in the ’70s sure did wear some tight shirts.
Noticed that too–at first i thought the guy at the beginning was shirtless–the shirt is transparent fabric. I love it when Marvin joins the dance party @ 4 minutes.
Nawwwww, not the same. Just because it is similar and partially sung in falsetto doesn’t make it plagiarized. If it were the same notes they would have more of a case. Remember the same flap over George Harrison’s My Sweet Lord and the song He’s So Fine? Some of the phrases had the same notes and Georgie ended up paying.
I think–not plagiarism. Robin Thicke said he wanted to create a song evocative of Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up,” and he succeeded, but did not go too far. There are many similarities, far more differences, and musicologically speaking,”Got To Give It Up” is composed around the blues scale, while “Blurred Lines” is in the major mode.
Both songs are fabulous and deserve their meg-hit status. Because of all the controversy, I imagine sales of Marvin Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up” have spiked and that would be great, too.
The drum beat is pretty similar, but many are. More cowbell man! The Robin Thick song sounds like a lot of other songs, which just happens a lot. I dint think these two are the same at all. But now I have to listen to some funky Marvin Gaye! Good post Kim!
Thanks Rich–sweetest, gorgeous music, from earliest Motown hits with Tammi Terrell to the soulful “What’s Going On Album.” Although the “Prince of Soul” died tragically at the age of only 45, by hand of his father, his musical legacy and influence lives–as demonstrated in Thicke’s “Blurred Lines!”
Nothing really new about this at this point in the game. It’s pulled from another track, that’s dating back since the start of hip-hop. For an extreme version of sample/borrow see: Snoop Dogg’s Doggy Style, or Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, (both produced by Dr. Dre of course). Those records are cut mostly form P-Funk/Parliament classics. Besides, where would hip-hop be today without the sampling of James Brown’s entire library? Nowhere.
Good Morning Gloucester 
Boy, men in the ’70s sure did wear some tight shirts.
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Noticed that too–at first i thought the guy at the beginning was shirtless–the shirt is transparent fabric. I love it when Marvin joins the dance party @ 4 minutes.
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Marvin’s been robbed!
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Nawwwww, not the same. Just because it is similar and partially sung in falsetto doesn’t make it plagiarized. If it were the same notes they would have more of a case. Remember the same flap over George Harrison’s My Sweet Lord and the song He’s So Fine? Some of the phrases had the same notes and Georgie ended up paying.
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I don’t recall, but in listening to “My Sweet Lord” and “He’s So Fine,” both remind me of the gospel song “Oh Happy Day.”
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Actually George said he was “influenced” by Oh Happy Day in writing My Sweet Lord.
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No way.
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I think–not plagiarism. Robin Thicke said he wanted to create a song evocative of Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up,” and he succeeded, but did not go too far. There are many similarities, far more differences, and musicologically speaking,”Got To Give It Up” is composed around the blues scale, while “Blurred Lines” is in the major mode.
Both songs are fabulous and deserve their meg-hit status. Because of all the controversy, I imagine sales of Marvin Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up” have spiked and that would be great, too.
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Haven’t musicians been sampling tracks for decades?
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• No, they are not exactly the same.
• Marvin Gaye is dead, so he doesn’t care either way.
• Everything is a remix: http://everythingisaremix.info/watch-the-series/
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Thanks for sharing the link Rob–very interesting.
Also, Gaye is often in the ‘top-earning dead celebrities’ list.
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The drum beat is pretty similar, but many are. More cowbell man! The Robin Thick song sounds like a lot of other songs, which just happens a lot. I dint think these two are the same at all. But now I have to listen to some funky Marvin Gaye! Good post Kim!
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Thanks Rich–sweetest, gorgeous music, from earliest Motown hits with Tammi Terrell to the soulful “What’s Going On Album.” Although the “Prince of Soul” died tragically at the age of only 45, by hand of his father, his musical legacy and influence lives–as demonstrated in Thicke’s “Blurred Lines!”
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Nothing really new about this at this point in the game. It’s pulled from another track, that’s dating back since the start of hip-hop. For an extreme version of sample/borrow see: Snoop Dogg’s Doggy Style, or Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, (both produced by Dr. Dre of course). Those records are cut mostly form P-Funk/Parliament classics. Besides, where would hip-hop be today without the sampling of James Brown’s entire library? Nowhere.
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Agree–and see Rob Hall’s link–featuring Led Zeppelin:
Everything is a Remix: http://everythingisaremix.info/watch-the-series/
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Seem very different to my ears…like ’em both! Very nice analysis Kim!
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http://youtubedoubler.com/a2pz
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