Post by AtomHeartMother on Jul 10, 2004 13:13:26 GMT -5
SESSION SINGER BRINGS SUIT AGAINST FLOYD
Clare Torry looking for compensation for "Dark Side" contribution
Session singer Clare Torry, whose vocal stylings are a stand-out on "The Great Gig in the Sky" from Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" (1973), is suing the band and EMI Records.
The Daily Express reports that Torry claims her contribution to the song constitutes co-authorship, and she is suing for damages that could be worth millions of dollars.
"If I'd known then what I know now, I would have done something about organizing copyright or publishing," Torry says in an interview soon to be published in a new book about "Dark Side." "I'd be a wealthy woman now. The session fee in 1973 was 15 pounds, but as it was Sunday I charged a double fee of 30 pounds -- which I invested wisely of course!"
Torry says she was instructed by the band to sing along to the musical track without using words, and it was her approach to that challenge that qualifies her as co-writer of the song.
"They played me the track a couple of times and I said, 'The best thing for me is to go out into the studio, put the headphones on and do something,'" Torry adds. "They didn't know what they wanted. I didn't know what they wanted."
The Sunday night session lasted only a few hours, and, afterwards, Torry was convinced the tape would be scrapped. "I honestly, truthfully, never ever thought it would see the light of day," she recalls.
The Daily Express also reports Torry is also requesting that "illicit" copies of the song be destroyed. If successful, the suit could temporarily halt production of the album, which has sold 43 million copies worldwide.
EMI had no comment.
Clare Torry looking for compensation for "Dark Side" contribution
Session singer Clare Torry, whose vocal stylings are a stand-out on "The Great Gig in the Sky" from Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" (1973), is suing the band and EMI Records.
The Daily Express reports that Torry claims her contribution to the song constitutes co-authorship, and she is suing for damages that could be worth millions of dollars.
"If I'd known then what I know now, I would have done something about organizing copyright or publishing," Torry says in an interview soon to be published in a new book about "Dark Side." "I'd be a wealthy woman now. The session fee in 1973 was 15 pounds, but as it was Sunday I charged a double fee of 30 pounds -- which I invested wisely of course!"
Torry says she was instructed by the band to sing along to the musical track without using words, and it was her approach to that challenge that qualifies her as co-writer of the song.
"They played me the track a couple of times and I said, 'The best thing for me is to go out into the studio, put the headphones on and do something,'" Torry adds. "They didn't know what they wanted. I didn't know what they wanted."
The Sunday night session lasted only a few hours, and, afterwards, Torry was convinced the tape would be scrapped. "I honestly, truthfully, never ever thought it would see the light of day," she recalls.
The Daily Express also reports Torry is also requesting that "illicit" copies of the song be destroyed. If successful, the suit could temporarily halt production of the album, which has sold 43 million copies worldwide.
EMI had no comment.
