Farin Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 By JAKE COYLE, AP Entertainment Writer Fri May 30, 7:30 AM ET via yahoo! news WASHINGTON - After word spread that Prince covered Radiohead's "Creep" at Coachella, the tens of thousands who couldn't be there ran to YouTube for a peek. Everyone was quickly denied — even Radiohead. All videos of Prince's unique rendition of Radiohead's early hit were quickly taken down, leaving only a message that his label, NPG Records, had removed the clips, claiming a copyright violation. But the posted videos were shot by fans and, obviously, the song isn't Prince's. In a recent interview, Thom Yorke said he heard about Prince's performance from a text message and thought it was "hilarious." Yorke laughed when his bandmate, guitarist Ed O'Brien, said the blocking had prevented him from seeing Prince's version of their song. "Really? He's blocked it?" asked Yorke, who figured it was their song to block or not. "Surely we should block it. Hang on a moment." Yorke added: "Well, tell him to unblock it. It's our ... song." YouTube prohibits the posting of copyrighted material. If the site receives a complaint from a copyright owner, it will in most cases remove the video(s). Whether the same could be done for a company not holding a copyright is less clear, but Yorke's argument would seem to bear some credence according to YouTube's policies. YouTube, which is owned by Google, declined to comment. Prince also did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday. The dispute was an interesting twist in debates over digital ownership, held between two major acts with differing views on music and the Internet. Radiohead famously released their most recent album, "In Rainbows," as a digital download with optional pricing. They also have a channel on YouTube. When Prince performed at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 26, he prohibited the standard arrangement of allowing photographers to shoot near the stage during the first three songs of his set. Instead, he had a camera crew filming his performance. Prince, who founded NPG Records in 1993, has been innovative when it comes to music distribution, too. He released his 1997 album, "Crystal Ball," on the Internet and in 2006 was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the Webbys. In 2007, he gave away copies of his disc "Planet Earth" in a British Sunday newspaper. But the Purple One has also shut down his official Web site and in September of last year said he would sue YouTube and eBay for not filtering unauthorized content. Prince fans have organized to urge him to relent in his legal fights to control images and photographs of himself. As of Thursday, the most popular YouTube clip about Prince playing "Creep" is an expletive-laden rant from Sam Conti Jr., who describes himself as a "former Prince fan." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levis Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 Radiohead's got a point. I'll grudgingly grant them that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viaene Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 Strange, I don't see why live performances should be forbidden on youtube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levis Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 Quick! Before it's gone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viaene Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 I think he screwed it Thanks for posting Radhi! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levis Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 I wouldn't have recognised it meself if it wasn't for the title you're welcome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edna Posted June 5, 2008 Report Share Posted June 5, 2008 But the Purple One has also shut down his official Web site and in September of last year said he would sue YouTube and eBay for not filtering unauthorized content. I couldn´t believe it when I looked for "Purple Rain" and "Raspberry Beret" on youtube a week ago... Not a single Prince video... ...too good a dear friend of mine helped me out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ombre Vivante Posted July 5, 2008 Report Share Posted July 5, 2008 Prince has officially gone retarded. He has that whole Howard Hughes vibe going on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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