“Surfin’ U.S.A.,” by the Beach Boys (1963) vs. “Sweet Little Sixteen,” by Chuck Berry (1958)
The Case: The California boys often incorporated rock & roll pioneer Chuck Berry’s songs into their early concerts. But 1958’s “Sweet Little Sixteen” set Beach Boys’ composer Brian Wilson into overdrive. Inspired by Berry’s rapid-fire references to various American cities, he recast the song as a paean to a fun-in-the-sun sport. Wilson penned a new set of lyrics listing off the hot surfing locales across the Pacific coast. Wilson said he intended the song as a tribute to the rock guitarist, but Berry’s lawyers used another term: plagiarism.
The Verdict: With the threat of lawsuits looming, Beach Boys manager – and Brian Wilson’s father – Murry Wilson agreed to give the publishing rights to Arc Music, Berry’s publisher. However, Berry’s name wouldn’t appear on the songwriting credits until 1966.
Why It Matters: Although the genre was built on a handful of standard three-chord progressions and blues licks, the “Surfin’ U.S.A.” incident was one of the first major plagiarism scuffles in rock history.
Clarence Garlow's Route 90, from 1954, which I referenced in post #7, not only uses the same melody but includes rapid-fire references to the following cities: El Paso, Comstock, San Antonio, Katy, Houston and Beaumont in Texas and Welsh, Jennings, Crowley, Lake Charles, Rayne, Morgan City and New Orleans in Louisiana.
Incidentally, I've driven on Rte. 90, but not as far as Clarence drove. I only went from Houston to San Antonio.