Ken Dashow

Ken Dashow

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Lindsey Buckingham Resolves Case Of Accidental Plagiarism With Two Fans

Photo: Getty Images North America

Lindsey Buckingham has settled a dispute with a pair of songwriters after he accidentally plagiarized a song they gave him over 20 years ago.

The former Fleetwood Mac guitarist's latest solo album includes a track titled "Swan Song" that was originally crafted around 2000 by musicians Jordon Zadorozny and Brad Laner.

Zadorozny and Laner gave Buckingham a demo for a song called "Mind's Eye" when they were collaborating some two decades ago. While Buckingham didn't record the song at the time, he apparently rediscovered it recently and forgot that he hadn't written it by himself.

The pair explained the mix-up in a recent interview with Spin.

"My thought was, 'How do I know this song, and why do I suspect that I have sung it before?'" Zadorozny recalled of hearing "Swan Song" for the first time. "It was a strange feeling of déjà vu where your hero is singing your song."

The original song was reportedly on a CD of demos given to Buckingham by Laner when the trio was working together around 2000. At some point, Buckingham made his own demo version of "Mind's Eye" and put it away.

"...[A]s it turns out, 16 or 17 years later [he] found that demo and thought, 'This is a cool thing I did back in 2000,'" Laner explained.

After realizing the "Mind's Eye" mixup, Zadorozny contacted Buckingham's management, sent them a version of the original song and photos of the three together to prove they had once collaborated.

When Buckingham himself became aware of the issue, he quickly agreed to pay Zadorozny and Laner a fee and add their names to the song's credits. Future versions of the album will be printed with the appropriate credits.

Buckingham's management tells Spin that all parties agreed to a "friendly resolution." And it seems that everyone is happy.

As far as Buckingham's take on the song, Laner has "zero complaints" about his handling of the situation. He called "Swan Song" a "magnificent" rendition.

Zadorozny added that he's "grateful to Lindsey for rediscovering this piece of music and I love what he did with it."


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