(LOS ANGELES) - Paula Cole, Warner Bros. Records, and Imago Records are being sued over the dance remix of Cole's hit "Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?" The suit alleges that portions of the remix sound too much like the 1986 Boys Don't Cry hit "I Wanna Be A Cowboy." In the $7 million lawsuit, filed July 30 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, co-writers Nick Richards and Brian Chatton claim that the remix's use of the phrase "I wanna be a cowboy" 24 times in the same style and syntax as their song constitutes copyright infringement. "The line from my clients" song is being used out of context and the producers are trying to exploit it," says Edwin McPherson, attorney for Richards and Chatton. Remix producers DJ EFX, Big Ed, and the E-Team also are named as defendants. McPherson says Cole and publisher Famous Music, also named in the suit, have been cooperative, but "Warner is the one who's been stonewalling us." He says a temporary restraining order may be requested to halt further distribution of the remix. A Warner Bros. Records spokesman had no comment.
(photo courtesy of Warner Bros.)