Did Green Day Steal Songs?

Medford man claims alt-rockers, Green Day, stole his tunes
Posted by The Oregonian Newsroom October 23, 2006 10:33

Paul McPike thought Green Day's album "American Idiot" sounded familiar.

As he listened to the title track, he said it dawned on him that the alt-rock band was singing his song.

"It came back to me," said the 32-year-old Medford grocery store checker. "That's my song. I sang that song way back in high school."

In fact, McPike claims he didn't just pen "American Idiot." He says he wrote every song on the album and sang them for his classmates at Independence High School in Amador County, Calif., more than a decade ago.

"I went and listened to the whole album, and there it was: my songs right there. They hadn't been changed a bit, except for guitars and drums."

So now McPike is suing Warner Bros. in U.S. District Court in Portland. He's claiming copyright infringement, and he wants a cut of the profits from "American Idiot."

Trouble is, McPike couldn't find a lawyer to represent him so he's doing the legal work himself. He wrote to Warner Bros. and Green Day, but he hasn't heard back from them yet.

A representative of Warner Bros. was not available for comment. Green Day's publicist at Creative Artists Agency also could not be reached for comment.

He said he's a fan of Green Day and likes what they did with what he says is his work.

"I am really happy with the job they did with my songs actually," he said.

He says the band's made millions from his tunes. He's not holding out much hope for getting "a bunch of money."

"It's more the principle," he said. "Those were my songs and I want credit."