Le Tigre’s Kathleen Hanna and Johanna Fateman Sue Over “Deceptacon” Copyright Infringement Accusation

Countering singer-songwriter Barry Mann’s claims that the song draws from his 1961 hit “Who Put the Bomp (In the Bomp, Bomp Bomp)”
Kathleen Hanna and Johanna Fateman
Le Tigre’s Kathleen Hanna and Johanna Fateman, November 2013 (Gary Gershoff/WireImage)

Kathleen Hanna and Johanna Fateman have filed a civil suit suit related to disputed copyright infringement with their 1999 Le Tigre song “Deceptacon.” They filed it in a New York federal court on Friday (October 8), countering cease-and-desist letters from singer-songwriter Barry Mann alleging that “Deceptacon” infringes upon the 1961 single “Who Put the Bomp (Bomp, Bomp, Bomp).”

The complaint, viewed by Pitchfork, argues that Mann and co-writer Gerry Goffin (who died in 2014) have no copyright claim because “Bomp” was not a wholly original work in the first place:

Mr. Mann did not create these vocables or song titles; rather, it appears that Mr. Mann and his co- writer copied them from Black doo-wop groups active during the late 1950s and early 1960s. Specifically, it appears that Mr. Mann took “bomp-bah-bomp-bah-bomp” from The Marcels’ distinctive version of “Blue Moon,” which sold over a million copies, and “rama lama ding dong” from the Edsels’ then-popular “Rama Lama Ding Dong.” In short, the Bomp lyrics at issue are not original to Mr. Mann, and Defendants have no legitimate copyright claim in them.

Beyond that, the suit maintains that Le Tigre’s twists on “Bomp” qualify as fair use because the lyrics have “a new meaning that is directly at odds with and a clear criticism of the message in ‘Bomp.’” Pitchfork has reached out to representatives for Barry Mann for comment. When contacted by Pitchfork, representatives for Le Tigre’s Kathleen Hanna Johanna Fateman shared the following statement:

Last week, we filed a complaint seeking declaratory judgment in the Southern District of New York against Barry Mann, the co-writer (with Gerry Goffin) of the 1961 hit “Who Put the Bomp? (In the bomp-ba-bomp-ba-bomp).” He claims that Le Tigre’s 1999 “Deceptacon” infringes on, and is wholly derivative of, his and Goffin’s song. He wants money from us, and his goal is to own and control our song.

We don’t want to sue anyone, let alone another artist, but we have no choice at this point. We just want Mann to leave us alone.

“Deceptacon,” which we wrote more than two decades ago, bears no resemblance to the song he wrote with Goffin in tone, melody, arrangement, or style. The lyrics that Mann claims to be theirs are not protectable by copyright, because they are not original to the song. (Ironically, the two lines in question were appropriated from other hits of that era, as were the rest of the song’s lyrics.) And while “Deceptacon” does cite and comment directly on their message, it is our right to do so. It’s your right to refer to and critique “Who Put the Bomp?,” “Deceptacon,” or any other work in your art, too.

Le Tigre didn’t need Mann’s permission to release “Deceptacon” in 1999, and we won’t stand for his threats now.

You can read our complaint for an explanation of all the ways the law is on our side.

https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Le-Tigre-deceptacon.pdf