Those Thieving Beach Boys

The first time that I learned that the Beach Boys stole Surfin’ USA from Chuck Berry I was astonished. I mean it’s one thing to cover a song but to blatantly steal is crazy. Chuck won a lawsuit and has partial songwriting credit and gets  his share of royalties so it isn’t all bad for him but…Surfin’ USA is a well known pop song that has America written all over it. And supposedly the lyrics to the song aren’t that original either…

Now, I’m not trying to bash the Beach Boys, that’s not my motive. (I love rocking out to Barbara Ann.) But come on, if we’re putting an asterisk next to Barry Bonds homerun record for cheating, don’t you think Chuck Berry deserves a whole lot more credit for writing one of the most well known American pop songs?

Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen”

The Beach Boys “Surfin’ USA”