Bob Goodlatte Receives Most Awkward Serenade Ever With Pro-Copyright Song
from the we-gotta-go-to-the-crappy-town-where-i'm-a-hero! dept
House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte has sort of an up and down history when it comes to technology and innovation. He made some rather unfortunate comments after the SOPA debates, ignoring the public's place in talks. On the other hand, he was among the lawmakers who wanted to make unlocking phones legal -- though his proposal on that front was very weak, and did little to fix the underlying problem. At one point, Goodlatte said the DMCA system needed to go and service providers needed to have more onus on them over IP issues. However, more recently he came out and suggested that the DOJ and Hollywood have too cozy of a relationship.
What's equally unclear is why members of the Southwest Virginia Songwriters Association (Seriously? That's a thing?), who are on the Hill as the Grammys lobby Congress, decided to offer up an incredibly awkward serenade of Goodlatte in the form of a pro-copyright song.
The song, “Copy-Right, Copy-Wrong,” was written by Goodlatte constituents and members of the Southwest Virginia Songwriters Association: Larry Sakayama, Greg Trafidlo and Barbara Martin. Nashville songwriter Darrell Brown also pitched in. The lyrics forgive Goodlatte for being born a Yankee, while tracing the congressman’s journey from his “college in Maine” to the law degree that will help him to “slay the piracy giants.”
“To those that make the music, he’s our Moses,” the group crooned. “Even better than Charlton Heston.” The chorus continues: “Chairman Bob/Get your hands in the mud/Chairman Bob/Roll up your sleeves Bob/Say Copy-right yeah yeah/Not Copy-wrong no no.”
It would be difficult to list out the most awkward and unfortunate lyrics in the song, other than to say "all of them". Brown, the lead singer, at one point went off script with the lyrics, singing "Don't make me get the majority whip, now." Er, that isn't creepy at all. So congratulations, Songwriters Association of Wherever. Your screed against "copy-wrong" fits so nicely into the "that awkward moment when" meme that you've tripped into the internet anyway.
Filed Under: bob goodlatte, copyright, serenade, songwriters
