Richard Ashcroft has claimed Netflix wanted to make a TV show about ‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’.
The Verve’s 1997 song was famously at the centre of a copyright row with the Rolling Stones over the use of a four-second sample of an Andrew Loog Oldham orchestral cover of their track ‘The Last Time’, which ultimately saw the 50-year-old singer have to give up all rights to the song.
And now Richard – who regained the rights in 2019 and no longer has to give away royalties from the song – has claimed the streaming service wanted to make a docudrama about the dispute.
He told the Daily Express newspaper: “The way [the song] has come back to me is fantastic.
“I saw an absolutely terrible script Netflix were going to do about ‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’. It was an insight into just how far from reality these shows can go.”
Asfcroft hopes the “piece of garbage” never moves forward and makes it onto screens.
He added: “It was an absolute piece of garbage. It’s quite scary someone wanted to make it and make people believe it was the reality. I hope it doesn’t happen.”
The original row was sparked because although permission for the recording was obtained, permission for use of the song ‘The Last Time’ was not, and so Richard was forced to give up all the rights to the iconic track, including the total lyrical content.
But after his management appealed to Rolling Stones members Sir Mick Jagger and Keith Richards directly, they agreed in 2019 to give Richard back the song to the extent it is within their power to do so, meaning all future royalties made from the track will go to Richard.
But more importantly, Mick and Keith said they no longer required a writing credit for ‘Bitter Sweet Symphony’, as they acknowledged that as far as they are concerned, the song belongs to Ashcroft.
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