Madonna’s Vogue did not break copyright law, even though it contained a snippet of another artist’s song, a US court has ruled.<\/p>\n
The case revolved around a horn “hit”, which was allegedly lifted from the Salsoul Orchestra track Love Break.<\/p>\n
But the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said the sample lasted less than a second, and would not have been recognisable to the general public<\/p>\n
“Without careful attention, the horn hits are easy to miss,” it said.<\/p>\n
Producer Shep Pettibone worked on both Vogue and Love Break. The one-note horn sequence in contention lasted just 0.23 seconds, the court heard.<\/p>\n
You can hear the original at 4’40” in this clip, and at 1’02” in Madonna’s track.<\/p>\n
“After listening to the recordings,” wrote judge Susan P Graber, “we conclude that a reasonable jury could not conclude that an average audience would recognise the appropriation of the composition”.<\/p>\n