This story has flown under the radar for three months.  Back in October Sam Smith was ordered to pay royalties from his debut hit single 'Stay With Me' to rocker Tom Petty because it shared chord progression with a Petty tune.  Listen to 'Stay With Me' and 'I Won't Back Down' and be the judge. Do you think they sound similar?

According to reports, British pop star Smith and Petty settled out of court back in October, essentially awarding 12.5 percent royalties from 'Stay With Me' to both Petty and 'I Won't Back Down's co-composer Jeff Lynne (Electric Light Orchestra). Moving forward, Smith, Petty, Lynne and Jimmy Napes will get credit. All are now listed as the chief songwriters for ‘Stay With Me’ by American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers.

I hear a bit of a similarity between the two, only if you seriously slow down 'I Won't Back Down'. It's no so apparent that I would have picked up on it had this lawsuit come to light.  I mean, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne are gazillionaires from their own music catalog's, and music legends.  They couldn't let this new kid on the block have his moment in the sun?

More From SoJO 104.9 FM