On June 16, 1997, U.K. rock band The Verve released the single “Bitter Sweet Symphony”, which went on to hit No. 2 in the U.K. and No. 12 in the U.S. It became the band’s biggest hit and won several awards, including Songwriter of the Year for Richard Ashcroft at the 1998 Ivor Novello Awards.
But despite the song’s popularity and award-winning writing, The Verve wasn’t credited and didn’t receive royalties for more than 20 years. That’s because “Bitter Sweet Symphony” included a sample from the 1966 Rolling Stones track “The Last Time”.
They had permission from Decca Records to use the orchestral arrangement by the Andrew Oldham Orchestra, which accompanied the Stones. But The Verve allegedly failed to get permission from Allen Klein, the Rolling Stones’ former manager and head of ABKCO Records. ABKCO owned the actual composition as opposed to just the recording, like Decca.
So, Klein filed a lawsuit against The Verve before “Bitter Sweet Symphony” was set to be released. Klein refused to sign off on the sample, claiming the band used more of the original song than agreed upon. Keith Richards and Mick Jagger didn’t want to get involved in the dispute, and eventually The Verve were forced to give up all royalties. “Bitter Sweet Symphony” was credited to Jagger/Richards instead of Richard Ashcroft. But, according to The Verve guitarist Nick McCabe, the sample actually had nothing to do with the Rolling Stones.
The Verve Weren’t Credited On Their Own Hit Song for More Than 20 Years
Speaking to XS Noize in 2017, McCabe cleared up some of the misconceptions around “Bitter Sweet Symphony”. Allegedly, The Verve was told they would receive 40% of the royalties. But once the song started selling well, they were forced to give up 100% or lose the song completely.
“The main string line that everybody seems to think is the sample is Wil Malone’s score,” said McCabe. “Hence, the high string line that comes in at the beginning and then the swelling strings (that have got sampled quite a lot actually) have got nothing to do with The Rolling Stones; it is all Wil Malone.”
The string line in “The Last Time” was allegedly written by composer David Whitaker. So from Whitaker’s original, to the Andrew Oldham Orchestra and the Rolling Stones, to Malone’s sample, to The Verve.
McCabe was adamant that their sample “bears no resemblance to the original.” But that didn’t stop Allen Klein from going after The Verve for everything they had at the time.
All’s Well That Ends Well, However
The Rolling Stones kept writing credit and royalties until 2019, when “Bitter Sweet Symphony” had generated nearly $5 million. Klein died in 2009, and his son became the new head of ABKCO Records. By that time, Richard Ashcroft was prepared to fight for his song again.
Ashcroft and his lawyers contacted Jody Klein, who got them in touch with Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and their manager Joyce Smyth. In May 2019, a new agreement was reached that put “Bitter Sweet Symphony” back in The Verve’s hands.
The Rolling Stones put out a statement recognizing the lawsuit and unfortunate dispute. They also acknowledged the financial and emotional toll of “having to surrender the composition of one of your own songs.”
While accepting the Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contributions to British Music that year, Ashcroft announced that the Rolling Stones agreed to return the writing credits and royalties to The Verve. “I never had a personal beef with the Stones,” Ashcroft said. “They’ve always been the greatest rock and roll band in the world. It’s been a fantastic development. It’s life-affirming in a way.”
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