Christer Falck is head of Norwegian label C+C Records, a TV personality (in Norway) and one of Prince's biggest fans. So much so that he gathered together 50 of the finest Norwegian artists around to record a 5-CD boxset of covers to celebrate The Purple One's 50th birthday. The problem is that Mr Falck 'forgot' to pay the compulsory licensing fee - and Prince is suing the lot of them.
It's easy to diss the pint-sized popstar - after demanding his own fansites be stripped of copyright images and removing his cover of Radiohead's Creep from YouTube (much to the dismay of Thom Yorke) - he's an easy target. But if C+C Records are profiting from the Shockadelica compilation (it's still for sale by the way), surely Prince has every right?
According to Listening Post, the license is about 10 cents per cover song. This means C+C would have to pay around $8 for each of the 81-track compilations sold. The Norwegian acts didn't get paid for their services either, probably because: "All is made with love to the world's greatest artist ever".
Evidently Falck assumed that this 'happy birthday' gesture would be enough to please His Purpleness too - it was only after the Prince camp received a copy in the post that the trouble began.
