Rascal Flatts Accused of Song Stealing

(Linda Laird, theboot.com)

Did Rascal Flatts steal part of a song from Pat Benatar? A veteran pop songwriter thinks so, and he's suing the country superstars for copyright infringement.

D.L. Byron has filed a federal lawsuit against Rascal Flatts, their producers and record label, contending that the first 17 seconds of their song 'No Reins' is too similar to a song he wrote for Benatar, the 1982 hit 'Shadows of the Night.'

"It's just too much, too strikingly similar," Byron tells the New York Post. "They'd have to have a tremendous lapse of memory not to realize what they were doing. It's my contention there's willful infringement."

'No Reins' was written by Rascal Flatts' bassist/keyboard player Jay DeMarcus and veteran Nashville songwriters Wendell Mobley and Neil Thrasher. Rascal Flatts contend any similarities between the songs were not intentional.

"To the extent that 'No Reins' shares any similarities with the plaintiff's alleged copyrighted work, any such similarities between the two works are the result of coincidence and/or the use of common or trite ideas," report lawyers for guitarist Joe Don Rooney.

'No Reins' is on Rascal Flatts' platinum-selling 'Still Feels Good' album. The band will reveal the cover-art for their upcoming 'Unstoppable' album at New York City's Madison Square Garden Thursday night.

Listen to 'No Reins' and 'Shadows of the Night' below, to see if you think they're too similar. Then tell us what you think.

Rascal Flatts - "No Reins"
Pat Benatar - "Shadows of the Night"