LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -- Relatives of Buddy Holly sued MCA Records Monday, alleging that the company hoarded royalty payments, forged contracts and illegally produced albums without family consent.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages but Attorney Kevin Glasheen described it as a multi-million-dollar case."It's bad form to steal from a dead man, but unfortunately in the music industry it happens," Glasheen said. "The problem is that MCA, just like a lot of people who owe money, won't pay it until they have to."
Los Angeles-based MCA Records, one of the nation's largest recording companies, did not return calls from The Associated Press.
The lawsuit, filed in state court, charges that the contracts providing for royalties to Holly's heirs are legally questionable and should be redone.
Plaintiffs are Buddy Holly's widow, Maria Holly; his brothers, Larry and Travis Holley; and his sister Pat Holley. Buddy Holly dropped the 'e' from his last name, and his wife took the new spelling. Maria Holly lives in Dallas and Larry, Travis and Pat Holley live in Lubbock.
"The so-called recording agreements relied on by MCA are void and unenforceable and in certain circumstances, outright forgeries," the lawsuit says in reference to a contract that appears to be signed by Maria Holly and another contract signed by a manager the family claims had been fired by Holly.
The lawsuit alleges MCA conned Holly's parents into signing an agreement for rights to Holly's music, even though recording officials knew "the parents had no authority to contract for those recordings.
MCA also has "grossly underpaid the fair market value of the royalties," the family alleges in the lawsuit.
"Basically, after Buddy Holly died, the record company went through a lot of manipulations with his former manager to issue a lot of recordings," Glasheen said. "MCA had agreed to pay the family additional royalties, but then wanted to add additional terms to the agreement."
Holly had several hit songs before he died in a plane crash at age 21 in 1959, including "That'll Be the Day," "Peggy Sue" and "Maybe Baby."