Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just all get along? Nah, what fun would that be? Here is a list of the best band squabbles ever. Some are between two bands and one is even innerbanditary (yes, I just made up that word), but all were played out in the public eye:
Lynyrd Skynrd vs. Neil Young
I guess Neil Young started this one. He wrote the song “Southern Man,” which contained lyrics that talked about crosses burning and paying back slaves for all the years of injustice done to them. Lynyrd Skynrd, a band almost synonymous with Southern men, fired back in “Sweet Home Alabama” with lyrics that said, “Well, I hope Neil Young will remember/A Southern man don’t need him around anyhow.” Ouch, calling out your name in a song, especially a song as famous and with as much lasting power as 1974’s “Sweet Home Alabama” is never a good thing.
Actually, this seemed to just be a case of misunderstanding on the part of the fans. From all I have read, Neil Young and Lynyrd Skynrd actually respected each other as artists. In fact, if you look closely at Ronnie Van Zant’s shirt on the cover of the last Lynyrd Skynrd album he sang on “Street Survivors,” you will see he is wearing a Neil Young shirt. However, there doesn’t seem to be any truth to the urban legend that he was buried in a Neil Young t-shirt. So while this really doesn’t belong in the “greatest musical feud” category, it is an interesting story.
Mariah Carey vs. Jennifer Lopez
Ah, well, you know, divas will be divas. This one supposedly started when Jennifer Lopez rushed to use a sample in a song before Mariah could. When Mariah was told Jennifer got 8 hours of sleep each night, Mariah cattily said, “If I had the luxury of not actually having to sing my songs, I’d do that too.” Meoooww.
Lennon vs. McCartney
They started the Beatles and in the end, perhaps it was only they who could stop it. After Lennon agreed to not mention that he had quit the Beatles, McCartney said he was no longer a member in an interview. Lennon’s reaction was “Jesus Christ! He [McCartney] gets all the credit for it!” He also accused McCartney of making the announcement to sell records. Then there was the whole animosity thing over Lennon’s marriage to Yoko Ono and what the other Beatles saw as her “interference” with the band. Lennon accused McCartney of leading the band after Brian Epstein died. He also felt the songs Paul wrote got more recognition than his own. Then there was that little thing about Paul wanting to change the songwriting credits from Lennon/McCartney to McCartney/Lennon.
But it said that before his death, Lennon had expressed regret for the feuding with McCartney and as he ages, Paul too has softened.