Shaggy Brooklyn rock act the Creaky Boards had a good-natured go at British megastars Coldplay last week when ‘Boards’ singer/songwriter Andrew Hoepfner posted a video on YouTube openly accusing Coldplay main man Chris Martin of pilfering his (ironically-titled) tune, “The Songs I Didn’t Write.”

In the video, which has gleaned hundreds of thousands of views since its June 14^th posting, Hoepfner compares and contrasts his song with “Viva La Vida,” the title track off Coldplay’s new album, which debuted this week at the top of the Billboard charts. He also suggests that Martin was in the crowd when the Creaky Boards performed the track at New York’s CMJ festival in 2007.

Are the songs similar? Yes, definitely. Is it plagiarism? Doubtful. Although this unfortunate statement, attributed to Martin recently by E! Online, comes at a particularly sensitive time:

"We're one of the world's worst -- but most enthusiastic -- plagiarists as a band. We'll try and copy anything but tend to fail, so we come up with something ... that sounds like us -- only through trying to sound like somebody else."

I might be a little more cynical had the same thing not happened to me about 10 years ago. I was feeling cocky about a little 2-and-a-half minute masterpiece I’d penned when I walked into a bar and heard some friends of mine playing what, in essence, was the same tune. When I confronted them about it after the set, the singer informed me that it was a Kinks cover.

Doh!

I don’t think it’s that unusual for music or melody to leave a subconscious emotional imprint. Surely George Harrison, one of the most talented musicians who ever lived, didn’t need to purloin the Chiffons’ “He’s So Fine,” to make a hit record. But, when “My Sweet Lord” came out, it was clear that Harrison, subconsciously or not, had re-written history.

In the case of the Creaky Boards, they certainly have enough of a doppelganger in “Viva La Vida” to make a case. But it appears that Hoepfner and his pals are perfectly content just to have the attention their cranky, somewhat silly, video has brought their way. They’ve even tacked on an amendment stating that Coldplay’s claims that Martin was in London at the time of the CMJ performance must be true.

Hoepfner has told at least one news outlet that he now believes it was Prince Charles that was in the audience that night. Or, perhaps, it was a time-traveling Joe Satriani (whose "If I Could Fly" came out in 2004).

Ouch! Trumped by the corny metal guitar wizard!

Wendy Case is the MOLI View's contributing editor for Arts & Entertainment.