Northern Songs sues Maclen Music, Inc – 22 July 1971

Q: What was Northern Songs?

Northern Songs was the publishing company founded in 1963 to administer the Lennon–McCartney catalogue. Dick James sold his controlling stake to ATV in 1969, giving ATV ownership of the catalogue.

Q: What was Another Day by Paul McCartney?

Paul McCartney's first solo single, released 19 February 1971, credited jointly to Paul and Linda McCartney. It reached UK #2 and US #5. The joint credit was the basis of the Northern Songs lawsuit.

Q: Who eventually bought the Northern Songs catalogue?

Michael Jackson bought ATV Music in 1985 for $47.5 million. It was later merged into Sony/ATV Music Publishing in 1995.

July 22, 2026

Northern Songs sues Maclen Music, Inc – 22 July 1971

Thursday 22 July 1971 | New York Supreme Court, New York City

On 22 July 1971, Northern Songs, Ltd filed a lawsuit in the New York Supreme Court against Maclen Music, Inc — the American publishing arm associated with Lennon and McCartney's songwriting catalogue. The lawsuit alleged that Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney had violated a prior contractual agreement by collaborating on the song 'Another Day'. Northern Songs claimed actual damages of $50,000 and sought a further $1 million in punitive damages.

Northern Songs: Background

Northern Songs, Ltd was the music publishing company founded in 1963 by Brian Epstein and music publisher Dick James to administer the Lennon–McCartney songwriting catalogue. John Lennon and Paul McCartney each held a stake in the company, as did Epstein's NEMS Enterprises and Dick James himself.

The company had been floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1965, making Lennon and McCartney's songs a publicly traded asset — a decision that would have significant consequences. In 1969, Dick James sold his controlling stake in Northern Songs to ATV (Associated Television), owned by Sir Lew Grade, without informing Lennon or McCartney. Despite an attempt by the two Beatles to mount a counter-bid, ATV secured control of Northern Songs — and with it, the Lennon–McCartney catalogue — in October 1969.

By 1971, Northern Songs was therefore controlled by ATV, not by Lennon or McCartney. The lawsuit filed on 22 July 1971 was an action by the new corporate owners of the catalogue against McCartney's American publishing interests.

Maclen Music, Inc

Maclen Music, Inc was the American publishing company associated with the Lennon–McCartney catalogue in the United States — its name a contraction of Maccartney and Lennon. It handled the US administration of their songs and was the entity named as defendant in the Northern Songs lawsuit.

The lawsuit's allegation — that Paul and Linda McCartney had violated a prior agreement by co-writing 'Another Day' — went to the heart of the contractual obligations that McCartney had inherited from his Beatles-era publishing arrangements. The precise nature of the alleged violation related to the terms under which McCartney was permitted to write and publish songs outside the Northern Songs framework.

Another Day: The Song at the Centre of the Dispute

'Another Day' was released on 19 February 1971 as Paul McCartney's first solo single following the dissolution of The Beatles. It was credited to Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney — a joint writing credit that Northern Songs alleged breached McCartney's existing contractual obligations.

The song reached number two in the UK and number five in the US, making it a significant commercial success and a high-profile target for the publishing dispute. Its success also underlined the commercial stakes involved: a McCartney solo single with a joint writing credit had the potential to divert substantial royalty income away from Northern Songs and towards McCartney's own publishing interests.

The inclusion of Linda McCartney as a co-writer was itself a point of contention. Linda McCartney — a photographer by profession before her marriage to Paul — had no prior songwriting credits, and the joint credit was widely seen as a mechanism for Paul McCartney to share royalties with his wife while also potentially restructuring his publishing obligations. Whether the credit reflected genuine creative collaboration or was primarily a financial arrangement was a question that the lawsuit implicitly raised.

The Broader Context: Beatles Dissolution and Publishing Wars

The Northern Songs lawsuit of July 1971 was one episode in a prolonged and bitter series of legal and financial disputes that followed the dissolution of The Beatles. The group had formally split in April 1970, when Paul McCartney announced his departure and filed suit against his former bandmates and Apple Corps to dissolve the Beatles partnership.

The publishing landscape was particularly fraught. The loss of Northern Songs to ATV in 1969 had been a significant blow to both Lennon and McCartney, depriving them of control over their own catalogue. McCartney's decision to credit 'Another Day' jointly to himself and Linda was, in part, a response to this loss — an attempt to establish a new publishing framework outside the Northern Songs structure.

John Lennon, meanwhile, had his own publishing disputes. His 1971 album Imagine — released in September of that year — contained 'How Do You Sleep?', a pointed attack on McCartney that reflected the depth of the personal and professional rift between the two former collaborators. The Northern Songs lawsuit was filed into this atmosphere of mutual suspicion and competing legal actions.

The ATV ownership of the Northern Songs catalogue would persist until 1985, when ATV Music was sold to Michael Jackson for $47.5 million — a purchase that McCartney had been unable to match and that would become one of the most discussed transactions in music industry history. The catalogue was eventually merged into Sony/ATV Music Publishing in 1995.

Key Facts: 22 July 1971

Date	Thursday 22 July 1971
Court	New York Supreme Court
Plaintiff	Northern Songs, Ltd (controlled by ATV)
Defendant	Maclen Music, Inc
Allegation	Paul and Linda McCartney violated a prior agreement by co-writing 'Another Day'
Actual damages claimed	$50,000
Punitive damages sought	$1,000,000
Song in dispute	'Another Day' (released 19 February 1971; UK #2, US #5)

New York Supreme Court, 60 Centre Street, New York City — where Northern Songs, Ltd filed its lawsuit against Maclen Music, Inc on 22 July 1971.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What was Northern Songs?

Northern Songs, Ltd was the music publishing company founded in 1963 by Brian Epstein and Dick James to administer the Lennon–McCartney songwriting catalogue. It was floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1965. In 1969, Dick James sold his controlling stake to ATV (Associated Television), owned by Sir Lew Grade, giving ATV control of the Lennon–McCartney catalogue despite attempts by the two Beatles to mount a counter-bid.

What was Maclen Music?

Maclen Music, Inc was the American publishing company associated with the Lennon–McCartney catalogue in the United States — its name derived from McCartney and Lennon. It handled US administration of their songs and was the defendant in the Northern Songs lawsuit of 22 July 1971.

What was Another Day by Paul McCartney?

Another Day was Paul McCartney's first solo single after the dissolution of The Beatles, released on 19 February 1971. It was credited jointly to Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney, reaching number two in the UK and number five in the US. The joint writing credit was the basis of the Northern Songs lawsuit filed on 22 July 1971.

Who eventually bought the Northern Songs catalogue?

ATV Music, which controlled Northern Songs, was sold to Michael Jackson in 1985 for $47.5 million. The catalogue was later merged into Sony/ATV Music Publishing in 1995. Paul McCartney had been unable to match Jackson's bid, and the sale became one of the most discussed transactions in music industry history.

Why did Paul McCartney credit Another Day to Linda McCartney?

The joint writing credit on Another Day was widely seen as a mechanism for Paul McCartney to share royalties with his wife while potentially restructuring his publishing obligations outside the Northern Songs framework. Northern Songs — by then controlled by ATV — alleged this violated McCartney's prior contractual agreements, leading to the July 1971 lawsuit.