The Ed Sheeran plagiarism suit has yielded a lovely mashup

Ed Sheeran, the elfin, eyebrow-less British crooner who has strummed his way into the hearts of fans with his sensitive, confessional tunes is currently embroiled in a nasty little lawsuit over his 2014 hit “Photograph,” which he co-wrote with Snow Patrol’s Johnny McDaid. Songwriters Martin Harrington and Thomas Leonard are suing the stubbly ginger troubadour, claiming that “Photograph” infringes upon “Amazing,” a minor hit they penned for former X Factor champion Matt Cardle in 2011. “Amazing” scraped onto the lower rungs of the British charts a few years back, so there’s a decent chance Sheeran, McDaid, or both heard it at some point. Sheeran’s own story, one he’s now apt to repeat before a magistrate, is that “Photograph” emerged from an impromptu hotel-room jam session during a North American tour. Sheeran began singing over a loop playing on McDaid’s laptop, and voilà. A hit was born. Whether “Photograph” infringes upon “Amazing” is ultimately a matter for the courts to decide. What can’t be denied, however, is that the songs go awfully well together, as proven by a new mashup entitled “Amazing Photograph.”