Song Clearance Sheet
5 sources citedRum and Coca-Cola
Calypso1940s162BPM
UnconfirmedKey
More around 160 BPM → · More “Cleared After Dispute” →
Tempo/key via Deezer →
The verdict
Cleared After Dispute
The original Trinidadian creators (Lord Invader and Lionel Belasco) won a real federal case in 1948 — Lord Invader awarded $150,000 in owed royalties. But the outcome was unusual: Morey Amsterdam, found to have copied the song, still kept the US copyright — the win secured royalties, not a reversion of ownership.
Used by independents?
Unconfirmed — the page doesn't yet document enough sampler detail to tell.
Who you need to ask
The original creators — Lionel Belasco (music) & Lord Invader (lyrics)
Wikipedia → · checked Jul 2026
The US copyright holder — Morey Amsterdam — retained the US copyright even after being found to have copied the song
Wikipedia → · checked Jul 2026
The current administrator — Not confirmed — needs a Songview/Discogs lookup
Wikipedia → · checked Jul 2026
Has it been reused?
Yes — after litigation. The Andrews Sisters’ 1945 version sold ~7 million copies (10 weeks at #1, the decade’s third best-selling record); the original creators later won owed royalties in court.
Do they allow reuse?
No standalone policy found; ownership is documented — unusually split between the copyright holder (Amsterdam) and the creators who won royalties.
Who Owns It
Licenses explained →The two permissions you need, and who holds them
The original creatorsLionel Belasco (music) & Lord Invader / Rupert Grant (lyrics)
Who holds the US copyrightMorey Amsterdam retained the US copyright
The lawsuit the creators wonLord Invader and Belasco won a federal case (decided 1948)
The recording (current administrator)Not confirmed
Receipts
Every public mention of terms, policy, or past deals we've found
The recording was almost accidental
Patty Andrews described the song being brought to them the night before the session, learned quickly and recorded with an improvised arrangement — with the sisters later candidly admitting they gave little thought to the lyrics’ actual meaning.
Songfacts · read it →
Banned partly for naming a product
Many network stations restricted or banned it specifically because it named a commercial product (Coca-Cola), which could be construed as free advertising, on top of its suggestive content.
Songfacts · read it →
A precedent in international copyright debates
At least one source frames the case as prefiguring later, ongoing debates about protecting musical genres originating in developing nations from Western commercial exploitation.
Grokipedia · read it →
A layered irony: the melody’s own composer likely borrowed it too
The melody Belasco successfully sued over (as “L’Année Passée”) was itself likely appropriated by Belasco from an earlier 1880s Barbadian folk song, “King Ja Ja,” per SecondHandSongs — so the composer who won an infringement suit may have engaged in the same uncredited borrowing from an even earlier source.
SecondHandSongs · read it →
Can You Use It for Free?
How to check PD →Is it public domain?No
Sample History
—
Times sampled
A calypso standard, widely covered
Covers
1945
First flip
Who to Contact
LI
Lionel Belasco & Lord Invader (original creators)
The original creators who won owed royalties in court
What they'll chargeNobody's shared numbers yet
Don't Want the Hassle?
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References
Every source cited on this page — 5 in total
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Page history · 2 updates
Jul 2026Page created — full research (Batch 5)
Jul 2026BPM/Key pending a separate manual keyfinder pass