Pitbull, Kesha Lawsuit: Does Harmonica Riff In ‘Timber’ Sound Exactly The Same As ‘San Francisco Bay’ From 1978? [POLL]

Pitbull and Kesha are being accused of plagiarising part of their mega hit 'Timber.' According to The Independent, "songwriters Lee Oskar, Keri Oskar and Greg Errico are seeking $3 million in damages over the track, which topped charts around the world." The three songwriters are behind the 1978 hit 'San Francisco Bay.' The trio claim that Pitbull instructed the harmonica player on 'Timber' to "emulate" the intro to their song to give it "an identical texture and sound."

'Timber' features harmonica player Paul Harrington of Rockwall, Texas, who plays through the entire song. He was apparently told to emulate harmonica player Lee Oskar of the band War. The song peaked at number one on the 'Billboard Hot 100' for three consecutive weeks, and has also topped the charts in many other countries, including Canada, where it has stood at number one for eight consecutive weeks, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark.

'Timber' can be heard below, as can 'San Francisco Bay.' The intro to the latter song does sound pretty much identical to the former. The catchy harmonica tune is really what makes 'Timber' such a toe-tapping hit. None of the songrwriters on 'San Francisco Bay' were credited on 'Timber,' nor were they given any royalties. Have a listen to both songs and see what you think. Is this a case of simplue musical inspiration or is this true musical theft?