AUTOGRAPH … Steve Lynch: “I would say that being sued by guys we hired to play in a band that I co-founded in 1984… was an unpleasant experience to say the least.”

“Fortunately, I was able to hire the exceptional law firm of Lewis Roca, spearheaded by Warren Bleeker, who also successfully handled Traci Guns’ trademark case, and Eric Kohli of counsel. Right from the onset, they were very confident in the merits of my position, to which I filed a countersuit.”
— Steve Lynch of Autograph

Metal Sludge — The legal matters have officially been resolved for the band Autograph but not before their years of back-n-forth forced the related parties into court.

Autograph founding guitarist Steve Lynch has recently went on record with Sleazeroxx and detailed some of what happened regarding the legal feud he ended up in with lead vocalist Simon Daniels (aka Danny Simon, ex-Jailhouse) and Marc Wieland (drums).

Now after a few troubled and turmoil filled years, the band Autograph is back in the hands of 1 of the guys who founded it.

Sadly since the rebirth of Autograph in late 2013 there have been 2 very unfortunate losses for the group.

Founding members Keni Richards (drums) and Randy Rand (bass) both passed away in 2017 and 2022.

Steve Isham (keyboards) also passed away back in 2008.

Steve Lynch (guitars) and Steve Plunkett (vocals) are the 2 sole survivors of the classic lineup.

We have shared a few excerpts from the recent Lynch interview below.

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Sleaze Roxx: First of all, congratulations! After what seems like almost two years of legal wrangling, you have emerged as the one who controls the Autograph name, band and trademark. What was that process like for you?

Steve Lynch: Thank you for that. I really appreciate it, Olivier. I would say that being sued by guys we hired to play in a band that I co-founded in 1984, and has been in commerce for 40 years, it was an unpleasant experience to say the least [laughs]! Fortunately, I was able to hire the exceptional law firm of Lewis Roca, spearheaded by Warren Bleeker, who also successfully handled Traci Guns’ trademark case, and Eric Kohli of counsel. Right from the onset, they were very confident in the merits of my position, to which I filed a countersuit.

Unfortunately, litigation is not a sprint, and I had to learn the virtue of patience, as the legal process is an arduous one. I think because the legal process operates at a slow pace, people get worn down and often they feel forced to give in just to avoid the stress, hassles, and costs of litigation. For me, it had the opposite effect — I became more determined to have the result we achieved to settle this case. I am extremely pleased with the outcome, and you are correct in saying that I own the Autograph name, trademark and logo.

Sleaze Roxx: It seems that the legal issues over the Autograph name started when Randy Rand unfortunately passed away in late April 2022. By that time, you had been out of the band for almost three years but shortly after Randy passed away, you posted a message on Facebook that included the following, “To Jimi Bell, Marc Wieland and Simon Daniels (Daniel Simone), I send my best wishes as you pursue either musical ventures or transition into continuing as a tribute band to Autograph.” That turned out to be quite prophetic [laughs]! Why did you decide to put such a message out at that time even though you were no longer in the band for almost three years?

Steve Lynch: Yes, that initial statement was on point! First, let me say that most musicians, me included, start out focused on making music, but once you start earning income, especially when there is commercial success, “Bands” become “Brands”, and Brands become “Business”. Our band, like other bands, made an agreement that set forth the intentions with respect to the band business. We, the five founding members, had decided that Autograph must have a founding member involved with any band activity to operate as “Autograph”. Period.

To recap, Randy and I were two founding members. We reunited and played together from 2013 through 2019, until I had to take a pause from playing to comply with my treatment for carpal tunnel. Shortly after, the Covid-19 pandemic hit. The entire world shut down and all shows were cancelled — so in fairness, it’s accurate to say that everyone was out for the next two years. Just when things started resuming, Randy suddenly passed in April of 2022.

Randy was a founding member, so only Randy had permission to continue performing under Autograph, not any of the other musicians we hired to play under our banner. Steve Plunkett and I found out about Randy’s passing from their booking agent. It was communicated and understood that they would change the name and transition to a new band, and we were agreeable to allow a reasonable timeframe to honor any bookings that Randy made. However, we learned through their Facebook post their decision announcing that they plan to “continue on as Autograph in Randy’s name!” HELLO! Two Founding members are still here alive and well [laughs]! The rest, as they say, is history… and is all well documented online and in court filings.

Sleaze Roxx: Both you, and Autograph, who became Autograph Beyond, announced earlier this month that the latter would have nothing to do with Autograph or its original members. What happens with respect to the songs on the albums that you recorded with Simon and Marc as Autograph, namely ‘Louder’ [2016] and ‘Get Off Your Ass’ [2017], and the ‘Beyond’ [2023] record that you weren’t a part of. Which Autograph entity has the rights to those songs and why?

Steve Lynch: This is not accurate, so let me clarify a few things. Autograph is and remains Autograph. It did not become another band. What changed is that the individuals in the lawsuit are no longer a part of Autograph. This was echoed from my public statement that said Autograph, and myself, would have NO license, NO affiliation, and NO involvement with the latter. There is NO endorsement to any future musical venture they choose to pursue.

So that there is NO confusion, they are NOT a continuation of Autograph in any form. They are transitioning into a new band and if they chose to do live performances of our musical catalogue, it’s no different than any other band that does cover songs. All products sold under the Autograph name, trademark and logo, including the catalogue of music or merchandise, are the property of Autograph. You may recall that Autograph recorded the ‘Buzz’ album with other musicians, so it’s the same thing here.

We have all seen this same thing happen countless times, especially with bands having longevity. Take for example, Van Halen — Sammy Hagar played and recorded for a decade under the Van Halen banner, right? Yet, once they parted, everyone, including Sammy, understood that all the albums made under that brand, remain the property of the Van Halen brand. Same for Arnel Pineda of Journey, and the list goes on and on. Most recently, when KISS announced the end of their touring era, as I did when Randy passed, Bruce Kulick, who was invited to perform and record for over a decade, graciously thanked the original members for their good will and the opportunity of playing with an established brand. He’s a class act. To think that anyone who was invited to play or record with any known band would simply say — “Hey, I want to keep playing these gigs, so I’ll take your trademark and I’ll just carry it on as my band now” — to me, this sounds unimaginable.

Having said that, big shout out to cover bands! We love seeing bands cover our music. It’s awesome! I receive videos from people of all generations around the world playing “Turn Up The Radio”, and I really enjoy it! Bands that want to cover a particular band’s music catalogue will often incorporate a moniker of that band into their name, like [The] Iron Maidens [Iron Maiden] or Beyond Purple [Deep Purple], so if that’s what these guys want to do, that’s cool with us, and very flattering.

To read the full interview, please visit Sleazeroxx here.

For more articles on Metal Sludge related to Autograph, please see below.

May 17th 2024
LAWSUIT SETTLED … AUTOGRAPH family feud has finally ended with the two sides settling their differences (Read their statements here)

January 4th 2023
Autograph Founding Guitarist Steve Lynch Update To Fans: “Daniel Simoni and Marc Weiland have Now Sued the Beloved Widow of Randy Rand”

November 29th 2022
HIRED GUNS FILE LAWSUIT … Autograph founding Guitarist Steve Lynch is being Sued by the Very Musicians he Hired into the Group

November 14th 2022
TURN UP THE LAWSUIT … Original Guitarist and Co-Founder Steve Lynch: “The legal process is fully engaged” against his Former group Autograph, Hints at New (real) Version

April 26TH 2022
RIP … Autograph bassist Randy Rand, Dead at 71

March 9th 2021
AUTOMETH … Steve Lynch says ex-Autograph drummer Keni Richards was Addicted to Heroin, possibly Meth, involved with people who “Killed him”

August 22nd 2017
TURN DOWN THE RADIO … Autograph release new single “Get Off Your Ass”, fans and critics chime in

August 15th 2017
Shocking report details how former Autograph drummer Keni Richards’ dead body was discovered

May 22nd 2017
DRUGS, DEPRESSION & MURDER? What really happened to ex-Autograph drummer Keni Richards

April 12th 2017
RIP … Ex-Autograph Drummer Keni Richards Dead at 60