Idol Hicks sues for early recordings

25/08/2006 - 09:45:10

American Idol winner Taylor Hicks has filed a lawsuit in an effort to stop the release of his first recordings.

The silver-haired soul singer has been granted a temporary restraining order, which will prevent producer William Smith from cashing in on Hicks' early tracks.

Hicks accuses Nashville, Tennessee-based Smith of illegally cashing in on tracks he recorded in the late-1990s for WilliamSmith Productions Inc.

Attorneys for the singer claim Smith had no right to release tracks Hicks wrote and recorded, to Internet digital download warehouse iTunes.

Hicks' suit, filed on Tuesday in his native Alabama, seeks compensatory and punitive damages in excess of $75,000 (€58,700) and claims ownership of the allegedly illegally released tunes.