A major legal nightmare is brewing over copyright infringements involving Sean Paul/Sasha’s cover of Alton Ellis’ I’m Still In Love With You Girl, resulting in the payments of royalties for the platinum-selling record being frozen.

The undisclosed sum of money has been placed in escrow by Atlantic Records, the label on which the Steely and Clevie-produced mega hit distributed by VP Records is being sold.

“There is no specified amount, but whatever the claim is, it is based on the album’s sales,” one source close to the issue said.

The song, I’m Still In Love With You Girl, a classic rocksteady, was recorded in the late 1960s by Alton Ellis who, along with the late pioneer record producer Clement “Sir Coxsone” Dodd, is the original composer/publisher. It became a big hit single from Sean Paul’s VP/Atlantic Records multi-million-selling album, Dutty Rock.

However, the royalties accruing from the sales of this version (featuring Sean Paul/Sasha) were frozen, following questions being raised over ownership and copyright infringements.

Speaking to the Observer from the VP office in New York where she works as a consultant, Maxine Stowe – who is also the niece of Coxsone Dodd – explained that royalties automatically go into escrow once there are discrepancies surrounding the copyright of a record.

“The company responsible for the sale of the record would not know who to pay until a court makes a ruling on the matter,” Stowe said. “The reason this became an issue now is because the song is making money. This would probably lay low for another 50 years. It’s generally when there is a hit with the song, that is why you see these cases pop up because there is money to be claimed.”

It is also alleged that the producers, Steely (Wycliffe Johnson) and Clevie (Cleveland Browne), never got permission from Jamrec, the publishing arm of Coxsone Dodd’s Studio One, the publisher of the song. And Alton Ellis had forfeited his copyright by selling the song to different music entities.

“Because of greediness, nobody can collect,” fumed Norma Dodd, widow of Clement Dodd.

In the meantime, drummer Joe Isaacs, who is claiming that he worked on the original recording done by Alton Ellis and therefore is entitled to mechanical rights, said that he was reliably informed that Ellis was in negotiation for an out-of-court settlement to the tune of over US$25,000.

“Every penny is frozen until about February next year, due to confusion among all the lawyers and disagreements overall. Not until February next year (2005) when a London court will decide who is to get what,” Alton Ellis said.

The website of Radio 13.net credits Ellis, Henrique (Sean Paul), Johnson (Steely) and Browne (Clevie) as the writers of the song, and Sparta Florida Music Group as the publishers.