Defending Taylor Swift

February 5, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The head of Taylor Swift’s record label is fired up and ready to defend his superstar from people who are criticizing her Grammy-night performance. Big Machine Records CEO Scott Borchetta said he felt the need to defend Swift because the criticism was “just over the top.”

On Sunday night’s Grammy show, Borchetta said Swift had a technical issue that made her worry about her performance.

“That’s just part of live TV. ... So you’re going to have difficulties on occasion. Unfortunately, on one of the biggest stages, we did have a technical issue. She couldn’t hear herself like she had in rehearsal,” Borchetta said.

Ruling: Men at Work ripped off ‘Kookaburra’

SYDNEY — Australian band Men at Work copied a well-known children’s campfire song for the flute melody in its 1980s hit “Down Under” and owes the owner years of royalties, a court ruled Thursday.

“Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree” was written more than 70 years ago by Australian teacher Marion Sinclair for a Girl Guides competition, and the song has been a favorite around campfires from New Zealand to Canada. The teacher died in 1988, and publishing company Larrikin Music owns the copyright to her song about the native Australian bird. Larrikin filed the copyright lawsuit last year.

Today’s birthdays

Writer-producer Stephen J. Cannell is 69. Singer Cory Wells of Three Dog Night is 68. Actor-comedian Tim Meadows (“Saturday Night Live”) is 49. Actress Jennifer Jason Leigh is 48. Actress Laura Linney is 46. Bassist Duff McKagan of Velvet Revolver (and Guns N’ Roses) is 46. Singer Bobby Brown is 41. Country singer Sara Evans is 39.