Aussie music star behind the AFL’s most famous song claims a top English soccer team STOLE his tune – and made him a millionaire
One of England’s most famous football teams is being ordered to pay millions for stealing an iconic Australian AFL song. However, the song’s creator has revealed he could have robbed them for more.
Mike Brady is an Australian institution at the AFL Grand Finals, singing his classic song Up There Cazaly to cheer up the crowd.
But EFL Championship club Derby County, one of the founders of English football, also found the anthem catchy and adopted it to use as their opening song.
Up There Cazaly was created by Brady in 1979 as a stirring Aussie Rules anthem synonymous with the sport and became the best-selling Australian single of the time.
The title refers to Roy Cazaly, a legendary footballer from South Melbourne and St Kilda who was known for his big goals and who inspired the phrase ‘Up there Cazaly!’
Today, the song remains a beloved part of AFL tradition, played during grand finals and evoking nostalgia and pride among Australian football fans.
Derby County Football Club, founded in 1884, is one of the original members of the English Football League.
The team, known as The Rams, reached its peak in the 1970s, winning the First Division title and competing in the biggest European competitions.
Despite financial problems and relegation, Derby County have a passionate fan base and a legendary rivalry with Nottingham Forest. They currently play in the EFL Championship as they aim to return to the top flight of English football.
Mike Brady will perform his iconic hit Up There Cazaly during the 2023 AFL Grand Final. The tune has become a tradition during the biggest game of the year
Brady discovered that they had “borrowed” his song, changed the lyrics and renamed it Steve Bloomer’s Watching so it could be used at home games.
He wrote a letter to the club expressing his concerns, before lawyers were brought in to ensure Brady would receive royalties for its use.
“I’m not a bad Bush lawyer these days and I protect the rights of my song because that’s the only thing I can make a living from,” he said. Channel Seven.
‘I then hired a lawyer, the publisher paid for it and they reached an amicable settlement.
“It wasn’t a big amount, it was a symbolic amount, but they do pay a little bit to play it in the stadium every time.”
EFL Championship team Derby County (star Jerry Yates pictured celebrating a goal this year) used Brady’s song with their own lyrics without permission, resulting in legal action
Brady is the first to admit that his unintended hit is “a bit sloppy,” but he felt the English version was a poor representation of his work.
“I just thought it sounded very ordinary, very amateurish,” he said.
‘But that’s probably what they want.
‘They probably wanted something from the people and maybe Up There Cazaly isn’t as smooth, but it is polished.’
Brady has revealed that he received a seven-figure settlement for the use of his song, but the original amount quoted by his lawyers was much higher.
“They used to say, ‘original composer unknown,’ and my publishers weren’t too happy about that, as you can imagine,” he said.
So they went after them and paid for it.
‘I watch my royalties a little bit, a few dollars here and there. A few small shekels that come in after a long time.
“I haven’t told anyone this yet, but the version they’re playing is pretty lame. It’s become a bit of a tradition for them.”
Brady revealed he settled for a much smaller sum than his lawyers wanted and even offered to perform the new version of his song for Derby County
Derby County have previously been accused of ‘borrowing’ songs and swapping lyrics.
Five years ago, Leeds United were fined £200,000 over the Spygate scandal and responded to their opponents by adopting the Oasis song Stop Crying Your Heart Out.
That backfired when Derby ridiculed Leeds in the Championship play-off semi-finals, using the song during their victory celebration with the lyrics ‘Stop crying, Frank Lampard’ to honour their then manager.
The club have also adopted the Luciano Pavarotti classic Rigoletto La Donna è mobile for their battle songs, which have been used with varying lyric substitutions throughout their history.
Brady also revealed that he had offered to travel to the UK and perform the edited version of his song if Derby County were promoted back to the top division, but the club had rejected this offer.
“They said, ‘Oh, that’s very nice, but you have to pay for it yourself and we can’t pay you anything if you come and sing,'” Brady said.
“I thought, wow, that’s the big league out there, painting the AFL as a small, worthless company, and they can’t pay.
‘Lack of budget is a universal problem.’