Carly Simon is seeking unspecified damages.
(Hear Music via Associated Press)
SEATTLE - Carly Simon is suing Starbucks Corp., saying the coffee company’s now-defunct music venture did not adequately promote her 2008 album, dooming it before it was even released.
The singer, whose biggest success came during the 1970s and ’80s with hits like “You’re So Vain,’’ seeks unspecified damages related to the release of “This Kind of Love’’ in April 2008.
In a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles, Simon said the album was not available in “a substantial number’’ of Starbucks stores during the key early months following its release. Later, when the disc was stocked in Starbucks locations, the Seattle-based company slashed the price.
“By doing so, Starbucks stigmatized Ms. Simon’s album as an album that could not be sold at full price,’’ according to the claim.
Starbucks said it met all contractual obligations and extended the time it promoted the album in New York and Boston.
“Unfortunately, sales continued to lag as the title received tepid response from music consumers,’’ Starbucks said. “Other retailers faced the same fate.’’
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