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Violent Femmes bassist Brian Ritchie was apparently in agreement with fans unhappy over the use of a classic Femmes song in a Wendy's television ad, and has other serious complaints. Fresh off the band's tour of South Africa, Ritchie has filed a federal lawsuit against vocalist Gordon Gano, claiming deprivation of song credit and rightful earnings. In addition, Ritchie asserts that Gano failed to properly account for the band's earnings and damaged the band's reputation by allowing Blister in the Sun to be used for the Wendy's ad campaign.

The story was reported by eonline.com -- link here for the full article, which includes some seething remarks by Ritchie, as well as Gano's response.

It will be interesting to see how this pans out, particularly since the band has shows scheduled in October.

By the way, the Wendy's ad was sited by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the "Worst Rock Sell-Outs Ever". You can click here to see the list, the reader responses, and/or add your own.

Photo from a December 2006 performance in San Fransisco, via vfemmes.com.