| A simple pie chart diagram scrawled on notebook paper was at the center of a dispute between a tour manager and the successful Atlanta-based band The Black Crowes. Kevin Jennings claimed the drawing showed that, before becoming famous, the Crowes had made him an equal partner. Band members testified that they did no such thing. Most said they didn't even remember the diagram. Those who did said it was merely an off-the-cuff memento of friendship, drawn to ease Jennings' concerns that fame might end his friendship with the band. Two of them testified that the heading on the drawing, "Heavy Symbolism," was a private joke used to refer to something which was ridiculous or farcical. Band members testified that they had wanted Jennings, a tour manager for various musical groups and performers, to be their road manager once their debut album had been released and they began to tour. Those plans fell through, they said, when Jennings' girlfriend gave birth and he told the band he could not serve as tour manager. Jennings contended that he did not quit but simply took time off, only to find out later that he had been replaced and that The Black Crowes would have nothing to do with him. Jennings, who claimed he booked performances and toted equipment for the Crowes in 1989 before they made it big the next year, sued the band for a one-sixth share of the profits from the group's lucrative first album, Shake Your Money Maker. The album sold more five million copies. The band's lawyers contended the pie chart was too vague to be a valid contract. They described it as was simply a souvenir that had been blown out of proportion. The jury had to decide first whether a partnership was formed that included Jennings, and, if so, whether Jennings breached the agreement by failing to perform under its terms or whether he settled his claim at a later date by accepting $300 from a band member Verdict Two weeks later, Jennings and the band reached a settlement. The terms were not disclosed. "Everybody is pleased to have this case at the end after four years and two weeks of trial," said Jennings attorney Scott Sanders. Defense attorney William M. Ragland Jr. said the Black Crowes "are extremely pleased with how the matter was resolved." |