1. Harry Chapin Songs List
2. Harry Chapin At Rapidshare Downloads Youtube
3. Harry Chapin Biography

Verities & Balderdash is a very strange and wonderful album. 'Cat's in the Cradle' was the driving force behind the album's sales, but there's a lot more to appeal to listeners, along with enough personal, topical material to make it seem a bit didactic at the time, but Chapin was cultivating a politically committed audience. Jul 04, 2011  Mix - Harry Chapin - Circle YouTube 12 videos Play all Harry Chapin Greatest Stories Live SongsofHarry Harry Chapin - 30,000 Pounds of Bananas - Duration: 11:29.

Harry Forster Chapin (December 7, 1942 – July 16, 1981) was an American singer-songwriter, humanitarian, and producer best known for his folk rock and pop rock songs, who achieved worldwide success in the 1970s and became one of the most popular artists and highest paid performers. Chapin is also one of the best charting musical artists in the United States. Chapin, a Grammy Award winning artist and Grammy Hall of Fame inductee, has sold over 16 million records worldwide and has been described as one of the most beloved performers in music history.^[1]

Chapin recorded a total of 11 albums from 1972 until his death in 1981. All 14 singles that he released became hit singles on at least one national music chart.

As a dedicated humanitarian, Chapin fought to end world hunger; he was a key participant in the creation of the Presidential Commission on World Hunger in 1977.^[2] Chapin is credited with being the most politically and socially active American performer of the 1970s.^[3][4] In 1987, Chapin was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his humanitarian work.

Harry Chapin Songs List

• 2Career
• 8Awards and recognition
• 9Discography

Biography[edit]

Harry Forster Chapin was born on December 7, 1942 in New York City, the second of four children, who also included future musicians Tom and Steve. His parents were Jeanne Elspeth (née Burke) and Jim Chapin, a legendary percussionist. He had English ancestry. The earliest Chapin to come to America was Samuel Chapin, who was the first deacon of Springfield, Massachusetts in 1636. His other great-grandparents on his mother's side had immigrated in the late 19th century. His parents divorced in 1950, with his mother retaining custody of their four sons, as Jim spent much of his time on the road as a drummer for Big Band-era acts such as Woody Herman. Chapin's mother married Films in Review magazine editor Henry Hart a few years later. His maternal grandfather was literary critic Kenneth Burke.^[5]

Chapin's first formal introduction to music were trumpet lessons at The Greenwich House Music School under Mr. Karrasic (sic). Harry's younger brothers Tom and Steve were choirboys at Grace Episcopal Church in Brooklyn Heights, and through them Chapin met 'Big' John Wallace, a baritone with a five-octave range, who later became his bassist, backing vocalist, and straight man onstage. Chapin began performing with his brothers while a teenager, with their father occasionally joining them on drums. Chapin graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1960 and was among the five inductees in the school's Alumni Hall Of Fame for the year 2000. He briefly attended the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado and was then an intermittent student at Cornell University in New York State, but did not complete a degree.

He originally intended to be a documentary film-maker and took a job with The Big Fights, a company ran by Bill Cayton that owned a large library of classic boxing films. Chapin directed Legendary Champions in 1968, which was nominated for a documentary Academy Award.^[6] In 1971, he began focusing on music. With John Wallace, Tim Scott, and Ron Palmer, Chapin started playing in various nightclubs in New York City.

Career[edit]

Early music career (1971–1972)[edit]

In 1972, there was a bidding war between music business heavyweights Clive Davis at Columbia and Jac Holzman at Elektra over Chapin. He signed a multi-million dollar recording contract with Elektra Records. The contract was one of the biggest of its time. It granted him free recording time, along with many other perks.^[7]

The same year, he released his debut album, Heads & Tales. The album was an international success, selling over 1 million units. Its success was due to the top 25 Billboard Hot 100 hit single, 'Taxi'. The song also became a top 5 hit in Canada. The success of the song in America is credited to American radio personality Jim Connors, who helped promote the song on the radio despite its length, and helped it to stay on the charts for 16 weeks. It became the number one requested song for 10 weeks in a row. The song was performed on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, which received so many calls that Chapin returned the next night. It was the first time in the show's history that a performer had been called back the next night. It was also one of the first performances on The Midnight Special, with John Denver hosting.

When asked if the song was true, Chapin said 'It's emotionally true, if not literally true. I've been in the film business on and off for a lot of years, and wasn't doing well at one point. So I went out and got a hack license for bread, and during the month that I was waiting for it to come through, I heard an old girlfriend of mine had gotten married and instead of becoming an actress she married a rich guy. I envisioned some night I'd be driving a cab in the big city streets and this lady would get in the back, and I'd turn and look at her and she'd look at me and know we both sold out our dreams.'^[8] Billboard ranked 'Taxi' as the 85th song of the year. 'Taxi' also earned Chapin a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist of the Year.

The follow up album, Sniper and Other Love Songs, was also released in 1972. The album's title song, 'Sniper', is a semi-fictional account of the University of Texas tower shooting. The single release from the album, 'Sunday Morning Sunshine', charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and became a top 40 on Billboard Adult Contemporary. The album was less successful than the last, selling 350,000 units. The album also contained the Chapin anthem, 'Circle'. In 2004, the double album Sniper and Other Love Songs and Heads & Tales was released. It contained previously unreleased tracks from both albums.

Career peak (1973–1975)[edit]

In 1973, Chapin released his third album, Short Stories. The album produced another international hit, 'W·O·L·D'. Short stories sold over 1 million units. The song is about an aging disc jockey who has given up his entire life and family for his career. The song is sung from the point of view of the disc jockey, who is singing to his ex-wife. It was inspired by American radio personality Jim Connors. Chapin wrote the song when he listened to Connors calling his ex-wife in the WMEX studio. The song became a top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, a top 10 in Canada, and top 10 and 20 in various other countries. Other notable songs from the album, but not released as singles, are 'Mr. Tanner', 'Mail Order Annie', and 'They Call Her Easy'. The song, 'Mr. Tanner,' was loosely based on a pair of New York Times concert reviews of baritone Martin Tubridy -- once in 1971 ^[9] and once in 1972 ^[10].

In 1974, Chapin released his most successful album, Verities and Balderdash. The album sold 2.5 million units. Its success was due to the number 1 hit, 'Cat's in the Cradle'. The song is about a father who doesn't find time for his son during his childhood; and ultimately his son grows up to be just like his father, and not making any time for his dad. The song earned Chapin another Grammy nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, and he was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Verities and Balderdash peaked at number 4 on the Billboard 200. The album's follow-up single, 'I Wanna Learn a Love Song', charted at number 7 on Billboard Adult Contemporary. The song is a true story about how he met his wife, Sandra Chapin. '30,000 Pounds of Bananas' is a song that was included on the album but not released as a single. The song also became the number one requested song for a few weeks. It is a semi-fictional account of a truck crash that occurred in Scranton, Pennsylvania, transporting bananas - based loosely on a March 18, 1965 accident involving truck driver Gene Sesky ^[11][12]

. Other notable songs from the album include 'Shooting Star', 'Halfway to Heaven', and 'Six String Orchestra'.

In 1975, Chapin released his fifth album, Portrait Gallery. The album produced a top 40 Billboard Adult Contemporary hit, 'Dreams Go By'. However, the album was less successful than the last. It sold 350,000 units. In addition, he wrote and performed a Broadway play, The Night That Made America Famous. The play earned two Tony Award nominations and two Drama Desk Award nominations.

Later years (1976–1981)[edit]

By 1976, Chapin was established as one of the most popular singers of the decade. He released his first live album, Greatest Stories Live. The album sold 2.1 million units.However, Elektra Records underwent a management change and gave almost no promotion for his later albums with Elektra, but they all sold at least 250,000 units each and charted successfully.

By the end of the decade, Chapin concentrated more on touring than producing hit singles, but still released one album a year. He earned an estimated $2,000,000 per year (approximately $11,748,515 in 2017) until his death in 1981, making him one of the highest paid artists in the world. In 1980, his recording contract with Elektra expired. He signed a one-album contract with Boardwalk Records, and released his ninth studio album, Sequel. The album has been described as his fastest breaking album. Three singles were released, with all of them becoming hits. The first single, 'Sequel', became a top 25 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The song is a followup to Taxi. The second single, Remember When The Music, became a top 50 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. The last single, Story of a Life, became a hit on the Bubbling Under chart. The album sold 500,000 units.

Personal life[edit]

Chapin met Sandy Cashmore (née Gaston), a New York socialite nine years his senior, in 1966, after she called him asking for music lessons. They married two years later. The story of their meeting and romance is told in his song 'I Wanna Learn a Love Song'. Chapin wrote several additional songs about her, including 'Shooting Star' about their relationship, and 'Sandy'. He had two children with her, Jennifer and Joshua, and was stepfather to her three children from a previous marriage, Jaime, Jason, and Jonathan.

Philanthropic work[edit]

Chapin resolved to leave his imprint on Long Island. He envisioned a Long Island where the arts flourished, universities expanded, and humane discourse was the norm. 'He thought Long Island represented a remarkable opportunity', said Chapin's widow, Sandy.^[13]

In the mid-1970s, Chapin devoted much time and effort to social activism, including raising money to combat hunger in the United States. His daughter Jen said: 'He saw hunger and poverty as an insult to America.'^[14] He co-founded the organization World Hunger Year with radio personality Bill Ayres, before returning to music with On the Road to Kingdom Come. He also released a book of poetry, Looking .. Seeing, in 1975. More than half of Chapin's concerts were benefit performances (for example, a concert^[15] to help save the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse, New York, as well as hunger causes such as food banks), and proceeds from his concert merchandise were used to support World Hunger Year. Chapin's social causes at times caused friction among his band members. Chapin donated an estimated third of his paid concerts to charitable causes, often performing alone with his guitar to reduce costs. Mike Rendine accompanied him on bass throughout 1979.^{[citation needed]}

One report quotes his widow saying soon after his death — 'only with slight exaggeration' — that 'Harry was supporting 17 relatives, 14 associations, seven foundations, and 82 charities. Harry wasn't interested in saving money. He always said, 'Money is for people,' so he gave it away.' Despite his success as a musician, he left little money and it was difficult to maintain the causes for which he raised more than $3 million in the last six years of his life.^[16] The Harry Chapin Foundation was the result.

Death[edit]

On July 16, 1981, Chapin was driving in the left lane on the Long Island Expressway at about 65 mph (105 km/h) on the way to perform at a free concert scheduled for later that evening at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, New York. Near exit 40 in Jericho, he put on his emergency flashers, presumably because of either a mechanical or medical problem. He then slowed to about 15 miles (24 km) per hour and veered into the center lane, nearly colliding with another car. He swerved left, then to the right again, ending up directly in the path of a tractor-trailer truck. The truck could not brake in time and rammed the rear of Chapin's blue 1975 Volkswagen Rabbit, rupturing the fuel tank as it climbed up and over the back of the car, which burst into flames. Dr. Minoru Araki, Nassau County's deputy chief medical examiner, said Chapin's aorta was lacerated by the tremendous impact and he died of massive hemorrhaging into his chest cavity. Araki said a report that Chapin may have suffered a heart attack at the wheel was erroneous. 'He suffered a cardiac arrest as the result of his severe injuries, but the autopsy showed that his heart was in very good condition,' Araki said.^[4][17]

The driver of the truck and a passerby were able to get Chapin out of the burning car through a window after cutting the seat belts before the car was engulfed in flames. Chapin was taken by police helicopter to a hospital, where 10 doctors tried for 30 minutes to revive him.^{[citation needed]} . In a 2004 interview, many years after his death, Chapin's daughter Jennifer said, 'My dad didn't really sleep, and he ate badly and had a totally insane schedule.'^[14]

Although Chapin was driving without a license – his driver's license having previously been revoked for a long string of traffic violations – his widow Sandy won a $12 million decision in a negligence lawsuit against Supermarkets General, the owners of the truck, based on what Chapin would have earned over the next 20 years. An earlier phase of the trial had found Chapin 40% negligent in the accident and Supermarkets General 60% negligent, so the award of $12 million for the financial loss to the family was automatically reduced to $7.2 million.^[18]

Chapin's remains were interred in the Huntington Rural Cemetery in Huntington, New York. His epitaph is taken from his song 'I Wonder What Would Happen to this World':

Oh if a man tried
To take his time on Earth
And prove before he died
What one man's life could be worth
I wonder what would happen
to this world

Legacy[edit]

On December 7, 1987, on what would have been his 45th birthday, Chapin was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his campaigning on social issues, particularly his highlighting of hunger around the world and in the United States. His work on hunger included being widely recognized as a key player in the creation of the Presidential Commission on World Hunger (under 39th President Jimmy Carter) in 1977 (he was the only member who attended every meeting).^[19] He was also the inspiration for the antihunger projects USA for Africa and Hands Across America, which were organized by Ken Kragen, who had been Chapin's manager at the end of Chapin's career, after Fred Kewley.^[20] Kragen, explaining his work on these benefit events, said, 'I felt like Harry had crawled into my body and was making me do it.'^[21]

From around 1975 until the owners changed the format of the station in the late 1990s, WNEW-FM, 102.7, a NYC radio station with the motto, 'Where Rock Lives' held an annual 'Hungerthon' every Thanksgiving, to benefit Harry Chapin's World Hunger League. During the 24-hour period of the event, little to no music was played, with the exception of the iconic 'Alice's Restaurant' by Arlo Guthrie played at noon and 6 pm. For the remainder of the day, during every DJ's four-hour show, guests such as Harry himself, other music stars, and experts on hunger brought to the listeners information about the severity of hunger in America, in New York City, and in the tri-state area, sometimes in graphic detail. After Harry's death, the 'Hungerthon' continued, and at the 'U.S. Live Aid' concert in Philadelphia at JFK Stadium in 1985, Kenny Loggins was presented with the first 'Harry Chapin Award' for his work for the World Hunger League in fighting hunger in America. Since WNEW-FM changed formats, other New York stations have continued to do fundraisers for the charity.

Chapin had co-operated before his death with the writer of the biography entitled Taxi: The Harry Chapin Story, by Peter M. Coan, released posthumously, from which the family withdrew their support. Some concern existed about the accuracy of the details included in the book.^{[citation needed]} In 2001, Chapin's 'Cat's in the Cradle' was ranked number 186 of 365 on the Recording Industry Association of America list of Songs of the Century. Chapin was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame on October 15, 2006.

The Lakeside Theatre at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, New York, was renamed Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre during a memorial concert held one month after his death, as a tribute to his efforts to combat world hunger. Other Long Island landmarks named in honor of Chapin include a graduate-student apartment complex at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, a theater in Heckscher Park in Huntington, New York, and a playground at the intersection of Columbia Heights and Middagh Street in Brooklyn Heights.

On September 27, 2011, former U.S. Representative Alan Grayson wrote an article on the internet publication The Huffington Post about Chapin's song 'What Made America Famous'.^[22]

Singer and songwriter Guthrie Thomas has long publicly stated that Chapin's song 'Cat's in the Cradle' is one of the most difficult songs to perform, due to Chapin's master guitar playing and his brilliant syncopation of the lyrics, meaning each word must fit perfectly and in time with the playing. Also, despite seeming social and political differences with Chapin, Dr. James Dobson often quotes the entirety of 'Cat's In The Cradle' to illustrate dynamics of contemporary American families.^[23]

The village of Croton-on-Hudson, New York, has hosted the Harry Chapin Run Against Hunger, a 10k, 5k, and Fun Run, since 1981.

A children's picture book was created using the lyrics of 'Mr. Tanner' and the illustrations of Bryan Langdo; it was published by Ripple Grove Press in May 2017.

Family[edit]

Harry's widow Sandy is now chair of the Harry Chapin Foundation, where she continues to pursue Harry's legacy. His son Josh is involved with the foundation, along with family members.^[24]

Chapin often remarked that he came from an artistic family. His father Jim, brothers Tom and Steve, and daughter Jen Chapin are musicians. His nieces Abigail and Lily Chapin perform under the name the Chapin Sisters. His paternal grandfather, James Ormsbee Chapin, was an artist who illustrated Robert Frost's first two books of poetry; his maternal grandfather was the philosopher and rhetorician Kenneth Burke.^[25]

Harry Chapin's brothers sometimes performed with Harry at various times throughout his career, particularly during live performances. They played with him before his solo career took off, and were credited on the albums Greatest Stories Live,Legends of the Lost and Found, and Chapin Music! Tom and Steve continued to perform together (often with Harry's former bandmates) from time to time after his death.

Country singer Mary Chapin Carpenter is Chapin's fifth cousin.^[26]

Awards and recognition[edit]

Rock Music Awards^[27]

Billboard^[28]

Harry Chapin At Rapidshare Downloads Youtube

Rockies

Other awards and honors[edit]

• Ten Outstanding Young Americans, 1977

Discography[edit]

Studio albums[edit]

• Heads & Tales (1972, Elektra)
• Sniper and Other Love Songs (1972, Elektra)
• Short Stories (1973, Elektra)
• Verities & Balderdash (1974, Elektra)
• Portrait Gallery (1975, Elektra)
• Greatest Stories Live (Double Album, 1976, Elektra)
• On the Road to Kingdom Come (1976, Elektra)
• Dance Band on the Titanic (Double Album, 1977, Elektra)
• Living Room Suite (1978, Elektra)
• Legends of the Lost and Found (Double Live Album, 1979, Elektra)
• Sequel (1980, Boardwalk Records)

Posthumous albums[edit]

• Anthology of Harry Chapin (1985, Elektra)
• Remember When the Music (1987, Dunhill Compact Classics)
• The Gold Medal Collection (1988, Elektra)
• The Last Protest Singer (1988, Dunhill Compact Classics)
• Harry Chapin Tribute (1990, Relativity Records)
• The Bottom Line Encore Collection (1998, Bottom Line / Koch)
• Story of a Life (1999, Elektra)
• Storyteller (1999, BOA Records, a re-release of Sequel)
• Onwards and Upwards (2000, Harry Chapin Foundation)
• VH1 Behind the Music: The Harry Chapin Collection (2001, Elektra)
• Songwriter (2002, Harry Chapin Foundation)
• The Essentials (2002, Elektra)
• Classic Hits of Harry Chapin (2003, Warner Special Products)
• Heads & Tales / Sniper and Other Love Songs (2004, Elektra. Double CD re-release of first two albums with bonus tracks)
• Introducing .. Harry Chapin (2006, Rhino Records)
• Bottom Line Archive Series: Live 1981 (2015, The Bottom Line Record Company)
• The Singles A's & B's (2019, Wounded Bird Records)

Singles[edit]

• 'Taxi'
• 'Could You Put Your Light On, Please'
• 'Sunday Morning Sunshine'
• 'A Better Place to Be'
• 'W·O·L·D'
• 'Cat's in the Cradle'
• 'What Made America Famous?'
• 'I Wanna Learn a Love Song'
• 'Dreams Go By'
• 'A Better Place to Be (Live)'
• 'Flowers Are Red'
• 'Sequel'
• 'Remember When the Music'
• 'Story of a Life'

Video / DVD releases[edit]

• An Evening With .. Harry Chapin (also known as 'The Book of Chapin') (1998)
• Rockpalast Live (2002)
• Remember When: The Anthology (2005)
• You Are the Only Song (also known as 'The Final Concert') (2006)

References[edit]

1. ^Coan, Peter M. (2001). Taxi: The Harry Chapin Story. Citadel Press.
2. ^Harry Chapin: The Gold Medal Collection, album notes, Elektra/Asylum Records, 1988.
3. ^'Harry Chapin New Hope Press Report'.Cite web requires website= (help)
4. ^ ^abRockwell, John (July 17, 1981). 'Harry Chapin, Singer Killed in Crash'. New York Times.Cite news requires newspaper= (help)
5. ^Grayeb, Mike; McCarty, Linda (Winter 2005). 'Reflections From Harry's Mom: An Interview with Elspeth Hart'. Circle!. Retrieved July 27, 2011.Cite web requires website= (help)
6. ^'Harry Chapin : Biography'. elektra.com. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
7. ^'Taxi: The Harry Chapin Story; see pages 204–207'.Cite web requires website= (help)
8. ^'Harry Chapin Midnight Special, Taxi; intro'.Cite web requires website= (help)
9. ^'Tubridy Makes Song Debut'.Cite web requires website= (help)
10. ^'Tubridy, a Bass‐Baritone, Performs in 2d Recital Here'.Cite web requires website= (help)
11. ^'Runaway Truck Kills Drive; 16 Persons Hurt'.Cite web requires website= (help)
12. ^'The 'Banana Truck' Crash: 50 Years Later'.Cite web requires website= (help)
13. ^Bruning, Fred, 'More than a Troubadour', Newsday, archived from the original on April 15, 2008, retrieved January 18, 2008Cite uses deprecated parameter deadurl= (help)
14. ^ ^ab'Jen Chapin shares her dad's idealism — but not his voice', Boston Globe, February 20, 2004
15. ^'Text of 1977 review of Chapin concert at Landmark Theatre'. Cinematreasures.org. Retrieved October 21, 2011.Cite web requires website= (help)
16. ^Diliberto, Gioia (March 15, 1982). 'Harry Chapin's Family Fights to Carry on His Extraordinary Legacy of Compassion'. People. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
17. ^Logeman, Henry (July 17, 1981). 'Singer-songwriter Harry Chapin's driver's license was revoked at the..'UPI. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
18. ^Singer Chapin's widow to give lawsuit funds to hunger battle, Star-News – Oct 8, 1986
19. ^Harry Chapin: The Gold Medal Collection, album notes, Elektra/Asylum Records, 1988.
20. ^Holden, Stephen (December 2, 1987), 'The Pop Life', The New York Times
21. ^'Harry Chapin Is Gone, but Friends Carry His Song in Their Hearts', People, December 21, 1987
22. ^Alan Grayson (September 27, 2011). 'Harry Chapin on What Made America Famous'. Huffington Post. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
23. ^Dan Gilgoff (April 29, 2008). The Jesus Machine: How James Dobson, Focus on the Family, and Evangelical America Are Winning the Culture War. New York, New York: St. Martin's Griffin. pp. 7–8. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
24. ^'The Harry Chapin Foundation'. Retrieved December 15, 2013.Cite web requires website= (help)
25. ^Reflections From Harry's Mom: An Interview with Elspeth HartArchived July 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine by Mike Grayeb and Linda McCarty, from Circle! magazine, winter 2005 issue.
26. ^'Ancestry of Mary Chapin Carpenter'. Wargs.com. Retrieved October 21, 2011.Cite web requires website= (help)
27. ^'RMA award certification'.Cite web requires website= (help)
28. ^'Trendsetter Award Certification'.Cite web requires website= (help)

External links[edit]

• Official website – run by Chapin family
• Harry Chapin at AllMusic
• Harry Chapin on IMDb
• HarryChapin.com — a fan site
• Harry Chapin at classicbands.com — Contains many details about the accident that took his life
• Harry Chapin: The Howie Fields years — Chapin drummer's archival site for the years 1975 to 1981

RapidShare was an online file hosting service that opened in 2002. In 2009, it was among the Internet's 20 most visited websites and claimed to have 10 petabytes of files uploaded by users with the ability to handle up to three million users simultaneously.^[1] Following the takedown of similar service Megaupload in 2012, RapidShare changed its business model to deter the use of its services for distribution of files to large numbers of anonymous users and to focus on personal subscription-only cloud-based file storage. Its popularity fell sharply as a result and, by the end of March 2015, RapidShare ceased to operate.

• 3Software

History[edit]

RapidShare was founded by Christian Schmid in Mulheim, Germany, initially as ezShare later Rapid Share, a file hosting service for his RapidForum web forum hosting services.^[2] In 2004, he started the company RapidShare AG, which went online in August 2004^[3] then moved its premises to Baar, Switzerland in 2006.^[4] Schmid avoids the public eye, but took over management of the company after longtime CEO and COO Bobby Chang left in April 2010.^[5]

RapidShare's original site was RapidShare.de.^[6] Later a second site, RapidShare.com, was started. It operated in parallel with RapidShare.de for several years. On 1 March 2010, RapidShare.de was shut down, and users visiting the site were forwarded to RapidShare.com. Files hosted on RapidShare.de were no longer available for download.

In 2010, RapidShare was said to have hundreds of millions of visitors per month and to be among the 50 most popular Internet sites.^[5]

Lawsuits by the owners of copyrighted content shared via RapidShare, and the takedown of file hoster Megaupload, caused RapidShare to revise its business model.^[7] The company changed its focus to B2B cloud storage services, but a drop in revenue led to a reduction in staffing by three quarters in May 2013.^[8] By 2014 its Alexa ranking had sunk below 1,400.

In late February 2014, the website PCTipp.ch, based on reports from a former RapidShare employee 'MarkusP,' stated that RapidShare had presented a 'quit or be fired' ultimatum to 23 of its 24 employees (already down from 60 employees just two years before) and that most had resigned. The rest, save one, had their contracts terminated. As of mid-March, RapidShare was reported as operating with only one employee, a support person who answered the telephone and managed customers and accounts. The product development team was no more. On 13 March 2014, RapidShare announced price increases for its paid services of about 150%. Free users would continue to be able to use RapidShare, but their download speeds and capacity were sharply curtailed.

On 10 February 2015, RapidShare announced on its home page that it would shut down its services permanently on 31 March 2015. After that date none of the data it hosted would be available, even to the customers who uploaded it.^[9][10] On 31 March 2015, the site home page displayed a notice about the service's closing.

Operation and services[edit]

Microsoft streets and trips 2006 cd11b. Upon uploading, the user was supplied with a unique downloadURL which enabled anyone with whom the uploader shared the URL to download the file. No user was allowed to search RapidShare's servers for content.^[1]

In April 2008, RapidShare had 5.4 petabytes of storage for users.^[11] In March 2010, it stated, after a 120 Gbit/s upgrade, to have 600 Gbit/s of bandwidth.^[12]

Registration and payment allowed benefits such as unlimited download speed, immediate download (instead of experiencing a waiting period), download of several files simultaneously, queue skipping, the facility to interrupt and restart downloads, uploading, downloading bigger files up to 2 GB and to store up to 50 GB of data for an unlimited period.

Until 1 July 2010, RapidShare operated an incentive program that rewarded uploaders with 'RapidPoints' according to the number of times those files were downloaded by others; the points were redeemable for premium RapidShare subscriptions. RapidShare discontinued the program to avoid the impression it rewarded its users for uploading copyrighted material.^[13]

Harry Chapin Biography

Downloads by people without a current premium account subscription were subject to restrictions such as an enforced wait of several minutes between downloads. The length of the wait varied over the years, from 15 minutes to over 2.5 hours.^[14]

Software[edit]

RapidShare offered two computer programs to simplify file managing:

RapidShare Uploader[edit]

This software allowed queuing of uploads. However, it could not resume interrupted uploads. It was available for Windows and ran without installation.^[15]

RapidShare Manager[edit]

This software had many more features than the Uploader, especially queuing and resuming the upload as well as the downloads. The version linked on the site worked with Windows Vista and 7, Mac, and Linux.^[16] An older official client was also available for Windows XP.^[17]

RapidShare did not restrict automatic downloads to their downloader, however, they did not provide technical support to third-party downloaders as they did for RapidShare Manager.^{[citation needed]}

Legal issues[edit]

On 19 January 2007, the German performance rights organisationGEMA claimed to have won a temporary injunction against both RapidShare.de and RapidShare.com. 'The latter is said to have used copyright protected works of GEMA members in an unlawful fashion.'^[18][19]

RapidShare started to check newly uploaded files against a database of files already reported as illegal. By comparing the files' MD5-hash the site would now prevent illegal files from being reuploaded. While this would be sufficient under United States law, it was later established in court that under German law it is not. That decision forced RapidShare to check all the uploaded files before publishing them.^[20]

In April 2009, RapidShare handed over to major record labels the personal details of uploaders who uploaded copyright-protected files.^[21][22] The incident is reported to have arisen due to a leak of a pre-release copy of metal band Metallica's Death Magnetic album.^[19]

A month later, RapidShare stated on their website: 'we will not spy out the files that our clients faithfully upload onto RapidShare, not now nor in future. We are against upload control and guarantee you that your files are safe with us and will not be opened by anyone else than yourself, unless you distribute the download link.'^[23]

Six global publishers obtained an injunction against Swiss-based RapidShare AG. Plaintiffs in the case were Bedford, Freeman and Worth Publishing Group, LLC a subsidiary of Macmillan; Cengage Learning Inc.; Elsevier Inc; John Wiley & Sons, Inc.; The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.; and Pearson Education, Inc. The judgment handed down by a German court in Hamburg on 10 February 2010, and effective on 17 February 2010, ordered RapidShare to implement measures to prevent illegal file sharing of the 148 copyright-protected works cited in the lawsuit, which was filed on 4 February 2010. The court ruled that RapidShare must monitor its site to ensure the copyrighted material is not being uploaded and prevent unauthorized access to the material by its users. The company will be subject to substantial fines for non-compliance.^{[citation needed]}

The US government's congressional international anti-piracy caucus stated that the site was 'overwhelmingly used for the global exchange of illegal movies, music and other copyrighted works'.^[24]

The Düsseldorf higher regional court twice overturned injunctions filed against RapidShare by Capelight Pictures, a German film and DVD rental company.^[25][26] The court declared that the file hoster could not be held liable for publication of copyright protected material by third parties and revoked the injunction initially upheld by the Düsseldorf district court in the main proceedings. The court also indicated that a file hoster is not obliged to use a word filter as this would also prevent legal copying for private use.

In May 2010, the District Court Southern District of California rejected an injunction against RapidShare filed by the publisher of online erotic magazine Perfect 10.^[27] The presiding judge declared that the plaintiff had failed to make a credible case that RapidShare had directly infringed copyright or supported copyright violation.

In a 2009-2010 case brought against RapidShare by Atari Europe,^[28] the Düsseldorf higher regional court concluded on appeal that illegal use of RapidShare was by a small minority of its users^[29] and that to assume otherwise amounted to 'a general suspicion of shared hosting services and their users that cannot be justified'.^[30] The court also observed that the site removed copyrighted material upon request and did not provide search facilities for illegal material. It concluded that the plaintiff's suggestions for preventing sharing of copyrighted material were 'unreasonable or pointless'.^[28] It also judged that RapidShare could not be held liable for copyright infringements by its users, and that while the service was legal, a minority of illegal use^[29] could not be prevented by other measures proposed - for example keyword-based filtering (which could impair legal use), manual review of uploads (not feasible), or IP address analysis (as IP addresses can change frequently).^[31][32]

In December 2010, in response to the congressional international anti-piracy caucus' press release and the German court ruling, RapidShare enlisted the services of Dutko Worldwide to lobby its interests in the United States Congress.^[33]

In March 2012, the Hamburg higher regional court upheld three earlier decisions that the file hoster could be held liable for publication of copyright protected material by third parties.^[34]

In September 2018, a criminal trial of three Rapidshare managers for commercial assistance to copyright violation is to take place in Zug, Switzerland, where Rapidshare remains incorporated.^{[35][needs update]}

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abStroll, Randall (2009). 'Will Books Be Napsterized?'. New York Times. Retrieved 3 October 2009.
2. ^von Gehlen, Dirk. 'Wieso geht das nicht alles viel einfacher?'. jetzt.de. Süddeutsche Zeitung. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
3. ^'Es ist nicht unser Tagesgeschäft, Nutzer vor den Kadi zu zerren'. Basler Zeitung. Basler Zeitung Medien. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
4. ^Zaugg, Sven; Schurter, Daniel. 'Massenentlassung bei RapidShare'. 20 Minuten. Tamedia AG. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
5. ^ ^ab'RapidShare Ditches CEO Bobby Chang'. TorrentFreak. 21 April 2010.
6. ^'RapidShare is Appealing' (Press release). RapidShare. Archived from the original on 25 April 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2008.
7. ^Roettgers, Janko (17 September 2013). 'RapidShare tries a fresh start with a revamped UI and new pricing'. Gigaom. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
8. ^Roettgers, Janko (17 May 2013). 'RapidShare lays off most of its staff as it struggles to find new business model'. Gigaom. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
9. ^'RapidShare'. Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
10. ^Lardinois, Frederic. 'RapidShare Shuts Down'. TechCrunch. AOL Inc. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
11. ^'RapidShare'. Archived from the original on 4 May 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2008.
12. ^'RapidShare News'. Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2015.
13. ^'RapidShare News'. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
14. ^'RapidShare Download FAQ'. Archived from the original on 29 May 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
15. ^'RapidTools: RapidShare Uploader'. RapidShare. Archived from the original on 2 March 2008.
16. ^'RapidTools: RapidShare Manager 2'. RapidShare. Archived from the original on 20 March 2011.
17. ^'RapidTools: RapidShare Manager'. RapidShare. Archived from the original on 11 May 2008.
18. ^Smith, Robert W. (19 January 2007). 'GEMA obtains injunctions against data exchange services'. Heise Online. Archived from the original on 3 January 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2007.
19. ^ ^ab'The Rise and Fall of RapidShare'. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015.
20. ^'Haftung von RapidShare IV Oberlandesgericht Hamburg Urteil v. 02.07.2008 - Az.: 5 U 73/07'. Webhosting & Recht (in German).
21. ^Wilson, Drew (7 May 2009). 'German Lawyer Speaks About Risks of Using One-Click File Hosters'. Zeropaid.com. Archived from the original on 13 May 2009.
22. ^'RapidShare: Cease&Desist-Letter for Uploader through civil law based information claim'. gulli.com. 30 April 2009.
23. ^'News'. RapidShare. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008.
24. ^'RIAA joins congressional caucus in unveiling first-ever list of notorious illegal sites'. RIAA. 19 May 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
25. ^'RapidShare Wins in Court'. gigaom.com. 3 May 2010. Archived from the original on 26 February 2011.
26. ^'German court overturns injunction against RapidShare'. arstechnica.com. 22 July 2010.
27. ^'RapidShare Beats Perfect 10, for Now, in US Court'. zeropaid.com. 20 May 2010.
28. ^ ^abLegal case: OLG Dusseldorf, Judgement of 22 March 2010, Az I-20 U 166/09 dated 22 March 2010.
29. ^ ^abRoettgers, Janko (3 May 2010). 'RapidShare Wins in Court'. Gigaom.com. Archived from the original on 26 February 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2011. - cite from ruling: 'Es ist davon auszugehen, dass die weit überwiegende Zahl von Nutzern die Speicherdienste zu legalen Zwecken einsetzen und die Zahl der missbräuchlichen Nutzer in der absoluten Minderheit ist.' (One can assume that the vast majority of users use the storage services for lawful purposes and the number of people using them improperly is an absolute minority.)
30. ^From the Atari v. RapidShare ruling: 'entspricht einem Generalverdacht gegen Sharehoster-Dienste und ihre Nutzer, der so nicht zu rechtfertigen ist' (amounts to a general suspicion of shared hosting services and their users that cannot be justified).
31. ^'RapidShare Not Liable For Pirating Users, Court Rules'. TorrentFreak. 4 May 2010.
32. ^'OLG Düsseldorf: Keine Haftung von RapidShare für Urheberrechtsverletzungen Dritter'. Telemedicus (in German).
33. ^'Watch out Big Content—RapidShare has hired a lobbying firm'. Ars Technica. 27 December 2010.
34. ^Brown, Mark (16 March 2012). 'RapidShare ordered to monitor user uploads for copyrighted content'. Wired. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
35. ^'inside-it.ch: Zug: Prozess gegen Rapidshare-Chefs beginnt'. inside-it.ch. 6 September 2018. Retrieved 6 September 2018.

External links[edit]