 The Verve negotiated rights to use a six-note sample from the recording from the recording's copyright holder Decca Records; however, they did not obtain permission from former Rolling Stones manager Allen Klein, who owned the copyrights to the band's pre-1970 songs, including "The Last Time".Although "Bitter Sweet Symphony" had already been released, Klein refused to grant a licence for the sample.This led to a lawsuit with ABKCO Records, Klein's holding company, which was settled out of court.