Everyone remembers the summer of 2013. You couldn't walk into a grocery store or turn on a car radio without hearing that cowbell. Blurred Lines was everywhere. It was the kind of song that felt like a permanent fixture of the atmosphere, but it also became one of the most litigious and hated pieces of pop culture in modern history.
Now, when you search for Alan Thicke Blurred Lines, you usually find a mix of people confusing the father for the son or asking if the elder Thicke—the beloved Growing Pains dad—had a hand in the track that nearly took down Robin Thicke’s career.
The short answer? He didn’t write it. He didn't produce it. But he was stuck in the splash zone of the chaos that followed.
The Family Connection and That One Song
Alan Thicke was a prolific songwriter long before he was Jason Seaver. He wrote the themes for Diff'rent Strokes and The Facts of Life. He knew a hit when he heard one. When Robin Thicke released Blurred Lines, Alan was his biggest cheerleader. He famously told reporters he loved the "earworm" quality of the track.
Honestly, he even had a minor credit on the Blurred Lines album. Not on the title track itself, but on a song called "Ain’t No Hat 4 That." He was proud. He was a dad watching his son reach the absolute summit of the Billboard charts.
Then the lawsuits started.
Why the Marvin Gaye Estate Sued
The drama really kicked off when the estate of Marvin Gaye noticed that Blurred Lines felt a little too much like Gaye’s 1977 classic "Got to Give It Up." We aren't talking about a direct sample where you lift the actual recording. This was about the "vibe."
Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams actually sued the Gaye family first. They wanted a judge to say, "Hey, we didn't steal this." It backfired. Spectactularly.
In the deposition that followed, things got weird:
- Robin Thicke admitted he was high on Vicodin and alcohol during the recording.
- He confessed he actually didn't write much of the song at all, despite taking credit for years.
- Pharrell was the real mastermind, but Robin wanted the "rockstar" credit.
Alan Thicke had to watch his son’s reputation crumble in real-time. It wasn't just the copyright stuff; the song was being branded as "rapey" and "misogynistic" by critics. Alan, ever the diplomat, tried to defend the "intent" of the song as just "fun," but the tide had turned.
👉 See also: Why the Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire cast changed the franchise forever
The $5 Million Verdict
In 2015, a jury decided that Robin and Pharrell owed the Gaye estate over $7 million (later reduced to around $5 million). It changed the music industry forever. Suddenly, you could be sued just for the "groove" of a song.
Alan Thicke passed away in late 2016, just as the legal appeals were still winding through the courts. He never saw the final, final resolution of the case in 2018. To him, the Blurred Lines era was a bittersweet mix of his son's greatest success and his most public humiliation.
What You Can Do Now
If you’re a creator or just a fan trying to make sense of the copyright mess, here’s the reality of the post-Blurred Lines world:
Watch the "Vibe" If you're making music, being "inspired" by a classic is now legally dangerous. If it sounds like a specific era or artist, get a musicologist to check it before you release it.
Check the Credits Alan Thicke’s real musical legacy is in those 80s theme songs. If you want to hear what he actually sounded like as a writer, go listen to the Growing Pains theme. It’s a lot more wholesome than anything on the Blurred Lines record.
Don’t Confuse the Two When discussing the lawsuit, remember that Robin was the face of the controversy, but Pharrell was the one who actually composed the track. Alan was just the supportive father who unfortunately saw his family name dragged through a very messy, very public trial.
The legal precedent set by this case still haunts recording studios today. Every time you hear a song that sounds vaguely like an old hit, there’s a team of lawyers in the background making sure they don't end up in the same position the Thicke family did.