THE MAIL ON SUNDAY, 14 SEPTEMBER 1997

THE STARMAKERS SPLIT IN A FUED OVER ROYALTIES

The battle for Kylie's millions

by Jane Preston

The songwriting trio of Stock, Aitken and Waterman who produced her number one singles such as I Should Be So Lucky - and turned her from soap opera actress to international pop star - are embroiled in an extraordinary legal row over the division of royalties.

The team was one of the most successful in pop history. They dominated the charts in the late Eighties with a stream of hits which also included Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up and Jason Donovan's Too Many Broken Hearts.

Their astonishing success took the three friends - Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman - from humble backgrounds to a world of mansions, fast cars and fottunes in the bank.

Now the final act of their story is set to be played out in the High Court. Stock and Aitken are demanding that Waterman pays them royalties they believe they are owed from the hits of former Neighbours stars Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan.

It is the most public manifestation so far of the intense animosity that exists between three men who were once so close.

Although none will go into detail about the legal action, those who know Waterman say his view of his ex-partners is summed up by the Mark Twain words pinned up behind his desk: 'If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between dog and man.' A former colleague reveals: 'Pete and Mike both drink in the same pub, but one drinks in the public bar, the other in the saloon bar. They refuse to acknowledge each other'

Stock and Aitken are reluctant to talk about the relationship, but Stock says: 'We haven't spoken to Pete for two years. But our lawyers are in touch.'

Stock and Aitken insist they were the creative driving force in the team. Waterman was the businessman and became the partnership's public face with his ostentatious lifestyle - he owned 18 classic Jaguars and Ferraris, which he kept at his £500,000 mansion in Cheshire.

In contrast, Aitken owned a £250,000 apartment in North London, and drove a £30,000 Ferrari, while Stock lived in a £300,000 house in Swanley, Kent.

Stock says: 'We used to have big rows. If Pete was taking more than 60 per cent of the credit there was only 20 per cent for each of us.

'In 1984 we needed to have someone like Pete who could sell us, but by 1987-88 the records did the selling on their own.'

Aitken adds: 'If you are successful and boast about it, people won't like you for it. And Pete was always in the newspapers.'

Music business observers say Stock and Aitken are dissatisfied with audits of royalty payments of Waterman's companies and want a declaration to confirm each has a third share of ownership rights for hits they wrote and produced.

When in 1990 the team split with Sonia, who settled out of court after suing a Waterman company over royalties, a series of major flops followed. Aitken left the business in 1991, with Stock departing 18 months later. But within a year they formed a new company, Love This Records, which produces chart-toppers Robson and Jerome.

Waterman, who once had a staff of 40, now has only two. His charter train venture, Waterman Railways, which he ran with William McAlpine, is believed to have drained much of his £60 million personal fortune.

The former colleague adds: 'Pete is in for a big legal battle.

'Mike and Matt are determined to take this to court. and now they have the means to do it.'