Apparently, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant are heading back to court. However, they’re still innocent.
Now another trial has been ordered in a case that accuses Led Zeppelin of stealing “Stairway to Heaven” from the song “Taurus” by the largely forgotten psychedelic band Spirit. Late last week, a U.S. appeals court on Friday ruled in favor of a retrial in the 2016 case, deeming the judge misled jurors about copyright law
Yes, you should already know: Jimmy Page wrote Stairway to Heaven. There’s no understanding copyright law that can defend against how much we know about this case.
Yes, Led Zeppelin did indeed write “Stairway to Heaven” and that makes me sad. I want to see an asterisk next to the entry in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and I also think Led Zepplin deserves to be knocked down a peg.
Yes, both “Stairway to Heaven” and “Taurus” have a similar opening arpeggiated arpeggiation. The bass line follow a similar pattern from the beginning of the song, with Page adding a final addition later in the song.
Page’s guitar line in “Stairway to Heaven” is more clever than the Spirit song. Page plays two notes at the same time, creating a series of two note harmonies that travel against each other. As the bassline descends lower, the string part ascends higher. It’s similar to a classic blues turnaround.
Jimmy Page wrote Stairway to Heaven, but it’s clear that he didn’t write any of the lyrics. The Taurus song just plays out the notes of the chord. That’s actually kind of infuriating. Do they think that they own arpeggiating a minor chord? Are they going after Tom Petty for the intro “Into the Great Wide Open” or the Beatles for “Abbey Road”?
The allegedly plagiarized section is only in the first half, which you cycle through again before arriving at the outro (which bears a strong resemblance to “All Along the Watchtower”).
When a publisher suggests a prestigious book, the author sometimes adopts conventions from other acclaimed authors from similar genres, even if they have never been acknowledged. Led Zeppelin opened for Spirit a couple of times in the late ‘60s, and members of Spirit claim that both bands used one or more of their songs during the concert. When Jimmy Page heard “Nights in White Satin” by Spirit, he may have modeled the introduction to his song “Stairway to Heaven
The three year difference in time between “Stairway to Heaven” and “Taurus” is a prime example of market wisdom.
Yes, Led Zeppelin has had success in the past. Jimmy Page wrote “Stairway to Heaven”, played by Heart, while Mark Andes (Led Zeppelin) charted with Heart after multiple successful stints in the music industry. The song was presented to the audience by Bonham’s son when Led Zeppelin were honored by the Kennedy Center.
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