Page/Led Zeppelin being sued over "Stairway" by surviving member of Spirit

[Whom]

Lawyer claims Led Zeppelin stole intro for 'Stairway to Heaven'* - Entertainment - TODAY.com
AOL.com Article - Led Zeppelin being sued by surviving member of Spirit over 'Stairway to Heaven'

Ironic Jimmy Page quote from NY Times article 5 days ago:

NYT: ... So how do you feel about your music being sampled for hip-hop records?

Page:. In a creative sense, it’s fantastic. Even if you don’t play an instrument, you’re writing new things. These guys come up with some amazing work, in the electronics and the mixing. I find it really fun to listen to.

As far as the business side of it, however, the issue of sampling is thorny. The problem is people not getting paid for performances, Across the board, they are being pirated. Their music gets played, and they don’t get paid. I have a problem with that. I really do.

 

[Jakeislove]

At some point, discussing LZ's plagiarism will the same as religion and politics. They've never done the right thing unless lawyers were involved, despite making millions of dollars and becoming legends through theft.

I wonder how many songs they actually wrote.

 

[artisan4]

Hmm, exactly the same progression. Why did they wait so long to sue?

 

[bocage44]

Yes, the opening four or five bars are the same, but does that constitute the ripping off of an entire song? While I can see Randy California's point of view on this issue, I just don't think there's enough there to support a successful lawsuit.

 

[madaxeman]

When is Chuck Berry going to sue just about every rock musician in the last 50 years?
Jumped up bullshit...why leave it all these years?

 

[Arzachel]

you should be sued for plagiarising the other thread about it, the one thats been on here for days

 

[Bobby Mahogany]

They stole their name from a joke made by Keith Moon about their band taking off like a lead Zeppelin.
They didn't pay Keith anything, they didn't pay German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin either.
It wasn't starting well...

 

[Caleb]

Everyone steals. No point getting pissed about it.

 

[VictorB]

I slipped and fell in a Burger King in 1975.

I've just decided to sue, today.

That's legit, right?

 

[Ginger Beer]

I slipped and fell in a Burger King in 1975.

I've just decided to sue, today.

That's legit, right?

I don't think that's what this case is about at all. It would be more like Burger King stole your Whopper name and design in 75 and now they are planning on unavailing yet a new rehash of the design guaranteed to make yet even more money for them, nothing for you.

 

[Ed B]

At some point, discussing LZ's plagiarism will the same as religion and politics. They've never done the right thing unless lawyers were involved, despite making millions of dollars and becoming legends through theft.

I wonder how many songs they actually wrote.

I thought they became legends by doing something better than "almost" anyone EVER.

They didn't become famous from stealing at all. Otherwise everyone would be legends.

I'm not defending their actions though. You're right. Giving people credit after they catch crap is BS. The only problem is we weren't there when the decisions were made to not talk about who wrote the songs.

Legitimate question:

Did they ever lie about songs? If so that's s whole different story. I ask because I'm 38. I didn't see them back in the day. I'm also not a fanatic and haven't looked up all of their interviews and stuff.

 

[Ginger Beer]

I thought they became legends by doing something better than "almost" anyone EVER.

They didn't become famous from stealing at all. Otherwise everyone would be legends.

I'm not defending their actions though. You're right. Giving people credit after they catch crap is BS. The only problem is we weren't there when the decisions were made to not talk about who wrote the songs.

Legitimate question:

Did they ever lie about songs? If so that's s whole different story. I ask because I'm 38. I didn't see them back in the day. I'm also not a fanatic and haven't looked up all of their interviews and stuff.

I got Bob Dylan doing In My Time of Dying back in 60 or 61 and giving credit to "Traditional".

oh and there's this...

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkX7Q2J7k48]Bert Jansch "Black Waterside" - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Ed B]

Credit and lying are 2 different things. Again I'm asking these questions because I truly don't know. If they lied then there is no excuse. If they didn't give credit there may be more to the story. It may not have been malicious. I don't know.

 

[PeteK]

you should be sued for plagiarising the other thread about it, the one thats been on here for days

Nah, this one isn't fan boy enough.

 

[Ginger Beer]

Credit and lying are 2 different things. Again I'm asking these questions because I truly don't know. If they lied then there is no excuse. If they didn't give credit there may be more to the story. It may not have been malicious. I don't know.

I imagine that if you toured with somebody, took their riffs / song ideas and credited it to yourself, credit and lying about it are both part of the same thing.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkQpZpFLpv4]Small Faces - You Need Loving - YouTube[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTsvs-pAGDc]Jake Holmes - Dazed and Confused - YouTube[/ame]

 

[colchar]

At some point, discussing LZ's plagiarism will the same as religion and politics. They've never done the right thing unless lawyers were involved, despite making millions of dollars and becoming legends through theft.

I wonder how many songs they actually wrote.

Blues artists have been stealing from each other since the genre began and nobody gets all uppity about that. The Beach Boys blatantly ripped off Chuck Berry's Sweet Little Sixteen when they recorded Surfin' USA and had to be forced to give Berry credit but nobody gets all uppity about that. But for some reason people get all uppity about Zeppelin.

And, as T.S. Eliot said, "good authors borrow, great authors steal."

 

[huw]

It's a descending bass line under a minor chord, harmonised from there.

Spirit did not invent that.

Start with Bach & work forward through the hundreds of examples that pre-date Taurus, and you will see that the line was cliché long before Spirit came along.

 

[nick1962]

Paging Mr Vasco........

 

[nick1962]

Blues artists have been stealing from each other since the genre began and nobody gets all uppity about that. The Beach Boys blatantly ripped off Chuck Berry's Sweet Little Sixteen when they recorded Surfin' USA and had to be forced to give Berry credit but nobody gets all uppity about that. But for some reason people get all uppity about Zeppelin.

And, as T.S. Eliot said, "good authors borrow, great authors steal."

And closer to home, Paul Weller ripped off ELO with 'Changing Man' and Bowie ripped off '3 Steps to Heaven' with 'Queen Bitch' , to name but two!

 

[hecube]

They haven't got a leg to stand on.