Stairway to Heaven, Led Zeppelin copyright case cleared for trial

A trial is needed to determine if Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heavencopies its opening notes from a song performed by the rock band Spirit, a federal judge has ruled.

U.S District Judge R. Gary Klausner ruled Friday that lawyers for the trustee of late Spirit guitarist Randy Wolfe had shown enough evidence to support a case that Stairway to Heavencopies music from the instrumental Spirit trackTaurus.

• Led Zeppelin faces copyright allegations over Stairway to Heaven

Tauruswas written by Wolfe(who used the stage name Randy California, given to him by Jimi Hendrix)in either 1966 or 1967, years before Led Zeppelin released Stairway to Heavenin 1971. Klausner wrote that while the songs have some differences, lawyers for Wolfe's trustee may be able to prove they are substantially similar.

Led Zeppelin and Spirit performed at some concerts and festivals around the same time, but not on the same stage. Klausner wrote that the evidence presented so far represented a circumstantial case that Led Zeppelin may have heard Taurusperformed before Stairway to Heavenwas created.

In an interview published after his death in early 1997, Wolfepointed out the similarities in the two songs.

"The guys made millions of bucks on [Stairway to Heaven] and never said 'Thank you,' never said, 'Can we pay you some money for it?'" he told Listener, an audiophilemagazine.

"It's kind of a sore point with me. Maybe someday their conscience will make them do something about it."

Wolfe had never previously launched alegal challenge against Led Zeppelin over Stairway to Heaven due to lack of funds.

After-hours phone and email messages sent to Helene M. Freeman, Led Zeppelin's attorney, were not immediately returned. Experts hired by the band contend both Stairway to Heavenand Taurususe notes that have been used in music for centuries.

Francis Alexander Malofiy, attorney for Wolfe's trustee Michael Skidmore, praised the ruling. He said while many copyright cases are an uphill battle, Klausner's ruling brings his client one step closer to getting Wolfe credit for helping create one of the most recognizable song introductions in rock history.

Page and Plant remain defendants

Skidmore was able to overcome statute-of-limitations hurdles to sue over Stairway to Heavenbecause the song was remastered and re-released in 2014.

A jury trial is scheduled for May 10 in Los Angeles. Klausner's ruling removed Zeppelin band member John Paul Jones from the case. Bandmates Robert Plant and Jimmy Page remain defendants in the case.

A trial would represent the third time in recent months that a Los Angeles federal jury has heard a copyright-infringement case involving a hit song.

In March 2015, a jury found that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had copied a Marvin Gaye song to create their 2013 hit, Blurred Linesand awarded Gaye's children $7.4 million US. A judge trimmed the award, and the verdict is under appeal.

Later in the year, another jury was empaneled to determine whether the Jay-Z hit Big Pimpin' copied the work of an Egyptian composer, but a judge ruled in the rapper's favour before deliberations began.