‘Stairway To Heaven’ Lawsuit Against Led Zeppelin Set For Trial

Led Zeppelin surviving members Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page lost a bid to have court case thrown out that was brought against them alleging copyright infringement. The judge’s ruling means the case, brought on behalf of late Spirit guitarist Randy California arguing his instrumental “Taurus” was improperly used as the basis for the Zeppelin smash hit “Stairway To Heaven,” will proceed – with a trial now looming.

Some of defendants Page, Plant, Jones and Warner Music Group’s requests for claims to be dismissed were granted, but U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner failed to grant their full motion for summary judgement, instead putting the case on a course for a jury trial.

The lawsuit claims California taught Page how to play “Taurus” in the late 1960s when the two bands purportedly shared bills together. The defendants have responded that they have no recollection of appearing at the same festivals with the Spirit and deny having toured together, stating any similarities in the recordings are coincidental based on a commonly used composition structure.

According to Bloomberg, judge Klausner wrote in his opinion:

While it is true that a descending chromatic four-chord progression is a common convention that abounds in the music industry, the similarities here transcend this core structure. For example, the descending bass line in both “Taurus” and “Stairway to Heaven” appears at the beginning of both songs, arguably the most recognizable and important segments.

Randy California (born Randy Wolfe), died in 1997 and the case was brought by a trust set up on his behalf. The suit was originally filed in U.S. District Court in Central District of California in 2014.