Led Zeppelin plagiarized ‘Stairway to Heaven,’ court told

Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page and Robert Plant appeared in court on June 14, to deny accusations that they “lifted” the opening bars to iconic rock song “Stairway to Heaven.” The musicians arrived to a throng of reporters at the Los Angeles federal court, where a jury of 4 men and 4 women was played their anthemic hit. Spirit, a psychedelic LA band that enjoyed a niche following but never attained the superstardom of Zeppelin, claims the melancholic guitar that opens “Stairway” was taken from its instrumental track “Taurus.” Spirit’s guitarist Randy Wolfe – who went by the nickname Randy California – never took legal action and drowned in Hawaii in 1997, but a lawsuit was filed by his trustee and friend Michael Skidmore, who was in court. “This case can be summarized in 6 words: Give credit where credit is due,” said Francis Malofiy, Skidmore’s attorney.

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