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| Judge clears 'Stairway to Heaven' copyright case for trial |
Judge clears 'Stairway to Heaven' copyright case for trial
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A balloon is bare to actuate if Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" copies its aperture addendum from a song performed by the bedrock bandage Spirit, a federal adjudicator has ruled.U.S District Adjudicator R. Gary Klausner disqualified Friday that attorneys for the trustee of backward Spirit guitarist Randy Wolfe had apparent abundant affirmation to abutment a case that "Stairway to Heaven" copies music from the Spirit song "Taurus."
"Taurus" was accounting by Wolfe in either 1966 or 1967, years afore Led Zeppelin appear "Stairway to Heaven" in 1971. Klausner wrote that while the songs accept some differences, attorneys for Wolfe's trustee may be able to prove they are essentially similar.
Led Zeppelin and Spirit performed at some concerts and festivals about the aforementioned time, but not on the aforementioned stage. Klausner wrote that the affirmation presented so far represented a amplified case that Led Zeppelin may accept heard "Taurus" performed afore "Stairway to Heaven" was created.
After-hours buzz and email letters beatific to Helene M. Freeman, Led Zeppelin's attorney, were not anon returned. Experts assassin by the bandage argue both "Stairway to Heaven" and "Taurus" use addendum that accept been acclimated in music for centuries.
Francis Alexander Malofiy, advocate for Wolfe's trustee Michael Skidmore, accepted the ruling. He said while abounding absorb cases are an acclivous battle, Klausner's cardinal brings his applicant one footfall afterpiece to accepting Wolfe acclaim for allowance actualize one of the a lot of apparent song introductions in bedrock history.
Skidmore was able to affected statute-of-limitations hurdles to sue over "Stairway to Heaven" because the song was remastered and re-released in 2014.
A board balloon is appointed for May 10 in Los Angeles. Klausner's cardinal removed Zeppelin bandage affiliate John Paul Jones from the case. Bandmates Robert Plant and Jimmy Page abide defendants in the case.
A balloon would represent the third time in contempo months that a Los Angeles federal board has heard a copyright-infringement case involving a hit song. In March 2015, a board begin that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had affected a Marvin Gaye song to actualize their 2013 hit, "Blurred Lines" and awarded Gaye's accouchement $7.4 million. A adjudicator akin the award, and the adjudication is beneath appeal.
Later in the year, addition board was empaneled to actuate whether the Jay-Z hit "Big Pimpin'" affected the plan of an Egyptian composer, but a adjudicator disqualified in the rapper's favor afore deliberations began.
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