A federal jury in Los Angeles has just ruled that Led Zeppelin did not swipe the opening to “Stairway to Heaven” from the Spirit song “Taurus.” From the New York Times:
Mr. Plant and Mr. Page both testified that “Stairway to Heaven” had been composed independently, and that while both bands had played on the same bill a handful of times, they did not recall ever seeing Spirit perform and had no familiarity with “Taurus” until the lawsuit was brought.
“I didn’t remember it then, and I don’t remember it now,” Mr. Plant said.
The jury found that, although Mr. Page and Mr. Plant had access to “Taurus” before the release of “Stairway to Heaven,” the two songs’ original elements did not contain enough similarities. Before reaching the verdict on Thursday, the jury asked to listen to audio recordings of the introductions to both songs twice.
