Led Zeppelin officially being sued for Stairway

[OmarBradley]

My biggest issue with this, is that the riffs aren't the same. They are similar, but not the same. There's ten hundred million billion trillion songs in pop music that have riffs/progressions/licks from other songs in them. People say The Pretender (Foo's) has the Stairway riff in it (I also hear Rock And Roll in it), Tribute (Tenacious D) as well, but no lawsuits about those, even though people commonly acknowledge it.

[Anguyen92]

My biggest issue with this, is that the riffs aren't the same. They are similar, but not the same. There's ten hundred million billion trillion songs in pop music that have riffs/progressions/licks from other songs in them. People say The Pretender (Foo's) has the Stairway riff in it (I also hear Rock And Roll in it), Tribute (Tenacious D) as well, but no lawsuits about those, even though people commonly acknowledge it.

Maybe, Led Zeppelin are either wise enough to know not to create a lawsuit from those since it will not resolve anything or that they will look like hypocrites if they pull a lawsuit. That said, I agree about The Pretender and Tribute.

Edited May 19, 2014 by Anguyen92

[moreblack]

Their biggest hit will forever have another band for a writing credit. It's as clear as day. They are the exact same song. Jimmy Page is a hack.

The "exact same song" is a pretty big stretch.

[Crash Diet]

Lol at insecure Zeppelin fans entering maximum damage control mode

Their biggest hit will forever have another band for a writing credit. It's as clear as day. They are the exact same song. Jimmy Page is a hack.

says the guy whose favourite artist is Kanye West

inb4sampling argument

btw your trolling skills got the lowest of the low

They aren't stealing the exact same song

Edited May 20, 2014 by Crash Diet

[Broskirose]

yamcb. aispy

[bacardimayne]

The difference is Kanye gives credit. Aren't you the idiot who tried to have Kanye threads banned from this forum because he supposedly stole from some shit Norwegian band and didn't credit them? (when he in fact did)

[moreblack]

And the more you look around, that progression is everywhere

Edited May 20, 2014 by moreblack

[sweetness]

If Jimmy Page really stole, or was inspired by that guitar line form this song he sure as shit expanded on it, which is all you need to do to avoid copyright infringement. The only similarity is the bass notes which are descending chromatically... not exactly a uniquely distinct pattern by any means... also, it's worth mentioning that chord progressions ARE NOT protected by copyright law.

These guys are reaching, if they had written the melody which includes alternate pitches that is unmistakeably and universally known as Stairway To Heaven they would have a case, but the bass notes in the same time signature will not hold up in court.

[sweetness]

Lol at insecure Zeppelin fans entering maximum damage control mode

Their biggest hit will forever have another band for a writing credit. It's as clear as day. They are the exact same song. Jimmy Page is a hack.

You're way too excited about this, the only similarity is the bass or root notes of a chord progression, it's not enough to be considered plagiarism under copyright law.

[Forsaken]

If Jimmy Page really stole, or was inspired by that guitar line form this song he sure as shit expanded on it, which is all you need to do to avoid copyright infringement. The only similarity is the bass notes which are descending chromatically... not exactly a uniquely distinct pattern by any means... also, it's worth mentioning that chord progressions ARE NOT protected by copyright law.

These guys are reaching, if they had written the melody which includes alternate pitches that is unmistakeably and universally known as Stairway To Heaven they would have a case, but the bass notes in the same time signature will not hold up in court.

I agree.

This is a stretch and the opening riff isn't note for note the same. Sure they have similarities but every band/artist has influences, Zeppelin might have heard this and capitalized on it with their own spin. "Spirit" has no real case here; why wait 40 years to file the suit? I'd be very surprised if this even made it to court before being dismissed.

[sweetness]

Probably not, there isn't much to debate here. The melody isn't the same, just the chords, and if chord progressions were protected by copyright law... lol

[dalsh327]

I think they're just trying to make waves and hoping for an acknowledgement after years of being ignored. It's just Page's attitude in interviews about not giving Spirit any credit to the point of editing "Fresh Garbage" out of the BBC Sessions.

[bacardimayne]

They've gone into full panic.

Can't wait for the 40 years of backpay the band have to dish out.

[RandallFlagg]

Doesn't Creep by Radiohead have songwriting credit to another band after they got pissed?

[Iron MikeyJ]

BTW, since we are talking about "theivery" The Police clearly lifted the "Every breath you take and every move you make" lines in Every breath you take from Led Zeppelin's D'yer Mak'er, did they give Zeppelin the proper credit???

Edited May 21, 2014 by Mike420

[bacardimayne]

BTW, since we are talking about "theivery" The Police clearly lifted the "Every breath you take and every move you make" lines in Every breath you take from Led Zeppelin's D'yer Mak'er, did they give Zeppelin the proper credit???

Does anyone really care? I mean, it is The Police/

[Iron MikeyJ]

That's true...

I was curious more than anything, but Sting did take those lines.

[Crash Diet]

The difference is Kanye gives credit. Aren't you the idiot who tried to have Kanye threads banned from this forum because he supposedly stole from some shit Norwegian band and didn't credit them? (when he in fact did)

Hungarian

kanye didn't credited them in the first place, just after when the original band claim the issue, but you keep saying this shit

You're a prime example of North American consum idiotism

[bacardimayne]

The difference is Kanye gives credit. Aren't you the idiot who tried to have Kanye threads banned from this forum because he supposedly stole from some shit Norwegian band and didn't credit them? (when he in fact did)

Hungarian

kanye didn't credited them in the first place, just after when the original band claim the issue, but you keep saying this shit

You're a prime example of North American consum idiotism

The credit existed in both the Yeezus liner notes and on the New Slaves single packaging, long before you fabricated up this controversy.

You (and whatever sensationalist article you're pulling this shit from) are literally talking out of your ass. There was no controversy. Just a bunch of uneducated buffoons who have no idea how sampling and crediting work, getting mad because a rapper used their favorite local band's song without releasing a 20 minute video announcing it.

Tell me, why in the FUCK would Kanye use a sample, so prominently, which features VOCALS IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE, and not give credit? He's obviously not trying to claim that he created it, because that would make no sense. The credit has been there since day 1, and the band has been receiving royalties since day 1.

And please, elaborate on my "North American consum idiotism". I'm dying here.

Edited May 22, 2014 by bacardimayne

[Crash Diet]

The difference is Kanye gives credit. Aren't you the idiot who tried to have Kanye threads banned from this forum because he supposedly stole from some shit Norwegian band and didn't credit them? (when he in fact did)

Hungarian

kanye didn't credited them in the first place, just after when the original band claim the issue, but you keep saying this shit

You're a prime example of North American consum idiotism

The credit existed in both the Yeezus liner notes and on the New Slaves single packaging, long before you fabricated up this controversy.

You (and whatever sensationalist article you're pulling this shit from) are literally talking out of your ass. There was no controversy. Just a bunch of uneducated buffoons who have no idea how sampling and crediting work, getting mad because a rapper used their favorite local band's song without releasing a 20 minute video announcing it.

Tell me, why in the FUCK would Kanye use a sample, so prominently, which features VOCALS IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE, and not give credit? He's obviously not trying to claim that he created it, because that would make no sense. The credit has been there since day 1, and the band has been receiving royalties since day 1.

And please, elaborate on my "North American consum idiotism". I'm dying here.

This is actually false, man

Liner notes means jackshit in this case and you know it

Anyway liking Kanye West in general is the definition of consum idiotism

[bacardimayne]

The difference is Kanye gives credit. Aren't you the idiot who tried to have Kanye threads banned from this forum because he supposedly stole from some shit Norwegian band and didn't credit them? (when he in fact did)

Hungarian

kanye didn't credited them in the first place, just after when the original band claim the issue, but you keep saying this shit

You're a prime example of North American consum idiotism

The credit existed in both the Yeezus liner notes and on the New Slaves single packaging, long before you fabricated up this controversy.

You (and whatever sensationalist article you're pulling this shit from) are literally talking out of your ass. There was no controversy. Just a bunch of uneducated buffoons who have no idea how sampling and crediting work, getting mad because a rapper used their favorite local band's song without releasing a 20 minute video announcing it.

Tell me, why in the FUCK would Kanye use a sample, so prominently, which features VOCALS IN A FOREIGN LANGUAGE, and not give credit? He's obviously not trying to claim that he created it, because that would make no sense. The credit has been there since day 1, and the band has been receiving royalties since day 1.

And please, elaborate on my "North American consum idiotism". I'm dying here.

This is actually false, man

Liner notes means jackshit in this case and you know it

Anyway liking Kanye West in general is the definition of consum idiotism

You must be joking right now. They're credited in the booklet. Their names are there. They receive royalties for the sample. What the fuck do you want him to do? List them as the artist for the song? List them as a feature? Literally no rapper/producer in the history of music does that.

I addressed your "consum idiotism" remarks in the insecure fans thread.

[moreblack]

Are Spirit also suing for the other 6 minutes of the song they had nothing to do with?

[Guest Len B'stard]

Its worth noting also that in the times Zep made a lot of this stuff authorship was only just starting to become the hugely important thing it is today, all of Zeps heroes came up doing that kinda quasi plaguaristic stuff, so they were pretty much doing what their peers did in regards to music, which is what most do really.

[moreblack]

Its worth noting also that in the times Zep made a lot of this stuff authorship was only just starting to become the hugely important thing it is today, all of Zeps heroes came up doing that kinda quasi plaguaristic stuff, so they were pretty much doing what their peers did in regards to music, which is what most do really.

That's the part that seems to get lost when looking at it with modern eyes. But it's an important part of the conversation. All them old folk and blues guys lifted riffs melodies and lines from each other. Not all of Bob Dylan's material is 100% original from what I hear.

[Guest Len B'stard]

Its worth noting also that in the times Zep made a lot of this stuff authorship was only just starting to become the hugely important thing it is today, all of Zeps heroes came up doing that kinda quasi plaguaristic stuff, so they were pretty much doing what their peers did in regards to music, which is what most do really.

That's the part that seems to get lost when looking at it with modern eyes. But it's an important part of the conversation. All them old folk and blues guys lifted riffs melodies and lines from each other. Not all of Bob Dylan's material is 100% original from what I hear.

Not even close. I think people find it difficult to seperate themselves from the contemporary mentality where authorship is some kind of fucking essential, like writing your own songs and that, it's something I've always thought to be a load of fuckin' bollocks, this essential thing where you simply MUST have written your own matierial or you're somehow less on an artist, as if its impossible to perfect A component part of an overall art endeavour and still be a credible artist.

Don't get me wrong, i love the idea of people writing their own shit, expressing themselves and their thing and their songs being kind of a map of their psyche but at the same time, does it HAVE to be that fuckin' way? Does The Beatles first album suck cuz it's mostly covers? These mentalities and learnt and also they're generally bullshit.

Plagiarism is plagiarism and I'm still of the mentality that i like the blues better coming out of old black geezers but at the same time I can't really point this plagiarism stick at Led Zeppelin, no one with any kind of knowledge of the way music history has gone down can really.

Also, with cool clever clued up artists like Jimmy Page, he don't have no trouble writing his own shit, he made a handsome living doing that shit and he's well aware of his music history so if he ever did nick stuff (and he clearly did) it must've been knowingly and, being an artist of his calibre, i don't think he would do it unless it was the ONLY option to make the song really work and not only that but take the piece somewhere different, as every different artist or musician always does they THEIR take on something when they do a cover, it comes out sounding different.

To me, it's like this...put the song on...is it good? If yes well then shut the fuck up.

Also, like, this plagarism shit, look, this is how we fuckin' learn, we hear something cool, we try and play it...we change some notes here and there and like...y'know, you kinda discover your way around a fretboard to where you realise that if you take x riff and then change this and this and this notes in the sequence you come up with something totally different.

Before motherfuckers were doing A Level music and becoming bedroom snobs about this shit the way people learned was by copying their peers...copying how they play, what they play, perfecting it and then getting onstage doing THEIR take on it...and they either do or don't go on to write their own shit, depending on their inclination but my point is, this shit is kinda how people get into this shit.

I ain't ashamed to say the first time i ever held a guitar in my hand my first thought was 'how the fuck do i do that voodoo chile riff!'

Edited May 28, 2014 by sugaraylen