Led Zeppelin have finally won the lawsuit accusing them of copying the iconic guitar riff in ‘Stairway To Heaven’ from Spirit‘s 1968 instrumental ‘Taurus’.
After a week of testimonies, the jury in LA came back with its verdict in a case that has been around for years. The jury found that plaintiff owned the copyright to ‘Taurus’, that Led Zeppelin members did hear it, but that there was no significant similarity in the extrinsic elements of ‘Taurus’ and ‘Stairway To Heaven’.
Page and Plant put out a joint statement after the announcement of the verdict: ‘We are grateful for the jury’s conscientious service and pleased that it has ruled in our favour, putting to rest questions about the origins of ‘Stairway to Heaven‘ and confirming what we have known for 45 years,” they said. “We appreciate our fans’ support, and look forward to putting this legal matter behind us’.
Debbie Maliotaki