The intention to pursue a copyright infringement claim against Led Zeppelin based on the contention that a key portion of the melody in Stairway To Heaven was lifed from s song written by Randy Claifornia of the band Spirit was made public almost two years ago. Unless a settlement is reached prior to a trial, the long climb toward an actual court date for the estate of California will end on May 10th. The stakes are potentially enormous if the court finds that Zeppelin did infringe on California by using a portion of the Spirit instrumental Taurus without credit. Jimmy Page reportedly insisted in a deposition he gave that he never heard the song, despite the fact that the two bands shared the same stage at about the time the epic Zeppelin song on an album that has sold more than 37 million copies was being written.
HenneMusic.com
