‘Stairway to Heaven’ leads Robert Plant and Jimmy Page to the dock

Led Zeppelin’s lead singer Robert Plant and guitarist Jimmy Page must face a US jury trial over whether they stole opening chords for their 1971 classic ‘Stairway to Heaven’.

In a decision, US District Judge Gary Klausner in Los Angeles said ‘Stairway’ and the 1967 instrumental ‘Taurus’ by the band Spirit were similar enough to let a jury decide whether Plant and Page were liable for copyright infringement. A trial is scheduled for May 10.

The lawsuit was brought by Michael Skidmore, a trustee for the late Randy Wolfe, also known as Randy California, who was Spirit’s guitarist and the composer of ‘Taurus’.