Stairway to Heaven in copyright trial

Yeah, no argument.

But also, both of those were probably bad examples, because to "ape" another band is not really the topic of discussion.
 
I have compared the two songs at hand (Taurus and Stairway To Heaven), and I do agree that there are similarities, but I also don't think those similarities are all that remarkable - perhaps the initial chord progression and "feel" of Taurus was inspirational for the hit song, either consciously or subconsciously. But I am not a lawyer nor a judge, and not a copyright expert, so I cannot comment on how valid the lawsuit may or may not be. I do think bringing about the lawsuit 45 years or whatever after initial release seems like a stretch...

But it does raise a question that an aspiring (and still lousy) songwriter like me might have:

I listen to lots of music. (Duh.) If I write a song, it is undoubtedly inspired or influenced at some level by the songs I have already heard and maybe even play/sing. How can I ever be sure that I didn't steal the chord progression from one song, a portion of the melody of the verse from another song, the melody of the chorus from a third song, an interesting phrase from a fourth, etc? I might not do it intentionally or consciously, but I'm sure most defendants in such cases (Sam Smith and Petty/Lynne for example) will say something like "I had no intention of stealing that" and "the rest of the song is so different".

In other cases like The Flaming Lips and Cat Stevens, the influence was intentional and they thought they could get away with it. So that is not the situation I am worried about.

Is there some magic algorithm analysis machine at major labels that can compare a song with the existing catalog? (I keed, I keed, I think.)

How do you folks stay out of this copyright trouble? Or is it a case that 90% of songs out there will have a portion that "sounds just like" some other previous, possibly more obscure, song, but they don't get litigated in general because the whole industry would collapse into a massive internecine war of lawsuits?
 
Proof of writing or publishing date for either side would end this nonsense, first past the post wins. Just thinking, I wonder how much this is worth, it has to be millions?

On a side note, I'm really not a fan of the song. I find it cheesy like "All right now", after previous work in both cases they seem patently pop songs written for one thing.
 
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shinksma said:
Is there some magic algorithm analysis machine at major labels that can compare a song with the existing catalog? (I keed, I keed, I think.)
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Actually, don't laugh, they're working on it.
Mixstar said:
Proof of writing or publishing date for either side would end this nonsense...
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Taurus was clearly written first -- Led Zeppelin even heard them play it, since they were touring together. But no, it's not that simple, they have to prove that the two are similar enough to merit credit.

And another point -- yes, the Stairway sounds like Taurus at the beginning, but does zoom into outer epicland, while Taurus remains sedate. Taurus clearly had nothing to do with the rest of the song, only the introduction.
 
shinksma said:
Is there some magic algorithm analysis machine at major labels that can compare a song with the existing catalog? (I keed, I keed, I think.)
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They have one at Soundcloud.

shinksma said:
How do you folks stay out of this copyright trouble?
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The unpleasant fact is that there's always someone coming out of the woodwork claiming that they wrote some hit, not the folks who made the record. You have to be original, and think about whether you've copied one of your influences. There isn't really much more you can do.

My larger ad clients, and the major labels, employ musicologists to review music that's submitted for broadcast, but I'm not sure that's much of an answer.
 
shinksma said:
Is there some magic algorithm analysis machine at major labels that can compare a song with the existing catalog? (I keed, I keed, I think.)
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LSchefman said:
They have one at Soundcloud.
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Interesting - I have a Soundcloud account - used it for one upload maybe two, I should investigate...

LSchefman said:
The unpleasant fact is that there's always someone coming out of the woodwork claiming that they wrote some hit, not the folks who made the record. You have to be original, and think about whether you've copied one of your influences. There isn't really much more you can do.

My larger ad clients, and the major labels, employ musicologists to review music that's submitted for broadcast, but I'm not sure that's much of an answer.
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Yeah, I suppose self-policing is the only real way of implementing controls, assuming the artist is truly interested in avoiding actual copying / copyright infringement.

I don't really see this issue popping up in the other arts (e.g. paintings, sculpture) - not sure if that is because it is just such a different type of "art", or whether it is because most paintings and sculptures seem to be valuable long after the artists is dead and presumably the point is moot due to "copyright expiration". (Again, not dealing with actual copy-cats that re-produce without a license famous pieces of art on purpose.)

I suppose this does occur a little with film/video and script-writing. Perhaps also because the reward for success is immediate for the artist/creator, and sometimes very significant monetarily.
 
The vast majority of lawyers that I have worked for and work for now have been noble and highly intelligent and morally upstanding men and women. I'm sure Mr. Schefman knows of the bad apples that can ruin a firm with faulty logic and bad decisions. I worked for the largest law firm in Dallas, Texas for 10 yrs. After 60 yrs of being in business, they ultimately went under due to the actions of 3 lawyers at a sattillite office in another state. Those that had nothing to do with the product produced, lost their jobs, income and partnerships due to 3 people. The clients were the ultimate losers and the ultimate greedy pawns. That said, Taurus the song has about 3 measures that sound similar to Stairway, after that, it's completely different. Haven't they already attempted this suit a couple of times before??
 
This lawsuit is simply stupid! Why didn't they do this at the height of the songs popularity? THAT was when they could have reaped a fortune if they could have won a lawsuit! It clearly shows the kind of moneygrubbers they are.
 
I don't see why they should, if Mark Andes wants it let him fight for it.
 
Will Guitar Center be filing an amicus brief for the band? They're likely next to get sued for uncollected performance royalties...

 
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