ClaudeJ1 Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 (edited) No. That one's a real stretch. Ditto. The drowning man clutching at straws. They are not even close. George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" sounded a whole lotta like "She's So Fine" which he lost in court, but was quoted: "If my name was John Smith, they never would have sued." Same story, different song. Think about all the riffs in rock and blues that are all what came before it, or just a basic boogie bass line..............puhlease! Edited May 27, 2014 by ClaudeJ1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-05-16/jimmy-page-we-didnt-steal-whole-lotta-love-riff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tone_Boss Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 Apparently I was wrong. Turns out that Page was a thief, and most of Zeppelin's songs were covers - admittedly very good ones, but covers nonetheless. There is no shortage of stuff about on the Web and YouTube - it's pretty blatant stuff. Most ? There are like five that people talk about and in most cases its due to Plant's lyrics not the guitar parts. Musically Page's guitar parts were completely different like in The Lemon Song. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaudeJ1 Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 I always thought that ZZ Top's version of La Grange (intro, etc...) sounded very much like a fast version of Cannned Heats, On the Road Again. It's all in the tempo.... Hence my point about every "boogie" song ever recorded, which came from "boogie woogie" rhythm on a piano. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaudeJ1 Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 If influences were not allowed to go free, then Chuck Berry should get all the money for every rock and roll song ever played or recorded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artto Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 Yes, for the most part they do sound similar although the chord progressions are resolved differently. They're both basic descending chromatic chord progressions and can be played a million different ways. They're also often used to create "infinite" "passing" chord progressions that keep resolving back onto itself. They're quite popular in, well, for lack of better word, "popular" music. The Beatles used them, The Stones, The Byrds, Stevie Ray & Clapton, jazz favorites like Dianna Krall, Patricia Barber, George Benson, & even C&W. Just change a thing or two on any chord, like add a measure, major or minor, add a 5th or 7th and it changes the emotional response to the progression. Here's the same thing with two measures ~ sounds like The Eagles Hotel California. Fortunately I do have that particular Spirit LP. My favorite on there is "Fresh Garbage". IMHO I don't think Zep/Page ever came up with anything quite as clever. Actually it's my favorite Spirit tune and one of my favorites of all time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 Zeppelin toured with Spirit in '69, then out pops Stairway to Heaven - you can get inspiration from a song without copying it. @Tone_Boss, you might want to check out the various websites and YouTube videos on this topic. I thought it was crap too until I started digging. It's pretty bad, and you're so wrong on the guitar work - Page lifted entire riffs, and we ain't talking about a handful here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxx Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 See if you spot this one.... John Fogerty stealing from John Fogerty? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanm84 Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 John fogerty won the case against him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted May 27, 2014 Author Share Posted May 27, 2014 Zeppelin toured with Spirit in '69, then out pops Stairway to Heaven - you can get inspiration from a song without copying it. @Tone_Boss, you might want to check out the various websites and YouTube videos on this topic. I thought it was crap too until I started digging. It's pretty bad, and you're so wrong on the guitar work - Page lifted entire riffs, and we ain't talking about a handful here. I still can't tell if you're being facetious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted October 21, 2014 Author Share Posted October 21, 2014 the latest news in LZ vs. Randy California heirs http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Music/2014/10/20/Led-Zeppelin-loses-first-round-in-Stairway-to-Heaven-plagiarism-lawsuit/2851413836324/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckAb3 Posted October 21, 2014 Share Posted October 21, 2014 On occasion you run into a low-life who deliberately steals something that they know belongs to someone else and just hopes they don't get caught, but by and large, in the area of music, musicians are very sensitive to this kind of thing, and if someone, upon hearing something they wrote, says, "hey, that sounds a little bit like ..." -- will set off a torrent of activity to ensure originality. When it happens, it's coincidence, done at the subconscious level, or purely accidental. I love when it happen and the accused says, "Hey, I never even heard that song before." Lennon got sued for "Come Together" by Chuck Berry's publishers, I can't remember the song -- apparently part of it is identical. Harrison took a shot for "My Sweet Lord" which sounds a lot like a song called, "He's so fine" -- can't remember the band. While it's true that chord progressions can't be copyrighted, it you use someone else's chord progressions along with some of the arrangement and make the melody similar enough that it's recognizable -- you're probably going to find yourself on the losing end of a lawsuit. There are only 12 notes, so without some "borrowing", we would run out of music pretty fast. Dean's got it right. There's a difference between "inspiration" and ripping off another guy's work. Speaking of Chuck Berry, he eventually got the credit for the Beach Boys' Surfin' USA since it so closely tracked on of his compositions. (Can't recall which one). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckAb3 Posted October 21, 2014 Share Posted October 21, 2014 The Chuck Berry song I couldn't recall in the previous post was 'Sweet Little Sixteen.' There's a Wiki on the song which includes Brian Wilson's reason/excuse. Cheers to all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speed Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 Who cares ? Zepp turned all their influences into monster songs. Kudos !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaddeus Smith Posted October 24, 2014 Author Share Posted October 24, 2014 Who cares ? uh, i thought that was clear - Randy California's heirs care. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxx Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 Who cares ? uh, i thought that was clear - Randy California's heirs care. I'm not pleased that some Mexican beer company has stolen my likeness to advertise their product. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerwoodKhorns Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 This was 40 years ago. Isn't their a statute of limitations on this stuff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tromprof Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Composers have been borrowing from each other for centuries. This is lawyer-ites, a fight over $. They sound similar, so what. Beethoven's first symphony sounds a lot like Mozart. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted October 25, 2014 Share Posted October 25, 2014 (edited) There are some legal issues. Copyright rights can be transferred by contract or inheritance. The original owner of the right might not have sued for whatever reason, but the new own might and is not necessarily bound or "estopped" by the original owner. Somewhat related is the issue that there is a continuing copying (or publication), arguably. It is not as if LZ sold some infringing works (if infringing) in the past, they are doing it today and making money. I understand the doctrine of laches could be applied by the SCOTUS has a new ruling on that in another case. Finally, the damage issue comes into play. Spirit is arguably entitle to recover moneys based on how much its work contributed to the success of the song. The contributions of LZ will be considered too. Spirit's contribution is probably not the entire song and LZ contributed a lot to its success.. WMcD Edited October 25, 2014 by William F. Gil McDermott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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