From the New York Times’s Monday (June 13, 2016) Briefing:
Back Story |
| It seems everyone has heard “Chim Chim Cher-ee,” the happy chimney sweep’s anthem from the 1964 film “Mary Poppins.” |
| That familiarity could play a role in a copyright case involving Led Zeppelin. Two of the band’s founders, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, are expected to appear in a Los Angeles court on Tuesday to defend themselves against a lawsuit claiming that parts of their 1971 classic “Stairway to Heaven” were copied. |
| They are accused of stealing the opening sequence from another group’s 1968 instrumental piece, “Taurus.” (Judge for yourself while listening to both.) |
| But in a court filing, Led Zeppelin’s lawyers say that the British band had become familiar with the musical structure from the melody of “Chim Chim Cher-ee” and that, in any case, the “descending chromatic scale of pitches” is too common to enjoy legal protection. |
| Their decision not to settle puts a potential $40 million judgment in the hands of jurors, who will have to determine how similar the opening sequences are, and whether the song element was stolen. |
| A federal jury found last year that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had copied elements of a Marvin Gaye song in the 2013 hit “Blurred Lines.” |
| The decision in this case could further blur the lines of what’s fair under our copyright law.
UPDATE 6/23/2016: Led Zep wins:
Source: HEAR IT: ‘Stairway to Heaven’ vs. ‘Taurus’ – NY Daily News |
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