Jimmy Page has insisted that Led Zeppelin would never launch a plagiarism lawsuit against another artist – even though there have been times when they could have.
The guitarist can’t discuss the issue in depth because the legal battle over classic track Stairway To Heaven is the subject of an appeal, and may return to court.
A number of Led Zeppelin songs have been subject to ownership claims over the years, and the writing credits on several have been changed as a result.
Page tells the Telegraph: “I do know there’s a lot of music where Led Zeppelin has been leant on. We didn’t do anything about it – and I wouldn’t want to either.”
He cites the example of a bossa nova beat and says: “How would you define bossa nova? It was a whole jazz genre and it all starts with the beat.
“How far would the bossa nova movement have got in a corporate world today? It’s really disturbing.”
Page has said on many occasions that he’s aiming to return to performing live again, and he predicts that it’ll happen next year.
“I’m involved in all things musical – it’s all consuming, even if it doesn’t manifest as a record or a concert,” he argues. “I thought I would be playing by now, but certain things got delayed, other things came in the way. So I’m a little bit behind.”
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He remains proud of his band’s legacy, including latest archive release The Complete BBC Sessions. “Led Zeppelin isn’t done yet, quite clearly, because every year since 1968 there’s been new fans,” he says.
“The re-releases have more than doubled the amount of Led Zeppelin work out there. I wanted it done authoritatively, because I was the one writing the stuff, I was the producer and mixer.
“I don’t think it’s any more weird than writing your autobiography.”