d halfnote

The OP is well-reasoned however one of the trix there would be "expecting the "recommending" entity to have actually tested those 15 pedals rather comprehensively" Ya simply can't know that even if the posters claims to've done so. That's why while one might get tips from others ya should never buy anything without testing it yerself. Everything from yer playing technique(s) to the environment yer in will affect how a device sounds.

Glad ya liked "that Chou Wen-Chung piece"., Danz. I'm just ;earning abt him following his NYT obit. Besides being an epitome of progressive Chinese music he was an assistant to 20th C experimentalist composer Edgard Varèse, whose legacy he tended. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- That's quite a list you posted. I'm taking them 1 at a time. "No 1 Ever Died &...." has a great 1960s70s-style riff & gtr tone but I really liked that piping pop keyboard sound ! Plus they picked a great name whuich works with or without the letter "k" ! I'll work through the rest but in the meantime here's a cat who personified what the physical & mental melding of Eric Clapton & J J Cale... ... & to whom I'm listening to even as I type. [video:youtube]

Here's a bit of music from one of the most a-traditional Chinese composer's of modern times, Chou Wen-chung. I'm just learning abt him but this piece, with it's interior thematic coherence & possibilities as a rock stringed instrument performance is racing up the Top 20. Think of the space enveloped by Beefheart, Zep & Fairport Convention... [video:youtube]

Rarely do I recall TBells but it was/is a truly new thing at the time (at least for pop-rock ! (& besides the musical aspects, it was exceptionally well-marketed-----& if anyone thninks that's negative or not important )

If they're indeed off balance a better & less-permanent solution would be to find the best point & glue on a counterweight

This is gettin' to be too much... [video:youtube] The Feat's version of a trad Nawlins 2nd line dance-march They's all bawling 'bout you Down on the farm The cows bawl, the pigs bawl The horses bawl, too Miss you so much that crying's All we can do [video:youtube] Well I'm waitin' for something to take place Something to take me away from this race 'Round city to city, town to town Runnin' around in the shoes of a clown And that desperate, no count, desperado A thief of love, my business is the street I be shakin' 'em down In old Colorado Texas she's nice, but Georgia's oh so sweet Steal away with me darlin' your lovin' just can't be beat So it seems that the world keeps on turnin' but so what I don't doubt it, it just keeps on the move You're a dream, and that's all that I ask for So well now, I'm wonderin' just how I'm gonna tell it to you [video:youtube] LG sang this but PB wrote it [video:youtube]

I just read of this today,. The NYTimes has an interesting article citing 15 of his performances. w/ links to audio-visuals. < https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/06/arts/music/ginger-baker-songs.html > While I disagree abt his status as "best ever drummer" he was quite talented. Here's what 1 of his strongest acolytes had to say while inducting Cream into the R&R HOF.. [video:youtube] Here's one that I bet most of his rock fans haven't heard. It's a long groove but abt 7:45 Baker revs into a drum solo/perc duet that breaks out in earnest @ 8:00 & lasts several minutes. [video:youtube] Another track from that session. Drum spotlight starts 5:05 & has a particularly striking cymbal bit abt 6:29 [video:youtube] & finally we have this [video:youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7h8CqYXEx0

Personally I find it a bit distracting to have these clips so huge & wish they were sized as previously. Anyone else ?

[video:youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxzUmvzoVak Kinda like SG, I sometimes wonder if what seems regretful may be lookin' down (up?)...through the wrong end of the telescope of time. I will say that I too had a Harmony Monterrey archtop as a learning instrument as a learning instrument Actually a very nice tone. Then...., well... [video:youtube]

The poster at YTube blocked displays on 3rd party sites but if you click the vid 's button it will take you to YT to view the clip. Tuck's a master alright ---& not just for his chops but for his interpretive skillls (dig their Hendrix cover !)--- & he's been around for ages both as a solo & w/wife Patti. He was covered long ago in GP but he seems to lack a certain self-promotional zeal.... like I said I even forget abt him for great lengths of time. That's not the way it should be !

Yep, me again... [1] John Lennon Never got credit for his part in directing George Harrison (what---you thought GH wrote the solo in Hard Daze Nite ?) JL could rock it up (here he takes a solo) [video:youtube] & lay it back The only totally solo Lennon track by The Beatles [video:youtube] [2] Jerry Miller, Moby Grape A little-known blues-rock master [video:youtube] Be careful, listening to this track, esp the climax, may cause dizziness &/or swooning That's Miller on both lead tracks [video:youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xEbbyKJ0mk [3] Mick Jagger demonstrates K Richards non-essentialness [video:youtube]

I was abt to post this into "What's In Yer Ears" but heck, this cat, a long-time fave who I sometimes forget, deserves wider recognition & a discussion of his own here. [video:youtube] [video:youtube] Some thoughts on what he does & how he does it [video:youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YkthieLuw8

These may not be under-rated as much as forgotten or neglected. [1] Brian Jones The original blues-rock slide gtr cat. Also a master player of multiple instruments & the unrecognized creator of much music credited to others. [video:youtube] Rock sitar ? Take THAT , Mr George Harrison ! [video:youtube] [2] Eliot Ingber An original guitarist w/Zappa, then his own band the Fraternity of Man & later Capt Beefheart [video:youtube] A free-form solo exhibition of Hendrixian styleria [video:youtube] [3] Bill Harkleroad Known for his long-term membership in Beefhart's bands The most manic slide gtr solo the John Dawson Winter never played {1:50) [video:youtube] & to show a different side of things some contrapuntal improv [video:youtube] Bonus just to show ya don't know me completely Tuck Andress, inheritor of the George Van Eps legacy [video:youtube]

Longtime Atlanta resident & Blues Maven, Bev Watkins has finally done her last show. [ https://www.ajc.com/news/breaking-news/atlanta-blues-woman-enjoyed-late-resurgence/MAH7Znzff7LcbI2XbPwJGO/ ] [ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beverly_Watkins ] A lifelong Ga resident, born 1939, who started playing gtr age 9 & remained active as a player-performer til the end. From a true rural blues culture---originally taught by her grandfather--- but also schooled under one-time Basie & Ellington horn cat Clark Terry, she 1st achieved professional credentials w/Piano Red (Wm Perryman) as a member of his touring band, Dr Feelgood & the Interns but she also had success partnering w/ other "Blues Mamas" such as Koko Taylor & on her own. [video:youtube] [video:youtube] [video:youtube] 80th BDay jam 2K19 [video:youtube] A final statement [video:youtube]

Unfortunately for me this comes at time when my own online time has become quite curtailed so checking some of the contact options may take a while for me to explore . Except for those who may just becoming aware of this shift (kinda like that big chunk of ice breaking off Antarctica, eh ?) I think we're all in agreement that this, well, sux & I don't want to just reiterate what's been said... BUT &, in the ever-immortal words of the King of Rock & Roll "Gone like a cool, cool breeze" ! [video:youtube]

Featuring selected Frank Zappa images that by themselves nearly defy the imagination we're treated to one of FZ's most dynamic live performances. In rare form Zappa hits almost every style of music &(even quoting some country-rock tune I can;t quite place (4:35 +) then throwing the options open for client selection @ 6:45 As the band switched perfectly into Boogie form I couldn't but recall that at one time, Henry Vestine of Canned Heat had actually played in the Mothers.... Then the clock reached the 10:30 mark &. well, hear it for yerself ................. [video:youtube]

Zappa, in rare form, hits almost every style of music &(even quoting some country-rock tune I can;t quite place (4:35 +) then throwing the options open for client selection @ 6:45 As the band switched perfectly into Boogie form I couldn't but recall that at one time, Henry Vestine of Canned Heat had actually played in the Mothers.... Then the clock reached the 10:30 mark &. well, hear it for yerself ................. [video:youtube]

Formulae are great for learning new things & everything's new to each of us at diff times so there's nothing inherently wrong with them. Music, like medicine, is an art of practice. Personally, I've found that at some point one just hasta let go & play, as DMan said, sounds. That's what takes us beyond formulae & more into the realm of what magic music can convey to ppl. That's where new ideas get their start FWIW.... Here's something that seems to fit the concept of the thread but reveals itself to be something else entirely. [video:youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1GLdbNfyCw

My own insistence that I'm the best decision maker in all circumstances

When I discovered that me, Lyndon Baines Johnson & Paul Reubens (Pee Wee Herman) all had the same birthday [ diff yrs, of course ] it cured me of all belief in The Magic Science of Astrology as a definer of personality.

Today, Mon 9-23-2k19, 11 federal appellate judges in San Francisco are conducting a hearing in the continuing © infringement case concerning "Stare Way Off Into Heaven" & "Taurus", a song by the band Spirit. More details, including links to other previous coverage, can be found @ < https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/22/business/media/stairway-to-heaven-copyright-appeal.html > but for those w/out NYT access or 'tever, today's article, in full, follows along with a sample of the song "Taurus" . [ I figure airbody's heard "Stairway" ] TAURUS The most relevant section start's abt 40 seconds in but repeats variously throughout the track. [video:youtube] NYT story by Ben Sisario Sept. 22, 2019 It seems only fitting that the most epic and dramatic of rock songs has resulted in one of the music industry"s most epic copyright fights.'Stairway to Heaven,' Led Zeppelin"s 1971 megahit, defined rock radio for decades and helped make its credited writers, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, extremely rich. For the last five years, it has been caught up in a copyright infringement case that has gripped the music industry. In a hearing scheduled for Monday, a panel of 11 federal appellate judges in San Francisco will delve into the song"s authorship. At issue is who wrote the song"s famous acoustic opening passage â Mr. Page and Mr. Plant, or Randy Wolfe of the 1960s psychedelic band Spirit. A larger question that could be settled by the court concerns what, exactly, constitutes an original song. With the music industry shaken by copyright decisions in recent years â like the $2.8 million award that the creators of Katy Perry"s hit 'Dark Horse' were ordered last month to pay to a Christian rapper â the Led Zeppelin case has become a cause célèbre for songwriters, intellectual-property lawyers and even the Trump administration, which took the unusual step of filing a brief in support of Led Zeppelin. Cases involving 'Stairway to Heaven,' 'Dark Horse' and Robin Thicke"s 'Blurred Lines' have raised questions about which aspects of music can be protected by copyright and which are fair game. Legal experts and music executives alike are hoping for a clarification from the judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, who will hear the Led Zeppelin case 'en banc,' or as a full panel. 'Appeals courts rarely take a case en banc, and they almost never do so in a copyright case,' said Joseph P. Fishman, an associate professor at the Vanderbilt Law School in Nashville. 'So there"s some possibility that the court may take a big swing here.' In 2014, a trustee for Mr. Wolfe"s songs sued Mr. Page and Mr. Plant, accusing them of stealing the opening to 'Stairway to Heaven' from 'Taurus,' a 1968 Spirit song written by Mr. Wolfe, who died in 1997. Mr. Page and Mr. Plant beat the challenge at trial in 2016. Since then, the case has had a complex history. Last year, an appellate court ordered a new trial, saying the jury had not received proper instructions. But then the Ninth Circuit judges voted to hold a new appeal en banc. Almost anyone who listens to the two songs would say they bear at least some resemblance to each other. But the 'Stairway to Heaven' lawsuit is about composition, not how the song was recorded. Filter out the audio production and performance flashes from Led Zeppelin"s eight-minute studio version, and what remains are the song"s basic melodies, chords and structure. Are they similar enough to 'Taurus' to make it a copy? Questions like that can be difficult for a lay juror to answer. And many litigators and copyright scholars say music cases are especially complex, since they often come down to whether a song"s composition is truly original or draws on elements so common that they are available to any songwriter. 'Music copyright infringement cases are infinitely more difficult than any other kind of copyright infringement case, period,' said Paul Goldstein, a professor at the Stanford Law School who is an expert in copyright law. At the 2016 trial, Led Zeppelin"s lawyers argued that what little the two songs had in common â similar chord progressions and a descending chromatic scale â had popped up in music for over 300 years. Mr. Page even testified that 'Stairway to Heaven' was reminiscent of the 'Mary Poppins' song 'Chim Chim Cher-ee,' from 1964. Why did the plaintiffs wait more than 40 years after 'Stairway to Heaven' was released to bring the case? For one thing, the wishes of the author of 'Taurus' were unclear. Mr. Wolfe, a singer, songwriter and guitarist nicknamed Randy California by his friend Jimi Hendrix, had long disapproved of 'Stairway to Heaven,' calling it 'a rip-off' in an interview shortly before he died. But he never sued. After his death, his song rights were placed in a trust now controlled by Michael Skidmore, a music journalist. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Mr. Skidmore considered suing but was discouraged by a longstanding statute of limitations. In 2014, the Supreme Court offered an opening when it ruled â in a case involving the film 'Raging Bull' â that copyright suits could be brought even after long delays. Two weeks after that decision, Mr. Skidmore"s lawyer, Francis Malofiy, filed suit, arguing that 'Stairway to Heaven' copied 'Taurus.' He also threw in the novel claim of 'falsification of rock "n" roll history,' which was dismissed. After recent plagiarism cases like the one centered on the 2013 hit 'Blurred Lines,' in which Mr. Thicke and Pharrell Williams were ordered to pay $5.3 million to the family of Marvin Gaye, many people in the music industry cheered the 'Stairway to Heaven' verdict and have rallied behind Led Zeppelin.' This is the one time that a jury gets it right,' said Edwin F. McPherson, a music industry litigator. 'And the Ninth Circuit panel says, 'No, we need to get it wrong!"' Yet Led Zeppelin is an imperfect champion for originality in songwriting. Critics have long accused the band of brazenly borrowing from blues musicians and other artists. Over the years, Led Zeppelin has settled many infringement claims, with the results scattered on decades" worth of changes to their song credits.When the band"s self-titled debut came out in 1969, for example, the fine print on the label listed Mr. Page as the sole composer of the song 'Dazed and Confused.' By the time that album was reissued in 2014, the credits added 'Inspired by Jake Holmes,' after a singer who in 1967 had a similar song with the same title and had filed his own infringement suit. One issue in the 'Stairway to Heaven' case that has drawn contentious arguments ahead of the hearing is how much copyright protection a piece of music should get if it includes generic-seeming elements like common chord progressions but puts them together in a creative way. In its brief on the 'Stairway to Heaven' case, filed last month, the Justice Department argued that such a work should deserve only 'thin,' or minimal, protection 'that protects only against virtually identical copying.' One example of this kind of work is a phone directory. The names and numbers in it cannot be copyrighted, but the overall book can have a narrow copyright, based on how the publisher assembled and laid out the material, as the Supreme Court ruled in a 1991 case that the Justice Department brief cited. That reference caught many legal scholars by surprise. Are melodies and chords really comparable to the gray columns of numbers in a phone book?' That is really the first time I"ve seen that argument made in those terms,' Professor Goldstein said. The government further argued that, for an older song like 'Taurus,' the copyright should be limited to the content of the song"s 'deposit copy' with the Copyright Office â often a simple sketch of a song"s melody and lyrics.Mr. Malofiy, the lawyer for the 'Taurus' trustee, said in an interview that the Justice Department"s argument reflected a misreading of copyright law. If a song like Spirit"s 'Taurus' deserves only 'thin' protection, he said, songwriters whose work was copied will have a more difficult time getting the courts to recognize their claims. And that, Mr. Malofiy said, 'would amount to the largest art heist in U.S. history.' Peter J. Anderson, a lawyer for Led Zeppelin, declined to comment. After the Monday hearing, the judges may take months to issue their decision, and even then the case could drag on â even to the Supreme Court, Mr. Malofiy said. Still, many observers are hoping for clear answers to some basic questions concerning music copyright.' The appellate court in the 'Stairway" case has the chance to provide more clarity,' Professor Fishman said, 'on which kinds of musical borrowing are permissible and which aren"t.'

Today, Mon 9-23-2k19, 11 federal appellate judges in San Francisco are conducting a hearing in the continuing © infringement case concerning "Stare Way Off Into Heaven" & "Taurus", a song by the band Spirit. More details, including links to other previous coverage, can be found @ < https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/22/business/media/stairway-to-heaven-copyright-appeal.html > but for those w/out NYT access or 'tever, today's article, in full, follows along with a sample of the song "Taurus" . [ I figure airbody's heard "Stairway" ] TAURUS The most relevant section start's abt 40 seconds in but repeats variously throughout the track. [video:youtube] NYT story by Ben Sisario Sept. 22, 2019 It seems only fitting that the most epic and dramatic of rock songs has resulted in one of the music industry"s most epic copyright fights.'Stairway to Heaven,' Led Zeppelin"s 1971 megahit, defined rock radio for decades and helped make its credited writers, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, extremely rich. For the last five years, it has been caught up in a copyright infringement case that has gripped the music industry. In a hearing scheduled for Monday, a panel of 11 federal appellate judges in San Francisco will delve into the song"s authorship. At issue is who wrote the song"s famous acoustic opening passage â Mr. Page and Mr. Plant, or Randy Wolfe of the 1960s psychedelic band Spirit. A larger question that could be settled by the court concerns what, exactly, constitutes an original song. With the music industry shaken by copyright decisions in recent years â like the $2.8 million award that the creators of Katy Perry"s hit 'Dark Horse' were ordered last month to pay to a Christian rapper â the Led Zeppelin case has become a cause célèbre for songwriters, intellectual-property lawyers and even the Trump administration, which took the unusual step of filing a brief in support of Led Zeppelin. Cases involving 'Stairway to Heaven,' 'Dark Horse' and Robin Thicke"s 'Blurred Lines' have raised questions about which aspects of music can be protected by copyright and which are fair game. Legal experts and music executives alike are hoping for a clarification from the judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, who will hear the Led Zeppelin case 'en banc,' or as a full panel. 'Appeals courts rarely take a case en banc, and they almost never do so in a copyright case,' said Joseph P. Fishman, an associate professor at the Vanderbilt Law School in Nashville. 'So there"s some possibility that the court may take a big swing here.' In 2014, a trustee for Mr. Wolfe"s songs sued Mr. Page and Mr. Plant, accusing them of stealing the opening to 'Stairway to Heaven' from 'Taurus,' a 1968 Spirit song written by Mr. Wolfe, who died in 1997. Mr. Page and Mr. Plant beat the challenge at trial in 2016. Since then, the case has had a complex history. Last year, an appellate court ordered a new trial, saying the jury had not received proper instructions. But then the Ninth Circuit judges voted to hold a new appeal en banc. Almost anyone who listens to the two songs would say they bear at least some resemblance to each other. But the 'Stairway to Heaven' lawsuit is about composition, not how the song was recorded. Filter out the audio production and performance flashes from Led Zeppelin"s eight-minute studio version, and what remains are the song"s basic melodies, chords and structure. Are they similar enough to 'Taurus' to make it a copy? Questions like that can be difficult for a lay juror to answer. And many litigators and copyright scholars say music cases are especially complex, since they often come down to whether a song"s composition is truly original or draws on elements so common that they are available to any songwriter. 'Music copyright infringement cases are infinitely more difficult than any other kind of copyright infringement case, period,' said Paul Goldstein, a professor at the Stanford Law School who is an expert in copyright law. At the 2016 trial, Led Zeppelin"s lawyers argued that what little the two songs had in common â similar chord progressions and a descending chromatic scale â had popped up in music for over 300 years. Mr. Page even testified that 'Stairway to Heaven' was reminiscent of the 'Mary Poppins' song 'Chim Chim Cher-ee,' from 1964. Why did the plaintiffs wait more than 40 years after 'Stairway to Heaven' was released to bring the case? For one thing, the wishes of the author of 'Taurus' were unclear. Mr. Wolfe, a singer, songwriter and guitarist nicknamed Randy California by his friend Jimi Hendrix, had long disapproved of 'Stairway to Heaven,' calling it 'a rip-off' in an interview shortly before he died. But he never sued. After his death, his song rights were placed in a trust now controlled by Michael Skidmore, a music journalist. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Mr. Skidmore considered suing but was discouraged by a longstanding statute of limitations. In 2014, the Supreme Court offered an opening when it ruled â in a case involving the film 'Raging Bull' â that copyright suits could be brought even after long delays. Two weeks after that decision, Mr. Skidmore"s lawyer, Francis Malofiy, filed suit, arguing that 'Stairway to Heaven' copied 'Taurus.' He also threw in the novel claim of 'falsification of rock "n" roll history,' which was dismissed. After recent plagiarism cases like the one centered on the 2013 hit 'Blurred Lines,' in which Mr. Thicke and Pharrell Williams were ordered to pay $5.3 million to the family of Marvin Gaye, many people in the music industry cheered the 'Stairway to Heaven' verdict and have rallied behind Led Zeppelin.' This is the one time that a jury gets it right,' said Edwin F. McPherson, a music industry litigator. 'And the Ninth Circuit panel says, 'No, we need to get it wrong!"' Yet Led Zeppelin is an imperfect champion for originality in songwriting. Critics have long accused the band of brazenly borrowing from blues musicians and other artists. Over the years, Led Zeppelin has settled many infringement claims, with the results scattered on decades" worth of changes to their song credits.When the band"s self-titled debut came out in 1969, for example, the fine print on the label listed Mr. Page as the sole composer of the song 'Dazed and Confused.' By the time that album was reissued in 2014, the credits added 'Inspired by Jake Holmes,' after a singer who in 1967 had a similar song with the same title and had filed his own infringement suit. One issue in the 'Stairway to Heaven' case that has drawn contentious arguments ahead of the hearing is how much copyright protection a piece of music should get if it includes generic-seeming elements like common chord progressions but puts them together in a creative way. In its brief on the 'Stairway to Heaven' case, filed last month, the Justice Department argued that such a work should deserve only 'thin,' or minimal, protection 'that protects only against virtually identical copying.' One example of this kind of work is a phone directory. The names and numbers in it cannot be copyrighted, but the overall book can have a narrow copyright, based on how the publisher assembled and laid out the material, as the Supreme Court ruled in a 1991 case that the Justice Department brief cited. That reference caught many legal scholars by surprise. Are melodies and chords really comparable to the gray columns of numbers in a phone book?' That is really the first time I"ve seen that argument made in those terms,' Professor Goldstein said. The government further argued that, for an older song like 'Taurus,' the copyright should be limited to the content of the song"s 'deposit copy' with the Copyright Office â often a simple sketch of a song"s melody and lyrics.Mr. Malofiy, the lawyer for the 'Taurus' trustee, said in an interview that the Justice Department"s argument reflected a misreading of copyright law. If a song like Spirit"s 'Taurus' deserves only 'thin' protection, he said, songwriters whose work was copied will have a more difficult time getting the courts to recognize their claims. And that, Mr. Malofiy said, 'would amount to the largest art heist in U.S. history.' Peter J. Anderson, a lawyer for Led Zeppelin, declined to comment. After the Monday hearing, the judges may take months to issue their decision, and even then the case could drag on â even to the Supreme Court, Mr. Malofiy said. Still, many observers are hoping for clear answers to some basic questions concerning music copyright.' The appellate court in the 'Stairway" case has the chance to provide more clarity,' Professor Fishman said, 'on which kinds of musical borrowing are permissible and which aren"t.'

Today, Mon 9-23-2k19, 11 federal appellate judges in San Francisco are conducting a hearing in the continuing © infringement case concerning "Stare Way Off Into Heaven" & "Taurus", a song by the band Spirit. More details, including links to other previous coverage, can be found @ < https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/22/business/media/stairway-to-heaven-copyright-appeal.html > but for those w/out NYT access or 'tever, today's article, in full, follows along with a sample of the song "Taurus" . [ I figure airbody's heard "Stairway" ] TAURUS The most relevant section start's abt 40 seconds in but repeats variously throughout the track. [video:youtube] NYT story by Ben Sisario Sept. 22, 2019 It seems only fitting that the most epic and dramatic of rock songs has resulted in one of the music industry"s most epic copyright fights.'Stairway to Heaven,' Led Zeppelin"s 1971 megahit, defined rock radio for decades and helped make its credited writers, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, extremely rich. For the last five years, it has been caught up in a copyright infringement case that has gripped the music industry. In a hearing scheduled for Monday, a panel of 11 federal appellate judges in San Francisco will delve into the song"s authorship. At issue is who wrote the song"s famous acoustic opening passage â Mr. Page and Mr. Plant, or Randy Wolfe of the 1960s psychedelic band Spirit. A larger question that could be settled by the court concerns what, exactly, constitutes an original song. With the music industry shaken by copyright decisions in recent years â like the $2.8 million award that the creators of Katy Perry"s hit 'Dark Horse' were ordered last month to pay to a Christian rapper â the Led Zeppelin case has become a cause célèbre for songwriters, intellectual-property lawyers and even the Trump administration, which took the unusual step of filing a brief in support of Led Zeppelin. Cases involving 'Stairway to Heaven,' 'Dark Horse' and Robin Thicke"s 'Blurred Lines' have raised questions about which aspects of music can be protected by copyright and which are fair game. Legal experts and music executives alike are hoping for a clarification from the judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, who will hear the Led Zeppelin case 'en banc,' or as a full panel. 'Appeals courts rarely take a case en banc, and they almost never do so in a copyright case,' said Joseph P. Fishman, an associate professor at the Vanderbilt Law School in Nashville. 'So there"s some possibility that the court may take a big swing here.' In 2014, a trustee for Mr. Wolfe"s songs sued Mr. Page and Mr. Plant, accusing them of stealing the opening to 'Stairway to Heaven' from 'Taurus,' a 1968 Spirit song written by Mr. Wolfe, who died in 1997. Mr. Page and Mr. Plant beat the challenge at trial in 2016. Since then, the case has had a complex history. Last year, an appellate court ordered a new trial, saying the jury had not received proper instructions. But then the Ninth Circuit judges voted to hold a new appeal en banc. Almost anyone who listens to the two songs would say they bear at least some resemblance to each other. But the 'Stairway to Heaven' lawsuit is about composition, not how the song was recorded. Filter out the audio production and performance flashes from Led Zeppelin"s eight-minute studio version, and what remains are the song"s basic melodies, chords and structure. Are they similar enough to 'Taurus' to make it a copy? Questions like that can be difficult for a lay juror to answer. And many litigators and copyright scholars say music cases are especially complex, since they often come down to whether a song"s composition is truly original or draws on elements so common that they are available to any songwriter. 'Music copyright infringement cases are infinitely more difficult than any other kind of copyright infringement case, period,' said Paul Goldstein, a professor at the Stanford Law School who is an expert in copyright law. At the 2016 trial, Led Zeppelin"s lawyers argued that what little the two songs had in common â similar chord progressions and a descending chromatic scale â had popped up in music for over 300 years. Mr. Page even testified that 'Stairway to Heaven' was reminiscent of the 'Mary Poppins' song 'Chim Chim Cher-ee,' from 1964. Why did the plaintiffs wait more than 40 years after 'Stairway to Heaven' was released to bring the case? For one thing, the wishes of the author of 'Taurus' were unclear. Mr. Wolfe, a singer, songwriter and guitarist nicknamed Randy California by his friend Jimi Hendrix, had long disapproved of 'Stairway to Heaven,' calling it 'a rip-off' in an interview shortly before he died. But he never sued. After his death, his song rights were placed in a trust now controlled by Michael Skidmore, a music journalist. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Mr. Skidmore considered suing but was discouraged by a longstanding statute of limitations. In 2014, the Supreme Court offered an opening when it ruled â in a case involving the film 'Raging Bull' â that copyright suits could be brought even after long delays. Two weeks after that decision, Mr. Skidmore"s lawyer, Francis Malofiy, filed suit, arguing that 'Stairway to Heaven' copied 'Taurus.' He also threw in the novel claim of 'falsification of rock "n" roll history,' which was dismissed. After recent plagiarism cases like the one centered on the 2013 hit 'Blurred Lines,' in which Mr. Thicke and Pharrell Williams were ordered to pay $5.3 million to the family of Marvin Gaye, many people in the music industry cheered the 'Stairway to Heaven' verdict and have rallied behind Led Zeppelin.' This is the one time that a jury gets it right,' said Edwin F. McPherson, a music industry litigator. 'And the Ninth Circuit panel says, 'No, we need to get it wrong!"' Yet Led Zeppelin is an imperfect champion for originality in songwriting. Critics have long accused the band of brazenly borrowing from blues musicians and other artists. Over the years, Led Zeppelin has settled many infringement claims, with the results scattered on decades" worth of changes to their song credits.When the band"s self-titled debut came out in 1969, for example, the fine print on the label listed Mr. Page as the sole composer of the song 'Dazed and Confused.' By the time that album was reissued in 2014, the credits added 'Inspired by Jake Holmes,' after a singer who in 1967 had a similar song with the same title and had filed his own infringement suit. One issue in the 'Stairway to Heaven' case that has drawn contentious arguments ahead of the hearing is how much copyright protection a piece of music should get if it includes generic-seeming elements like common chord progressions but puts them together in a creative way. In its brief on the 'Stairway to Heaven' case, filed last month, the Justice Department argued that such a work should deserve only 'thin,' or minimal, protection 'that protects only against virtually identical copying.' One example of this kind of work is a phone directory. The names and numbers in it cannot be copyrighted, but the overall book can have a narrow copyright, based on how the publisher assembled and laid out the material, as the Supreme Court ruled in a 1991 case that the Justice Department brief cited. That reference caught many legal scholars by surprise. Are melodies and chords really comparable to the gray columns of numbers in a phone book?' That is really the first time I"ve seen that argument made in those terms,' Professor Goldstein said. The government further argued that, for an older song like 'Taurus,' the copyright should be limited to the content of the song"s 'deposit copy' with the Copyright Office â often a simple sketch of a song"s melody and lyrics.Mr. Malofiy, the lawyer for the 'Taurus' trustee, said in an interview that the Justice Department"s argument reflected a misreading of copyright law. If a song like Spirit"s 'Taurus' deserves only 'thin' protection, he said, songwriters whose work was copied will have a more difficult time getting the courts to recognize their claims. And that, Mr. Malofiy said, 'would amount to the largest art heist in U.S. history.' Peter J. Anderson, a lawyer for Led Zeppelin, declined to comment. After the Monday hearing, the judges may take months to issue their decision, and even then the case could drag on â even to the Supreme Court, Mr. Malofiy said. Still, many observers are hoping for clear answers to some basic questions concerning music copyright.' The appellate court in the 'Stairway" case has the chance to provide more clarity,' Professor Fishman said, 'on which kinds of musical borrowing are permissible and which aren"t.'

I wonder if they factored in accidents....