The one rock band Robert Plant accused of ripping off Led Zeppelin
Every band, including Led Zeppelin, has been influenced by another artist in some way. It’s impossible to avoid elements of others’ artistry seeping into one’s work. However, influence should never become an imitation and needs to be carried out in a measured sense.
Throughout their career, Led Zeppelin unashamedly wore their influences on their sleeve. They were forced to pay an undisclosed amount to Willie Dixon due to the similarities between their song, ‘Bring It On Home’, and his composition of the same name. Furthermore, Dixon was also listed as a co-writer of the Led Zeppelin track.
Scottish guitarist Bert Jansch also accused Jimmy Page of ripping off his track, ‘Blackwaterside’ on ‘Black Mountain Side’. However, Jansch never brought a legal case against Led Zeppelin, much to their relief.
Another prominent example is Robert Plant’s lyrics for ‘Whole Lotta Love’, which contained parts stolen from Muddy Waters’ ‘You Need Love’, coincidentally also written by Nixon, who was again awarded financial compensation for his influence. However, they’ve also experienced the shoe on the foot too. After Led Zeppelin found fame at the end of the 1960s, the industry witnessed many bands try to emulate their formula to varying degrees of success.
Unsurprisingly, Plant isn’t particularly fond of most acts that have attempted to follow their blueprint. When Whitesnake rose to prominence, he snarled, “There was a time, years ago, that I tried to mimic Elvis Presley. That’s quite acceptable. But David Coverdale’s nearly my age. He is of my genre, even if he was in a lot of substandard groups.”
He continued: “Really, you shouldn’t do it to your own gang, you know. When I aped somebody, they were so remote, it was like they were millions of miles away.” As time has passed, Led Zeppelin has become an extremely remote entity for any band that has emerged over the last decade, as the icons weren’t even active when they were born.
Therefore, when Plant sees a new band taking influence from Led Zeppelin, it’s a source of pride rather than anger. These groups are not only proving that Led Zeppelin remains relevant but also acting as a gateway for new generations to discover them.
Greta Van Fleet is the most recent example of a group who have moulded themselves on Led Zeppelin despite their comments suggesting otherwise. Plant holds no ill feelings towards them, and they particularly remind him of one Led Zeppelin record.
Following their emergence, the Led Zeppelin rip-off tag was instantly attached to them. Therefore, when Plant broke his silence on the group, his endorsement was a pleasant surprise. “They are Led Zeppelin I,” the former Led Zeppelin frontman said. Furthermore, he described Josh Kiszka as “a beautiful little singer,” although Plant playfully added, “I hate him.” Plant was then asked about Kiszka’s vocals, to which he replied: “Yeah, and he borrowed it from somebody I know very well! “But what are you going to do? That’s OK.”
While Plant highlighted the similarities between Greta Van Fleet and Led Zeppelin, he did so from a place of love. Guitarist Jake Kiszka took the comment as a compliment, as Plant had intended, saying: “I saw that. I think for all of us it’s another of those humbling, honourable moments. When we’re with Elton John or so many others we brush paths with, those individuals are legends we grew up listening to on the radio.”
He added: “To have them talk about us is really inspiring. That re-jolts us, and kind of gives us credibility that what we’re doing isn’t being unseen or unrespected. With the Led Zeppelin comparison, we’re humbled with the references and honoured by the affiliation.” However, bassist Sam Kiszka was more hesitant to celebrate Plant’s appraisal, adding: “Even with people like Robert Plant, I try to keep other peoples’ opinions out of the way. That’s just a life thing except when you’re doing this it gets exemplified by a trillion.”
Although Kiszka did go on to concede, “To be honest, I would take that as a compliment because that’s a great, great record.” Plant’s delicate way of accusing Greta Van Fleet of ripping off Led Zeppelin is a stark contrast to the manner in which he spoke about Whitesnake. Although the two cases differ due to the eras, it’s clear which group Plant prefers out of the two Led Zeppelin offspring.
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