Led Zeppelin’s lead singer and guitarist will face a US jury to answer the allegation that Stairway to Heaven plagiarised its iconic opening riff.

United States District Judge Gary Klausner ruled in Los Angeles on Tuesday (AEST) the 1971 song – regarded as one of the greatest of all time – shared enough similarities with 1967 instrumental piece Taurus by American rock band Spirit that a jury should decide if copyright had been contravened.

Although “striking similarity” was not evident, Justice Klausner said there was enough evidence for a jury to decide whether the songs had “substantial similarity”. The trial was scheduled for May 10.

• A new singer? AC/DC’s dramatic makeover
• The song Dami Im will perform at Eurovision
• What are the best opening lines in music history?

Randy California drowned trying to rescue his son in the Pacific Ocean in 1997. Photo: Getty

Michael Skidmore, a trustee of the Randy Craig Wolfe Trust named after Taurus’ composer, argued Zeppelin’s lead singer Robert Plant and guitarist Jimmy Page might have been inspired by the song after they toured with Spirit in 1968 and 1969.

According to Skidmore, Page asked Wolfe to teach him the chords to Taurus when they toured.

But Wolfe was a songwriter for hire, the legal team for Plant and Page argued in February, and didn’t own the copyright to his composition. Even if he did, their only similarity was a commonly repeated grouping of notes, they said.

In his ruling, Justice Klausner admitted that the final decision would be a subjective judgement.

“While it is true that a descending chromatic four-chord progression is a common convention that abounds in the music industry, the similarities here transcend this core structure,” Justice Klausner wrote.

“What remains is a subjective assessment of the ‘concept and feel’ of two works … a task no more suitable for a judge than for a jury.”

So what do you think? Listen to the songs side-by-side in this video to make up your mind.

– with ABC