Jimmy Page Faces New “Dazed and Confused” Copyright Lawsuit Over Led Zeppelin Documentary
Jimmy Page, legendary guitarist of Led Zeppelin, is once again embroiled in a legal battle over the iconic song "Dazed and Confused." Songwriter Jake Holmes has filed a new lawsuit against Page, alleging copyright infringement and breach of contract related to the use of the song in the Sony Pictures documentary "Becoming Led Zeppelin." This isn't the first time Holmes has challenged Page's claim to the song, making this a high-stakes rematch with potentially significant implications for music copyright law.
The complaint, filed in California federal court, claims that Page and other defendants, including Sony Pictures, “willfully infringed the Holmes composition by falsely claiming that the Holmes composition is the Page composition.” Holmes asserts that two early live recordings of "Dazed and Confused" were included in the film without his permission or proper compensation. He argues that Page has been collecting license fees for the use of his composition as if it were Page's own.
This lawsuit reignites a long-standing dispute. Holmes originally sued Page for copyright infringement in 2011, claiming that Page had taken sole credit for the song for decades, starting with his time in the Yardbirds and continuing with Led Zeppelin. That case was settled out of court, but this new suit alleges that Page has violated their settlement by releasing new early live recordings and featuring the song in "Becoming Led Zeppelin” without proper credit to Holmes.
According to the complaint, Page has released several other live versions of "Dazed and Confused" without proper credit or payment, including on Yardbirds '68, Live at the BBC Revisited, and The Yardbirds: The Ultimate Live at the BBC. Holmes is seeking damages of at least $150,000 per instance of copyright infringement. The case is titled Holmes v. Page, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, No. 2:25-cv-03977.
Jim McCarty, Page's former Yardbirds bandmate, has previously stated that the band first heard Holmes' version of the song when he opened for them. McCarty recalled how the band adapted the song, later to be recorded by Led Zeppelin, ultimately becoming “one of the classics of all time.”
The lawsuit highlights the complexities of songwriting credit and the challenges of protecting intellectual property in the music industry. Will this legal battle finally determine the true origins of “Dazed and Confused,” or will it remain a subject of debate? Share your thoughts in the comments below. What constitutes fair usage and creative interpretation in music?