To Whom Would the Courts Give a Whole Lotta Love? English Copyright Law and the Blues: A Case Study of the 'Whole Lotta Love' Authorship Dispute

摘要

As part of an out-of-court settlement, the blues songwriter Willie Dixon received credit as co-writer of the Led Zeppelin song "Whole Lotta Love". We do not have the benefit of a court decision on the matter, as is the norm with music authorship cases. The law of copyright is founded on principles that reward "originality" and punish copying. An attempt to fit an art form like the blues, which focusses heavily on re-interpretation, into this framework would provide insights into the relevance and value of copyright law.