Songwriter Jake Holmes has initiated new legal proceedings against Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, alleging copyright infringement and breach of contract concerning the iconic song “Dazed and Confused.” The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, centers on the song’s inclusion in the 2025 documentary “Becoming Led Zeppelin.”
Holmes, now 85, originally wrote and recorded “Dazed and Confused” in 1967. Jimmy Page, then with The Yardbirds, adapted the song for their live shows before a dramatically altered version, with new lyrics and vocal melody, appeared on Led Zeppelin‘s 1969 debut album, credited solely to Page.
This is not the first legal dispute over the song. In 2010, Holmes sued Page, resulting in a 2011 out-of-court settlement. Following that, the song’s credit was revised on subsequent releases to read: “Jimmy Page, inspired by Jake Holmes.”
The current lawsuit claims that the 2011 settlement has been breached. Holmes alleges that two live performances of “Dazed and Confused“—one by The Yardbirds and another by Led Zeppelin—are featured in the “Becoming Led Zeppelin” documentary without his permission and without proper credit or compensation. The suit contends that the filmmakers and associated parties “wilfully infringed the Holmes composition by falsely claiming that the Holmes composition is the Page composition,” and further “purported to license use in the film of the Holmes composition as if it was the Page composition.”
Holmes states that cease-and-desist letters sent to the parties involved were ignored. He is now seeking a jury trial or statutory damages of up to $150,000 per alleged act of infringement.
Among the defendants named in the suit are Jimmy Page, Sony Pictures Classics, Page’s publishing company Succubus Music, Warner Chappell Music, Paradise Pictures (owned by director Bernard MacMahon and producer Allison McGourty), sales company Altitude Films, and production company Big Beach.
This latest legal action marks a new chapter in the long-standing controversy surrounding the authorship of “Dazed and Confused,” a song of enduring significance in Led Zeppelin‘s catalog. The ongoing disputes highlight the complexities of music copyright law.
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