Led Zeppelin

[No spoken words]

One of the most potent rock bands of all time, yet producers of some of the most gorgeous ballads I've ever heard as well.

Their influences are fairly obvious, but their own influence is undeniable as well.

I'll always adore bands like Radiohead or The National or Arcade Fire, etc....but whenever I need some music with some power behind it, I turn to these guys first and even after listening to them for 30 years+, they still never let me down.

Here's your place to discuss the mighty Led Zeppelin.

 

[LemonMelon]

When What Is And What Should Never Be really kicks in, baby Jesus smiles.

 

[u2popmofo]

Despite having all their material, I've never heard their albums in their proper tracklists because I bought the only box sets available on CD in the '90's, and they idiotically just have all of their songs randomly assorted across the 6 discs of the two sets.

Idiotic sets in question:

 

[AnCatKatie]

Having the same sort of problem...more like the only disc of theirs in my house is a greatest hits one and I'd much rather have, say, Led Zeppelin IV.

I've got a question for everyone: what made Led Zeppelin so hugely popular? Their music obviously. But I'm still trying to figure it out since I'm starting to get into the band, just kind of discouraged from the losers walking around at my high school with Led Zeppelin T shirts and no knowledge of them whatsoever.

 

[LemonMelon]

They did fucking everything, and they rocked hard doing it. Their ballads are great (Tangerine, Thank You), their rockers are great (are you kidding me?), their blues numbers are great (Led Zeppelin I in its entirety), their folk numbers are good (second side of Zeppelin III), and then there's the jazz and prog and psychedelic and whatever (What Is And What Should Never Be, No Quarter, In The Light), and then you count in their stage presence:

YouTube - Over The Hills And Far Away- Led Zeppelin (Live at Earls Court)

Can you get more badass? Probably not. So, that's how they got so popular: by being awesome. And by stealing from black people who were themselves quite awesome.

 

[iron yuppie]

And they were perhaps the most talented collective of musicians ever to grace a rock band.

Much has been made of their appropriation of the blues, but it is fair to say that their interpretations were so drastically different from the originals that they barely qualified as covers. Just listen, for instance, to Zeppelin's version of When the Levee Breaks versus the Memphis Minnie original. The arrangement is almost completely original in the Zeppelin version.

 

[djerdap]

I think their later work should be more appreciated. I consider Achilles Last Stand to be their greatest song.

 

[No spoken words]

I never really enjoyed "Beavis and Butthead" but I do recall cracking up when I saw an episode with the two of them waching "Over the Hills and Far Away". Appropriately, they were blown away.

 

[LemonMelon]

Oh man, the promo video for Over The Hills is an eyesore, but it's still a perfect song, so that's alright.

 

[lazarus]

I think their later work should be more appreciated. I consider Achilles Last Stand to be their greatest song.

It's certainly a major candidate for Bonham's best performance, that's for sure.

And it's prob in my Top 5 Zeppelin songs.

 

[lazarus]

So no comments on my thoughts re: Houses of the Holy (the song), and whether or not it fits better on the album it shares a title with?

 

[No spoken words]

Question:

My exposure to LIVE Zep is pretty limited to How the West Was Won, The BBC Sessions and The Song Remains the Same....along with a few clips here and there. They always struck me, from this limited viewpoint....as inconsistent LIVE....cos I've seen clips where I'm fucking blown away, and I've seen some lesser performances, etc. Am I right in considering them a bit uneven LIVE, but when they fire on all cylinders, simply fucking amazing? Or am I off-base and maybe influenced by notorious performances like LIVE Aid and Atlantic Record's 40th (Both without John Bonham, of course).

 

[iron yuppie]

So no comments on my thoughts re: Houses of the Holy (the song), and whether or not it fits better on the album it shares a title with?

It's one of those songs that would have fit on anything from Houses to In Through the Out Door. But the first half of Physical Graffiti is so excellent in my mind that I would not want to modify it at all.

 

[No spoken words]

So no comments on my thoughts re: Houses of the Holy (the song), and whether or not it fits better on the album it shares a title with?

I'm definitely the wrong dude to ask in that revising albums and track listings is just something I don't give much thought to. IY or LM will respond to you, surely.

 

[lazarus]

It's one of those songs that would have fit on anything from Houses to In Through the Out Door. But the first half of Physical Graffiti is so excellent in my mind that I would not want to modify it at all.

Fine, but one has to realize that the band's reasoning for leaving it off the album it was recorded for doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

 

[iron yuppie]

Question:

My exposure to LIVE Zep is pretty limited to How the West Was Won, The BBC Sessions and The Song Remains the Same....along with a few clips here and there. They always struck me, from this limited viewpoint....as inconsistent LIVE....cos I've seen clips where I'm fucking blown away, and I've seen some lesser performances, etc. Am I right in considering them a bit uneven LIVE, but when they fire on all cylinders, simply fucking amazing? Or am I off-base and maybe influenced by notorious performances like LIVE Aid and Atlantic Record's 40th (Both without John Bonham, of course).

I'm sure that there were many times when they were hammered / stoned enough that the performances suffered, but the officially-released live stuff, as attested on the DVD, has all been pure gold, in my mind at least.

The live performances of Going to California are some of the most beautiful things that I have heard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luDgb5vVHuA

 

[iron yuppie]

Fine, but one has to realize that the band's reasoning for leaving it off the album it was recorded for doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

I would agree with that. Replacing The Crunge with Houses would certainly have improved the album, but The Crunge seems to be the only real candidate for the substitution. From what I've read, they were fairly insistent on including that song in order to demonstrate that they had a sense of humor. I'm not saying that's logical, but it is apparently what they wanted.

 

[No spoken words]

Thanks, IY.

My favorite LIVE track of theirs is That's the Way from How the West Was Won. Could listen to that on repeat all fucking day.

 

[LemonMelon]

So no comments on my thoughts re: Houses of the Holy (the song), and whether or not it fits better on the album it shares a title with?

I believe I did comment on this, albeit without much thought. Offhand, I think The Crunge > Houses > Dancing Days would make a great trio, or you could flip Dancing Days and Houses and place No Quarter after that to slowly increase the rawk.

Question:

My exposure to LIVE Zep is pretty limited to How the West Was Won, The BBC Sessions and The Song Remains the Same....along with a few clips here and there. They always struck me, from this limited viewpoint....as inconsistent LIVE....cos I've seen clips where I'm fucking blown away, and I've seen some lesser performances, etc. Am I right in considering them a bit uneven LIVE, but when they fire on all cylinders, simply fucking amazing? Or am I off-base and maybe influenced by notorious performances like LIVE Aid and Atlantic Record's 40th (Both without John Bonham, of course).

Bear in mind, there were a lot of health issues with the band by about 77, in which it became clear that Page's drug use was ravaging his body. The Knebworth gig on the Zeppelin DVD is tough to watch because of that, and it's also clear that Page's performances were far sloppier. As much as I adore that performance of Sick Again, its roughness is not a testament to a lack of rehearsal; he was just not in any kind of shape to perform. Bonham was getting worn down from alcohol abuse as well...like Keith Moon, who infamously was unable to do the drum part of Who Are You initially because of his physical state, Bonham is visibly struggling through that gig, although he doesn't make a lot of mistakes.

So, yes, they were kind of a mess near the end there, which created that inconsistency issue.

 

[No spoken words]

^thanks!

 

[lazarus]

I would agree with that. Replacing The Crunge with Houses would certainly have improved the album, but The Crunge seems to be the only real candidate for the substitution. From what I've read, they were fairly insistent on including that song in order to demonstrate that they had a sense of humor. I'm not saying that's logical, but it is apparently what they wanted.

Agreed. Though it's not like the album could only have 8 songs; the first three Zeppelin albums all have 9.

 

[LemonMelon]

Agreed. Though it's not like the album could only have 8 songs; the first three Zeppelin albums all have 9.

Well III has 10, actually, unless you don't consider Hats Off a song. It kind of sucks, but it's still a song.

 

[lazarus]

Right.

Still more than 8.

And it makes you wonder why Hey Hey What Can I Do was omitted when Hats Off is on there.

 

[iron yuppie]

It does. But "Hats Off" is definitely in line with the off-kilter folk of III's second side.

 

[Reggo]

II is my favourite Led Zeppelin album. The last three tracks are some of the best music I've ever heard.

 

[the tourist]

The Rain Song is heartbreakingly gorgeous.

 

[AnCatKatie]

The live performances of Going to California are some of the most beautiful things that I have heard.

YouTube - Led Zeppelin-Going To California

Just listened to that...effing amazing.

 

[Hewson]

I consider Achilles Last Stand to be their greatest song.

I must concur.

 

[phanan]

I think their later work should be more appreciated. I consider Achilles Last Stand to be their greatest song.

Definitely in my Top 5.

And it makes you wonder why Hey Hey What Can I Do was omitted when Hats Off is on there.

This one too.

 

[cobl04]

Definitely in my Top 5.

It was on your DI list, no? I loved the hell out of it.