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Led Zeppelin (album)

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Led Zeppelin, released on January 12, 1969 (see 1969 in music), was the first album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. The groundbreaking music and recording techniques displayed on the album are today considered as one of the most impressive and important debuts in rock, creating an entirely new interpretation of the genre. The album established Led Zeppelin's then-unique dynamic, from their fusion of blues and rock to the integral contributions from each of the group's four musicians. Though all of these elements would later be developed, the album was the blueprint Led Zeppelin continued to follow for the rest of their career.

Led Zeppelin created a large and devoted following for the band. Their then-unique proto-metal and psychedelic sound endeared them to a section of the counterculture on both sides of the Atlantic. Though the album has since been overshadowed somewhat by its follow-up, Led Zeppelin II, music critics still consider it a classic to this day.

Despite the conceptual originality displayed on the album, it included three songs composed by others: "You Shook Me" and "I Can't Quit You Baby," both by blues artist Willie Dixon; and "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You." Regarding the last of these, at the time guitarist Jimmy Page mistakenly believed he was adapting a traditional folk song, but this was corrected on subsequent rereleases after it was revealed that the song actually was composed by Anne Bredon in the 1950s. Dixon, on the other hand, received proper credit as the composer of his two songs on this album (although "You Shook Me" later would be additionally credited to J. B. Lenoir); but he would go on to sue the band over the partial use of other material of his on the band's second album.

"Dazed and Confused" (the album's centrepiece) begins with a slow-tempo bluesy rhythm, then changes to faster tempo during the darkest part of the song, followed by a furious Page guitar solo before finally returning to the initial rhythm. John Bonham's drumming linked with John Paul Jones' electric bass playing also define the song's power and intensity. When Led Zeppelin performed "Dazed and Confused" live, it would gradually be extended in duration (up to 40 minutes by 1975) as a multi-section improvised jam. Jimmy Page would also play the guitar strings with a violin bow, a technique adapted by Page during his years a studio guitarist, and later in his performances of this song during the latter days of The Yardbirds.

Robert Plant's voice and singing technique was very unusual compared to rock lead singers of the 1960s such as John Lennon, Mick Jagger and others. His voice gave a unique sound to this new band, and later became one of the most influential on rock singers in the 1970s and beyond. He also played harmonica on the bluesier Zeppelin songs.

Led Zeppelin demonstrated a wider range of textures and shades than just loud, amplified electric riffs. A tabla player accompanied Jimmy Page on the acoustic guitar instrumental "Black Mountain Side". "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" and "Your Time Is Gonna Come" also feature Page's acoustic guitar work.

Jimmy Page was known to use natural room ambiance to enhance the reverb and recording texture of this record. The album was recorded on an analog 4 track machine which also helped to give the record a warm sound.

The cover features an artfully manipulated version of the most famous photograph (originally from UPI) of the Hindenburg disaster. Further originality in album cover art and packaging would be developed on the band's subsequent releases.

In 2003 the TV network VH1 named Led Zeppelin the 44th greatest album of all time. Also in 2003, Rolling Stone magazine declared the album the 29th greatest album of all time.

Contents

Track listing

Robert Plant was participating in songwriting, but wasn't given credits due to unexpired contractual obligations.

1. Good Times, Bad Times

(Bonham/Jones/Page) 2:46

The band played Good Times, Bad Times live at many shows in 1969.

Guitarist Jimmy Page passed his guitar through a Leslie speaker to create a swirling effect. This type of speaker contains a rotating paddle and was designed for organs, however guitars could be used with it. Eric Clapton also did this on the Cream song "Badge".

Page, also the band's producer, placed microphones all over the recording studio to capture a live sound when this song was recorded.

This song is also notable for drummer John Bonham's repeated use of a series of three triplets on a single bass drum, an effect many subsequent rock drummers have imitated.

2. Babe I'm Gonna Leave You

(Bredon) 6:41

"Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" was a folk song performed by Joan Baez, and then covered by Led Zeppelin. The band was inspired to cover the song after hearing Baez's version and credited it as a traditional arrangement since they did not know who wrote it. They later found out it was written by an American folk singer named Anne Bredon. The main guitar riff to Chicago's hit song "25 or 6 to 4", which was released two years later, bears a striking resemblance to the riff in Zeppelin's version of the song.

It has long been rumored that guitarist Jimmy Page recorded one other version of the song, with Steve Winwood, in 1968. It was never released.

3. You Shook Me

(Dixon/Lenoir) 6:28

"You Shook Me" is a blues song written by Willie Dixon and J. B. Lenoir. Earl Hooker first recorded it as an instrumental which was then overdubbed with vocals by Muddy Waters in 1962. It was later recorded by various rock musicians, including Jeff Beck on his album Truth and most famously by Led Zeppelin. On the Zeppelin recording John Paul Jones double tracked the organ and the electric piano.

Since the Zeppelin version was released in 1969, one year after Beck's, he accused them of stealing his idea. This, among the overall similarity of sound between Led Zeppelin I and Truth led to a long rift between Beck and Page, who had been friends for years at that point. The Zeppelin version is one of the few songs to showcase the talents of all four members, and the band played it frequently at their early live shows. It was the first of their songs to feature the call-and-response blues style of music.

4. Dazed and Confused

(Holmes/Page) 6:26

"Dazed and Confused" was originally written by Jake Holmes, who supported The Yardbirds in 1967. The song was one of Led Zeppelin's centrepieces, until the success of Whole Lotta Love from their second album later that year. This song famously features the first time heard on record of Jimmy Page playing the guitar with a violin bow, Jimmy Page continues to do this every time Zeppelin plays this song live, some versions lasting up to almost half an hour.

5. Your Time Is Gonna Come

(Jones/Page) 4:34

Guitarist Jimmy Page played an out-of-tune Fender 10-string steel guitar on this "Your Time Is Gonna Come". Bassist John Paul Jones played an organ, using a pedal to create the bass.

The band performed this song only on their 1968 Scandinavian tour and as a part of Whole Lotta Love.

6. Black Mountain Side

(Page) 2:05 (instrumental)

Although "Black Mountain Side" originally credited as a Jimmy Page composition, it is actually an instrumental version of a traditional folk song called "Blackwater Side". Since its guitar arrangement is virtually identical to the version previously recorded by singer-songwriter Bert Jansch, it is sometimes credited to "Jansch/Page". One important difference, however, is that Page plays in DADGAD tuning, whereas Jansch used a simpler 'drop D' tuning.

Folk singer Anne Briggs, a friend of Jansch, taught him the song; she, in turn, learned it from the folk music historian A. L. Lloyd. She also recorded her own version, though this was not until the early '70s — a few years after the Jansch and Page interpretations. Page later claimed that he, like Jansch, also learnt the song directly from Briggs, though given the strong resemblance between his and Jansch's versions this seems unlikely.

On Led Zeppelin, the song starts over the end of the previous track, "Your Time Is Gonna Come"; the two, however, were never played in concert together.

An overdubbed rapid guitar lick can be heard on the album version. Page did this to simulate the sound of a sitar. To enhance the Indian character of the song, drummer and sitarist Viram Jasani plays tabla on the track.

When the song was included in Led Zeppelin's live sets, it was usually featured as part of Jimmy Page's instrumental "White Summer". Page would sit on a stool for the duration of the two songs and usually played them on a Danelectro guitar, tuned differently than his favored Gibson Les Paul. These songs were used by the band to showcase Page's skills as a guitarist, as he plays almost entirely by himself, with drummer John Bonham adding some fills later in the song.

A live version of this song can be seen on the Led Zeppelin DVD, during their 1970 Royal Albert Hall appearance. A similar version can be heard on the expanded version of Coda, an album of outtakes released in 1982.

7. Communication Breakdown

(Bonham/Jones/Page) 2:27

"Communication Breakdown" was a popular live song that usually either opened early shows or was played in an encore, and one of the few songs Jimmy Page sang a backing vocal on.

On the BBC Sessions, this song was played 3 times, each with a slightly different improv by the musicians. The guitar riff was inspired by Eddie Cochran's "Nervous Breakdown."

In the US, the track was released as a single, but it did not chart. Iron Maiden later covered the track on the b-side to the Bring Your Daughter to the Slaughter single, as well as being featured in their Eddie's Archive box set.

8. I Can't Quit You Baby

(Dixon) 4:42

"I Can't Quit You Baby" was a cover of a song by bluesman Willie Dixon. There is also an alternate version available on their album Coda. The song was a favorite for Led Zeppelin early on and was played during various performances at the BBC.

9. How Many More Times

(Bonham/Jones/Page) 8:28

"How Many More Times" is the longest song from the album, and uses a bolero rhythm that pushes the piece along. Elements of this song were used on the instrumental Beck's Bolero, which Jimmy Page played guitar on. During the latter part of the song, in jokes were included in the lyrics, including a quote from 'The Hunter'. Elements of the song were lifted from a Howlin' Wolf song, called "How Many More Years". In one section of a breakdown, Robert Plant sings the lyrics, "Oops, oh Lord, I did it again" which may or may not be the original lyric idea for the Britney Spears hit "Oops, I Did It Again"

Credits

Chart positions

Billboard Music Charts (North America) - singles 
1969    Good Times Bad Times    Pop Singles                    No. 80
1969    Communication Breakdown

External links

Led Zeppelin
Jimmy Page · Robert Plant · John Paul Jones · John Bonham
Discography
Studio Albums: Led Zeppelin · II · III ·  (IV) · Houses of the Holy · Physical Graffiti · Presence · In Through the Out Door · Coda Live Albums: The Song Remains the Same · BBC Sessions · How the West Was Won
Compilations: Box Set · Profiled · Remasters · Box Set 2 · Complete Studio Recordings · ' · '
Films
The Song Remains the Same · Led Zeppelin DVD
Other
Peter Grant · Richard Cole · Swan Song Records · The Yardbirds · XYZ · The Firm · Page and Plant Categories: ∙
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