In the fall of 1995, I was a sophomore at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in Aurora, Illinois (side note: IMSA is NOT a college, it's a high school. So if you can't do the math, I was 15 when this took place). At the time, I had not yet been exposed to any of the music which can be categorized as "classic rock"; although I had a love of music from a very early age, this mostly extended to pieces which I would play on the piano and in the junior high and high school bands. In previous years, my brother had been a fan of some of the popular bands of the day (Greenday, The Offspring), and while I was able to tolerate them, I just couldn't share the adoration that my brother and so many other people of like age shared for all of these groups. Hence, for the most part, I kept myself completely out of the loop of rock music, assuming that since most of what I had heard seemed mediocre at best, this would probably extend to all bands in the genre.

Well, one evening in late September, I was lying in bed in preparation for sleep, when my first roommate, a chap by the name of Paul Ruiz, decided that he wanted to play some music on his stereo. He did this regularly, but for the most part he would play pieces which were more or less contemporary, and so none of it really excited me. On this night, though, that would change. The first thing I heard out of his speakers was some quiet acoustic plucking, then some recorders, and then this fairly British voice singing, "There's a lady who's sure all that glitters is gold and she's buying a stairway to heaven." Now, I had heard of this song many, many times, but I had never actually heard it before, nor had I had any desire to do so. As I listened, though, I was completely entranced by the total beauty of the piece; the seemingly seamless transition from acoustic to electric, the gorgeous melody, and the feeling of total confidence and majesty that the piece seemed to emanate with every note.

I must have listened to that song 20 times or so without even touching anything else on the CD, it so captivated me. Eventually, I was paired with a new roommate, by the name of Jon Greiman, who helped get me started down the trail of being a classic rock junky with his 52 tapes of 70's music. Eventually, I became acquainted with the medium of classic rock radio, and I continued to be inundated and fascinated by this mythical group known as Led Zeppelin. In due time, I bought a two disc compilation, while my brother bought Zeppelin albums at his own pace, and after a year or so, we had the complete discography between us (and eventually, I had everything myself).

So why did I just relate this story? Well, I think it is reasonably likely that many people who become fans of the music of the 60's and 70's have stories similar to mine in some form or another; they were listening to the radio, heard Stairway to Heaven, then heard a bunch of other Zep tunes in one of the "Get the Led Out" sessions on some station, and eventually became huge fans of classic rock as a whole as they became exposed to other bands. Indeed, I myself believed for the longest time that Led Zeppelin was the greatest that music had to offer, and that they could do no wrong in any of the styles which they attempted at some point or another. However, as my music collection grew and my exposure to rock music broadened beyond what was presented me on classic rock radio, I eventually grew out of that phase, and while I am still rather fond of this group, if you are hoping for a review that will say nothing but good things about these guys, look elsewhere. They certainly had many fantastic attributes, which will be mentioned, but as hard as they tried to cover up their weaknesses, they ultimately couldn't help but show through.

I will begin by stating that Led Zeppelin is probably the finest blues and blues cover band of all time (at least, they're the best I've ever heard). Yes, they have rightfully earned their place in history for their pioneering of the genres of hard rock and heavy metal (along with Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, obviously), and yes, the group did incorporate a great deal of acoustic folk into their repertoire, but they were always strongest when they stayed in the blues. And ultimately, this came down to one person and one person alone; guitarist Jimmy Page. His greatest strength, and the band's greatest attribute, was that he had an exceptional knack at creating memorable and, of all things, melodic solos. Whereas a Hendrix or a Clapton would often just go wanking all over the place, with little or no connection to the original song, all throughout Led Zep's studio albums Jimmy's guitar is almost always able to carry the melody and to carry it well. There was no such thing as a "tacked on" solo in their discography; they were always an essential part of the piece, whether as the main theme or as counterpoint or whatever.

Unfortunately, this was the only really consistent strength that the band had. Well, besides bassist/keyboardist/organist/string arranger/whatever John Paul Jones, that is. Easily one of the five greatest mainstream rock bassists of all time, his sense of rhythm was almost incomparable, and he had an almost Entwhistle-level ability to make his bass lines melodic and powerful at the same time. He was also the most experimental member of the group, and while I definitely wish some of his ideas had stayed in the can, a lot of his ideas were freaking brilliant, so I'm not about to condemn the man or anything.

Unfortunately, and I know this is gonna piss off a lot of people, I'm not the biggest fan of either Robert Plant or John Bonham. Yes, Plant's singing on on the band's debut was absolutely fantastic, but unfortunately, incessant drug use on his part caused a serious decline in the quality of his vocals as early as their second album (though he could still deliver live for a little while). Compare his singing on, say, the original Dazed and Confused, and his singing on the Song Remains the Same version of the same song, and you will know exactly what I mean. Now, when he went out of his way to give his voice character, as on Presence, it's at least interesting, but otherwise it just grates on my ears something fierce way way too much of the time. Compared to Roger Daltry (who he certainly modeled himself after for a while) or Ian Gillan (who in his prime wiped the floor with Robert), he's nowhere near the Singing God that many make him out to be (or, at least, that he would have been had he taken better care of himself).

Meanwhile, John Bonham is, in my mind, the most overrated drummer in the history of rock & roll. Not that he's BAD, mind you (as some commenters below got the feeling I was implying before); I just think that he's placed on a far higher pedestal than he deserves. He can be pretty damn great to listen to at times - songs like When the Levee Breaks are made fabulous by his pounding, and virtually all of his work on PG and Presence is fantastic. And hey, the band's incredible sound on the debut owes as much to him as anybody else. HOWEVER, I stand by my opinion that, quite frankly, he can't hold a candle to Keith Moon (after whom Bonzo's style is highly modeled) or any one of many prog-rock drummers. I won't deny his influence or historical importance, but to hold him up as one of the top five or ten rock drummers of all time seems like an enormous stretch to me. Not to mention the fact that I can hardly stand Moby Dick. What's the point of it, really? It has that great riff, but the drum solo follows the structure of Cream's Toad almost to the letter, and it is far less interesting technically (Baker had more jazz technique at his disposal, for one thing). Bleh. Maybe it was better live (though SRTS doesn't suggest as much, not by a long shot, and neither does How the West was Won).

As an aside, I'd also like to point out that while I do think Bonzo was a good drummer, he was an awful, absolutely AWFUL influence. I think my brother put it best when he said (not word for word, but the highlights are preserved)- "John Bonham singlehandedly destroyed any sense of dynamics in three generations worth of drummers. Instead of an understanding of dynamics as soft and loud, drummers have come to believe that the two main classes of drum volume are loud and GOD-IS-DEAD."

All this being said, the band had oodles and oodles of great songs; it's just that, with few exceptions, their albums tended to have a minimum of two songs each that I absolutely loathe, and that's not something I can square with the notion of "the greatest band of all time." Because of this, and consider yourself warned, there won't be very many 9's for these guys. A lot of 8's (and remember, 8/10 means an album is very very good; I'm not going to be an ass and say that Led Zeppelin albums suck), but very few 9's. Regardless, try to remember that I do generally like the group; it's only in comparison with the amount of love heaped upon them by most people that it might seem I do not. So if you want to kill me for giving them an overall rating of 3/5, just remember that (a) any group that gets a 3/5 or higher from me would be in my own personal "Rock and Pop Music Hall of Fame," and (b) I'm not a metalhead in general, so it shouldn't be a big surprise anyway.

What do you think of Led Zeppelin?

Dave Sahota (shivan99@imsa.edu)

this comment has been highly split up for readability's' sake

lets go on your zep page....lets start with the intro great story...i got exposed to zep through a punk named greiman too.... john paul jones has more blues in him than jimmy page....listen to "somethin else" and the keyboard part there

(author's note): Um ... Dave, that's "rag," not "blues."

....or the bassline to "boogie chillun" aka "the whole lotta love ditty" robert plant was not all that avid a drug user....drugs didn't hurt his voice it was something, but i'm positive it wasn't that and even though his vocal abilities declined....i can't think of anyone from the era who could outsing him...maybe it's lack of exposure on my part, but i just can't

(author's note): You are correct, it is lack of exposure on your part. Roger Daltrey, Ian Gillian, Justin Hayward, Greg Lake, Peter Gabriel, John Lennon, Mick Jagger and Dave Gilmour all come to my mind as better than Plant in the 60's and 70's. Again, I say that Plant put on a spectacular performance on I, but after that time both the breadth and depth of his voice were cut by a horrifying amount.

John Bohnam.....moby dick was not that awesome...that's not why people think he's awesome, at least not me....look at the innovations like four sticks, and listen to PG2, i mean the work he does there is simply beautiful. listen to the dazed and confuzed from '69 (the long version) as far as filling their records with "good" songs, define good?

(author's note): Well-written, solid and non-banal songs are what I define as good. They did many solid songs in each of the areas they tried out, but they also did a LOT of simply awful ones.

their records weren't a serious of slam you on your ass songs; their albums were an experience. the idea behind most of that was that they would explode, driving your energy, then hold back with a slow song or two building up to another heavy song. that was the idea...it gave the music power because you couldn't pick a track from the middle of the record, or put the cd on random and get the same powerful experience as you would get by sitting there and listening to the whole thing. that's what makes setlists so important, it's not just thinking up a list of songs, its thinking up how to mix your songs to move a group of people by bringing their musical energy through peaks and valleys....that's all i have to say about "they didnt fill their albums with good songs" oh...and by the way, just so you know, "during presence i felt weak; it was a poor poor vocal performance, i didn't really enjoy myself at all; during hots on for nowhere i was pissed at jimmy; during royal orleans i was pissed at someone else; vocally the saving grace of that album was candy store rock, aside from achilles of course." --Robert Plant the man says he's at his weakest during that album; john mcferrin says he's at his best since zep 1; for some reason i'm inclined to beleive robert plant

(author's note): I didn't say Plant is at his best, I said he's at his most interesting. There's a difference. I agree with Plant here - he really did sound weak on that album.

Marco Ursi (marco_ursi@hotmail.com)

Hey John, my name is Marco. You may have read a couple of my comments on George Starostin's page. Your site is looking good. Keep it up. I've got one comment right now.

Led Zeppelin-the opening paragraph

Being a drummer myself, I must say that I strongly disagree with your a opinion on John Bonham. This man was a drum god. Bonham was a tremedous technician who played with soul, sort of a cross between Keith Moon and Bill Bruford. He played with only one bass drum but created the effect of having two. He was able to play odd time signatures (ie. the Crunge), he used his entire kit to the max and he revolutionized the use of triplet fills in rock drumming. And he played loud. But he didn't mash his drums, he hit them with precision and made them sound fantastic (though Jimmy Page probably had something to do with the sound). Anyway, I do realize that Bonham's drumming may seem somewhat vulgar at times but he definetly could play.

Jon Greiman (homer@imsa.edu)

Now that I've spent the last two hours reading it (at work of course), I'm quite impressed. No wonder you get more visitors. And I've only read the zeppelin one. Granted, that's because I don't have any of the albums, I just had the most zep .mp3's, so I figured I'd know what you were talking about the most with zep. Okay, so let's see, what comments do I have. Ramble On. IMO, one of their best songs. Incidentally, my favorite is the BBC version of Black Dog. Perhaps you need to listen to Ramble On in stereo to get the full effect. I'm stil at work, so I can't listen to it now, but I don't remember the bass line being too high.

Since the other guy commented on the ratings, I might as well too. It didn't seem all that overly complicated to me. You're overadjusting the scale to provide accurate representation of a skewed right sample. And I'm only a math minor at a really stupid school.

RKastner22@aol.com

hey. look, just enjoy the music and quit trying to analyze everything. your a wanna be, and thats okay, but please dont disrespect the artists gifted enough to make your "discovery" of classic rock possible. but thank you for sharing your extensive knowlegde of how to be and a#$hole with the rest of us, i had a nice laugh. what kind of loser devotes this much time to a stupid critical website. pick up a guitar and pour your heart out, from the tone of your writing, you'll score yourself a ten. and thanks for all the insight about the band, but it was nice the first time i read it in a book. led zeppelin rule-period. and bonzo wouldnt care if you thought he was the worst in the band, and you actually thought a wannabe like you could fill his shoes. later loser.

analyze this this: suck it! sean kastner 20 oviedo fl

(author's note): So, who wants to play "Spot the Signs of Stupidity!" with this comment?

menchel kfir (kfirmen@hotmail.com)

I'm a civil engineering student in Brussels. You may simply call me K. Here are my remarks concerning some of your reviews of the Led Zep albums :

The bass line in Ramble On is not to high for otherwise it would not be heard. If you've read the Lord of the Rings, surely you must feel how the song, and especially the first part of it, describes some scenes of the book, and I'm NOT talking about the lyrics, for God's sake, this is music, not poetry, and I'm therefore referring to the melody and the general atmosphere.

As for "Thank You", it's murkiness is what makes it such a beautifull song. If the Zep members had spent more time making it more 'organized' and less murky, it wouldn't have delivered it's message in the way that it does. I find in "Thank You" the same positive, beautiful feelings you can find in a little child's drawing : it's not a work of art but it's plenty of sweet and generous naivety.

Also, "the Battle of Evermore" need not necessarily be seen as the 'peak of Plant's let's be obsessed with Tolkien stage', as you put it, despite the words 'dark lord' and 'ringwraiths'. Robert Plant grew up in an area of Great Britain where many battles such as the one described in "the Battle of Evermore" were fought, and he himself states that as an inspiration for this song. Page and Plant did include some allusions to Tolkien in some Zep songs, but the songs are never exclusively about Tolkien's work, they only share a certain similarity with some scenes of the books, which may have served as an initial inspiration for a song about the author's own personal experiences.

Best wishes.
K.

flYboY (chengod@korea.com)

Hi...just stumbled across your web page to Led Zeppelin. I thought well great, i like Led Zeppelin a whole bunch, they are one of my favorite rock/blues bands. Listened to all their studio albums countless times, never got into the bootleg scene of theirs.

Right, obviously first thing to point out is that you are NOT a MUSICIAN, rather, a music fan. TRUE or not? Playing in high school wind band doesn't count, i know tossers in there that wouldn't know a freakin bassline from a bossa nova.

So, while you might be able to state your own opinions on the music, I hardly see you as being in a place to criticize the artists. Numerous errors on your part are the main reason for this post.

To state that Hendrix and Clapton "would just go wanking all over the place, with no connection to the original song" is just ludicrous. What they do is take an idea, build on it, and espand it into a solo.The melody is interpreted, and yet the new interpretation still fits the original harmony(chord structure) of the song. Hendrix did it beautifully, the world has yet to see a guitarist who could play with such feeling and technique (All you Steve Vai and Ywngie Malsteem lovers can go f*** yourselves).

(author's note): For what it's worth, I respect the hell out of both Hendrix and Clapton. What I was saying, though, was that, while those two use solos as expansions of the song, Page used them as part of the foundation of the songs. Which I think is really cool.

John Bonham the most overrated drummer in history? Hah hah hah...you're pulling my leg; no wait, you're serious. My god, the timing that he had, his fills fit so perfectly, and the power was a good part of what made Led Zeppelin one of the greatest rock/blues bands of all time. Robert Plant's voice did deteriorate, of course, whose wouldn't after screaming at concerts, drinking and smoking far far too much? Quick aside, actually, Roger Waters did far more singing than David Gilmour for Pink Floyd

(authors note):: 1. I don't see how that would change the fact that Gilmour's voice is better than Waters', and 2. Waters only had more singing parts starting with WYWH (because, contrary to what many dumbasses think, DSOTM was NOT THEIR DEBUT)

Last point I think, as I'm quickly losing interest in this diatribe. Ragtime is one of the birthplaces of the blues as we know it. Yes, I know there were many influences, and ragtime was one of them...don't be so quick to discount it as a blues form....has many many similarities as far as form goes...well, thanks for reading...Peace from Ian McDonald

Perry Justus (pjustus@arn.net)

One more thing... I can't believe you think John Bonham is the most overrated drummer, with no style. I'd say Tommy Lee is, but that's another thing...

Listen to the swinging drums on "Wanton Song," or the way he _caresses_ his drums on "The Rain Song." Yes, he played loud -- VERY loud, he attacked the kit with his wrists -- but the man knew how to play. Keith Moon kicks ass, granted, but did he play ghost notes on the snare in the same way? No way! John Bonham is my favorite "rock era" drummer, maybe my favorite drummer period, and NOT because I'm told he is. I listen to all styles of music, too -- jazz, funk (which JB was _heavily_ influenced by), blues, folk, rock... So don't think that I haven't heard the masters...

The album version of Moby Dick has NOTHING on some of the live versions, where audiences regularly gave him a 10 minute standing ovation... The album version is quiet with occasional bursts, but live - he played an opening section of bass-snare-tom combinations, followed by triplets, followed by the infamous hand-drumming section, followed by snare-bass beats, then the final buildup... And keep in mind he played the live version regularly for 15-45 (!) minutes, with only a few versions being boring. I listened to a large 23 minute version once, and it went by in a flurry of nuclear strikes to the poor drum heads.

MikeA3403@aol.com

Your reviews are as well thought as anything else I've seen. The responses to the Led Zeppelin intro looked damn stupid. Don't take any crap from those metal morons about how great John Bonham was. I've seen them all except the Beatles and the Who blew away Zeppelin at the old Met Center Minneapolis back in 1974-75.

Thanks

"John Sarnie, Jr." (jsarnie10@msn.com)

I AM A DRUMMER,WHO THOUGHT BONHAM WAS ABOVE AVERAGE UP UNTIL A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.ALL THE VIDEOS AND BOOTLEG LIVE FOOTAGE HAS MADE HIM GREAT.THE GUYS ARMS DONOT MOVE.ALL THAT POUNDING WAS FOREARM AND WRISTS,THATS WHY COVER BANDS NEVER GET THE SONGS RIGHT,

Jason Parker (adftmp2@cypress.com)

I can agree with your opinions on Led Zeppelin for the most part.

They were basically a sloppy band live- no matter that they made some good albums, and came across well on their albums/CDs.

With the 5-10 guitars (okay I exaggerate) overdubbed on most of their studio album tracks, it's no wonder LZ come across so thin during live performances.

Other than Robert Plant, I think Page, Jones, and Bonham were competent musicians of varying ability.

With so many tighter bands to listen to from the same era, I've never understood why "the mighty Led Zeppelin" were and *still are* so revered as Quasi-Gods of Rock.

I think their fans have a hero-worship thing going on, a blind faith that can't be shattered despite the band's shortcomings. Meandering through 30-40 minute versions of Dazed and Confused during LZ's '73 and '75 tours, shouldn't impress anybody...

ELISSA SARNIE (jsarnie10@msn.com) (8/21/01)

THEY ARE LEGENDS BECAUSE THEIR BEST ALBUM ,UNLIKE 95% OF THE ROCK BANDS ,WAS THEIR 6TH ALBUM,NOT THEIR FIRST OR SECOND.

HERES JIMMYS MAIN PROBLEM OF THE LED ZEP ERA.THE SONGS HE WROTE AFTER ZOSO,ARE GUITAR ANTHEMS THAT DUE TO SPIRALING HERION USE,HE HAD A DIFFICULT TIME PLAYING LIVE,

THERE WERE 3 LED ZEPPELINS.ALBUMS1-4  ALBUMS 5-7  AND IN THRU THE OUT DOOR,THEY REALIZED TIMES WERE CHANGING ANND WERE PREPARED TO CHANGE A THIRD TIME TO SURVIVE.DO YOU REALIZE HOWE SUCCESSFUL THEY WERE .PAGE OWNS CLOSE TP 32 MILLION DOLLARS OF REAL EASTATE IN EURPOE.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GBBW71@aol.com (10/11/01)

While I respect your opinion and know that mine is completely biased. I disagree with some if not all of your assertions. I think that what makes Led Zep different from the other bands of its era and beyond is that they played music. They made there kind of music. They where not forced by their managers to play popular tunes or to try to "sell" albums.

(author's note): Ummm .... While I don't disagree with the statement about Zep, I'm kinda befuddled at the assertion that Led Zep was the ONLY band of its era to worry more about the actual music than on selling albums, or even that Zep was the most non-commercial band of the epoch.

In my opinion this separates them from most if not all other musicians that were in the mainstream. The group of friends I grew up with in the early 80's was evenly divided. Half were Zep-heads the other half VH'ers. When I think of these 2 groups I see the extreme of my early argument VH fell apart trying to "sell" music. Zeppelin fell apart making music. I believe what also sets them apart is JPJ and there ability to play so many different styles and to play what moved them not what moves album sales. As far as saying that Robert Plant's voice had deteriorated after Zep 1. I cant make an argument for that other than you when you sing the blues you gotta lose. What I mean is that when you sing the blues your voice is more character than carry. As for comparing SRTS to earlier recordings. Most live music from that era sounds similar if its not Lipsinging. The shear effort and power of that album carries it for me. I just feel the effort and energy in that Album. If you get a chance listen to Achilles Last Stand and then listen to Babe Im Gonna Leave You back to back. these are my 2 favorites right now after listening to Zep for the last 20 years. My favorites change every 6 months or so. I grew up listening to Jimmy Page as you say effortlessly blending and John Bonham waking the neighbors while my man Robert Plant put words to it all. And of course the much forgotten mastermind John Paul Jones tying it all together with a bassline that made it Rock.

As I stated earlier I am a bit biased and I rate all other bands against Zeppelin

sarah bermudez (rollinstone19@earthlink.net) (1/20/02)

i can tell why you dont appreciate the song remains the same, live performances and robert plant for fuck's sake!! You dont know how to listen or to get a feel for songs. you like No Quarter but you think it sounds like a giant ship or something. yes its majestic and strong but at times it also explores the weaknesses and scary parts of life ie the rape thing and the whole part around the fluttering bats. and its talking about being free!!, asking no quarter, getting none and trudging on. speaking of lyrics "Does anybody remember laughter?" is not obnoxious. after that he croons "she does..she does.." robert has very poetically conveyed the feeling "she" gives him when he is down and it seems like no one remebers laughter. by the way Robert's voice rules and i am pretty sure it wasn't drugs that made his voice go downhill. yes it did go downhill somewhat but EVERY singers voice does and robert's really didn't all that much. it changed but he still gets his feelings, pain love across very well. and thats the point isn't it? to somehow connect and communicate an emotion. you aren't open enough to let this happen. especially in reference to Bonzo and his drum solos. the fact that you dont appreciate any drum solos speaks for itself. you haven't gotten it and to say bonzo's overrated is a travesty!!! he was the best. yeah moonie was really awesome too, but have you ever really listened or watched bonzo closley? he has the FUCKING technical skills you idiot! he could make one bass drum sound like 100 and his improv with jimmy john paul and robert is mindblowing. he doesn't just play a backbeat-he is a genius. atleast you appreciate JIMMY!!! but i'm sure you dont really get him either. it gets me that you didnt get into music until sophomore yr in college. you obviously dont have a predisposition to music, you obviously werent driven to it and while you can enjoy the best of the best you dont understand it. i have been driven to music, obsessed for my whole life and im only 17. I and everyone else knows ZEPPELIN kicks ass! the shere depth and breadth of their material isnt a ploy to get ppl to buy albums or copy the fads. they were progressing which is a sign of genius. they were never satisfied and went on to challenge themselves and make the best music right until their last album. if bonzo hadn't died...there is no god. (other than my boys. including robert and bonzo!!!!!!!) so take that and take some acid then try to handle bonzs shit and roberts voice.

(author's note): OH MY GOODNESS WHY MUST THEY MAKE IT SO EASY ...

Anyway, I responded to Sarah in a pair of emails, so I won't write too lengthy of a response here. I'll just cover the highlights of those two emails.

1. I seem to recall that I basically mapped out the entire battle in The Gates of Delirium elsewhere on the site, so I think that accusing me of not understanding or appreciating musical imagery is ridiculous.

2. As I've pointed out in an addendum in the intro, IMSA is a HIGH SCHOOL, not a COLLEGE - I was 15 when that story took place.

3. Telling me about Bonzo's technical skills when I'm listening to Bill Bruford on Red is a good way to kill me from convulsive laughter.

4. 17 year old Led Zeppelin fans are some of the most idiotic people in the world.

5. Unfortunately, 95% of them never grow up and never bother to listen to songs from the 60's and 70's (ie a comparable era) that AREN'T played on the radio every minute of the day.

6. Not every singer's voice goes downhill - Peter Gabriel's, for instance, has only gotten better with age, like a fine wine.

7. Telling me I don't have a predisposition towards music when my collection stands at (at this date) 515 albums and I obsessively acquire more every day and week just so I can gain more enjoyment and perspective is the funniest thing I've read in a while.

8. Finally - WHITE SPACE IS YOUR FRIEND.

SiftingOne@aol.com (1/24/02)

Overall, I agree.

But my award for most overrated drummer goes to Peter Criss from Kiss. The guy is listed in every "awesome drummer" award, sometimes hgiher than Bonham, Bruford or Moon (but Peart usually tops him), and Criss completely is basic and pretentious (so is Kiss, so I guess the two relate very well).

Chrslees@aol.com (2/09/01)

Hi John, I'll get right to it. There's more to music than meets your ears. First of all regarding the groups "sloppiness". I think its very exaggerated. I have about 100 bootlegs or so spanning the entire lenght of zeps career (and many others including clapton, soundgarden, hendrix, coltrane, buddy guy , bb king etc...). I can tell you first off that their REAL attraction lies in their live performances. They were very different night from night and THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME is NOT one of their better shows. It was just an average night and was shelved for 3 years. The only reason it was released was because they needed to put out some material during a lull in the bands output (the lull was the result of Plant getting into a serious car accident). So my first point is not to judge all or most of their live shows by that one live album.

(author's note): For what it's worth, I don't. I recognize that SRTS is basically an average Zep show, nothing special. I also have a bootleg from the I tour that, while of horrid sound quality, is VERY fun to listen to.

Now back to the "sloppiness". You know guys like Gary Moore and Joe Satriani and Steve Via can play!! They are known for their impeccable technique and musical knowledge. Yet these guys are always praising "sloppy" guitarists like Page and Buddy Guy and Albert King (very ver sloppy!) and albert collins. All of them "sloppy' blues players. If you read lots and lots of guitar articles like I do (I'm a guitar teacher at a local music store) then you get to understand how these girted musicians think. See, those little mistakes you sometimes hear are the results of daring and passionate improvisation. Its those little mistakes that give those inimitable guitarists their distint sound that we all love.

In order to appreciate good improvisations, which is the heart and soul of led zeppelin, you must understand the approach of a seasoned musician. Its a musicians APPROACH to their music that gives it part of its uniqueness. Jimmy Page's approach, and the rest of the band for that matter, is all about emotion and intensity. Not technique. Now his technique was actually exceptional especially for the era. Just listen if you can find it, to anything from their Japan tour of 71 or their european tour 73' and be wiser!

Regarding Plant, his voice did diminish in range. But is range the only angle you can use to judge/enjoy a singer. A singer is a musician. Saying Robert Plant couldn't sing well after the first alblum because his range diminished is like saying one guy is a better guitarist than another because his neck has more frets! Think about it...Actually Plant learned through out the years how to sing much better. His high pitched screaming on the first album was ear catching for sure but his articulation was still developing. He also learned restraint. Give In my time of dying a listen.

About John Bonham well, I have made stubborn decisions based upon little understanding before too. But the more you listen and the more you learn the more you change your mind. Bonham was actually very dynamic and thats the main reason I like him. I dont dig drums and always FF through Moby Dick even live. But no drummer can follow and add to a MOOD like bonham. He was influenced by a lot of R&B and Jazz drummers. Quite often John Paul Jones said of Bonzo that it was all those little fills and subtleties that made him great. He was great at creating an extended "rising tension" which the other members of the group could play off of. When Jimmy is soloing on DAZED and he goes from the warm tone of the neck pick up to the trebly sound of the bridge pick up Bonham will follow the change in texture.

I think you'd broaden your sense of musical appreciation if you looked futher into music than just technique, which is on the outside. Try some John coltrane and compare it to Jimi Hendrix. I'm talking APPROACH. They have the same approach! Yet their music is of course quite different. But just being aware of the different approaches (read VALUES) that genius musicians use will open your mind to new ways of judging and or enjoying music.

(author's note): For what it's worth, I still don't understand all these accusations I receive frequently of just being a technique-slut when listening to music. I have complete and utter awe and admiration towards the title track of Steve Hackett's Spectral Mornings, and that's not exactly the definition of a technician's dream. Or on a more esoteric level, Pete Townshend and Keith Richards are nothing technically compared to Page, but from an aggression and emotive perspective ... eeek. There is nothing that's about to convince me that Page's playing is more emotion-driven than that of those two.

Kate2884@aol.com (5/19/02)

I definetely agree with one of the people who responded to this site that Zeppelin is basically "hero-worshiped". People are enchanted with things that seem mysterious, and alongside their music and popularity, Plant and Page had that occult thing going...that definitely added to the Zeppelin mystique. They believed in black magic and I am not completely sure, but didn't Page buy the house of some Satanist? It is not only the music we should look into, it is also things that were going on with the band that made some people "obsessed". People of my era (I am 20) seem to think that they were Gods because most classic rock stations croon out their music more than anyone else's. But if they really were fans of the music, they would realize that there is so much more to it than Led Zeppelin.

"Horvath, Jason" (JHorvath@CCBN.com) (7/23/02)

Sorry, but I have no respect for anyone that thinks John Bonham is overrated.

Matthew E. Peters (mattp@ig.utexas.edu) (8/20/02)

I thoroughly enjoyed reading your Led Zep story and all the comments that people wrote to you about it. I'm not going to pick apart anything that you said. I'll just tell you what I think. I think that without the exact four member of Led Zeppelin just the way they were, we wouldn't have our world the way we know it. (Obviously.)

I find it interesting to imagine what Led Zeppelin would have been if Jimmy and John Paul had gotten their first choice vocalist, Steve Marriot who'd just joined Humble Pie. John Bonham is an interesting and unique drummer. If all musicians used similar technique the world of music would be pretty damn boring. Imagine what Neil Young's guitar would lack if he were "more accomplished." Or what Dylan's music would lack if he "had a real singing voice." John Paul is a pretty damned fine bassist and his organ playing ain't too shabby either. And finally, that Jimmy can jam, and when he's jamming kinda sloppy (like in concert on most of the bootlegs I've heard) I like it even more. Somehow it seems more human and real.

Here I will make reference to something you wrote. The way Jimmy's guitar holds a tune throughout each song is a good observation. Clapton meanders, but I don't think of Hendrix as meandering. His approach is just more visceral.

Anyway, thanks for making all these thoughts of yours and others public. It all helps make the world a better place. And awareness is always a good thing.

Crosseyedmary4@aol.com (6/23/03)

I   agree with you that led zeppelin is a truly fine cover band , however I would not confine it to the blues . they are the only major band to not only rip off  old blues artists ,  but also thier contemporaries  ie: dazed and confused by jake holmes , since ive been loving you  - "never ''  by moby grape , black mountain side - black water side by bert jansch , whole lotta love , '' you need love '' a willie dixon song , however if you can get a hold of the small faces version , its downright plagiarism. And of course stairway to heaven , the intro '' borrowed '' from taurus by spirit , the chord progression from the chocolate watchbands '' and shes lonely" and the title itself from neil sedakas 1960  hit  '' stairway to heaven '' . There are about 30 " borrowed " songs in total - not to mention lp covers - check out the cover of the Sailor lp by Steve Miller or Compartments by Jose Feliciano . Led Zeppelin is truly the greatest cover band  in history.

Patrick Daniel Squatriti (jehudas_2@hotmail.com) (10/21/03)

I just wanted to reply to your general statement about Led Zeppelin. They are probably my favourite band apart from the Beatles (who I can't really compare to any other band, they're on a different planet)...basically for me Zep is what The Who is to you. My record collection is fairly adequate, I am not a prog-head even though this year I have only been buying Yes, KC, Genesis, Gentle Giant, Van Der Graag Generator, ELP and weird-ass Italian proggers Area. I'm just saying this so that you know that I'm not one of those 17 year old "BONZO IS GOD (after the guy from NIRVANA!)" idiots. I just think that you were slightly harsh with them. Now, I realize that probably I am biased because they were my first major passion as far as '70's rock goes...but however I really think that Bonzo is a great drummer. Probably that's just because he was the first drummer I ever noticed. His work on LZI( (Good times bad times and How many more times) is really brilliant. I think he is the best pure Rock drummer I know. Well, maybe Ian Paice is better, but then, the old affection kicks in and I just go for Bonham. As far as Keith Moon is concerned, I like him a lot, but I think he doesn't offer that much variety in his sound, and he rolls too often. Having said this, I obviously know where you're coming from when you say that talking about Bonzo's technique while listening to RED (jeez, those fills in One more red nightmare are just...)is laughable, but really, Bruford shouldn't even be compared to Bonzo, it's a completely different style and genre (btw, Bruford is my favourite drummer). I realize that I'm just rambling on, and not really making a point. It's probably that I'm frustrated, because I really freaking love Bonzo, and he'll always be in my top 3..but I realize that you're probably right and that he is actually overrated. Oh, man, just let me live in denial.

Fuck you, Bonzo is God.

But still, you have a point, and it pisses me off.

As far as Jonesy goes, I don't think he is even remotely comparable to Entwhistle from the Who. Listen to "The Real Me", and well, you'll realize that Jones is efficient, but not that good at all. He's really groovy on keys though. (a small off-topic question here: do you prefer Squire or KC era Wetton?)

Page is my favourite guitarist, and will take no shit about him.
Fortunately you give him none.
Plant is one of my favourite vocalists, but I realize that it is an acquired taste, like Jon Anderson or even that dude, Geddy Lee(Plant ripoff), and it is true, his voice really got worse with the years. His best performance is on the BBC version of Since I've been loving you, in my opinion.

Listen, just...I don't even know what i'm trying to say here. I think I disagree with you on something but I just can't remember. Your site is really very good, 'specially the prog reviews. We have very very similar tastes, mostly.

But hey, what the hell do I know? I listen to Queen and Roxy Music.

(author's note): PAY ATTENTION, PEOPLE. THIS is how to write a good dissenting opinion without making a total ass of yourself. Also, there's nothing wrong with listening to Roxy Music, heh.

Skateboard138@aol.com (11/17/03)

man i think instead of analyzing every little thing you should just listen to the music and enjoy it for what it is. isnt the point of listening to music to have fun? i suppose to you it isnt. i have read most of your reviews and have came to the conclusion that i dont like you. you are far too judgemental and quite a big jackass. i must admire your intelligence however as you seem to be well read and quite articulate. i also like how you are not afraid to express your opinions however bold they may be. but i dislike you nevertheless. i admit that while having what i belive to be not more than a intermedite understanding of music myself i think you are way too whiny about some things such as roberts vocals. i think he rules and beats the hell out of peter gaybriel (haha) who is a big pussy in my opinion. of course this is my opinion and im olny a 15 year old guitar player and skateboarder kid so what do i know. i could go on put my attention deficit disorder has caught me and i am bored of writing this. oh and dont give me shit about punctuation and spelling cos im lazy and dont give a fuck.

Amattaway@wmconnect.com (8/24/04)

Bah! 3 stars of Led Zeppelin, Blasphemy, I say! Nah, just kiddin', I'm not here to add to your hate-mail, but just a few things on my mind I'd like to dump on your comments page if it's worth that.

First of all, your Bonham philosophy. I agree for the most part, although I like him a bit more than you seem to. What I think the average listener is overwhelmed by with Bonham is not necessarily a godly skill, but instead his insane dedication to his craft -- doing things like playing "Moby Dick" with his hands for 15 minutes seems to sell to people, although that's not a good way to judge. Quality is more important than the quantity, but it seems to me like the average consumer is overwhelmed by "Bonham, the wild man" instead of Bonham, the drummer.

I love Robert Plant, though, and maybe just because he's a pure frontman, not so much for his singing abilities. He's likeable for that and he exuberates a certain persona that is rock n' roll in a word. Whatever. He had some absolutely amazing performances late in his career, in my opinion. "Trampled Underfoot" is one of my favorites.

Page is in the top five of my guitarists, but that's from the limited perspective of someone with a minor music collection. As for JPJ, I have to agree with ya on that one. He makes a lot of Zeppelin songs great to me, even irritating filler like "The Wanton Song". I love that bizarre sounding organ, worth the price of admission to me sometimes.

So, only a 3, huh? Eh, well, I've got an adolescent attachment to these guys, speaking of which, your comment about the "17-year-old Zeppelin idiot fans" was as gratuitous as it comes. That makes me practically lobotomized, as I'm a FIFTEEN-year-old Zeppelin fan. I still laughed, though. And then mailed you in my insecurity.

Brian Dickson (9/20/04)

Back in 1986 when I was 16 and just getting into rock/pop music I tried getting into Led Zep. I borrowed some records from my brothers. I thought they were okay, not outstanding. At that time I wasn't aware of the cult of Led zep, they were just a 70s band with a good reputation. As the years went by and I read about all the Gods Of Rock hype surrounding them and people raving in music mags about how they were the best band ever. So I listened to them more carefully. For years. But I just heard a decent blues/ folk rock band. I never saw what was meant to be so extaordinary about them. I never thought they were bad, excepting Plant's annoying whining sometimes, and the abysmal The Crunge, but other bands that I later got into I thought were better listening. In the field of "hard rock" to me Black Sabbath have better riffs and a more distinctive sound, Rush are more musically interesting, Queen are more melodic and have a better singer, Deep Purple have a better guitarist and a better rock & roll feel ( Speed King!) Thin Lizzy and Motorhead have better guitar solos and Iron Maiden are good all rounders. And that's just for older bands. Many bands today are making some good hard rock. It seems that the word "improvement" is lacking in many people's vocabulary. Yes, I think that some bands have -wait for it- improved on the sound of Led Zep. All those bands above might have been inconsistent in their careers, but all have, IMO, made some timeless stuff. To me Led Zep just have no stand out features in the year 2004. Even if you enjoy the sound of the electric guitar, Led Zep never seemed very heavy to me. Pages guitar sound always seemed tame to me. Whether it was through his choice or due to the primtiveness of the equipment I don't know. But I think that Hendrix, Cream and occasionally even The Beatles managed a better "heavy" guitar sound the early Zep records. And  on their first 5 albums the guitar often sounds twangy, which I don't like.

  Led Zep have some things about them which work. They were influential. They split before they'd sunk too low. Some bands just drag on too long and they wane. ( Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple) And a band member died in tragic circumstances. Which might seem callous but there's no denying that an early death can add to the mystique. Think of Marilyn Monroe, james Dean, Jimi hendrix, Jim Morrison. All cult figures. And also... John Bonham.

Maybe for some the power of suggestion is at work too. Years ago I saw a documentary where a group of children were shown a video showing the making of supposedly the most powerful perfume in the world. It showed a small vial being studied by serious faced scientists in white lab coats, and it being carefully shipped by air to London amid tight security. The small vial was then brought in with great seriousness into the studio. The presenter then announced that she would be opening the vial, and that the children would be able to smell the perfume within a matter of seconds, so fast were the scent molecules able to travel. The presenter then took the cap of the vial and asked the children if they could smell the pefume. Within a few seconds most raised their arms to indicate that they could smell it. Then the presenter said that the vial contained nothing more than distllled water, which has no scent at all. The powerful scent didn't exist. It was the power of suggestion. Now considering the mighty, mighty reputation of Led Zeppelin I think that some might also be subject to to the power of suggestion here. They hear wonderful things that aren't neccessarily there. The scent of the perfume was an illusion. Led Zeppelins greatness is also sometimes an illusion. Whole Lotta Love is the song considered by many to be the epitome of metal. Plodding and monotonous with a dull guitar sound you'd have to pay me to listen to it today. It caused a stir in '69. Big deal. Let's all move on now and stop being stuck in the past. My brother actually said to me one day when he decided that maybe he had outgrown Led zep, "if you think about it, not terribly good are they?" The key phrase there being "if you think about it" Which suggests that many don't actually think about it! I prefer to do my own thinking , not let others do my thinking for me.

  Led Zeppelin started NOTHING. The Zeppelin "sound" had been done a year earlier on The Beatles Helter Skelter.All Zep had was a better guitar player. Hendrix did headbanging rock with Spanish Castle Magic and Purple Haze. And the Jeff Beck group was obviously a big influence on Zep. Many people seem to think that Zep singlehandley invented every single form of hard rock!  They satisfied the publics desire for power blues since the demise of many 60s blues rock acts. They filled the vacuum and embarked on a lucrative (and ego expanding)career until they ran out of ideas. And that didn't take too long really. Led Zeppelin were NOT geniuses. And over half their stuff is lifted from old blues and folk, and the main guitar line to Stairway is taken from Taurus by Spirit. If originality was a sin then Zep really would  be climbing the Stairway To Heaven.

  Oh and Page practiced the occult! Whoa, how cool is that?! What a tosspot. Their fans like to lap that kind of nonsense up though.

I love music. In fact music is probably my main pastime or hobby. I own hundreds of CDs and am constantly expanding my musical tastes. I believe in staying open-minded. I would like nothing better than to hear what's meant to be so exceptional about Led zeppelin. But 18 years later I still can't! Led Zep remain to me a triumph of mystique over substance.

  It seems that with Led Zeppelin two different mindsets are at work. The first mindset regards that if a piece of music has been influential, then it's almost written in stone that it must - MUST- be better than anything that followed. That's what the majority (unfortunately) will belong to. The second mindset doesn't give a toss whether the music was influential and judges the music on it's own merits. I belong wholeheartedly in the latter mindset. Yes, I have "improvement" in my vocabulary!

  And personally I think all this breathless psuedo-religious raving about The Gods Of Rock is damn silly. Why do you all prostrate yourselves before a pop group? Page and Plant are laughing all the way to the bank.

(addendum)

I recognise Page as a talented, even great.musician.  A gifted producer too. John Bonham is often lauded as the best drummer of all time but he seems to have one style only- pound the drums hard. (genius or  ham fisted moron?) But on a hard rock number maybe that's just what you want! And the early Zep recordings clearly have a "chemistry" there. There's no denying their influence. I'll even give Zep credit when I've subconciously whistled Over the Hills And Far Away! But I've often been surprised at how more obscure bands have managed to give their own sound to riff rock. I don't believe that just because an album has "Led Zeppelin" printed on it that it's automatically the best."  After Haydn I bet many at the time though that music just couldn't be topped. But then along came Mozart, Beethoven. Schubert, Chopin, Schumann. Music evolves all the time!

Michael Bleicher (mbleicher1@yahoo.com) (9/20/04)

Great intro essay. I agree completely. Zeppelin's problem lies in the fact that they really were fairly limited in what they could do quite well. Well they did it, but why should I hear a rehash of I or II when I can hear the original. Second, they were never good enough songwriters to fill an album with good diverse and original material. Their best albums all have at least a couple of filler tracks, and most of them have a couple of truly bad songs (I'm looking at "Misty Mountain Hop" here). Regardless of the blues rip-offs (almost every British blues band of the sixties ripped off the masters, the problem with Zeppelin was that rather than incorporating it very subtly, a la the Rolling Stones, who would lick a riff here or there, Zeppelin would piece whole stolen fragments of blues standards into their 'original), the group simply could never fill an entire album with strong material. Even I, their best album, has some throwaway songs on it. IV, the closest they came to a classic "original" album, has a couple lousy songs on it. In addition, although I'm sure I'll get plenty of hate mail from irate 17 year old Zep fans, at least two of the group were inadequate in some way. You've already addressed Bonham's (RIP) weaknesses well, so I won't go into that here, but I've also always had a problem with Robert Plant. Say what you will about his amazing range, control, etc., but he couldn't alter the tone and expressiveness of his voice too much. As a result, an entire album becomes monotonous towards the end, as all but the best ones feature similar-sounding performances. In addition, as time goes on, we hear more and more of Plant's yelps, "oh-oh"s, "mama"s, and other asides get exteremely annoying. Although Roger Daltrey, for example, had a more limited range, I feel that he could usually get into a song and sing it with more power and emotion than Plant could, although this could also be a result of Townshend's generally superior songwriting. Jimmy Page and J.P. Jones are great; I have no problems with either of them, musically. (One thing in favor of Bonham vs. Moon though--you basically couldn't have Keith drum on a song without it becoming really heavy or having to mix it quite softly into the background. While this worked great for things like "Baba O'Riley", it transforms otherwise gentle songs like "I'm One" into heavy rockers during the middle eight.) A good band with a couple of serious defects. What one cannot overlook, though, is the musical chemistry the four had. When they got going, especially on the early albums, they could knock your socks off. A three overall.

Mark Perrone (markperrone@zoominternet.net) (10/11/04)

I'm a drummer and have played since age 8 , I am now 32 . I have a lot of experience and must disagree on every level with your opinion of John Bonham. You can have whatever opinion you want of the music but there musical ability is far superior to most bands of the era and even to this day.

Its my opinion but it's an educated one. Drummers of great renown the world over all sight Bonham as an innovative and amazing drummer.

Like the site and the fact that you are willing to listen to others opinion.

Tim Commerford (timcommerford@hotmail.com) (12/09/04)

Greetings,

I really enjoy your site, I will check for new reviews in the future.

I agree with you that Led Zeppelin's debut album was their best, and that blues were their comparative advantage.

Thomas Smith (sarnivisca@hotmail.com) (02/12/05)

I've just been listening to the awesome Kashmir by these Gods Of Rock Led Zeppelin, It goes

Duh duh duh....duh duh duh...duh duh duh... (higher) duh duh duh....duh duh duh..

And Whole Lotta Love;

Dah DUM dah DUM dum...dum....dum...dum...dum.... Dah DUM dah DUM dum dum....dum...dum...dum

And one of my faves, Commuincation Breakdown;

duh duh duh duh duh DAH duh dah...duh duh duh duh duh duh duh DAH duh dah

Anyone who doesn't bow down before such musical GENIUS has got serious issues!

Nathan Schulz (theironchefpresident@gmail.com) (02/23/05)

-To Thomas Smith

What are you trying to insinuate? That because some Zep riffs are simple they are a bad group. In times like these, I like to turn to the unquestioned genius of Beethoven. I take his 5th symphony as example:
dah dah dah DUH!!!!!! dah dah dah DUH!!!!!!

So, in conclusion, Thomas Smith is a dumbass.

Nice page John!

--
I'm Nathan Schulz and I approve this message.

Thomas Smith (sarnivisca@hotmail.com) (03/06/05)

Yes I did suspect that some might pick up on Beethoven's 5th Symphony. The difference though is that the 5th doesn't consist of of the few notes repeated to the point of wanting to push the eject button. It has lots of other things going on later to keep your attention. If the 5ths intro was looped for 6 minutes, then you couild put in a on a Led Zep album and it would fit right in. Whole Lotta Love, the song that basically defined Led Zeps sound, is really nothing special when you think about it. And I don't think the 5th Symphonies intro is anything special either, just attention grabbing. Beethoven is actually my favourite figure of music, but the 5ths intro bores me stiff. Yes, Led Zep could sometimes be more complex, but.....so could dozens of other bands.

Chris Gioia (Chris.Gioia@gmail.com)

I agree with most of the things you said, but one thing bothers me, I havent read the whole site but JPJ doesnt do much, well not as much as the other guys. I think Zeppelin could use a bit more from him on some of their songs because Bonham and the other guys kinda over power him. Dont get me wrong, I know he's good (How else could he have gotten into the band?) but I mean you could get a lot more out of him in some songs.

    Also I have to say the guitarist from AC/DC Is extremely underrated. I think his name is Malcolm Young (I dont know, I'm kinda knew to them)

And I never though Led Zep were bad. Just boring.

Gate Attendant (gateattendant@crystalcovehoa.org) (09/05/05)

Hey John! Great website. I have visited A LOT of different music reviews sites, but yours is simply the best. I have read all of your reviews, and I completely agree with everything you think about all the classic rock albums (the ONLY exception is being that Wind & Wuthering is my favourite Genesis album. Probably because I'm a keyboard player). But anyways, I totally agree with you that Led Zeppelin is very overrated, even though I own all of their studio albums. Especially John Bohnam. You said it the best - his dynamics are either loud or VERY loud. I was actually in a Led Zeppelin tribute band called "Four Sticks" for a couple of years, taking care of the keyboard parts (I never noticed how much keyboards actually were in Led Zeppelin, before I joined the band), and our drummer, who's day job was a cop, was the reason I started using earplugs. The reason I quit the band was because I got so sick of the tunes, I physically could not hear any more Zep. They are a good band, but in small doses. If I were a member of a Pink Floyd tribute band, I don't think I would ever get sick of playing that. But Led Zep gets annoying after a while.

Edward Gallagher (edzep54@sbcglobal.net) (10/19/05)

I enjoyed the 'Zep discovery' anecdote...  I'm not really objective about Zeppelin since I've been a fan since I slit the vinyl on 'Zep I' back in the spring of '69...(a day etched in my memory on many levels)  I never saw them live but have seen Percy and Page separately and together about 10 times since '83... anyway... to say I revere them is an understatement... in the same breath, I can say that I felt the fire was fading after '72... despite digging the hell out of what came after - I've collected them on vinyl, cassette, and CD... bought bootlegs, downloaded clips from session outtakes and live snippets off of Electric Magic, hell, I've even got a Les Paul... Jimmy is my favorite guitarist of all time - and that's not because I think he's the most talented, or precise, or fastest... aside from a chameleon-like adaptability to many styles, he had a vision that propelled that group of disparate talents in some bold directions... I have my favorite and my not so favorite Zep tunes, but I can't say a single one bores me...  as I said, I'm not an objective admirer of this band... I'm an amateur guitar/hobbyist that can play 'the first 30 seconds' of a lot of Zep tunes and my brothers refer to me as 'Ed Zeppelin' half out of regard for my love for the band, half for my raggedy attempts to play their stuff on the guitar... had I experienced the Zeppelin catalogue 30 years on I wouldn't have had the benefit of having them provide the soundtrack for my adolescent-into-adulthood years and probably wouldn't be as doggedly faithful to their legacy - BUT - I'm exceedingly thankful that I did and that I am...

  unsure if someone mentioned it, but Plant's stated 'misery' during the recording of Presence was in no small way attributable to the fact that he was in a wheelchair from a serious car wreck he and his family experienced while vacationing in the Mediterranean in '75....  At the time of it's release, I remember a dear friend of mine referring to the album as 'Absence'... although I was very disappointed at its totally raw, non-Celtic, non-Tolkein-y, non-acoustic-tinged slant on the Zep sound, I've since developed a fondness for it - although alcohol may have had a role in heightening my appreciation for it... '-)  One thing I've always said about the lads, and I don't believe I copped this notion from anyone else - either consciously or 'un':   - 'Their music evokes memories of songs they never wrote' - at least for this fan... that Jimmy is still cobbling together stuff from the vaults is fine by me... long may he rock!

  lastly, I always attributed the perceived decline of Plant's voice to Jimmy's iron-fisted production - i.e. a rounded Zeppelin sound - as opposed to 'a hot-shot vocalist with a backup band' or 'a power trio with a hot vocalist' )  IMHO, I feel that Plant sometimes shows up for recording sessions a little under-prepped - most recently, I thought his voice was lackluster on 'Walking into Clarksdale' yet extremely well-honed on the accompanying tour... plus, putting the vocal cords thru the workout he does in concert makes the fact that he can even talk, much less carry a tune, all the more impressive... of the times I've personally seen him since '83, he's never been less than commanding and impassioned...

Guitarhippy40@aol.com (04/25/06)

Hey, I am 14 and I haven't had as much time to see all the greats, but I have been listenin to classic rock since i could listen to music, but this is what i think.  I agree with you about robert plant, he was a good singer to listen too,  but he is no good to watch.  They all amaze me, don't get me wrong, mostly Jimmy Page, because I know how hard it is to move your fingers that fast, when I try to play his leads, it just doesn't fit.  John Paul Jones was not extraordinary at one thing, but everything.  I will have to disagree with you about John Bonham.  You say he ruined it for them, look how many rock artists couldn't even make it to his age.  Most of them died in 1970.  He is so fast and amazing at the way he ties into the song, I think he tops Keith Moon, i wasn't near as impressed with him as I am with John Bonham.  I think he's the best drummer and Jimmy Page is the best guitarist.  I guess it depends what your opinion.

nickrj@aol.com (05/12/06)

Well so both you and George gave these guys a three. That's ridiculous. These guys invented heavy metal and hard rock. So I give them a four.

  After all Jimmy Page is one of the great guitarists out there. John Paul Jones a terrific bassist. Although I think Plant and Bonham deserve some more credit too. I personally don't see what makes Bonham so bad. Also Plant's voice (along with Page's guitar work) was kinda like the band's trademark.

  And you say bands that get 3/5 from you are in your hall of fame. Well for me it's 4/5 and here's my hall of fame.

  The Beatles
Bob Dylan
Peter Gabriel
Genesis
Jimi Hendrix
Michael Jackson
Elton John
Led Zeppelin
John Lennon
Paul McCartney
The Moody Blues
Pink Floyd
The Police
Prince
The Rolling Stones
Bruce Springsteen
Talking Heads
The Who
Stevie Wonder
Yes

b persram (rpersram@sympatico.ca) (11/25/06)

What I think of Zeppelin is, hmmmmmmm, OH........    WOW!

    Out Of sight, Incredible, confounding, in a whimsical, but propounding, subtle way.
    When I awake, knowing that I  will eventually fall asleep, thereby creating Z's, I am thrilled, astounded, and bewildered, by my own creativity and at the same time, at my own delusions...... Ok I digress.
    The questioned that was posed was, "What do you think of Led Zeppelin?"

            "Well I would have to say that they make me,  .....................................

                make me......................

                                                                                                                                                                        a little .......

        lost ...............................,

Chris Schahfer (chrischahfer@yahoo.com) (09/29/07)

Man, I totally agree with the three for Led Zeppelin. You and Starostin have the right idea about those guys: a good band for sure, but comparing them to the Beatles, Rolling Stones or Who (as many do) is a total waste.

BMurf (hunkmcchops@gmail.com) (01/19/08)

hello,

my name's Brian, i'm from ireland. i stumbled across your page while checkin out various led zep stuff online. tis quite interesting, no doubt. i agree with you in some places, in others not. and that's cool, because obviously people think different things about different things and without those differences life would be boring. two things struck me however, and they may seem interesting to you, since i'm full time bass player, and a massive Who fan.

firstly; you say that you're not that into the whole bonham thing, and that he ain't all he's cracked up to be. fair enough, that's your opinion. but bonham's death is a sad loss to the drumming world. many of his rhythms are jaw dropping in their complexity (and i know complexity comes nowehere near meaning goodness). but what's truly remarkable is how he marries his complex rhythms to the groove of most of the songs, combining with john paul jones in an electrifying way. as a bass player, i would rather play with bonham than moon. i know the work of both inside out (was raised on the who) and the reason moon worked is because John Entwistle was a serious genius. able to play on and around the beat, incorporating melodies into heavy grooves, entwistle's bass playing is what makes moon's drumming make sense, if you know what i mean. i agree that Live at Leeds is outstanding, but it also illustrates my point. moon is almost always on the verge of crashing certain songs, but J. Ent sorts it out. JPJ is also a great player, but not up there fully with JE. what would have been truly interesting would have been JE playing with Bonham. The latter's rock solid yet complex drumming is akin to JE's bass playing. the two together could have been amazing.

secondly: don't be petty and point out other people's grammar and punctuation. pedantry is ugly. especially when there are a fair few mistakes in your own text. but hey, i ain't gonna point 'em out!!

(author's note): Lousy level-headed commentators and their 100% correct rebuke of my pettiness with pointing out grammar and punctuation mistakes in comments I don't like. One of these days I'm going to bother to remove those things from my site completely.

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*Led Zeppelin - 1969 Atlantic*
10 (13)

Best song: Dazed And Confused

Send me your thoughts

Dave Sahota (shivan99@imsa.edu)

in your talk of zep 1, you forget to mention "how many more times" this song drove the group's early career as a closer. people would come to shows and listen to a lot of songs they weren't familiar with in the middle just to hear them open with communication breakdown and jimmys wah pedal and close with how many more times....the problem with your critique of zep 1 is that you give it all to jimmy. you mention JPJ once, and that's for organ playing on babe i'm gonna leave you. the bassline is what holds the communication breakdown solo together. the bassline makes "how many more times" the bassline makes dazed and confused. and talk about them "not writing the songs" hello? jimmy page owned dazed and confused...i don't know if you remember or not, but he was a bass player in the yardbirds...so that baby is his...if you remember, led zeppelin's original name was "the new yardbirds" so anything jimmy played with the yardbirds kinda belongs to them too...black mountainside "not bad enough to reduce the grade from a 10" come on....this is so beautiful on the guitar....it's in D modal tuning (the same as kashmir) and it has some stellar guitar work..."best zep album ever" and "if you don't like it you don't understand the group" are 2 rediculous, unfounded statements...i mean they're your opinion and you're totally entitled to it, but if you want to convince anyone else you need more evidence than you've provided.

(author's note): Maybe, but at least I can spell and use proper punctuation and capitalization. And I did mention HMMT, Dave - it's actually a favorite of mine, so I wouldn't leave it out.

Second, Dave, Page came into the Yardbirds relatively late in their career. And whether he had the rights to it or not, D&C was pieced together before Jimmy entered the group. Now, again, I'm not debating that he is responsible for the great guitarwork or the solid production, I'm not. But only give him credit for what he deserves, ok?

Third - is it a thing of if I say I is the best Zep album it's 'rediculous' but if I were to say IV or PG was the best it would be completely accurate, bravo to me for being such an astute listener? Whatever. On I and II, Zep are setting the rules for heavy blues-based rock - on PG, they're following rules set by others. Guess which one I prefer.

Casey Brennan (bevan@voicenet.com)

Great Zeppelin review. I wouldn't agree it's the best album from the band, but it's up there. The band is at their best on blistering blues cuts like "How Many More Times" and "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave you", but already shows its' acoustic side way before 'III', with "Black Mountain Side".  Zeppelin is simply at their best here when it comes to the overall atmosphere of the songs, Plants singing, and powerful blues. No one had ever heard anything this heavy before the early months of 1969(the Beatles "Helter Skelter" was possibly the heaviest tune ever before this album). The atmopshere, and especially the powerful drum sound were never heard before; the drum sound of hard rock prior to this record were tinny compared to this. Even as good as Mitch Mitchell of the Jimi Hendrix Experience was on drums, the sound is rather tinny compared to this, as the focus on late 60's hard rock was concentrated more on how hard-hitting or heavy the guitar was. So, overall this has to be the most revolutionary Zeppelin album, although i like 'Led Zeppelin II' a bit more, as there are even more amazing riffs and guitar solos. Anyone who loves the band though, will most likely love this here album as this is what the bands sound is based on. I'd give it a high 9 out of 10.

Joel Larsson (joel.larsson@privat.utfors.se)

Well THIS is an excellent one! These guys were real bluesrockers! This is heavy, psychedelic blues, and everything here rocks (except of 'Black mountain side' of course!). The only weakness on this one is that I get more and more bothered on this one each time I listen to it. But a given 10, anyway.

Gene Kodadek (g_kodadek@hotmail.com)

It never ceases to amaze me how thoroughly underrated this album is. The only thing that i could even remotely categorize as a weak spot is Your Time Is Gonna Come, and that mostly because of that idiodically repetetive chorus. I don't agree that You Shook Me is the best track on here, it would have to be Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You. Nor is this their best effort; Houses Of The Holy was better. This is a close second, though.

"Sittinger, Brian D" (brian.d.sittinger@lmco.com) (7/17/01)

There is someone else out there who agrees with me! Perhaps I just really enjoy their psychedelic blues sound (making up a good portion of this album; it is mindblowing! "You Shook Me All Night Long", and "How Many More Times" in particular). In truth, owning all the Led Zeppelin albums, except Coda (which does not seem to be a big loss), The Song Remains the Same (a partial loss), and the BBC Sessions (need to find the money!), I must say this is the most consistent record throughout its career. None of the songs are bad here. The stylistic shifts form song to song aren't bad either.

A few brief notes: The 'heavy metal' classic "Communication Breakdown" sets a basic blueprint for much of what will follow: simple, yet catchy and effective riffs, solos with purpose, and energy. "Babe I'm Going to Leave You" has to be one of their most effective welding of the acoustic and electric guitars, a very compelling piece.

Plant's vocals work well throughout this album too, including his hialrious yells with Page imitating him on guitar on 'You Shook Me All Night Long". I think I also undestand what you are saying about Robert Plant's voice: it got screechier with time! (Is this a reason why my father never bought a Led Zeppelin album after Led Zeppelin III?) Enough said: 10 out of 10 (undoubtedly!!).

Pyramid2112@aol.com (6/25/02)

My rating: 10/10

Zep I is definitely one of my favorites. This was actually the first Zeppelin album I owned, so for about a year, this was the only source to Zeppelin I really had, besides the radio. And I got hooked on it. Definitely one of the best debuts ever, maybe THE best debut. Plant's voice is definitely at its best, and even early on, the others experimented w/ their sounds very well. John Paul Jones using the organ, Jimmy Page's experimental use of guitar tunings on Black Mountain Side, and John Bonham's drumming was amazing, and like it always was, it was consistent.

Here, the band was just jamming Unlike subsequent albums, where their songs were structured and adequately arranged in my opinion. Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, Dazed and Confused, How Many More Times are the best songs on the album, and always give me a chill up and down my spine whenever I hear them, even 4 or 5 years later (I'm only 17). For a band w/ no recording contract, no money, and only 30 hours in the studio, in that length of time, they pumped out a damn good album, and a classic that still makes kids pick up guitars to this day... well.. probably not as much as they did back then.

nickrj@aol.com (05/12/06)

An Awesome debut. The band goes to blues and all 3 blues songs (You Shook Me, I Can't Quit You Baby, How Many More Times) rule.

  As for their originals, Good Times, Bad Times is allright. Comminication Breakdown is very fast and cool. Your Time Is Gonna Come and Black Mountain Side are nice mellow numbers.

  However the best songs are Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You. The band has never done a better ballad. And finally Dazed and Confused. Everything you want to love about the Zeps is right in this song.

  All in all a perfect debut for the band 10(14)

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Led Zeppelin II - 1969 Atlantic
8 (11)

Best song: Whole Lotta Love

I HATE THE PRODUCTION ON THIS ALBUM. Whereas a large chunk of my love for the debut was based in how awesome it sounded, the way it was so much heavier than anything else to that point but still didn't excessively overwhelm the listener with that fact, a large chunk of my relative dislike (relative, mind you; I am still giving it a rating of "very good") of this album comes from the fact that I can barely listen to this without getting a headache. Apparently, this was recorded while the guys were on tour, and the result is that the mix is very raw and very heavy on the low end. Everything on the album, even the relatively "light" acoustic-based numbers, is saturated by screeching guitar sounds, basslines too high in the mix, drums trying to wake the dead, and wailing cock-rock vocals that (imo) sound ever so slightly worse and more obnoxious than they did on the debut. For a metalhead, this may sound like heaven; for me, there's just a little too much grit here for my tastes.

As an aside, though, while the bass sound may hurt my ears on the whole, the great irony is that the actual basslines on this album are not only my favorites on the whole in the Zep catalogue, they also put this album into my imaginary "top 3 bass guitar albums I've ever heard" list (along with Quadrophenia and Fragile). There's really an incredible mix of power and grace to be found throughout here, and if it's true what I've been told that budding bassists tend to swear by this album, then more power to them.

So anyway, on this album, Led Zeppelin stretches out its songwriting chops far more than on the first one, with more "complete" originals here than before, and this yields mostly positive results. That is, with one major exception; the headsmashingly awful (and I don't think I'll ever change my mind on this) ballad Thank You. Now, granted, one major clunker on the second album isn't something to be completely ashamed of; on their second album, for instance, the Rolling Stones were still writing boring pieces of slop like Congratulations and Good Times, Bad Times (absolutely no relation to Zeppelin's). But still, man, this is bad on every level, from the unengaging strumming melody Page comes up with (compare this with what he had to work with on Babe I'm Gonna Leave You) to the incredibly primitive lyrics ("happiness, no more be sad, happiness, I'm glad") to the fact that the very notion of a sweet ballad written by Robbie to his wife in 1969 while he was on the road and Zeppelin was the biggest band in the world is utterly laughable. As far as I'm concerned, this is the father of every half-assed semi-acoustic ballad that future metal bands would write to try and fool their audiences into thinking they have a "tender" side, and it's hard for me to not hate the song because of that.

The other original material is mostly fine, though, and that even includes the ballads. What is and What Should Never be is an extremely lovely number (with a terrific bassline serving as the best feature) that features a lovely Plant delivery and a GORGEOUS quiet Page solo. Of course, it also includes a bunch of "rocking" passages with Robbie screaming his head off that kinda spoil the impression a little, but only a little a bit. Ramble On is in much the same vein (and in fact its main feature is also a cute bassline mixed very high), with Plant's obsession with Tolkien coming out more explicitly, but it's still a nice little number, even if Plant starts getting on my nerves near the end.

The most famous and important parts of the album, though, are the three heaviest originals. First, there's the infamous Whole Lotta Love (some of the lyrics are stolen from yet another Willie Dixon number; poor Willie), which has one of the most killer riffs Page would ever come up with, and booming drumming and powerful bass to go along with it. Oh, and that midsection of guitar squeals and erratic drums and Plant moans and wails that simulates a male orgasm. Sheesh. Whatever, the guitar solo that comes right after it is terrific, and the closeout section is fine, though I do kinda wish Robbie would shut up after a while (this desire re: Robbie is a common theme with me, so get used to it). It's a well-deserved classic, whatever may be.

The other two heavy originals come at the beginning of side 2, in the form of Heartbreaker and Living Loving Maid. Heartbreaker may seem kinda dumb at first, but that simple riff, pounded out by Page and Jones in unison, will just eat into your soul whether you want it to or not, and even Plant sounds fine here (it's basically a harder blues-rock piece, and Plant treats it accordingly). The chaotic wanky guitar solo isn't amazing (I mean, I like sloppiness in small doses, but this is kinda ridiculous), but the band jamming coming out of the midsection is great, so I don't mind too much. And then, thanks to a bad end edit that practically requires classic rock radio to always play these songs back to back (I have never ever heard the one played without the other), we immediately break into Living Loving Maid, a nice piece of up-tempo funk rock. It's dumb, yes, but dumb in a Communication Breakdown sort of way, so I like it.

The remaining three tracks fall into the "reworked blues" category, and my feelings are divergent on them. I'm fairly ambivalent in how I regard the closing Bring it On Home, but the second half does at least half a nice enough riff (as the band morphs from the weird blues cover in the first half of the song into all out 60's metal mode), so I don't exactly dislike it. It just seems ... I dunno, kinda unnecessary after everything else. Anyway, I love The Lemon Song, which is sort of a hodgepodge of elements from a bunch of the blues numbers they were performing on stage (Howlin' Wolf's Killing Floor is especially prominent), and while I get tired of hearing Robbie's incessant "Squeeze my lemon" pleas on The BBC Sessions, it tends to work fine here. And boy do I ever love the basswork in this track.

Moby Dick, however, is a drum solo, and something I could live completely without. The riff is taken from an old blues standard (The Girl I Love She Got Long Wavy Black Hair, later found on BBC), and the structure of the piece is not only taken (almost completely) from Ginger Baker's solo Toad, it's nowhere near as interesting either (but I think I said that already in the introduction). I know that lots of drummers adore solos like this, but that's just further proof that metal drummers and I are living in totally different universes. The quality of a drummer, as far as I'm concerned, is manifested in the kind of rhythm provided when the rest of the band is playing; it has nothing to do with the amount of noise one can make while playing by oneself.

So what of it all? The truth is, I like most of the songs on here individually, and there's a small number that I love. But when I take into account the couple of songs I hate, the fact that all the rockers have that same head-splitting guitar sound and loud drumming, that even the ballads are somewhat spoiled by that sound, and that Robbie sounds way worse to my ears here than he did on I, there's no question that this has to get a noticably lower rating. Taken as individual songs, I might be able to call this a high eight instead of a low eight; as is, as a whole album, there's no way I can give this a higher score.

Send me your thoughts

Dave Sahota (shivan99@imsa.edu)

zep 2.... thank you is good........ what is and what should never be is good how can you not like ramble on?...it's got a beautiful blues based acousticy first half and a soaring lead second half...you contradict yourself in that the same raw bluesy power from jimmy page that drives zep 1 is a downfall in zep 2? i could bitch on for a while, but i won't

(author's note): No, I do not contradict myself. (a) The heaviness in I was always very clear and well produced and (b) the band was very careful about placing acoustic numbers in just the right places to provide a balance. Whereas on II I often feel as if I am suffocating on the nonstop onslaught of muddy heaviness (or heavy muddiness). That is why II gets a lower rating.

Also ... I didn't say I don't like Ramble On. I said it's a wonderful ballad/rocker that is similar to What is ... and that has the bass mixed too high. Read before you comment, Dave.

Jon Greiman (homer@imsa.edu)

Moby Dick. It should be pointed out that although the riff for it and The Girl I ... are very similair, they are different. They're in different keys, have similiar melodic structures, and similiar rythems. Had they been different bands writing the songs, they might have gotten away with it. It's kinda like comparing No Doubt's No Doubt to Supertramp's Breakfast at America.

Casey Brennan (bevan@voicenet.com)

The constant heaviness and heavy bass sound you speak of, is what I find so greatly appealing on this album. It wouldn't be so good if heavy after heavy tune, the songs started to numb the brain or get tiresome. This doesn't happen on here though. With either an amazing riff, guitar solo, superb dynamics, or all three carrying each song on here this album from start to finish is awesome. I don't find the sound hardly murky or muffled at all(except for maybe 'Moby Dick'); even if it is murky it works well on any given song. After being pointed out earlier that the album was basically a rush-job in the studio as it was recorded between tours, I've begun to notice that in certain tracks like "Heartbreakers" and a few others. However, the rushed sound enhances the record by giving it a more exciting, hard-hitting, and compact quality. This leaves hardly a weak moment at all on here. The drum solo on "Moby Dick" might be an exception to me, as although fairly nice(and better than a lot of other drum solos), I don't really care for drum solos either. Besides that though, the riff in the track is superb. Anyway, I really do love the compactness of the record, with no unnecessary moments.

Along with what I just said, what really makes this my favorite Zeppelin album is how creatively executed tracks like "Whole Lotta Love"(the riff, fantastic middle section, and ending vocal section are very memorable) and "The Lemon Song"(a classic blues cut with some famous lines and great bass playing) are. The hard-to-soft dynamics are also superb, and even better than on most other Zep albums - "What is..." and "Ramble On" fall in this category. Everything is just so well-executed on here that it's amazing. As hard-hitting and heavy as this album is, I think that there are enough moments that let the listener relax... "Thank You", the verses of "Ramble On", and a few other parts of other tracks do balance out the album pretty well. Although not as revolutionary as the first album, the band repeats everything to just as good effect on here; it's an electrifying record that is top-notch in all areas(even the singing which may be a slightly worse than the first album, still is pretty great in most of the tracks - think "Whole Lotta Love"!). After listening to this, It may be a good idea to put on some Beatles (always a good idea) or Moodies, but for me another Zeppelin album would also do.

Gene Kodadek (g_kodadek@hotmail.com)

I think you were perhaps a bit hard on this one. I have to agree with you viv-a-vis the production, likewise regarding Plant's voice (and idiotic lyrics), but there is a plus side: this album smokes straight through track 6 without a weak moment to be found. I disagree completely with your assessment of Thank You, it's marvelous if you can get past the lyrics. I do think that Ramble On is pretty lame, and I can't imagine why such a glorious riff was wasted on a drum solo. BTW, I have to disagree with you regarding Bonham. He's certainly better than any drummer I've ever worked with! BIOH ends the album in grand style, the stupid intro notwithstanding. I would have given this a 13. And WIAWSNB was the best track on the album.

Mukundan Sudarsan (s_mukundan@yahoo.com) (7/17/01)

I don't agree in anyway with your opinion about the "murky and crappy" (Thank You). The beginning melody of this song is one of the best way you can package melody with hard rock. I think that the drums were mixed at a higher level but it doesn't in anyway make do of the melody that the song is built with. And if someone thinks the lyrics of this song are weak then most of the Power Ballad Anthems of the crappy hair bands of the 80s can go in the toilet. I pretty much agree with the rest of your review about the album.

Sittinger, Brian D (brian.d.sittinger@lmco.com) (7/21/01)

Solid album. The psychedeila that so well marked the first album starts its dissipation here, although it's still on display especially in "Whole Lotta Love." [Also note the backwards echoes at the end of the aforementioned song. I read in some magazine where the engineer on this album doubted that this effect can be done. Well, Jimmy page showed him otherwise, having done it on a Yardbirds song.] As for the rest, "Thank You" isn't really that bad, and "Moby Dick" still drags on endlessly. Mostly memorable riff rock throughout, especially the "Heartbreaker/Living Loving Maid" section (for some miserable reason these songs are divided up in the cassette tape version - maddening!). I agree that this album ends on a slightly weaker note. Nevertheless, a strong 8 out of 10.

Nathan Schulz (isrpgmaker@hotmail.com) (1/26/04)

I think Led Zeppelin II deserves more of your credit.  Every single one of the songs (If you count Heartbreaker/Living Loving Maid as one song) have fabolous contrast within themselves (What is and What Should Never Be) or have spectacular movement changes (Bring It on Home). Although the album is quite heavy and needs a better balance of acoustic to electric sounds, there is such wonderful cohesion between movements/phrases within the songs and the transitions between the songs that most of this album could almost be an opera or symphony. This album is greater than the sum of its parts and deserves an easy 9.

Matt Dean (mattdean@f2s.com) (05/12/06)

'This is the father of every half-assed semi-acoustic ballad that future metal bands would write to try and fool their audiences into thinking they have a "tender" side'

  That is absolutely GREAT! A couple of years ago i was watching a repeat of an MTV music awards from 2002 or 2001. and Fred Durst, who was still hanging onto that last shred of respect he somehow had (in the music world) came on and performed a song acoustically, and GUESS what song it was! Yep, Thank You!!! Oh dear. Anyway, on the album- i think i'll always prefer III and IV. I think II is more a fun album to play along to, but not to listen to particularly. Whole Lotta Love, What Is... and Ramble On are brilliant, but i agree that the production just isn't very pleasant at all. See Ya! 

nickrj@aol.com (05/12/06)

Not quite as good as the first album but worthwhile none the less

  The bad song here is Thank You, How can they go from Babe to this in terms of ballads?

  Also Moby Dick those who hate that song pretty much hate Bonham and I'm not one of them.

  Other 7 songs are great. Whole Lotta Love is one of the bands signature tunes. What Is and What Should Never Be and Heartbreaker are great too.

  The Lemon Song and Bring It On Home are two more great bluesy tunes and finally Ramble On and Living Loving Maid are good rockers. I agree with you on Jones on this album as well. 9(13)

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Led Zeppelin III - 1970 Atlantic
8 (11)

Best song: Since I've Been Loving You

Send me your thoughts

Dave Sahota (shivan99@imsa.edu)

zep 3.... celebration day is awesome......i mean come on...they had to have some powerful rock element to zep 3, and this had some power....it's pretty beautiful if you think about it....and though it was the only representative of zep 3 on the soundtrack, it does not appear in the movie, and instead there's a bitchin' version of since i've been lovin you

(author's note): Dave is right here; the movie version of SIBLY is terrific, and I really wish it were there rather than Celebration Day.

Bron-yr-stomp is just good...pagey doin' his acoustic work... and friends gets a little dry

Jamie Anthony (jaony@lineone.net)

Led Zeppelin 3 is what I would call "their best work". There really is nothing on this album which doesn't please - expecially "friends" - an acoustic riff which is one of the few to actually beat the "Question" riff. Then when the eastern mellotron comes in... wow. SIBLO is probably the best on the album, though. all the others simply rule - I mean immigrant song - what a way to start a folky album! how decieving, eh? brilliant driving riff and beat, though. and i LOVE "Bron-yr-Aur stomp" classic foot-stamping folky-stuff. overall 15 = music don't get much better than this. unless you're listening to Beethoven, that is.

Oh, and John, you say you're studying mathematics at uni? maybe that's why it's only you who can understand the rating system (joke - I understand it fine now).

Gene Kodadek (g_kodadek@hotmail.com)

I think you rated this album pretty accurately, although I disagree to an extent as to where it's strengths and weaknesses lie. Of course, SIBLY is a true classic, easily the best track present; Zep was definitely at their best with the blues. Immigrant Song smokes, and I think Celebration Day is a better tune than you give it credit for. As for the acoustic stuff... I'm a classical/folk/blues fingerstyle guitarist, and all I can say is that Page does NOT know how to handle an acoustic guitar. Gallows Pole is pretty good for all that, and That's The Way is a nice song as well. Most of the rest is pretty forgetable.  

Sittinger, Brian D (brian.d.sittinger@lmco.com) (7/21/01)

This one is a strange one for me - I don't know why. Most of the second half I just don't recall too well, although most of it was quite pleasant although it (again) fades at the end. However, "Immigrant Song" , "Since I've Been Loving You", and "Gallows Pole" are among my favorites among this album (your comment on Led Zeppelin being a great blues band id definitely supported in the second song mentioned above; for some reason I never looked at Led Zeppelin from this perspective, no matter how clear it seems to me now, oh well...). Celebration Day is just okay, not much more. Low 8 out of 10. (I feel guilty giving it any lower...)

nickrj@aol.com (05/12/06)

An interesting album to say the least.  The second side is some great acoustic music (apart from Hays off to Roy Harper). That's the Way rules as do Gallow's Pole and Tangerine.   As for the first side it's kinda mixed. Immigrant Song is great. I also like Friends and Out On The Tiles. However Celebration Day is iffy and as much as I hate to say it, I don't care too much about Since I've Been Loving You. Kinda too long for my book. Otherwise a fairly good one. 8(12)

Grant Parks (grantwparks@gmail.com) (01/13/07)

Since I've Been Lovin' You has the *best* Page blues solo of any song, period.

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Untitled - 1971 Atlantic
9 (12)

Best song: When The Levee Breaks

In the year of our Lord one thousand, nine hundred and seventy-one, it was seemingly the time for big rock bands to make what I'd call "self-consciously great" albums (like The Who with Who's Next or The Rolling Stones with Sticky Fingers). It feels to me like Zeppelin really wanted to make a big statement with this album, and it's hard to argue that they didn't; this is, after all, the centerpiece of their legend, the one that everybody owns or at least has been able to tape just from listening to classic rock radio (if you listen to any one generic classic rock station 24 hours a day, I'd lay 3 to 1 odds that you will hear this entire album, barring perhaps Four Sticks, in no more than three days). The production on here is almost ludicrously meticulous (if a bit sterile in places), and it displays in a broad flourish all of the various sides of the band (as opposed to going overboard in one direction or another as on the last two albums). They're aggressive rock'n'rollers (Rock and Roll), they're regular acoustic balladeers (Going to California), they're mystical Tolkien addicts (Battle of Evermore), they're bluesy cock-rockers (Black Dog), they're anthemic voices of a stoned generation (Stairway to Heaven), and when the mood suits them they're the awesomest re-interpreters of traditional blues numbers in the world (When the Levee Breaks).

Unfortunately, they're also prone to bouts of being among the world's biggest morons. Even when I was in my earliest developmental stages of becoming familiar with rock music, listening to Stairway repeatedly and thinking that Carry on My Wayward Son and American Pie were among the best songs ever written (uggggggggggggggggghhhhh), I hated the living guts out of Misty Mountain Hop, and that feeling has only cemented over time. EVERYTHING about that song irritates me: the way the electric piano combines with the guitar and bass to create a tone that may as well be the actual sonic manifestation of retardation, the way Plant sings one of the stupidest "melodies" ever to make its way onto mainstream classic rock radio, the way it neither rocks nor pops in any way that I can find remotely acceptable ... This is, without a doubt, my least favorite Led Zeppelin song, one I hate more than the worst filler material on Physical Graffiti or Presence, or the worst tracks on Coda, or even Thank You or live versions of Moby Dick. If I never hear this song again, it will be far too soon.

Nothing else on the album even remotely makes me wretch as much as that track, but there are still other places that make me more than a bit confused about the commonly held notion that this is one of the greatest albums of all time. Four Sticks really isn't interesting at all to me; it has that ugly discordant riff and guitar sound, and Bonham drumming with four sticks instead of two, and ... basically nothing else of note. I mean, it has some ugly wailing and some "artsy" synth noises here and there, but I'll be damned if I'm going to consider those significant positives. Anyway, I'm also not an enormous fan of this version of Black Dog, though that shouldn't be taken to say that I dislike the track; I actually love the live takes of it on BBC and How the West Was Won. The main problem I have here is that the perfect production, to my ears, takes away the fire that the track otherwise has. In my opinion, this is a song that needs to be raw, to be aggressive, to be unpolished, as opposed to here where so much of the edge is taken off of Plant's vocals and the playing of the other three. Here, it's a decent enough track, but it doesn't really rouse a bone or organ in my body.

The other five tracks, though, are between great and phenomenal, and are enough to bring the rating up to an extremely high level given how much of the album I don't really like. Rock and Roll is a great representative of its title, a piece where Bonham's insanely loud drumming is a totally necessary asset and where Plant gets in a great echoey vocal. As far as heavy retro-rock goes, this is about as good as it gets, and Page's hyperactive guitar work throughout is really awesome.

The next two tracks feature the band trying to go for a heavy "mystic" vibe, and overall they're both winners. I admit that I like Battle of Evermore a bit less now that I've become a Tolkien addict; I know that this is supposed to be about one of the big battles in Return of the King (everything I've read from people on the subject says it's about the battle on the Pelennor Fields, but I can't shake the feeling that it might actually be about the battle at the Black Gate), but even after having read The Lord of the Rings four times, I'm still not totally sure what the heck Robbie's wailing about (who the heck are the angels of Avalon??). In other words, not only are the lyrics awfully amateurish sounding, it keeps feeling to me that Plant didn't actually remember RoTK very well while he was writing them. That said, I still think it's an awesome track, and it succeeds where other bands fail miserably in such attempts. The weaving of Robert's voice with Sandy Denny's is utter heaven to my ears, and Jimmy throws in some of the most beautiful mandolin (that's what it is, right?) playing I've ever heard on a rock album.

And then there's Stairway to Heaven, and though there's probably no need for me to comment on it I will anyway. It's a pretty random choice, I think, to be the most revered song in the Zeppelin catalogue, let alone one of the most worshipped songs of all time. As lots of people have pointed out, the opening acoustic guitar melody is basically stolen from Taurus by the band Spirit (and don't try to tell me it isn't; Spirit opened for Led Zeppelin for much of 1970, and Page is known to have specifically made note of how neat he thought that particular Spirit instrumental was), but even disregarding that, the lyrics are more than a bit portentiously nonsensical (and yes, I'm aware of the irony of saying that when I'm a big Yes fan), and as far as metal anthems go, I'd much rather listen to Child in Time. But the song is worth it if only for the absolutely amazing, seamless transition from acoustic ballad to all-out anthemic rocker, not to mention the amazing guitar solo in the climax. And dagnabbit, it got me into rock music!

The album then takes a turn for the worse (to say the least) with Misty Mountain Hop and Four Sticks, but as a reward for the pain comes a lovely acoustic ballad in Going to California. It would be better if it didn't have yet more Tolkien worship in it, but it's pretty nonetheless; it beats That's the Way, at least, and that wasn't a bad song itself. But this is only the quiet before the storm. If you've wondered why I could give a nine to an album that contains what is hands down my least favorite song by the band, the reason is largely because it also contains (on the same side, no less) what is hands down by favorite song by the band. When the Levee Breaks is, as far as I'm concerned, Led Zeppelin's finest moment by far, and I don't care if it's a cover; the band's strengths were in arranging and creating an apocalyptic mood, not in songwriting, and this also proves to me that, even at this time, nobody in the whole world could beat Led Zeppelin at covering the blues. I'm not even really sure how to describe it; I have never heard a song where every element of the band worked so seamlessly together as in this one. Bonzo's drumming is powerful and drives the song along without being distracting, Jones' bass does its job remarkably, Page rips out some of the most vicious and aggressive slide guitar parts I have ever come across, and Plant's voice (which screams itself almost ragged and hoarse in places, but all for the better) and harmonica just bring it all together. Every part is outstanding, and each only serves to highlight and enhance all the other parts. It's, well, it's as if a pre-programmed blues computer ran a program to come up with the optimal kick-ass arrangement and recorded it on disc. As far as I'm concerned, for seven glorious minutes, Led Zeppelin really sounds like one of the greatest bands in the world, and one that I can love as much as seemingly everybody else does.

In the end, this is not a consistent record, to say the least. Not only does the quality of the songs vary ENORMOUSLY, the songs just don't flow together at all (especially in contrast to III). Indeed this is much less of an album than it is a collection of 8 songs which may or may not have anything to do with each other. Largely because of this, and largely because of the excessively perfect production, the whole thing can sound and feel overly commerical and fake at times. Despite all of these flaws, however, this is still a terrific album, and I would advise all who do not have it yet (though I can't see why such a person would be reading this page) to get it and get it soon. Or, of course, get out some tapes while a radio station "gets the Led out" ...

Send me your thoughts

Dave Sahota (shivan99@imsa.edu)

zep 4 misty mountain hop again serves as a transition song between stairway and four sticks....and overall though not a very skillful song, has a good sound black dog on this album...i think i'll have to agree with you...something about the way the lyrics sound just isn't right....like it's being played back on a tape recorder or something to that effect...anyways, moving along... i think your final assessment of being too "fake" may come from listening to it on cd more than on vinyl...this album is better on vinyl, though still a bit refined...i don't think when the levee breaks is as "awesome" as you think it is....as far as the best zep song ever...i can tell you right now...no.... and though the songs seem disconnected, there really is a flow there...it's that whole musical experience...starts out medium with black dog, goes to heavy with rock and roll, acoustic, acoustic building to electric, electric/synth, foursticks, which is amazing, back to acoustic, and then finish with heavy bluesy slide....it's an experience....

(author's note): On the experience part ... I wouldn't call it a flow, per se. It is interesting how both side-ending tracks are somewhat apocalyptic in nature, but regardless of whether it was their intention to make this into a quasi-conceptual album, I contend that this just didn't happen. There are plenty of albums for which the 'experience' idea applies, but this is hardly one of them.

Jon Greiman (homer@imsa.edu)

Ok, I was wrong, I do actually own one zep album: Zoso. I have listened to it in order. For the longest time, I thought it was a greatest hits album of their, and couldn't figure out why they had Four Sticks on there instead of songs like Whole Lotta Love, or Communication Breakdown. Of course, I also thought Dark Side of the Moon was a compilation too. Guess that tells you how much I listened to the radio and made tapes. I will agree with you on the lack of flowing in it since as soon as I found someone with the CD, I put it on random. And the Stairway solo that appears on the BBC session was the compilations of all the solo's he thought about putting on the original recording.

Autull@aol.com

Ditto on "When the Levee Breaks" !!!

Joel Larsson (joel.larsson@privat.utfors.se)

This is so overrated. But, okay... 'Black dog', 'Rock and roll', 'Stairway...' and 'When the levee breaks' are very good. An 8 for me, while it isn't very bad either. This is a very average album, if anyone asks for my opinion.

Gene Kodadek (g_kodadek@hotmail.com)

I agree for the most part. I do like this version of Black Dog, however; I'm a sucker for harmonized instrumentation. Misty Mountain and Four Sticks suck abysmally.

No1Yanks23@aol.com

I'd probably give it a 9 (13) Instead of the 9 (12) you gave it. I dont hate "Misty Mountain Hop" as brain dead as it is. But I don't like it either. "Four Sticks is kind of pointless but not horrible. The rest of the songs are great. Stairway to Heaven is probably the best song of all time.

Sittinger, Brian D (brian.d.sittinger@lmco.com) (7/21/01)

Yep, I have heard every song from this album on the radio. Of course, this was after I bought the tape version of this album. (BTW, with the exception of Zep III (on CD), my entire Zep collection of studio records (excluding Coda, which I'm still not sure I want to buy,) consists of all tapes. One of these days I'll "upgrade" to CD's after I run out of ideas for bands to listen to next...)

Enough rambling!!

Time has mellowed my perception toward this album. I originally bought this album (5 years ago), since I was curious about "Stairway to Heaven." This sounds strange, but I rarely heard it on the radio (Have things changed...!). I thought this was the greatest record for quite some time. Actually, I deceived myself.

However, it is still a great album. The singing in "The Battle of Evermore" grates on my nerves (I was more tolerant back then). "Four Sticks" is completely forgettable. "Misty Mountain Hop" is so-so, depending on my mood at the time. As for the rest, awesome, regardless of how much it is overplayed to death. "Black Dog" offers a great riff along with all those "acapella(?)" breaks. (I still don't have BBC Sessions; maybe I'll cheap, but I will get it one of these days!) "Rock and Roll" is thoroughly enjoyable for all of its energy. But, "When the Levee Breaks" is my personal favorite, good atmosphere (via drums, guitar, and harmonica) and devastating slide solos (play it at high volume for maximal effect!). For this album, a solid 8 out of 10 for now. (Maybe a low 9 on a good day...)

TheRubberCow@aol.com (1/16/02)

hey, just wanted to pointlessly point out that the riff on "Misty Mountain Hop" is played on a distorted electric piano.

Nathan Schulz (isrpgmaker@hotmail.com) (1/26/04)

I agree with you with regards to the album, other than your opinion on "Rock and Roll." "Rock and Roll" is filled with predictable ostenatos in bass and guitar parts and a technically unimpressive and simplistic vocal section.

Langas de los Langas (putolangas@hotmail.com) (12/31/05)

Why does everybody hate "Misty Mountain Hop"? I found it funny, original and moving, an interesting transitional song which changes completely the mood of the record (for good, after the seriousness of Stairway to Heaven).

  Oh, by the way, I can't, simply CAN'T agree with your choice for the best song; as much as you love When The Levee Breaks (it's true the band sounds really together), it simply can't be compared to Stairway. In fact, no other Zep song (or any song from any other group) can. Stairway To Heaven is a classical rock masterpiece. It is THE song. I know, it's been played sooooo many times that maybe it has lost its impact, but that doesn't minimize its greatness at all. It's like your choosing Enter Sandman as best song in the album Metallica (c'mon, man! Nothing Else Matters is also there, remember?).

nickrj@aol.com (05/12/06)

This album is what Led Zeppelin is all about!

  Now the first album was blues, the second one metal, the third one folk and this one is a combination of all three.

  All 8 songs rule on here. (even Misty Mountain Hop so there) We've got the blues (Black Dog, When The Levee Breaks) Metal (Rock and Roll, Misty Moutain Hop, Four Sticks) and folk (The Battle Of Evermore and Going To California)

  and of course the Stairway To Heaven. 10(15)

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Houses of the Holy - 1973 Atlantic
8 (11)

Best song: No Quarter

It's tough to say what exactly happened, but for album number five, Led Zeppelin decided to make an album completely unlike anything they'd made before. I don't think it's necessarily that the band was looking to become more diverse as a whole; were that the case, they would likely have made further "experimental" albums subsequent to this, whereas they immediately went back to "basics" on their next album. It's possible that the band had looked around and seen that prog-rock was the big fad of the day and wanted to try its hand at it, but whatever happened, the band pushed itself in directions for this album that it would never pursue again.

For the first thr