And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our soul.
Led Zeppelin - IV, Zoso, 4 Symbols, Untitled
1971
Years back I spent a few months on another forum profiling every song that Led Zeppelin ever recorded. Here's what I wrote about each of the tracks on LZ IV.
Black Dog: How the hell did these guys come up with stuff like this? John Paul Jone's riff fleshed out to an unbelievable degree. The entire group at the top of their game. One of my fave Page solos rides the outro. Plant's voice has never been better. And hard to argue against Bonham and Jones being the greatest rock rhythm section if you pay close attention to what they did with the track. What a brilliant song on so many levels. Another one that, plain and simple, defines Led Zeppelin.
Rock and Roll: Started as a spontaneous jam in the studio when Bonham played the drum riff from Little Richard's "Keep a Knocking". If you are a rock guitarist and you've never in your life given this tune a whirl.... shame on you.
The Battle of Evermore: This one doesn't need any yapping from me. (That's Sandy Denny from Fairport Convention trading vocals with Plant)
Stairway to Heaven: It's really unfortunate that FM radio has ruined this song for so many. It really is an amazing accomplishment for the band and works so well on lots of levels. The pastoral feel of the first few verses that have some of Plant's most unaffected vocals he ever did along with the first real example of Page's guitar army with the lovely mix of acoustic and electric. And then Bonham enters and the tempo begins to increase with anticipation of the epic fanfare right before the guitar solo. When was the last time you really listened to that part to hear how Page placed everything in the stereo field of the mix? Brilliant stuff.
And that guitar solo. Perfection. Love how Page adds the vibrato at the end of the bends and how it builds in intensity with the call and response at the end. Then the outro with Plant really pushing hard. And it all ends with a solo vocal line that's recorded beautifully.
Frank Zappa would often poke fun at Zep. But he revered Stairway enough to perform an amazing version of it live with his band. You can find it on YouTube. Gives me goosebumps.
I'm gonna wager that about half of the replies in this thread are going to be negative, but I'd ask that you do me a favor - sit down and give the tune a listen with fresh ears. Block out all of your own preconceptions and just listen to it on it's own merits. You may not dig it, but it's hard to argue that it's not one of the most musically successful songs that any band has ever written and recorded.
Misty Mountain Hop: This song was inspired by a big hippie love-in in London that was busted up by the cops. A bit more of the Tolkien stuff with some of the lyrics.
This is pure Zeppelin. The cool riff, the guitar, keyboards, and bass driving it home, Bonham pounding away underneath, Plant wailing on top, some nice voice and guitar harmonies, and a very unique solo that could only come from the brain of Page.
Was a live staple that went over really well (didn't they all?). Looking at the song on paper it really shouldn't groove, but as usual, Bonham, JPJ, and Jimmy make it groove like hell.
Four Sticks: This may be the first real example of "world music" by a rock band. Up to this point you had rock musicians using exotic instruments but usually in standard rock/pop compositions. The sitars used in Norwegian Wood and Paint it Black being examples.
In this track the verses are basically a form of raga with Robert Plant soloing over them rather than singing a melody. And he uses lots of quavers and semitones just like Indian musicians would do.
The bridge section that starts at 1:06 is another great example of Page's guitar orchestrations. The mix of acoustic and electric is just so cool. JPJ used his VCS3 synth to create the drone that underlines the section that starts at 3:08 and also the sweeping orchestration that accompanies Page's guitar.
And again, Bonham is just plain brilliant on this - using two sticks in each hand to create a very unique sound.
Here's another one where you say: "What kind of music is this?"
Going to California: A direct result of Page and Plant's love of Joni Mitchell, this tune is Zep at it's mellow side best. Want to experience nirvana? Drive through Laurel Canyon, just outside of LA, in the late afternoon on a sunny day with this song blaring from the radio.
When the Levee Breaks: First recorded by Memphis Minnie and Joe McCoy in 1929 and based on the great Mississippi floods of 1927, Levee has been reworked by numerous artists throughout the years. Zep did the right thing and credited Minnie on the original LP cause they used a lot of her lyrics.
The music? This is maybe the best example of Zep using an age old traditional arrangement and taking it into the future as only they could. This is ultra heavy, cosmic blues to the 10th degree. It's been said that Bonham's intro riff is the most sampled piece of percussion ever. Eminem, Dr. Dre, The Beastie Boys, Bjork, and Coldplay are just a few who've used it. Page talks about how much of a happy accident the drum sound was in It Might Get Loud.
Check this one out with headphones. Jimmy does some great stuff with panning as the song progresses, re-arrangeing the instruments in the stereo field and adding effects with each passing verse. Killer stuff.