Led Zeppelin I

The late Sixties saw some major changes in British rock music. The Beatles had opened the door for any number of new styles to be taken forwards, but they had since split up leaving a gaping hole. The Stones were branching out and continuing their trade but a number of new, exciting bands had or were emerging. The Who were gradually forming the first signs of punk, Pink Floyd were taking the Psychedelic to new realms while a couple of new groups of upstarts were making a lot of noise in the North. Black Sabbath were one, Led Zeppelin were the other. Both were louder than any other band had ever been, both were seen as mystical and dangerous, both were influenced by the blues but were giving it a darker, more sexual and vicious edge.Guitarist Jimmy Page had been doing the rounds for a few years, while session musician John Paul Jones was amongst the best there was. Hoping to form a new band (or continue the Yardbirds) Jimmy spotted the teenager Robert Plant whose unique vocals would add an other-worldly edge to what Page had in mind, while John Bonham was a friend who has happy doing the local clubs to support his family. After some negotiations the band was formed and began to jam- there was an immediate chemistry in the group with each member providing something vital. They soon created a number of original tracks based on these jam sessions as well as some re-workings of blues classics and entered the studio to make the album. It was ready in a couple of weeks and kick-started the heavy rock and metal genres.‘Good Times, Bad Times’ opens with the dual attack of Page and Bonzo, with Page’s dirty, heavy chords backed sublimely by the double kick (on a single kick drum!) drumming. There is a fantastic riff with lots of overdubbed distortion and extra licks and the song introduces us to the ‘live’ recording process- most of the tracks were laid down live with Page sticking microphones all over the room, and extra vocals etc would be added later. Plant is fairly restrained here, saving the more acrobatic vocals for later tracks.‘Babe I'm Gonna Leave You’ is a cover of an Anne Bredon song but the band was inspired by Joan Baez’s version. The song uses a quiet/loud dynamic which would be a frequent hallmark of the band, starting out with a sultry, downbeat acoustic section before caving in on itself with a catastrophic heavy part which has inspired any number of metal bands. The middle part features siren effects, crashing percussion, screamed Plant vocals, and a descending attack of chords from Page. There are superb guitar parts throughout with enough speed and twiddling to make any guitarist drool.‘You Shook Me‘ is another cover, this time from Blues legend Willie Dixon. The song led to a rift between friends Page and Jeff Beck who had also released the song months earlier. The Zep version is much more raucous and sexual thanks to the pulsating bass by Jones, the plodding by Bonzo, the call/return vocals and guitars as well as the string bending and piercing high notes which drift and slide from both Page and Plant. Jones also gets to show off his versatility with a strong organ solo while Plant gives the harmonica a go. The reverb and effects on Page’s solo towards the end add a ghostly tone.‘Dazed And Confused’ is for many Zep’s signature song. It was at least until the second album came along and it remains one of their best known and well-loved songs. Notable for its famous riff and for Page’s bowing technique on the guitar it is a chaotic epic full of many of the band’s trademarks. Opening with a tumbling bass line and weird harmonics Plant bemoans the dangers of loving certain women before the lead riff wails its way into the song. We get an experimental middle section with weird guitar sounds which Plant matches with his yelping to create a strange relationship. The song picks up pace and the band stomp their way through a high speed section full of manic playing from all, almost single handedly defining hard rock as they go- just listen to Bonzo do whatever he likes throughout.‘Your Time Is Gonna Come’ shows us a more gentle side with a Stones style track. Opening with wonderful gospel organs from Jones which soon shift to a more Blues style as Jimmy’s steel guitar stumbles in, it is a song about a man who wants revenge on a girl who was unfaithful to him. Perhaps more than any other Zep track we get a huge sing-along chorus with generous melodies. The song ends with an eastern flavour to segue into the next track.‘Black Mountain Side’ is an instrumental track which basically highlights Page’s skill and the band’s love for The Orient which would grow over the next few albums. Page makes his guitar sound like a sitar and we got some nice tabla playing. The song was influenced by a similarly titled Irish folk song which Sandy Denny and Bert Jansch had recorded but the band use it here as a link between the calm of Your Time and the storm of Communication Breakdown.‘Communication Breakdown’ opens with a terrific, high speed riff with is in many ways a precursor to punk. Plant shrieks throughout, Page even does some backing vocals, and we get a frantic solo in the middle. This is one of their few most obviously commercial songs- short, big chorus, and a simple verse, chorus format.‘I Can't Quit You Baby’ is another Dixon cover, this time sounding like much of the English Blues of the time. Page and Bonham have plenty of space to riff and jam while Plant improvises with each phrase. There is a long middle section where Page gets to show off his growing skills and experiments with different tuning. The song is quite slow and doesn’t have some of what makes the other tracks special.‘How Many More Times’ is amongst the greatest jam songs ever. The band by this point were tight after plenty of shows and knew when each member was going to start, stop, slow down, or speed up. It is the longest song on the album and is split into several sections all linked by the excellent lead riff. In the middle Page whips the bow out again for some weird sounds while Plant throws out the usual Blues lyrics. This builds to the ‘hunter’ section before speeding up for the climax.When the album was released at the end of the 60s, critics did not appreciate it- comparing it to some of the other heavy blues bands of the time whilst complaining that it was perhaps too lewd, raucous, and free. It wasn’t until the band continued to release more material that critics were swayed, although it must be said that Zeppelin have always been a fan’s band. The album sold well in Britain and thanks to constant touring it cracked in the US. It was only a matter of time before the monster grew, smashing all previous records, and becoming something mythical. The seemingly overnight success saw the band labeled as mystics possibly in league with Satan which of course propelled the group even further into superstardom. This debut is a rock classic; it has two or three of their most popular songs and while the rest are merely updated blues standards they are played with such swagger and energy that it feels revolutionary and the listener cannot fail to be swept along.

I never got round to buying Led Zeppelin records back when I was younger because I was buying so many different records by other artists, but I did have Zeppelin's greatest hits. But now I've got more time I decided to buy this, their first album, and its absolutely brilliant, will definitely buy more.

Classic album

Every rock music fan has their defining Led Zeppelin moment or defining zep album. For some it's the potent riffery of '2', for some it's the diversity of Physical Graffitti, with me it's 'Presence' but in truth, each album is a defining moment, (even 'In through the out door' had its moments!) and as such each is a snapshot of where the band were musically at the time. Led Zeppelin 1 (or the first album, as you prefer) is special as it set the template for what was to come. The template got added to, expanded, extended, sometimes twisted about, but this debut carries all the elements that make Led Zeppelin so special, the breadth of scope from the blistering hard rock of communication breakdown through the acoustic shimmering beauty of 'Black mountain side' to the raw blues of You shook me and 'How many more times. 'Good times bad times' comes charging out of the traps like a (black) dog on heat only to make way for the delicacy of the acoustic intro to 'Babe I'm gonna leave you' which soon packs a fair wallop itself as the juggernaut gets going. Then its Plant in fine voice, playing off Page for Willie Dixon's 'You shook me' before the 'tour de force that is 'Dazed and confused' I much prefer this version to the 27 minute behemoth that clogs up a who;e side (side??) of the live soundtrack, 'The song remains the same'Just to show that Page isn't the only mad musical genius, JPJ turns in some beautifully uplifting organ playing for 'Your time is gonna come' which melts into a change of mood for 'Black Mountain side' which is in turn steamrolled by possibly the most savage riff that they ever committed to vinyl in Communication breakdown. No need for any pointless meandering here, they make their statement of intent in 2 and a half minutes. The ghost of Willie Dixon turns up again on 'I can't quit you, baby' nodding his approval of these white boys that bleed the blues before the final tour de force of 'How many more times' Plant is at his absolute best as he declares 'I've got you in the sights of my gun' in this 'jammed' blues rock classic.It's as good a starting point as any if Led Zep have previously passed you by and you want to see what the fuss is about, you will not be disappointed. Don't forget to work your way to 'Physical Graffitti' and Presence to see how the music progressed, but witness here a young band with all their raw enthusiasm and fire. Some will say that it didn't get any better than this, and I would be hard pushed to contest that point. Enjoy, and rock out!!

Great album and band.

Vinyl condition very good, flat disk, no discernible pops or surface noise. I don’t want to jinx it, but virtually all the vinyl albums I’ve purchased over the last year or so have have been trouble free. A big contrast to a few years ago when virtually every album was poorly pressed.Despite being a child of the seventies, Led Zep are pretty much a new discovery to me. My interest was piqued because of Jimmy Page’s god like status in guitar tuition mags and videos. So, most of the really well known songs come later on, but this is still a gem of an album. There are a lot of different styles here but they work well together as an album, no real stand-out songs or poor songs, the album just works as a whole. And I love the multi-layered soundscape. You can pick out individual instruments or vocals or just enjoy how all those pieces fit and work together so well. Will definitely be saving up and buying some of the other albums.