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Forty years of my life has had a soundtrack that includes some heavy hitters in the rock world, and Led Zeppelin has always been right at the top of my playlist. The band whose only genre I could give a name to as Heavy Metal Blues, has been a sweet punctuation to my meandering years.
The first Led Zeppelin album I ever owned was Led Zeppelin II, and I only had that because I won a radio contest where I was the first caller who could recite the MacDonald’s Big Mac ingredients. Remember; twoallbeefpattiesspecialsaucelettucecheesepicklesonionsonasesameseedbun ? I blurted that out at nine in the morning and won my first contest ever at thrteen years old. I have never won anything better.
Led Zeppelin II was the start of a long relationship for me that was, and is, nearly an addiction. Anchored by the seductive hard rockin’ tune, Whole Lotta Love, the album assaulted my early teen years with a hunger for more. So I sought out their first album, Led Zeppelin I.
Having very little money, but friends who scoured flea markets and auctions, I was able to get my hands on a copy of that album. It was thick and weighty in the material used, and heavy int the recording material. The blues standards that were covered with the uniquely weighty styling of Jimmy Page’s axe work, complimented by the vocals of Robert Plant convinced me I was more than smitten.
Over the next 8 years I waited in anticipation for each release and was never disappointed. Even with the critically trashed Led Zeppelin III. Zep III was said to be to much of a departure from the previous to heavy hitters, but it is now hailed as one of the great recordings of all time. What some saw as departure, I saw as a further display of the collective talent of the group. The blues were there again, as always with the group, as well as a great rockin’ tribute to the Vikings in the guise of The Immigrant Song.
Over the years the band’s fame grew monstrously and was crowned by the theatrical release of their concert/art film The Song Remains The Same. The movie combined fantasy sequences written by each member and their manger Peter Green with live concert sequences filmed during a one night show at Madison Square Gardens.
The band”s final real studio album, In Through The Out Door, came in 1979. On that album, the last song of the second side, is a song that the surviving band members agree is the ultimate Led Zeppelin tune, I’m Gonna Crawl.
The band dissolved in 1980 when the drummer, John Bonham, died from exhaustion while they were touring Europe.
Thrity years of no new recordings, yet they still provide my accent on life.
Squidoo Lensmaster 24websurf (a.k.a Holley) pays a passionate tribute to the band in one of her latest publishes. She explores her love affair with Led Zeppelin in a very well written retrospective titled, Led Zeppelin. Even though the band means so much to my ears, I couldn’t give it the justice that Holley does. Just read it for yourself.
Enjoy!
© 2009, Alex Crabtree. All rights reserved.
This was very kind of you, Alex! And thank you for the great pic! You ROCK!
Kashmir (sp)..Is my Favorite…In a field of Rock-Blues-Fantasy that will never be seen or heard again ..Thank You Alex for the reminder