Hello, today I am launching my Special Requests blog, where I take requests from my readers to review their favorite albums. I have heard a lot about how good Led Zeppelin is (and I respect all of their members for being amazing musicians), but I have not heard very much of their stuff (my favorite song so far is Stairway to Heaven). To be honest, this is the only Led Zeppelin album I own so far. Yeah, yeah, I know, I live under a rock. On the plus side, though, this will mean that I have no pre-existing bias towards their songs other than knowing that they are legendary instrumentalists. I am grading this album purely on how enjoyable the music is.
Title: Led Zeppelin IV (Four Symbols Album)
Year: 1971
Genre: Rock, Folk Rock, and 70's Heavy Metal
Artist(s): Led Zeppelin with Sandy Denny
Copyright: © 1971 Atlantic Records
Songs:
1. Black Dog
This song is heavy and exciting, but switches to a somewhat relaxed feeling. The lyrics are about the singer picking up a women and him having a good time with her, only to find out later that she was a gold digger who stole his money and car. The singer then wishes to find a better woman who will really love him. This song really shows off how high Robert Plant's vocals can get, and how the band can accomplish a lot using only a little. The song goes from just the singer, to a heavy blues kind of feel in the instruments, only stopping for longer singing sections and a strong guitar solo climax at the end where we can hear Plant's vocals in the background. While I like how the guitar solo and how they conceptualize having sex with their music, the song tends to drag a little by being too repetitive. 3.5 out 5 stars.
2. Rock and Roll
This song is a very nice combination of a 50's swing kind of feel with a fast early 70's hard rock rhythm. Opening on a drum solo by John Bonham, this song is very exciting and enjoyable. The lyrics tell of a man who is talking to an old ex-girlfriend of his and asking to go back to the way things were. This song could also be a homage to how Rock and Roll changed over the years. It's very exciting and fast paced with a bluesy guitar solo in the middle, and slowly builds to a very enjoyable climax. A truly enjoyable song with lyrics people can relate too. 5 out of 5 stars.
3. The Battle of Evermore
This song is very hypnotic, but also exciting. The song is written from numerous perspectives of people from Middle Earth from J.R.R. Tolkien's legendary book series Lord of the Rings. The lyrics start from the perspective of the The Elven Queen, followed by Aragorn, then Sauron, followed by the people of the Shire, and then the people of Middle Earth, and finally the Ring Wraiths. The song is a commentary of both perspectives on the War of the Ring. The harmonies between Robert Plant and Sandy Denny (may she rest in peace) are truly amazing, and I also love the use of the mandolins in this song, which has an interesting outro with Plant showing how high he can sing and the Mandolins echoing each other. I also think it was a brilliant idea to use Renaissance style music for a concept song for Lord of the Rings, which I am huge fan of =D. Overall, an amazing achievement musically. 5 out of 5 stars
4. Stairway to Heaven
This starts slow and very mellow, but builds up to something very exciting.
The lyrics tell of a women who spends her entire life getting rich, only finding out that she can't buy her way into heaven because she was greedy her whole life (and indulgences don't work). In the opening we hear a very effective use of a wooden recorder and a organ with an acoustic guitar. The climax later comes in with the bass and drums, followed by an amazing guitar solo by Jimmy Paige. Plant is demonstrating just what tenors were put on the Earth for in his climatic higher vocals, followed by a soft ending. Most people have a love/hate relationship with this song, probably due its long length and the fact that it is banned from music stores. Plus there was that nonfactual rumor about the song having a satanic message, but it has been proven false. The song is also considered one of the most overplayed songs of all time. However, in my opinion it is overplayed just because it sounds so awesome and builds up to a great conclusion. 5 out of 5 stars.
5. Misty Mountain Hop
This song starts off a little bluesy, but changes to a rock feel pretty quickly. The verse keeps the same feel and pace, and it only really changes pace at the chorus.This song, seeing as it was the 70's, is about the singer joining a group of people smoking marijuana in public and time having a fun time. That is, until the police show up and make them disband. To get away from the police the singer is going to the Misty Mountains, which is a reference to J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. I'm not sure WHY he chose the Misty Mountains, but I guess one can have an active imagination when high. This song is a bit long, but very enjoyable and has a funny message behind it. 4 out of 5 stars.
6.Four Sticks
This song is very quickly paced, consistent through the verse, and sounds beautiful during the chorus. The song tells of a boyfriend who wants to leave his girlfriend because she is dragging him down and ruining his dreams. During one of the choruses we hear a mini guitar solo harmonized with guitar feedback on a single note, which is a very pleasant mind blowing surprise for me. The song ends with the Plant singing "woo yeah" over the main verse lyrics. Another thing I liked was how loud we can hear John Paul Jone's amazing bass playing. Overall, a very surprising and well put together track. 5 out of 5 stars.
7. Going to California
This song seems reminiscent of the country standards of the early seventies, as well as some of John Prine's slower work. The song tells of how the singer is willing to leave England and his current mean girlfriend to find his dream girl in California, and as a side note the flowers in her hair lyrics smack of the summer of love. However, it seems the forces of nature want to stop him. Finally, at the end of the song he realizes that she may not be real, but he refuses to quit. The song is paced very slow and relaxed, and the emotion switches from being happy at first to very serious and dark in some of the middle verses, and it continues to trade between the two. The song ends on a guitar solo playing a counter melody to the main guitar. This song is in the style of artists like John Prine and a bit like James Taylor, however, unlike "Carolina in my Mind", it is more an interpretation than a copy. The fact that there is a real story involving struggle and hope and the way the music was arranged make this song it's own one of a kind American folk style of song. That is not to say that "Carolina in My Mind" isn't a unique song, "Going to California" is just unique in a different way. Overall, a very relaxing song that all people can relate too. 5 out of 5 stars.
8. When the Levee Breaks
We open on some very enjoyable drums followed by the guitars and a bluesy harmonica played by Plant. The intro is very long, but manages to stay interesting until the verse comes in. This song is about a worker who is working on a Levee. The worker is from the mountains and he is feeling homesick and he wants to see his lady again. Later in the song the worker decides to quit his job and go to Chicago. Plant's vocals are very intense and high, and blend well with Paige's solo playing. What I've noticed is that Plant can play his harmonica just as well as Paige can play his guitar, as his harmonica has more solos than the guitar, though they keep trading off. This is one of songs where the main instruments play the same thing over and over, but the higher pitched instruments keep changing what they play to keep things interesting. Overall, this song might be 7 minutes long, but Led Zeppelin manages to make the song very engaging by the use of the solos despite the rhythm instruments playing the same thing over and over again. 5 out of 5 stars.
Audio Mixing:
I can't truly comment on the original mixing as I have yet to hear the original record, but the digital mixing came through crystal clear on my weak 2008 Basic Macbook speakers. The drums and bass were silenced a little, but they were still able to be heard. The rhythm section was louder in some songs like "Four Sticks", "When the Levee breaks", and "Rock and Roll." Overall the mixing was clear and gave a fair balance in sound. I will do an update at an unforeseen time in the future after I hear the original record played and tell you what I think of the mixing then.
Singing:
It should come to no surprise to anyone that Robert Plant has a strong Tenor voice with a high range, and unlike Ben Burnley or Robert Halford it isn't unclear or shrill. Plant's voice is somewhat gritty as he is singing rock and blues, but it also has a nice clarity to it. Plant's vocals were truly amazing on this album, as he emoted perfectly and you could understand every word he said. He also harmonizes very well with Sandy Denny and the other backing vocalists. However, I think his best vocals are on the climax in Stairway to Heaven, those just fit the feel of that song perfectly.
Instrumentation:
I've heard that Led Zeppelin are very skilled players, and they did not disappoint in the least. The playing on this album to me demonstrated great versatility in styles and instruments. Bonham is a very enjoyable drummer, Jones is a very unique balance between support and solo playing on bass, Paige is a legendary guitarist, and Plant sings very well along with playing a mean harmonica. I liked the instrumentation a lot, but really stood out to me was "Stairway to Heaven" for the build up, "Going to California" for the switch from relaxed to serious and dark, "When the Levee Breaks" for the harmonica, and "The Battle of Evermore" for the lutes and the vocal harmonizing.
What I didn't like:
Pretty much that I felt that "Black Dog" dragged by a bit, and the bass was a little too quiet at parts.
What I did like:
The unique sound of Led Zeppelin with every musician making great contribution to the music. Led Zeppelin is truly the best Metal band of the 70s.
Who would enjoy this album:
Fans of Classic Rock, Renaissance music, Lord of the Rings. Also people who like bands like Tool, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, and maybe AC DC to name a few groups as these guys were a huge influences on them.
Overall:
I can see why this album has sold so many copies, it has a lot of enjoyable tracks on it. I didn't hate a single track on this album, as Black Dog was still pretty enjoyable. This song has many unique tracks and it proves just how versatile Led Zeppelin can be with different styles of music. A truly strong record with only one weak track. For my next request I will be reviewing "The Wall" by Pink Floyd.
Rating: ****
(Note: there are a lot of videos today. All videos are unofficial videos of the studio versions.)
Stair Way to Heaven:
Misty Mountain Hop:
Black Dog:
Rock and Roll:
Four Sticks:
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