April 21, 2025 • 99 mins
In this episode of The ABC’s of Rock, I step into the thunderous, mystical world of Led Zeppelin—but not the hits you’ve heard a thousand times. This time, I’m spotlighting ten of their most underrated and underappreciated tracks. These deep cuts reveal a side of Zeppelin that often flies under the radar, but are just as powerful and essential to their legacy. With a mix of personal stories, musical insight, and a whole lot of love for this band, I explore what makes each song special—from the composition and performances to the emotional weight they carry. Whether you're a lifelong fan or just Zeppelin-curious, I hope this episode gives you a new way to experience one of the greatest rock bands of all time.
I do not own the rights to any of the music played on this podcast. The musicians or the music labels own the copyright. I play this music under the doctrine of Fair Use. I am not here as a DJ, but to offer music commentary and criticism. My goal is for you to gain a larger appreciation for the bands or the musicians played here on this podcast and I ask for you to go out and purchase their music or legally stream it. The musicians need your support and I hope this show contributes to spreading the good word about the bands you hear on these episodes. I do not profit in any way from this podcast. It is truly done out of my pure love of the music.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Foreign.
(00:23):
Hello and welcome to the ABCsof Rock podcast.
I am your host, Nathan Shore.
The ABCs of rock is proudlypart of the Weston Media Podcast
Network.
I thank you for tuning intothe podcast.
Each episode I progress my waythrough the Alphabet from A to Z,
where I'll be featuring bandsand musicians going in alphabetical
(00:44):
order.
No exception.
This has not only been ablast, it's also been an education
and I'm always having the timeof my life doing this.
Before I begin, a must say acouple very important words about
this show.
I do not own the rights to anyof the music played on this podcast.
The musicians or the musiclabels own the copyright.
(01:05):
I play this music under thedoctrine of fair use.
I am not here as a dj, but tooffer music commentary and criticism.
My goal is for you, thelistener, to gain a larger appreciation
for the bands or the musiciansplayed here on this podcast.
So please go out and legallypurchase or stream their music.
(01:27):
The musicians need your support.
My goal is that I hope thisshow contributes to spreading the
great word about the bands youhear on these episodes.
I do not profit in any wayfrom this podcast.
It is truly done out of mypure love of the music.
Well, it is certainly great tobe back recording a new episode.
(01:48):
It has been so long, mylongest break probably since I ended
the show years ago.
And I have just been so busywith life.
As some of you may know, Ihosted another co hosted another
podcast, Back to the FrameRate, a movie review podcast, which
for the moment is on break indefinitely.
(02:10):
We don't know.
It might come back at some point.
It was so much fun doing that,but I'm kind of realigning what I
how I want to go forward with things.
But in the meantime, Ifigured, you know, why the hell not
dust off ABC as a rock andstart producing a couple episodes
periodically when I have a chance.
And I remember I left off inthe again in the middle of the Alphabet.
(02:32):
My goal is still to getthrough the Alphabet.
At least get through theAlphabet to the letter Z.
Who knows if we'll evercontinue things after that, But I'm
a completist in life.
Anyways, here we are.
And approaching the halfwaypoint through the Alphabet.
And with one of the biggestrock acts of all time.
(02:53):
I think it's another reasonwhy this episode was delayed because
it certainly is anintimidating one.
Uh, we're talking about LedZeppelin today.
And if you're a longtimelistener, you know that the goal
of the show is that where Icurate 10 of my favorite songs from
their Studio albums that Ifeel are not the most popular or
(03:16):
most celebrated tracks.
The songs that I play, youknow, they usually fall under the
radar, but much.
You know, like many years agowhen I recorded the Beatles episode,
which I think was episode twoof the show, it was obvious that
practically every song by LedZeppelin is well known, at least
to some degree, or was aconcert staple or has achieved some
(03:40):
form of cult status.
So I had the dubiousdistinction of picking 10 songs that
I both really love, while notchoosing the most obvious or well
known tracks.
This was not an easy task, butI think I did this list justice.
So I'm sure any die hardZeppelin fan will know every song
(04:00):
in this episode.
That's gonna have to be okay,but maybe there are some casual fans
out there who are only fans ofthe really overplayed songs.
You know, Stairway to Heaven,Immigrant Cashmere, Whole Lotta Love
and so on.
There may be a couple trackshere that might remind you that Led
Zeppelin is so much more thanthe dozen or two dozen songs that
(04:22):
are on constant rotation onclassic rock radio.
So anyways, let's get to it.
I don't think I need to getinto a long history of the band.
That information is widelyavailable on the Internet.
But I'll mention a couplequick things.
The band was formed in 1968and put out technically eight studio
(04:42):
albums.
You know, that's debatable,but in their tenure up until 1980
when they disbanded after thedeath of John Bonham, their lineup
included Robert Plant, one ofthe greatest frontmen in rock history,
legendary guitarist JimmyPage, and equally great bassist John
Paul Jones, and of course, theaforementioned John Bonham on drums.
(05:06):
Now I could go on and on aboutthe greatness of each of these band
members.
Each one was a mastercraftsman musician, amongst the best
in their profession.
And I'm sure we'll get into itas we talk more about the songs.
Now.
I grew up not a gigantic fanof the band.
I was familiar with many oftheir songs on the radio, but it
(05:29):
wasn't until college, probablythe middle, toward the end of college,
when I went hard for them.
I had a roommate who had theirbox set in 1990, and that's really
when I got into them.
And I discovered dozens anddozens of their tracks that I fell
in love with that I didn'trealize were Zeppelin songs that
(05:50):
I finally associated where thesource came from in my head and you
know, throughout the 90s.
I eventually purchased alltheir albums on CD.
So let's get started on thefirst song on the list here which
came off their self titleddebut record.
Released on January 13, 1969on Atlanta Records and produced by
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Jimmy Page.
It charted at number six inthe U.K.
and number 10 in the U.S.
and when double platinum inthe U.K.
and get this, eight timesplatinum in the U.S.
now a lot of these numbers aregoing to be skewed because this is
one of the bands where justevery single year people just continue
to buy these albums over and over.
(06:34):
But up to this day, it's goneeight times platinum in the US we're
going to kick things off withthe song your time is going to Come.
So, man, this one has alwayshit me in a special way.
It opens with John Paul Joneson the church organ.
I'm just gonna call it that.
And right away you feel likeyou've stepped into something sacred.
(06:59):
I guess I'll put it.
It's almost has this religiousfeel to it.
The mood sets the stageperfectly for Plant's vocals.
When he starts repeating the chorus.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
It's.
It's chilling.
It feels like the weight ofGod is someone who has seriously
(07:19):
wronged him.
And you know, what a coursethis has.
It's just that one line overand over, but it lands hard and stays
with you.
I've always thought this couldhave been a killer album.
Closer, Nothing against howmany More Times, which is a great
track.
But imagine this stretched outto over like six or seven minutes
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slowly fading out.
Like, you know, I think oflike a comparison would be like the
way hey Jude does that.
It would have been epic.
And then there's Jimmy Page,you know, slipping in with what sounds
like.
I.
I'm assuming it's a lap steelguitar on the back half.
It's super subtle, but it tieseverything together.
And it's honestly one of myfavorite parts of the song.
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It's a song people know forsure, but when you stack it up to,
you know, good times, badtimes, babe, I'm gonna leave you
or days to confuse, it doesn'tget nearly as much love, which I
think blows my mind because it's.
For me, it's on par with those.
And they barely played itlive, which is kind of shocking.
It got this.
It has this like vengeful,soulful energy that I just think
(08:25):
just deserves more attention.
So underrated gem in my book.
For new listeners of the show,what I do here is I read my favorite
lyrics from each song, usuallyin a deadpan delivery that offers
the writers of these songsjust zero justice.
(08:46):
This.
It's Purely coincidence thatmy favorite section of the lyrics
on this song is the.
Of the O of this opening songis the opening lyrics.
They're raw, they're bitter.
This isn't just a breakup,this is a full blown condemnation.
Plant isn't just callingsomeone out.
(09:09):
He's practically prophesizingtheir downfall.
That's why I love the song.
There's a moral weight behindthese lyrics.
Like karma's already on itsway and he's just here to narrate
it.
So these are the lyrics I love.
Lying, cheating, hurting.
That's all you seem to do.
Messing around with every guyin town.
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Putting me down for thinkingof someone new.
Always the same, Playing yourgame, drive me insane.
Trouble is going to come to you.
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Lying, cheating, hurting.
That's all you seem to do.
Messing around every guy in town.
Putting me down for thinkingI'm someone new.
(11:21):
Always the same, playing yourgame, drive me insane.
Trouble's gonna come to youone of these days.
And it won't be long.
You look for me, but baby,I'll be gone.
(11:44):
This is all I gotta say toyour woman.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
(12:07):
Your time is gonna come.
Made up my mind break you.
This time won't be so kind.
It's my turn to cry, do whatyou want.
(12:33):
I won't take a bright.
It's fading away, can't feelyou anymore.
Don't care what you say.
Cause I'm gonna wear the snake.
Gonna make you pay for thatgreat big hole in.
(12:57):
People.
Jumping all around.
Watch out, woman, no longer isit you're gonna be on my heart.
You've been back to me, woman.
But it's coming back home to you.
Your time is gonna come.
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Your time is gonna call.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
(13:42):
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna.
(14:11):
All right.
Oh, so good.
The next song I'm spotlightingis thank you from Led Zeppelin 2.
Now, this album was releasedon October 22, 1969 on Atlanta Records.
Produced by Jimmy Page, withEddie Kramer serving more as the
engineer than full onproducer, even though he's credited
(14:33):
as a co producer.
All right, so look, picking anunderrated gem off this album is
kind of.
I mean, it's kind of a fool's errand.
Every track is a classic,either a hit, a deep cut that fans
adore, or a concert staple.
So I'll admit right now thatmy pick here might cost me a few
(14:56):
Zeppelin or hard rockcredibility points.
But you know what?
I don't care.
I've always been transparentabout my musical taste growing up.
So just bear with me, youknow, on this one, this pick, you
know.
You know, back.
Here's.
Here's the reason why I'mgonna tell you the story.
And this is why.
Back in the 80s, I was waymore of a new wave, post punk and
(15:18):
good old fashioned rock radio fan.
My favorite band at the timewas Duran Duran.
So, you know, mentioning DuranDuran on a Led Zeppelin episode,
it's blasphemy.
I probably understand whypeople would think that.
But you know, in the earlymid-90s, they had a bit of a resurgence
with the self titled Wedding album.
(15:38):
Some of you may remember thatI love this album.
But here's the weird twist.
Their next album was a coversrecord called thank you.
And yeah, this album's kind ofall over the place.
They covered White Lines,Perfect Day by Lou Reed, Lay Lady
Lay by Dylan, even 911 is ajoke by Public Enemy.
(16:01):
This.
This was an ambitious album.
It's strange and it's.
It's.
Yeah, it's really hit and miss.
But one of the tracks on therewas a cover of Zeppelin's thank you.
So don't get me wrong, I'm notabout to say it holds a candle to
the original, but for whateverreason, that was the version of this,
of the song that first openedthe door for me to Zeppelin in a
(16:24):
lot of ways.
And it made me seek out theoriginal Zeppelin track.
And when I finally heard thereal thing, you know, Game Over,
I was in.
So I love how this song openswith that slow fading John Paul Jones
laying down.
He has this warm, meditativeatmosphere on the Hammond organ.
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There's a gentle, almostspiritual quality to it, like you're
about to be taken somewhere beautiful.
And Bottom's drum fills areabsolutely the MVP of this track.
Every one of them feelsperfectly placed, like punctuation
on a love letter.
There's this grand, folky vibeto this whole song and the song writing
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just soars on this one.
It's tender without being liketoo soft.
It's romantic without losingany of that Zeppelin cutting edge
that they have.
And I've always just lovedthat the.
There's this false endingtoward the back half of this song
and it kind of fakes you outand then pulls you back in for like
one final exhale.
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Thank you.
Is pure devotion in song formfor me.
It feels timeless, likesomething you'd hear at a wedding
or I want to play at the topof a mountain.
Or maybe, you know, both.
If I.
You know, a wedding on amountaintop would be cool.
It's not underrated in thetraditional sense, but for me, it's
always been quietly powerful.
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And, yeah, I have Duran Duranto thank for this, so.
It'd be so easy to pick theopening verse again for the lyrics
on this one.
I mean, they're iconic, andthey're just perfectly.
They perfectly set the tonefor the.
The whole song.
But instead, I want to shine alight on a line from the second verse.
(18:13):
Let me look at this here.
Yeah, yeah, for this.
And it's for this reason.
It's the way Plant deliversthe line.
And this line here, like, foryou to me are the only ones.
So right at the end of theverse, he suddenly jumps, like, several
octaves.
It's not just a vocal choice.
It's like this emotional release.
(18:35):
You feel the vulnerability,the sincerity.
Like he just can't contain howdeeply he means it.
This gives me chills every time.
It's like the song lifts offat that moment.
It's.
It's not just romantic, it's transcendent.
And this note just elevatesthe whole song from a sweet love
(18:56):
letter to something epic.
So these.
So these are the full lyrics.
Here they are.
And so today my world itsmiles your hand in mine we walk
the miles and thanks to you itwill be done for you to me are.
The only ones.
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If the sun refused to shine Iwould still, still be loving you
when mountains crumble to thesea There will still be you and.
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Me.
Kind of woman I give you.
My all.
Kind of woman nothing moreLittle drops of rain Whisper of the
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pain Tears of love lost in the.
Days gone by.
My love is strong here thereis no wrong Together we.
Shall go until we die My, my.
My heart Inspiration is whatyou are.
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To me.
Inspiration, love to see andso today my world it smiles your
(21:37):
hand in mine we walk the milesthanks to you it will be done for
you to me are the only one.
All right.
(21:58):
Happiness no more.
Reset.
Happiness on ground.
If the sun refused to shine.
(22:20):
I.
Would still be loving youMountains crumble to the sea.
There will still be you and me.
(23:57):
All right, we're gonna move onto the third song on our list, and
it's gonna be Bring It OnHome, which is the final track on
Led Zeppelin 2.
We got two from Led Zeppelin 2.
That's cool.
Now, this song is interest.
It's, I guess, the best way ofdescribing it.
It's kind of a shapeshifter.
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It's it was originally writtenby Willie Dixon in 1963, I see here
and recorded by Sonny BoyWilliams II in 66 for Checker Records.
So Zeppelin's version startsout as a.
It's a straight up homage tothose, you know, deep, swampy blues.
(24:39):
The first two minutes feellike you've stepped into, like a
dimly lit juke joint.
Plants on Harmonica, wailinglike he's channeling the delta spirits.
And it's got that laid back,smoky feel.
It's.
It's not unlike how John PaulJones opened the other tracks with
the organ.
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There's clearly a pattern herewith them using different instruments
to create a mood before thesong explodes.
I love this about Zeppelin.
Jones is laying down thisabsolutely filthy bass line underneath,
just crawling along.
And then Paige slices in withthe sharp signature riff that instantly
flips the switch for the song.
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Suddenly it's not just a quietblues number anymore.
It's a full blown swaggering rocker.
And then Bonham starts pounding.
Page is shredding and plantsletting it rip.
It's Zeppelin at theirbluesiest and their most electrified.
And then, like the titlepromises, they bring it on Home,
(25:40):
returning to that slow groovein the final moments, closing the
album full circle.
It's really a smart, dynamicarrangement that pays tribute to
their roots while completelyowning it in their own way.
And this is something they'rejust really great at, making these
songs their own.
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As far as the lyrics, therearen't any that truly grab me here.
It's the one.
The one, I guess is.
This is just.
I guess one of the songs ismore about the music and the vibe.
But if I had to pick somethingI'm selecting from.
From the song, I guess it'sthis part of the first verse.
(26:22):
Here it is.
I've got my ticket I've gotthat load got up gone higher all
aboard I'll take my seat rightway back oh, yeah Watch this train
roll down the.
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God magic goddamn Higher allaboard Take my seat right way back.
(27:48):
Watch.
This dream go down the trackI'm gonna bring it on home Bring
it down home to you Watch out,watch out.
(28:16):
Sa.
(28:47):
Went a little walk downtown.
Messing up that lake finaldon't get.
Away and it said Daddy, I justcan't wait Bring it all home Bring.
It home Bring it back home Bring.
It back home to me baby Sweetest.
(29:41):
Little baby Daddy ever saidI'm gonna.
Give you love and baby I'mgonna give you all.
Bring it on out Bring it on.
(30:44):
All right, we are moving on tothe fourth track in this episode.
And this is from Led Zeppelin3, released on October 5, 1970, again
on Atlantic Records and plansproduced by Jimmy Page.
I should just say that JimmyPage, Jimmy Page produced all of
these.
Now if we can just take asecond and appreciate how they stuck
(31:09):
with the naming convention,you know, Led Zeppelin 3.
No subtitles, no fancy names,just confidence in their brand.
I'm trying to think of otherbands that went that route through
their third album.
So, like, I don't count VanHalen three because that was much
later in their career.
And.
And does that even count as aVan Halen album?
I don't know.
But now, by the time threecame out, the band was clearly shifting.
(31:33):
Still bluesy for sure, butthere was this new acoustic, folky,
almost experimental flavorstarting to creep in.
Tracks like G's Pole, that'sthe Way, and the one I'm highlighting
now, Friends also fall intothis category.
This song is so cool.
(31:53):
It's.
It was rarely played live.
It looks like maybe just once,if I.
If I.
My research is correct, butman, it sticks with you.
It's got this almost Beatlesesque feel to it.
Not necessarily in sound, butin that offbeat, unexpected chord
progression that kind ofthrows you at first and then pulls
(32:14):
you right in.
I love the use of the Moogsynthesizer here.
It adds this eerie, droningundertone that makes.
Makes the whole song feelslightly unstable.
Like it's teetering between.
Like this.
The between earthy and cosmic,I guess, is the best way of putting
it.
(32:35):
Bonham on the Congas is such afun touch.
It's.
It's so different from hisusual thunderous style, but no less
powerful.
And then there's this tempo.
I love how towards the end,it's gradually building and lifting
you out, out of thismeditative zone and landing you right
(32:56):
into celebration day.
It's one of those seamlesstransitions that makes listening
to this album front to back so rewarding.
Friends might not have been ahit, but it's one of those hidden
in plain sight songs thatshows how bold Zeppelin was willing
to be.
For the lyrics, I'm feelingjust so unoriginal about this, but
(33:20):
it's, It's.
It.
I guess it's simply just acredit to the songwriting on these
songs.
The opening verse is just so perfect.
It reads like a.
I guess a spiritual search,like a kind of existential wandering.
There's.
There's a sense of apersistence through darkness, of
(33:42):
chasing something you once hador maybe something you lost along
the way.
It's.
It's simple but it justresonates well.
These are the lyrics.
Bright light almost blindingblack night still there shining I
can't stop keep on climbingLooking for what I knew.
(34:44):
Bright light almost blindedBlack knight still is shining I can't
stop, keep on climbing.
Looking for what I knew Had a.
Friend she once told me yougot love, you ain't lonely now she's
gonna let me all live ittelling you now the greatest thing
(35:34):
you ever can do now Straightas smile someone's blue.
Very easy J.
Man on the roadside cryingwithout a friend there's no denying.
You'Re incomplete There'll beno finding over for what you knew.
(35:55):
So anybody time somebody needsyou, don't let them down.
(37:44):
Oh, I love that song.
Okay, on to the fifth song onour show.
And it's time for us to moveon to what most consider to be their
magnum opus, the grand puba eljefe supremo of Led Zeppelin albums.
On November 8, 1971, theydropped their fourth studio album,
(38:07):
which technically doesn't evenhave a title.
We just all call it LedZeppelin 4.
And for good reason, of course.
It hit number one on the USBillboard charts and the UK charts.
But the big stat in the USalone, it's gone platinum 24 times.
So I guess that's double Diamond.
(38:28):
I think diamond is a 10million record, so yeah, that's ridiculous.
According to the to the RIAA,it ranks as the 11th highest selling
album of all time.
And yes, Jimmy Page producedit as always.
Now, picking an underrated gemfrom this record, practically impossible.
(38:51):
You could maybe make a casefor Four Sticks or Battle of Evermore.
And while Misty Mountain Hopis super well known, I guess in the
context of of an album itcould be considered slightly less
iconic than the big guns.
But here's the thing, none ofthose are my favorite songs on here.
(39:11):
And I just wasn't feeling itwhen it came to champion any of those.
So I'm breaking my own rule here.
The song I'm picking, it's not underrated.
In fact, it's a crowd pleaser.
It was a regular part of theirset list.
It still gets played onclassic rock radio and has been featured
in countless commercials and soundtracks.
(39:32):
You can't escape it and Iwouldn't want to.
It's the album Closer when theLevee Breaks and it's probably in
my top five favorite Zeppelintracks, period.
That opening Bonham's drumsjust thunder in like the sky is about
to fall.
The beat, the weight, it'sinstantly iconic.
(39:54):
Then plants harmonica comes inand brings that swampy.
That.
Yeah, the swampy grinding moodthat just feels apocalyptic in the
best way, which is great.
The whole song just grindsforward with the slow, unstoppable
momentum like a freight trainrolling through a flood.
(40:16):
I haven't talked much aboutPlants vocals yet in this episode,
but man, they are so good onthis track.
There's this pleading, grittyquality to them.
Desperate and powerful.
And what I love is how theharmonica just sits behind him in
the mix, almost like it'sanswering his call.
(40:36):
There's a call and responsevibe to it that just gives the track
this ghostly, bluesy soul.
Then you've got Paige doing his.
His thing and laying in thishypnotic guitar that just shimmers
and in.
In slithers through the mix.
He's not trying to shred here.
(40:58):
He's just casting his.
His spell, the thing that he does.
I can listen to a 20 minuteversion of this and not get tired
of it.
It's just dirgy, massive andit just envelops me so.
Oh, so the lyrics.
Well, with the lyrics, I thinkonce again, I'm influenced by Plants
delivery more than the songwriting.
(41:20):
I think it's probably thebridge where he built out the lines.
It's, it's.
And it's.
It's sung with such desperation.
It gives.
Gives me goosebumps.
These are them here.
Oh, don't it make you feel badwhen you're trying to find your way
home?
You don't know which way to goif you're going down south they got
(41:43):
no work to do if you're goingnorth to Chicago.
(43:11):
If it keeps on.
Raining Levy is going to break.
If it keeps on raining love is going.
To break.
When the levy breaks have noplace to stay.
(43:39):
On it's got.
What it takes to make my do.
(46:05):
You no good.
When Olivia Praise mama.
You got to move.
Last night sat.
On a love you know all lastnight sat on a love you know I'm
(46:35):
thinking about my baby Sa.
(48:53):
Okay, before I move on, I justwant to take a brief moment since
we're about halfway throughthe episode and thank you once again
for tuning into the show andsay how much I appreciate each and
every one of you for being aloyal listener through the years
or subscriber to this podcast.
Also, if you've been listeningto these episodes, I'd love to hear
(49:13):
from you.
The email for the show is abcof rockpodcastmail.com and of course
you can find me on socialmedia on Facebook at ABC of Rock
podcast.
The show is available ondozens of podcast apps.
So please, if you love theshow, subscribe and give it a rating
review on whatever app you prefer.
(49:33):
I thank you all in advance.
Okay, heading into the backhalf of the show in the sixth song
on my list comes from LedZeppelin's fifth studio album, Houses
of the Holy, released on March28, 1973 on Atlantic Records.
This was actually the firstZeppelin album that I purchased.
(49:54):
If I if my memory servescorrectly, this was the final album
with Atlantic and likeeverything they touched in that era,
it was a massive success.
Again, it hit number one onboth the UK and US charts and has
been certified platinum 11times in the US.
I say only 11 times, so itwent diamond, but 11 times platinum,
(50:17):
like that's a disappointment.
But when you're coming off analbum like Led Zeppelin 4 that went
24 times, there's just nowhereto go but down.
I guess the song I'm pickingfrom this album is one that was a
concert staple and is prettywell loved.
But still, I don't think itimmediately comes to mind when folks
(50:42):
list their top 15 or 20Zeppelin tracks.
For me though, it absolutelymakes the cut I'm talking about no
quarter right out of the gate,I'm hooked by that eerie, dreamlike
keyboard intro.
I don't even know what effectJohn Paul Jones is using there.
It sounds like it was recordedat the bottom of the ocean.
(51:03):
There's this dreamy underwatervibe to it that just kind of washes
over me.
Then bottom crashes in withagain more great drum fills and suddenly
we're off to the races withthis song.
But the real standout for mehere is Pages guitar tone.
It's got that.
That fuzz, that fuzzy, warmand absolutely dripping with atmosphere
(51:28):
sound to it.
I have no clue how he achievedthat effect.
I probably could haveresearched it for the show, I didn't.
But it feels like sinking intoa lucid dream where everything is
just slightly slowed down andglowing around the edges.
That central guitar lick, itmight be my all time favorite of
(51:51):
his for all time.
I don't know.
It's.
It's haunting and hypnotic andanchors the whole track with that
slow, burning intensity.
Now I'll be honest, if there'sone thing about the song that doesn't
quite do it for me, it'splants vocals during the verses.
(52:12):
There's a throaty, almoststrained quality to them and, and
I don't know, it's.
It's.
I know it might be just be anintentional vocal choice or effect
layered in.
Not sure.
But either way it's not Myfavorite version of his voice, but
that's a minor gripe, I guess.
(52:32):
The track is an absolute killer.
It's moody and atmospheric andit just shows how versatile Zeppelin
could be.
If I had to pick a section ofthe lyrics from the song, I would
have to go with the secondverse, I guess.
And it just paints such avivid, haunting picture, like a.
(52:54):
Like a dark fantasy novel, I guess.
So here they are.
Here it is Walking side byside with death the devil mocks their
every step the snow drivesback the foot that's slow the dogs
of doom are howling more theycarry news that must get through
(53:15):
to build a dream for me and you.
La it.
(59:50):
Okay, we are chugging alonginto the sixth studio album, Physical
Graffiti, which was releasedon February 24, 1975, again produced
by Jimmy Page, and it markedtheir first release under their own
label, Swan Song.
So they did this after theymoved on from Atlantic.
(01:00:12):
Swan Song, which they launchedthe year prior, is best known for
not only Zeppelin's final runof albums, but also for bringing
us bad companies string ofrecords, starting with their debut
all the way through 19, 1982'sRough Diamonds, which, let's be honest,
was pretty much their heyday.
When Zeppelin disbanded In theearly 80s, the label folded soon
(01:00:35):
after, and they did thisbecause they wanted more creative
control of their music.
And also they were getting amuch higher, I think, all the profits
as well.
Now, Physical Graffiti is afan favorite.
Many critics hail it as their masterpiece.
And while I can definitelyappreciate that, I've always found
it to be quite uneven.
(01:00:58):
But that's kind of the natureof double albums, right?
Let's gets left off on theCutting Room four, so they recorded
a lot for this one.
That said, I think it'sprobably their most eclectic album.
Sonically, it stretchesZeppelin's reach in the widest variety
of directions.
So picking just one track outof 22, not easy.
(01:01:21):
But I'm going with the openingtrack on side two, in the Light.
Once again, we're greeted byanother unconventional opening.
Jones uses a bow on anelectric guitar.
I mean, who does it?
I mean, I think Paige did thatoccasionally as.
But it is such a cool thing tobring into a rock song.
(01:01:46):
It creates this eerie,otherworldly sound I've truly never
heard before.
Then Plant delivers the versein this haunting, spectral tone,
just floating over the droneof the song.
And then Bonham again comescrashing in.
That's the theme here, Bonhamcrashing in.
(01:02:07):
But the drums, you know, walkinto this hypnotic march of war rhythm
that just really pulls you in.
But here.
Here's the magic of the song.
Just when you think the songis all shadowy and doomy, you know,
Jones then shift gears, andwhat I think is a clavinet that kicks
(01:02:28):
in, and suddenly Paige's riffturns the whole track on its head.
It becomes a bright, almosttriumphant song.
And plant whales in the light.
And like the clouds part, thatchord progression lifts the whole
thing into the stratosphere.
This song is a journey.
(01:02:49):
It's weird and spiritual.
It's a progressive rock voyagethat only Zeppelin can take you on.
And for that, it's myhighlight of Physical Graffiti.
Lyrically, this isn'tnecessarily one of Zeppelin's most,
you know, greatest written songs.
I guess it's.
It's got that sort of vague,spiritual, you know, vibe going on.
(01:03:14):
And.
And honestly, the songwritingitself isn't where it does it for
me here.
What does, again, is plants delivery.
That guy just knows how tograb you right from the top of a
song.
So here it is.
And if you feel that you can'tgo on?
And your will's sinking low?
(01:03:35):
Just believe and you can't go wrong?
In the light you will find the road?
You will find the road?
(01:05:14):
And if you feel that you cango on in your wheel sinking low?
(01:05:46):
Just be me.
And you can go.
Wrong.
In the light.
(01:06:07):
You will find the road?
You will find the road.
(01:06:32):
Oh, did you ever believe?
That I could leave youstanding out in the cold?
Hey, yeah, baby, I know how it feels.
Cause I have slipped throughto the very depths of my soul, yeah.
(01:06:59):
Oh, baby, I just want to showyou what a clear view that is from
every bend in the road.
Now listen.
Oh, whoa, whoa.
As I was believing before youto as you would for me.
(01:07:24):
I will share your love?
Let me share your love.
(01:09:05):
Can go on you?
(01:09:31):
But that will always be so.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
When love is faint it candevour you but you are never alone.
(01:09:54):
I will show you love?
I will share your love.
Baby, let me in the light.
(01:10:16):
Everybody needs a light.
Baby in the body, in the body,in a body.
(01:12:05):
Okay, well, moving on to theeighth song.
At this point in their career,the band had encountered a little
bit of difficulties.
They were going through somerough waters, we could say.
Robert Plant and his wife hadbeen in a serious car accident in
1975.
(01:12:25):
And it's widely believed thatthe recording of this next album,
which is called Presence, mayhave been rushed because of that.
And coming off the massive,bombastic energy of Physical Graffiti,
Presence is a very different beast.
It's stripped down it's raw.
(01:12:47):
Six out of the seven songs arepretty straightforward hard rockers.
No lush orchestration, nodabbling into funk or or folk or
world music.
It lacks some of thatexperimentation and boundary pushing
fans I think had come to expect.
Still, the album went tonumber one in both the US and uk
(01:13:10):
but to this day it remainstheir lowest selling studio album.
And I say only, you know, thatseems like three times platinum in
the U.
S.
Like that's a bad thing.
But hey, when your leds up,when the bars kind of.
Hi.
Now the track I'm going withfrom Presence might not be the most
original pick, but it's myfavorite on this album.
(01:13:32):
And honestly, I think it mightbe a lot of other people's favorites
as well.
So the song is nobody's faultbut mine.
This is actually our secondcover of the episode originally written
and recorded by Blind WillieJohnson back in 1927.
Zeppelin, of course, you know,completely reimagines the song.
(01:13:56):
I love the way Paige lets thislike killer riff slowly fade in at
the start.
It's ominous, it's confident.
Even on their seventh album,he's still crafting riffs that are
absolute monsters.
And let's talk about Bonhamfor a second.
His playing on this track,it's unreal.
(01:14:18):
The groove is heavy, but it breathes.
His fills are likethunderclaps between all the riff
work from Paige.
And he just drives the songwith such authority.
Every time you think thesong's about to peak, you know, Bonzo
takes it to another level.
And then there's the guitar solo.
(01:14:38):
And this Page absolutelyshreds here like he's got something
to prove.
It's chaotic and wild andtotally electric.
It's not a song that reinventsthe wheel, but rolls hard.
I guess it's just the simplestway of putting it.
And speaking of rolling, Ididn't mean to like put it this way.
(01:15:00):
It just happened organically.
The lyrics I'm rolling withare from the second verse.
And here they are.
Devil he taught me to rollDevil he taught me to roll O o O
How to roll the lot you like.
(01:16:26):
Sa.
(01:17:21):
But it's for me nobody's for mine.
(01:21:17):
Kick down.
We are now on to LedZeppelin's eighth and final studio
album.
In through the Outdoor cameout on August 22, 1979 on on Swan
(01:21:45):
Song Records.
Once again produced by JimmyPage, this album arrived after a
three year hiatus, the longestgap between studio albums.
A lot of the downtime was dueto personal tragedy.
Robert Plant was stillrecovering from the death of his
son in 1977, and the band hashad essentially gone dark for a while.
(01:22:08):
So by the time into theOutdoor Dropped, fans were definitely
eager for new music.
And despite, you know, theinternal turmoil, Paige and Bonham
were struggling with substanceissues and the creative reigns had
shifted largely to Plant and Jones.
(01:22:29):
But the album still delivered.
It went on to number one inboth the US and UK again and since
has gone six times platinum inthe us so still not bad for a record
that people still argue aboutto this day.
So.
But this album, let's behonest, it's kind of the oddball
in their catalog.
(01:22:49):
It was made during a reallyturbulent time for the band, you
know, with Paige and Bottomboth battling substance issues and
as a result, a lot of thecreative weight shifting.
To Plant and Jones, thischange really shows there's way more
synthesizers, moreexperimentation with new wave and
(01:23:11):
pop structures, and far lessof the heavy blues rock riffage that
defined the the earlier work.
Some fans love it for itsuniqueness and I others think it
strays way too far from whatZeppelin was meant to be.
But either way, I think it's afascinating document of where the
(01:23:34):
band was emotionally and creatin the late 70s.
So the track I'm picking fromin through the Outdoor, I think it's
a deep cut and it's Southbound Suarez.
This is one of the more upbeattracks on the record and in their
(01:23:54):
whole catalog.
It's honestly, I think, just a blast.
Right away you can tell thatthis is John Paul Jones's world.
We're just living in it.
The piano is front and centerwith this bouncing my broom swing
that feels more like a lost,probably Elton John song than a typical
(01:24:18):
Zeppelin track.
It's got this kind ofswaggering honky tonk energy that
totally just catches you off guard.
Plant's vocals here arethey're kind of playful, kind of
flirty.
You can tell he's having funwith it, leaning into a sort of roadhouse
vibe that makes the wholething feel very lively.
(01:24:41):
I think the lyrics aren'texactly profound, but they don't
really need to be for thesong, it's it.
The song is about movement anddesire and maybe even escape.
It's not trying to becashmere, so it's just here to have
fun and groove.
And even though Paige takes abit of a backseat overall on this
(01:25:03):
album, his guitar work stillpunches through with a lot of bite,
a lot of character throughout.
It complements Jones pianobeautifully, and it's a rare moment
where Zeppelin sounds likethey're jamming in a bar rather than
a stadium, which is kind of neat.
The song, I think, is oftenoverlooked, but it's such a cool
reminder that Zeppelin wasn'tafraid to let loose and have some
(01:25:26):
fun.
So lyrically southbound Suarezisn't trying to reinvent the wheel.
It's not.
Not philosophically deep likeCashmere or Achilles Last Stand,
but what it does have isswagger and a lot of feel good energy.
So I'm just going to go withthe chorus because it embodies all
of that.
Here it is with a little bitof concentration and a little bit
(01:25:49):
of helping hands and a littlebit of raving madness.
You know what makes me feelBaby both my feet are back on the
ground.
(01:26:22):
I so good I'm so goodConcentration a little bit my fe.
(01:26:44):
You know it makes me feel Baby.
Background When the rivertakes it we so good I'm so good baby
if it keeps shaking you do you good.
(01:27:05):
It'S so much good.
Shake and a little bit of flyright there Just a little bit of
sweet.
It makes.
Me feel Makes me feel the.
(01:28:20):
So glad, so glad, so glad soglad I'm good I'm so good With a
With my concentration Just alittle bit I.
(01:28:45):
Makes me feel home Makes.
Me feel better oh yes, it sure does.
It makes me feel.
Hey, back on ground.
(01:30:04):
We're pulling up on the finaltrack of the show today.
It only feels right to take amoment, to just reflect for a second
and have it all came to an end.
John Bonham Bonzo diedtragically on September 25, 1980,
after a day of heavy drinkingin a night of rest that sadly became
(01:30:24):
permanent.
He was just 32 years old.
His death was a seismic blow,not just to Led Zeppelin, but to
rock music as a whole.
And the band didn't try tocarry on without him.
Just a few months later, inDecember of that year, Zeppelin officially
disbanded, stating that theyjust could not continue without their
(01:30:46):
friend and drummer.
And that was it.
Two years later, in 1982, theyreleased Coda.
Produced by Jimmy Page andreleased on Swan Song Records, the
album is a bit of ahodgepodge, a collection of live
tracks, unused studio takes,and leftovers from different points
of their career.
(01:31:07):
Honestly, not much on itdazzles me.
For a while, I thought I wasgoing to highlight Bonzo's Montreux
from the album.
It felt like the obviouschoice, a tribute of sorts.
But the more I listened to it,the more I realized it just doesn't
capture what made Bonham so brilliant.
It's experimental for sure,but it lacks the raw power and groove
(01:31:30):
he brought to the band,especially on stage.
So you know what?
Screw that song.
I'm breaking my own rule here.
And picking a track from the2015 Remastered Deluxe Edition of
Coda, I had the CD versionwith the two bonus discs of unreleased
material.
And nestled in there is a gemI think more people need to hear.
(01:31:56):
It's called Baby Come Home.
This track was actuallyrecorded all the way back in 1968
during the sessions for theirdebut album.
And somehow it sat in thevaults for decades.
It's got this gorgeous,soulful, almost gospel like vibe
to it.
Plants vocal performance is incredible.
(01:32:17):
Raw and heartfelt.
Totally in the pocket.
It's a side of him we don'thear nearly enough.
I feel like this could havebeen a James Brown song, something
you'd hear off his 1963 Liveat the Apollo album.
And I love that.
This is how we're ending theshow today on a song that not only
(01:32:40):
stands tall on its own, butalso brings everything kind of full
circle.
A tune from the very beginningfinally getting its moment in the
light.
The third verse is theemotional core of the song for me.
It's where Plant lays it all out.
You can feel the desperation,the regrets, the longing just pouring
out of him.
Here are the lyrics.
(01:33:02):
So I made up my mind I'm goingto crawl right back to you woman
I'm going to plead and pleadand plead yeah till you're here by
my side I can't even walk downthe same side of the street we used
to walk down Because I keepthinking about all the good times
Keep thinking about it I wantto make you mine.
(01:33:35):
There was a time I used tocall you on my very own we were so
happy woman Talking for hoursand hours on the telephone Then one
(01:33:58):
day I set you up to motorright out of my life Leaving me all
by myself I all along to cryevery night Sweet little girl, you
(01:34:33):
better wait so long now listento me I said I made up my mind I
wonder when you.
Left me there.
I was gonna find another sweetlover I'm gonna feel all of my, all
(01:34:59):
of my, all of my care so I meta sweet little girl Just about as
nice as she could be I fell inlove with that woman I did the same
(01:35:20):
thing again to me.
Baby, baby, please come aroundoh yeah, I know you oh yeah.
(01:36:07):
So I made up my mind I'm goingto crawl right back to you woman
I'm going to plead and pleadshould you're here by my side I can't
(01:36:31):
even walk down the same oldstreets we used to walk down Cuz
I keep thinking about all thegood times keep thinking about and.
I want to make you mine I.
(01:37:13):
Want you to come back runninghome Give me one love.
I want you.
To sing about when we walkthrough the trees together.
You know we had such a realgood time.
(01:37:39):
And there you have it.
My top 10 underrated andunderappreciated Songs from Led Zeppelin
this episode has been so muchfun to put together and quite exhausting
too, and honestly one of themost difficult to curate.
Narrowing it down to just 10songs from a band with a catalog
(01:38:01):
as deep and iconic as Zeppelin ones.
Not an easy task, but I lovedevery minute of it of digging through
the music, rediscoveringhidden gems, and sharing them with
you.
I hope you enjoyed thisepisode and I want to sincerely thank
you for taking the journeywith me.
Please stick around with me aswe continue to make our way through
the Alphabet.
There's so much more music to explore.
(01:38:23):
Can't wait to share what'scoming next.
Also, don't hesitate to reachout to me on social media, on Facebook,
ABC of Rock podcast, and myGmail abc of rock gmail.com I love
hearing your thoughts and your feedback.
It always means a lot to me toknow that you're out there listening.
(01:38:44):
All right.
It has been a pleasure to behere as your host and entertainer
over the past hour.
I know there are literallythousands of podcasts out there you
could be tuning into and Itruly appreciate you choosing to
spend your time with me.
It means the world.
The ABCs of rock is part ofthe Westin Media Podcast Network.
Thank you again and have agreat weekend.
(01:39:21):
Sa.
Foreign.
(00:23):
Hello and welcome to the ABCsof Rock podcast.
I am your host, Nathan Shore.
The ABCs of rock is proudlypart of the Weston Media Podcast
Network.
I thank you for tuning intothe podcast.
Each episode I progress my waythrough the Alphabet from A to Z,
where I'll be featuring bandsand musicians going in alphabetical
(00:44):
order.
No exception.
This has not only been ablast, it's also been an education
and I'm always having the timeof my life doing this.
Before I begin, a must say acouple very important words about
this show.
I do not own the rights to anyof the music played on this podcast.
The musicians or the musiclabels own the copyright.
(01:05):
I play this music under thedoctrine of fair use.
I am not here as a dj, but tooffer music commentary and criticism.
My goal is for you, thelistener, to gain a larger appreciation
for the bands or the musiciansplayed here on this podcast.
So please go out and legallypurchase or stream their music.
(01:27):
The musicians need your support.
My goal is that I hope thisshow contributes to spreading the
great word about the bands youhear on these episodes.
I do not profit in any wayfrom this podcast.
It is truly done out of mypure love of the music.
Well, it is certainly great tobe back recording a new episode.
(01:48):
It has been so long, mylongest break probably since I ended
the show years ago.
And I have just been so busywith life.
As some of you may know, Ihosted another co hosted another
podcast, Back to the FrameRate, a movie review podcast, which
for the moment is on break indefinitely.
(02:10):
We don't know.
It might come back at some point.
It was so much fun doing that,but I'm kind of realigning what I
how I want to go forward with things.
But in the meantime, Ifigured, you know, why the hell not
dust off ABC as a rock andstart producing a couple episodes
periodically when I have a chance.
And I remember I left off inthe again in the middle of the Alphabet.
(02:32):
My goal is still to getthrough the Alphabet.
At least get through theAlphabet to the letter Z.
Who knows if we'll evercontinue things after that, But I'm
a completist in life.
Anyways, here we are.
And approaching the halfwaypoint through the Alphabet.
And with one of the biggestrock acts of all time.
(02:53):
I think it's another reasonwhy this episode was delayed because
it certainly is anintimidating one.
Uh, we're talking about LedZeppelin today.
And if you're a longtimelistener, you know that the goal
of the show is that where Icurate 10 of my favorite songs from
their Studio albums that Ifeel are not the most popular or
(03:16):
most celebrated tracks.
The songs that I play, youknow, they usually fall under the
radar, but much.
You know, like many years agowhen I recorded the Beatles episode,
which I think was episode twoof the show, it was obvious that
practically every song by LedZeppelin is well known, at least
to some degree, or was aconcert staple or has achieved some
(03:40):
form of cult status.
So I had the dubiousdistinction of picking 10 songs that
I both really love, while notchoosing the most obvious or well
known tracks.
This was not an easy task, butI think I did this list justice.
So I'm sure any die hardZeppelin fan will know every song
(04:00):
in this episode.
That's gonna have to be okay,but maybe there are some casual fans
out there who are only fans ofthe really overplayed songs.
You know, Stairway to Heaven,Immigrant Cashmere, Whole Lotta Love
and so on.
There may be a couple trackshere that might remind you that Led
Zeppelin is so much more thanthe dozen or two dozen songs that
(04:22):
are on constant rotation onclassic rock radio.
So anyways, let's get to it.
I don't think I need to getinto a long history of the band.
That information is widelyavailable on the Internet.
But I'll mention a couplequick things.
The band was formed in 1968and put out technically eight studio
(04:42):
albums.
You know, that's debatable,but in their tenure up until 1980
when they disbanded after thedeath of John Bonham, their lineup
included Robert Plant, one ofthe greatest frontmen in rock history,
legendary guitarist JimmyPage, and equally great bassist John
Paul Jones, and of course, theaforementioned John Bonham on drums.
(05:06):
Now I could go on and on aboutthe greatness of each of these band
members.
Each one was a mastercraftsman musician, amongst the best
in their profession.
And I'm sure we'll get into itas we talk more about the songs.
Now.
I grew up not a gigantic fanof the band.
I was familiar with many oftheir songs on the radio, but it
(05:29):
wasn't until college, probablythe middle, toward the end of college,
when I went hard for them.
I had a roommate who had theirbox set in 1990, and that's really
when I got into them.
And I discovered dozens anddozens of their tracks that I fell
in love with that I didn'trealize were Zeppelin songs that
(05:50):
I finally associated where thesource came from in my head and you
know, throughout the 90s.
I eventually purchased alltheir albums on CD.
So let's get started on thefirst song on the list here which
came off their self titleddebut record.
Released on January 13, 1969on Atlanta Records and produced by
(06:13):
Jimmy Page.
It charted at number six inthe U.K.
and number 10 in the U.S.
and when double platinum inthe U.K.
and get this, eight timesplatinum in the U.S.
now a lot of these numbers aregoing to be skewed because this is
one of the bands where justevery single year people just continue
to buy these albums over and over.
(06:34):
But up to this day, it's goneeight times platinum in the US we're
going to kick things off withthe song your time is going to Come.
So, man, this one has alwayshit me in a special way.
It opens with John Paul Joneson the church organ.
I'm just gonna call it that.
And right away you feel likeyou've stepped into something sacred.
(06:59):
I guess I'll put it.
It's almost has this religiousfeel to it.
The mood sets the stageperfectly for Plant's vocals.
When he starts repeating the chorus.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
It's.
It's chilling.
It feels like the weight ofGod is someone who has seriously
(07:19):
wronged him.
And you know, what a coursethis has.
It's just that one line overand over, but it lands hard and stays
with you.
I've always thought this couldhave been a killer album.
Closer, Nothing against howmany More Times, which is a great
track.
But imagine this stretched outto over like six or seven minutes
(07:40):
slowly fading out.
Like, you know, I think oflike a comparison would be like the
way hey Jude does that.
It would have been epic.
And then there's Jimmy Page,you know, slipping in with what sounds
like.
I.
I'm assuming it's a lap steelguitar on the back half.
It's super subtle, but it tieseverything together.
And it's honestly one of myfavorite parts of the song.
(08:02):
It's a song people know forsure, but when you stack it up to,
you know, good times, badtimes, babe, I'm gonna leave you
or days to confuse, it doesn'tget nearly as much love, which I
think blows my mind because it's.
For me, it's on par with those.
And they barely played itlive, which is kind of shocking.
It got this.
It has this like vengeful,soulful energy that I just think
(08:25):
just deserves more attention.
So underrated gem in my book.
For new listeners of the show,what I do here is I read my favorite
lyrics from each song, usuallyin a deadpan delivery that offers
the writers of these songsjust zero justice.
(08:46):
This.
It's Purely coincidence thatmy favorite section of the lyrics
on this song is the.
Of the O of this opening songis the opening lyrics.
They're raw, they're bitter.
This isn't just a breakup,this is a full blown condemnation.
Plant isn't just callingsomeone out.
(09:09):
He's practically prophesizingtheir downfall.
That's why I love the song.
There's a moral weight behindthese lyrics.
Like karma's already on itsway and he's just here to narrate
it.
So these are the lyrics I love.
Lying, cheating, hurting.
That's all you seem to do.
Messing around with every guyin town.
(09:31):
Putting me down for thinkingof someone new.
Always the same, Playing yourgame, drive me insane.
Trouble is going to come to you.
(10:56):
Lying, cheating, hurting.
That's all you seem to do.
Messing around every guy in town.
Putting me down for thinkingI'm someone new.
(11:21):
Always the same, playing yourgame, drive me insane.
Trouble's gonna come to youone of these days.
And it won't be long.
You look for me, but baby,I'll be gone.
(11:44):
This is all I gotta say toyour woman.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
(12:07):
Your time is gonna come.
Made up my mind break you.
This time won't be so kind.
It's my turn to cry, do whatyou want.
(12:33):
I won't take a bright.
It's fading away, can't feelyou anymore.
Don't care what you say.
Cause I'm gonna wear the snake.
Gonna make you pay for thatgreat big hole in.
(12:57):
People.
Jumping all around.
Watch out, woman, no longer isit you're gonna be on my heart.
You've been back to me, woman.
But it's coming back home to you.
Your time is gonna come.
(13:17):
Your time is gonna call.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna come.
(13:42):
Your time is gonna come.
Your time is gonna.
(14:11):
All right.
Oh, so good.
The next song I'm spotlightingis thank you from Led Zeppelin 2.
Now, this album was releasedon October 22, 1969 on Atlanta Records.
Produced by Jimmy Page, withEddie Kramer serving more as the
engineer than full onproducer, even though he's credited
(14:33):
as a co producer.
All right, so look, picking anunderrated gem off this album is
kind of.
I mean, it's kind of a fool's errand.
Every track is a classic,either a hit, a deep cut that fans
adore, or a concert staple.
So I'll admit right now thatmy pick here might cost me a few
(14:56):
Zeppelin or hard rockcredibility points.
But you know what?
I don't care.
I've always been transparentabout my musical taste growing up.
So just bear with me, youknow, on this one, this pick, you
know.
You know, back.
Here's.
Here's the reason why I'mgonna tell you the story.
And this is why.
Back in the 80s, I was waymore of a new wave, post punk and
(15:18):
good old fashioned rock radio fan.
My favorite band at the timewas Duran Duran.
So, you know, mentioning DuranDuran on a Led Zeppelin episode,
it's blasphemy.
I probably understand whypeople would think that.
But you know, in the earlymid-90s, they had a bit of a resurgence
with the self titled Wedding album.
(15:38):
Some of you may remember thatI love this album.
But here's the weird twist.
Their next album was a coversrecord called thank you.
And yeah, this album's kind ofall over the place.
They covered White Lines,Perfect Day by Lou Reed, Lay Lady
Lay by Dylan, even 911 is ajoke by Public Enemy.
(16:01):
This.
This was an ambitious album.
It's strange and it's.
It's.
Yeah, it's really hit and miss.
But one of the tracks on therewas a cover of Zeppelin's thank you.
So don't get me wrong, I'm notabout to say it holds a candle to
the original, but for whateverreason, that was the version of this,
of the song that first openedthe door for me to Zeppelin in a
(16:24):
lot of ways.
And it made me seek out theoriginal Zeppelin track.
And when I finally heard thereal thing, you know, Game Over,
I was in.
So I love how this song openswith that slow fading John Paul Jones
laying down.
He has this warm, meditativeatmosphere on the Hammond organ.
(16:44):
There's a gentle, almostspiritual quality to it, like you're
about to be taken somewhere beautiful.
And Bottom's drum fills areabsolutely the MVP of this track.
Every one of them feelsperfectly placed, like punctuation
on a love letter.
There's this grand, folky vibeto this whole song and the song writing
(17:10):
just soars on this one.
It's tender without being liketoo soft.
It's romantic without losingany of that Zeppelin cutting edge
that they have.
And I've always just lovedthat the.
There's this false endingtoward the back half of this song
and it kind of fakes you outand then pulls you back in for like
one final exhale.
(17:31):
Thank you.
Is pure devotion in song formfor me.
It feels timeless, likesomething you'd hear at a wedding
or I want to play at the topof a mountain.
Or maybe, you know, both.
If I.
You know, a wedding on amountaintop would be cool.
It's not underrated in thetraditional sense, but for me, it's
always been quietly powerful.
(17:53):
And, yeah, I have Duran Duranto thank for this, so.
It'd be so easy to pick theopening verse again for the lyrics
on this one.
I mean, they're iconic, andthey're just perfectly.
They perfectly set the tonefor the.
The whole song.
But instead, I want to shine alight on a line from the second verse.
(18:13):
Let me look at this here.
Yeah, yeah, for this.
And it's for this reason.
It's the way Plant deliversthe line.
And this line here, like, foryou to me are the only ones.
So right at the end of theverse, he suddenly jumps, like, several
octaves.
It's not just a vocal choice.
It's like this emotional release.
(18:35):
You feel the vulnerability,the sincerity.
Like he just can't contain howdeeply he means it.
This gives me chills every time.
It's like the song lifts offat that moment.
It's.
It's not just romantic, it's transcendent.
And this note just elevatesthe whole song from a sweet love
(18:56):
letter to something epic.
So these.
So these are the full lyrics.
Here they are.
And so today my world itsmiles your hand in mine we walk
the miles and thanks to you itwill be done for you to me are.
The only ones.
(19:37):
If the sun refused to shine Iwould still, still be loving you
when mountains crumble to thesea There will still be you and.
(19:58):
Me.
Kind of woman I give you.
My all.
Kind of woman nothing moreLittle drops of rain Whisper of the
(20:21):
pain Tears of love lost in the.
Days gone by.
My love is strong here thereis no wrong Together we.
Shall go until we die My, my.
My heart Inspiration is whatyou are.
(20:44):
To me.
Inspiration, love to see andso today my world it smiles your
(21:37):
hand in mine we walk the milesthanks to you it will be done for
you to me are the only one.
All right.
(21:58):
Happiness no more.
Reset.
Happiness on ground.
If the sun refused to shine.
(22:20):
I.
Would still be loving youMountains crumble to the sea.
There will still be you and me.
(23:57):
All right, we're gonna move onto the third song on our list, and
it's gonna be Bring It OnHome, which is the final track on
Led Zeppelin 2.
We got two from Led Zeppelin 2.
That's cool.
Now, this song is interest.
It's, I guess, the best way ofdescribing it.
It's kind of a shapeshifter.
(24:18):
It's it was originally writtenby Willie Dixon in 1963, I see here
and recorded by Sonny BoyWilliams II in 66 for Checker Records.
So Zeppelin's version startsout as a.
It's a straight up homage tothose, you know, deep, swampy blues.
(24:39):
The first two minutes feellike you've stepped into, like a
dimly lit juke joint.
Plants on Harmonica, wailinglike he's channeling the delta spirits.
And it's got that laid back,smoky feel.
It's.
It's not unlike how John PaulJones opened the other tracks with
the organ.
(24:59):
There's clearly a pattern herewith them using different instruments
to create a mood before thesong explodes.
I love this about Zeppelin.
Jones is laying down thisabsolutely filthy bass line underneath,
just crawling along.
And then Paige slices in withthe sharp signature riff that instantly
flips the switch for the song.
(25:20):
Suddenly it's not just a quietblues number anymore.
It's a full blown swaggering rocker.
And then Bonham starts pounding.
Page is shredding and plantsletting it rip.
It's Zeppelin at theirbluesiest and their most electrified.
And then, like the titlepromises, they bring it on Home,
(25:40):
returning to that slow groovein the final moments, closing the
album full circle.
It's really a smart, dynamicarrangement that pays tribute to
their roots while completelyowning it in their own way.
And this is something they'rejust really great at, making these
songs their own.
(26:01):
As far as the lyrics, therearen't any that truly grab me here.
It's the one.
The one, I guess is.
This is just.
I guess one of the songs ismore about the music and the vibe.
But if I had to pick somethingI'm selecting from.
From the song, I guess it'sthis part of the first verse.
(26:22):
Here it is.
I've got my ticket I've gotthat load got up gone higher all
aboard I'll take my seat rightway back oh, yeah Watch this train
roll down the.
(27:25):
God magic goddamn Higher allaboard Take my seat right way back.
(27:48):
Watch.
This dream go down the trackI'm gonna bring it on home Bring
it down home to you Watch out,watch out.
(28:16):
Sa.
(28:47):
Went a little walk downtown.
Messing up that lake finaldon't get.
Away and it said Daddy, I justcan't wait Bring it all home Bring.
It home Bring it back home Bring.
It back home to me baby Sweetest.
(29:41):
Little baby Daddy ever saidI'm gonna.
Give you love and baby I'mgonna give you all.
Bring it on out Bring it on.
(30:44):
All right, we are moving on tothe fourth track in this episode.
And this is from Led Zeppelin3, released on October 5, 1970, again
on Atlantic Records and plansproduced by Jimmy Page.
I should just say that JimmyPage, Jimmy Page produced all of
these.
Now if we can just take asecond and appreciate how they stuck
(31:09):
with the naming convention,you know, Led Zeppelin 3.
No subtitles, no fancy names,just confidence in their brand.
I'm trying to think of otherbands that went that route through
their third album.
So, like, I don't count VanHalen three because that was much
later in their career.
And.
And does that even count as aVan Halen album?
I don't know.
But now, by the time threecame out, the band was clearly shifting.
(31:33):
Still bluesy for sure, butthere was this new acoustic, folky,
almost experimental flavorstarting to creep in.
Tracks like G's Pole, that'sthe Way, and the one I'm highlighting
now, Friends also fall intothis category.
This song is so cool.
(31:53):
It's.
It was rarely played live.
It looks like maybe just once,if I.
If I.
My research is correct, butman, it sticks with you.
It's got this almost Beatlesesque feel to it.
Not necessarily in sound, butin that offbeat, unexpected chord
progression that kind ofthrows you at first and then pulls
(32:14):
you right in.
I love the use of the Moogsynthesizer here.
It adds this eerie, droningundertone that makes.
Makes the whole song feelslightly unstable.
Like it's teetering between.
Like this.
The between earthy and cosmic,I guess, is the best way of putting
it.
(32:35):
Bonham on the Congas is such afun touch.
It's.
It's so different from hisusual thunderous style, but no less
powerful.
And then there's this tempo.
I love how towards the end,it's gradually building and lifting
you out, out of thismeditative zone and landing you right
(32:56):
into celebration day.
It's one of those seamlesstransitions that makes listening
to this album front to back so rewarding.
Friends might not have been ahit, but it's one of those hidden
in plain sight songs thatshows how bold Zeppelin was willing
to be.
For the lyrics, I'm feelingjust so unoriginal about this, but
(33:20):
it's, It's.
It.
I guess it's simply just acredit to the songwriting on these
songs.
The opening verse is just so perfect.
It reads like a.
I guess a spiritual search,like a kind of existential wandering.
There's.
There's a sense of apersistence through darkness, of
(33:42):
chasing something you once hador maybe something you lost along
the way.
It's.
It's simple but it justresonates well.
These are the lyrics.
Bright light almost blindingblack night still there shining I
can't stop keep on climbingLooking for what I knew.
(34:44):
Bright light almost blindedBlack knight still is shining I can't
stop, keep on climbing.
Looking for what I knew Had a.
Friend she once told me yougot love, you ain't lonely now she's
gonna let me all live ittelling you now the greatest thing
(35:34):
you ever can do now Straightas smile someone's blue.
Very easy J.
Man on the roadside cryingwithout a friend there's no denying.
You'Re incomplete There'll beno finding over for what you knew.
(35:55):
So anybody time somebody needsyou, don't let them down.
(37:44):
Oh, I love that song.
Okay, on to the fifth song onour show.
And it's time for us to moveon to what most consider to be their
magnum opus, the grand puba eljefe supremo of Led Zeppelin albums.
On November 8, 1971, theydropped their fourth studio album,
(38:07):
which technically doesn't evenhave a title.
We just all call it LedZeppelin 4.
And for good reason, of course.
It hit number one on the USBillboard charts and the UK charts.
But the big stat in the USalone, it's gone platinum 24 times.
So I guess that's double Diamond.
(38:28):
I think diamond is a 10million record, so yeah, that's ridiculous.
According to the to the RIAA,it ranks as the 11th highest selling
album of all time.
And yes, Jimmy Page producedit as always.
Now, picking an underrated gemfrom this record, practically impossible.
(38:51):
You could maybe make a casefor Four Sticks or Battle of Evermore.
And while Misty Mountain Hopis super well known, I guess in the
context of of an album itcould be considered slightly less
iconic than the big guns.
But here's the thing, none ofthose are my favorite songs on here.
(39:11):
And I just wasn't feeling itwhen it came to champion any of those.
So I'm breaking my own rule here.
The song I'm picking, it's not underrated.
In fact, it's a crowd pleaser.
It was a regular part of theirset list.
It still gets played onclassic rock radio and has been featured
in countless commercials and soundtracks.
(39:32):
You can't escape it and Iwouldn't want to.
It's the album Closer when theLevee Breaks and it's probably in
my top five favorite Zeppelintracks, period.
That opening Bonham's drumsjust thunder in like the sky is about
to fall.
The beat, the weight, it'sinstantly iconic.
(39:54):
Then plants harmonica comes inand brings that swampy.
That.
Yeah, the swampy grinding moodthat just feels apocalyptic in the
best way, which is great.
The whole song just grindsforward with the slow, unstoppable
momentum like a freight trainrolling through a flood.
(40:16):
I haven't talked much aboutPlants vocals yet in this episode,
but man, they are so good onthis track.
There's this pleading, grittyquality to them.
Desperate and powerful.
And what I love is how theharmonica just sits behind him in
the mix, almost like it'sanswering his call.
(40:36):
There's a call and responsevibe to it that just gives the track
this ghostly, bluesy soul.
Then you've got Paige doing his.
His thing and laying in thishypnotic guitar that just shimmers
and in.
In slithers through the mix.
He's not trying to shred here.
(40:58):
He's just casting his.
His spell, the thing that he does.
I can listen to a 20 minuteversion of this and not get tired
of it.
It's just dirgy, massive andit just envelops me so.
Oh, so the lyrics.
Well, with the lyrics, I thinkonce again, I'm influenced by Plants
delivery more than the songwriting.
(41:20):
I think it's probably thebridge where he built out the lines.
It's, it's.
And it's.
It's sung with such desperation.
It gives.
Gives me goosebumps.
These are them here.
Oh, don't it make you feel badwhen you're trying to find your way
home?
You don't know which way to goif you're going down south they got
(41:43):
no work to do if you're goingnorth to Chicago.
(43:11):
If it keeps on.
Raining Levy is going to break.
If it keeps on raining love is going.
To break.
When the levy breaks have noplace to stay.
(43:39):
On it's got.
What it takes to make my do.
(46:05):
You no good.
When Olivia Praise mama.
You got to move.
Last night sat.
On a love you know all lastnight sat on a love you know I'm
(46:35):
thinking about my baby Sa.
(48:53):
Okay, before I move on, I justwant to take a brief moment since
we're about halfway throughthe episode and thank you once again
for tuning into the show andsay how much I appreciate each and
every one of you for being aloyal listener through the years
or subscriber to this podcast.
Also, if you've been listeningto these episodes, I'd love to hear
(49:13):
from you.
The email for the show is abcof rockpodcastmail.com and of course
you can find me on socialmedia on Facebook at ABC of Rock
podcast.
The show is available ondozens of podcast apps.
So please, if you love theshow, subscribe and give it a rating
review on whatever app you prefer.
(49:33):
I thank you all in advance.
Okay, heading into the backhalf of the show in the sixth song
on my list comes from LedZeppelin's fifth studio album, Houses
of the Holy, released on March28, 1973 on Atlantic Records.
This was actually the firstZeppelin album that I purchased.
(49:54):
If I if my memory servescorrectly, this was the final album
with Atlantic and likeeverything they touched in that era,
it was a massive success.
Again, it hit number one onboth the UK and US charts and has
been certified platinum 11times in the US.
I say only 11 times, so itwent diamond, but 11 times platinum,
(50:17):
like that's a disappointment.
But when you're coming off analbum like Led Zeppelin 4 that went
24 times, there's just nowhereto go but down.
I guess the song I'm pickingfrom this album is one that was a
concert staple and is prettywell loved.
But still, I don't think itimmediately comes to mind when folks
(50:42):
list their top 15 or 20Zeppelin tracks.
For me though, it absolutelymakes the cut I'm talking about no
quarter right out of the gate,I'm hooked by that eerie, dreamlike
keyboard intro.
I don't even know what effectJohn Paul Jones is using there.
It sounds like it was recordedat the bottom of the ocean.
(51:03):
There's this dreamy underwatervibe to it that just kind of washes
over me.
Then bottom crashes in withagain more great drum fills and suddenly
we're off to the races withthis song.
But the real standout for mehere is Pages guitar tone.
It's got that.
That fuzz, that fuzzy, warmand absolutely dripping with atmosphere
(51:28):
sound to it.
I have no clue how he achievedthat effect.
I probably could haveresearched it for the show, I didn't.
But it feels like sinking intoa lucid dream where everything is
just slightly slowed down andglowing around the edges.
That central guitar lick, itmight be my all time favorite of
(51:51):
his for all time.
I don't know.
It's.
It's haunting and hypnotic andanchors the whole track with that
slow, burning intensity.
Now I'll be honest, if there'sone thing about the song that doesn't
quite do it for me, it'splants vocals during the verses.
(52:12):
There's a throaty, almoststrained quality to them and, and
I don't know, it's.
It's.
I know it might be just be anintentional vocal choice or effect
layered in.
Not sure.
But either way it's not Myfavorite version of his voice, but
that's a minor gripe, I guess.
(52:32):
The track is an absolute killer.
It's moody and atmospheric andit just shows how versatile Zeppelin
could be.
If I had to pick a section ofthe lyrics from the song, I would
have to go with the secondverse, I guess.
And it just paints such avivid, haunting picture, like a.
(52:54):
Like a dark fantasy novel, I guess.
So here they are.
Here it is Walking side byside with death the devil mocks their
every step the snow drivesback the foot that's slow the dogs
of doom are howling more theycarry news that must get through
(53:15):
to build a dream for me and you.
La it.
(59:50):
Okay, we are chugging alonginto the sixth studio album, Physical
Graffiti, which was releasedon February 24, 1975, again produced
by Jimmy Page, and it markedtheir first release under their own
label, Swan Song.
So they did this after theymoved on from Atlantic.
(01:00:12):
Swan Song, which they launchedthe year prior, is best known for
not only Zeppelin's final runof albums, but also for bringing
us bad companies string ofrecords, starting with their debut
all the way through 19, 1982'sRough Diamonds, which, let's be honest,
was pretty much their heyday.
When Zeppelin disbanded In theearly 80s, the label folded soon
(01:00:35):
after, and they did thisbecause they wanted more creative
control of their music.
And also they were getting amuch higher, I think, all the profits
as well.
Now, Physical Graffiti is afan favorite.
Many critics hail it as their masterpiece.
And while I can definitelyappreciate that, I've always found
it to be quite uneven.
(01:00:58):
But that's kind of the natureof double albums, right?
Let's gets left off on theCutting Room four, so they recorded
a lot for this one.
That said, I think it'sprobably their most eclectic album.
Sonically, it stretchesZeppelin's reach in the widest variety
of directions.
So picking just one track outof 22, not easy.
(01:01:21):
But I'm going with the openingtrack on side two, in the Light.
Once again, we're greeted byanother unconventional opening.
Jones uses a bow on anelectric guitar.
I mean, who does it?
I mean, I think Paige did thatoccasionally as.
But it is such a cool thing tobring into a rock song.
(01:01:46):
It creates this eerie,otherworldly sound I've truly never
heard before.
Then Plant delivers the versein this haunting, spectral tone,
just floating over the droneof the song.
And then Bonham again comescrashing in.
That's the theme here, Bonhamcrashing in.
(01:02:07):
But the drums, you know, walkinto this hypnotic march of war rhythm
that just really pulls you in.
But here.
Here's the magic of the song.
Just when you think the songis all shadowy and doomy, you know,
Jones then shift gears, andwhat I think is a clavinet that kicks
(01:02:28):
in, and suddenly Paige's riffturns the whole track on its head.
It becomes a bright, almosttriumphant song.
And plant whales in the light.
And like the clouds part, thatchord progression lifts the whole
thing into the stratosphere.
This song is a journey.
(01:02:49):
It's weird and spiritual.
It's a progressive rock voyagethat only Zeppelin can take you on.
And for that, it's myhighlight of Physical Graffiti.
Lyrically, this isn'tnecessarily one of Zeppelin's most,
you know, greatest written songs.
I guess it's.
It's got that sort of vague,spiritual, you know, vibe going on.
(01:03:14):
And.
And honestly, the songwritingitself isn't where it does it for
me here.
What does, again, is plants delivery.
That guy just knows how tograb you right from the top of a
song.
So here it is.
And if you feel that you can'tgo on?
And your will's sinking low?
(01:03:35):
Just believe and you can't go wrong?
In the light you will find the road?
You will find the road?
(01:05:14):
And if you feel that you cango on in your wheel sinking low?
(01:05:46):
Just be me.
And you can go.
Wrong.
In the light.
(01:06:07):
You will find the road?
You will find the road.
(01:06:32):
Oh, did you ever believe?
That I could leave youstanding out in the cold?
Hey, yeah, baby, I know how it feels.
Cause I have slipped throughto the very depths of my soul, yeah.
(01:06:59):
Oh, baby, I just want to showyou what a clear view that is from
every bend in the road.
Now listen.
Oh, whoa, whoa.
As I was believing before youto as you would for me.
(01:07:24):
I will share your love?
Let me share your love.
(01:09:05):
Can go on you?
(01:09:31):
But that will always be so.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
When love is faint it candevour you but you are never alone.
(01:09:54):
I will show you love?
I will share your love.
Baby, let me in the light.
(01:10:16):
Everybody needs a light.
Baby in the body, in the body,in a body.
(01:12:05):
Okay, well, moving on to theeighth song.
At this point in their career,the band had encountered a little
bit of difficulties.
They were going through somerough waters, we could say.
Robert Plant and his wife hadbeen in a serious car accident in
1975.
(01:12:25):
And it's widely believed thatthe recording of this next album,
which is called Presence, mayhave been rushed because of that.
And coming off the massive,bombastic energy of Physical Graffiti,
Presence is a very different beast.
It's stripped down it's raw.
(01:12:47):
Six out of the seven songs arepretty straightforward hard rockers.
No lush orchestration, nodabbling into funk or or folk or
world music.
It lacks some of thatexperimentation and boundary pushing
fans I think had come to expect.
Still, the album went tonumber one in both the US and uk
(01:13:10):
but to this day it remainstheir lowest selling studio album.
And I say only, you know, thatseems like three times platinum in
the U.
S.
Like that's a bad thing.
But hey, when your leds up,when the bars kind of.
Hi.
Now the track I'm going withfrom Presence might not be the most
original pick, but it's myfavorite on this album.
(01:13:32):
And honestly, I think it mightbe a lot of other people's favorites
as well.
So the song is nobody's faultbut mine.
This is actually our secondcover of the episode originally written
and recorded by Blind WillieJohnson back in 1927.
Zeppelin, of course, you know,completely reimagines the song.
(01:13:56):
I love the way Paige lets thislike killer riff slowly fade in at
the start.
It's ominous, it's confident.
Even on their seventh album,he's still crafting riffs that are
absolute monsters.
And let's talk about Bonhamfor a second.
His playing on this track,it's unreal.
(01:14:18):
The groove is heavy, but it breathes.
His fills are likethunderclaps between all the riff
work from Paige.
And he just drives the songwith such authority.
Every time you think thesong's about to peak, you know, Bonzo
takes it to another level.
And then there's the guitar solo.
(01:14:38):
And this Page absolutelyshreds here like he's got something
to prove.
It's chaotic and wild andtotally electric.
It's not a song that reinventsthe wheel, but rolls hard.
I guess it's just the simplestway of putting it.
And speaking of rolling, Ididn't mean to like put it this way.
(01:15:00):
It just happened organically.
The lyrics I'm rolling withare from the second verse.
And here they are.
Devil he taught me to rollDevil he taught me to roll O o O
How to roll the lot you like.
(01:16:26):
Sa.
(01:17:21):
But it's for me nobody's for mine.
(01:21:17):
Kick down.
We are now on to LedZeppelin's eighth and final studio
album.
In through the Outdoor cameout on August 22, 1979 on on Swan
(01:21:45):
Song Records.
Once again produced by JimmyPage, this album arrived after a
three year hiatus, the longestgap between studio albums.
A lot of the downtime was dueto personal tragedy.
Robert Plant was stillrecovering from the death of his
son in 1977, and the band hashad essentially gone dark for a while.
(01:22:08):
So by the time into theOutdoor Dropped, fans were definitely
eager for new music.
And despite, you know, theinternal turmoil, Paige and Bonham
were struggling with substanceissues and the creative reigns had
shifted largely to Plant and Jones.
(01:22:29):
But the album still delivered.
It went on to number one inboth the US and UK again and since
has gone six times platinum inthe us so still not bad for a record
that people still argue aboutto this day.
So.
But this album, let's behonest, it's kind of the oddball
in their catalog.
(01:22:49):
It was made during a reallyturbulent time for the band, you
know, with Paige and Bottomboth battling substance issues and
as a result, a lot of thecreative weight shifting.
To Plant and Jones, thischange really shows there's way more
synthesizers, moreexperimentation with new wave and
(01:23:11):
pop structures, and far lessof the heavy blues rock riffage that
defined the the earlier work.
Some fans love it for itsuniqueness and I others think it
strays way too far from whatZeppelin was meant to be.
But either way, I think it's afascinating document of where the
(01:23:34):
band was emotionally and creatin the late 70s.
So the track I'm picking fromin through the Outdoor, I think it's
a deep cut and it's Southbound Suarez.
This is one of the more upbeattracks on the record and in their
(01:23:54):
whole catalog.
It's honestly, I think, just a blast.
Right away you can tell thatthis is John Paul Jones's world.
We're just living in it.
The piano is front and centerwith this bouncing my broom swing
that feels more like a lost,probably Elton John song than a typical
(01:24:18):
Zeppelin track.
It's got this kind ofswaggering honky tonk energy that
totally just catches you off guard.
Plant's vocals here arethey're kind of playful, kind of
flirty.
You can tell he's having funwith it, leaning into a sort of roadhouse
vibe that makes the wholething feel very lively.
(01:24:41):
I think the lyrics aren'texactly profound, but they don't
really need to be for thesong, it's it.
The song is about movement anddesire and maybe even escape.
It's not trying to becashmere, so it's just here to have
fun and groove.
And even though Paige takes abit of a backseat overall on this
(01:25:03):
album, his guitar work stillpunches through with a lot of bite,
a lot of character throughout.
It complements Jones pianobeautifully, and it's a rare moment
where Zeppelin sounds likethey're jamming in a bar rather than
a stadium, which is kind of neat.
The song, I think, is oftenoverlooked, but it's such a cool
reminder that Zeppelin wasn'tafraid to let loose and have some
(01:25:26):
fun.
So lyrically southbound Suarezisn't trying to reinvent the wheel.
It's not.
Not philosophically deep likeCashmere or Achilles Last Stand,
but what it does have isswagger and a lot of feel good energy.
So I'm just going to go withthe chorus because it embodies all
of that.
Here it is with a little bitof concentration and a little bit
(01:25:49):
of helping hands and a littlebit of raving madness.
You know what makes me feelBaby both my feet are back on the
ground.
(01:26:22):
I so good I'm so goodConcentration a little bit my fe.
(01:26:44):
You know it makes me feel Baby.
Background When the rivertakes it we so good I'm so good baby
if it keeps shaking you do you good.
(01:27:05):
It'S so much good.
Shake and a little bit of flyright there Just a little bit of
sweet.
It makes.
Me feel Makes me feel the.
(01:28:20):
So glad, so glad, so glad soglad I'm good I'm so good With a
With my concentration Just alittle bit I.
(01:28:45):
Makes me feel home Makes.
Me feel better oh yes, it sure does.
It makes me feel.
Hey, back on ground.
(01:30:04):
We're pulling up on the finaltrack of the show today.
It only feels right to take amoment, to just reflect for a second
and have it all came to an end.
John Bonham Bonzo diedtragically on September 25, 1980,
after a day of heavy drinkingin a night of rest that sadly became
(01:30:24):
permanent.
He was just 32 years old.
His death was a seismic blow,not just to Led Zeppelin, but to
rock music as a whole.
And the band didn't try tocarry on without him.
Just a few months later, inDecember of that year, Zeppelin officially
disbanded, stating that theyjust could not continue without their
(01:30:46):
friend and drummer.
And that was it.
Two years later, in 1982, theyreleased Coda.
Produced by Jimmy Page andreleased on Swan Song Records, the
album is a bit of ahodgepodge, a collection of live
tracks, unused studio takes,and leftovers from different points
of their career.
(01:31:07):
Honestly, not much on itdazzles me.
For a while, I thought I wasgoing to highlight Bonzo's Montreux
from the album.
It felt like the obviouschoice, a tribute of sorts.
But the more I listened to it,the more I realized it just doesn't
capture what made Bonham so brilliant.
It's experimental for sure,but it lacks the raw power and groove
(01:31:30):
he brought to the band,especially on stage.
So you know what?
Screw that song.
I'm breaking my own rule here.
And picking a track from the2015 Remastered Deluxe Edition of
Coda, I had the CD versionwith the two bonus discs of unreleased
material.
And nestled in there is a gemI think more people need to hear.
(01:31:56):
It's called Baby Come Home.
This track was actuallyrecorded all the way back in 1968
during the sessions for theirdebut album.
And somehow it sat in thevaults for decades.
It's got this gorgeous,soulful, almost gospel like vibe
to it.
Plants vocal performance is incredible.
(01:32:17):
Raw and heartfelt.
Totally in the pocket.
It's a side of him we don'thear nearly enough.
I feel like this could havebeen a James Brown song, something
you'd hear off his 1963 Liveat the Apollo album.
And I love that.
This is how we're ending theshow today on a song that not only
(01:32:40):
stands tall on its own, butalso brings everything kind of full
circle.
A tune from the very beginningfinally getting its moment in the
light.
The third verse is theemotional core of the song for me.
It's where Plant lays it all out.
You can feel the desperation,the regrets, the longing just pouring
out of him.
Here are the lyrics.
(01:33:02):
So I made up my mind I'm goingto crawl right back to you woman
I'm going to plead and pleadand plead yeah till you're here by
my side I can't even walk downthe same side of the street we used
to walk down Because I keepthinking about all the good times
Keep thinking about it I wantto make you mine.
(01:33:35):
There was a time I used tocall you on my very own we were so
happy woman Talking for hoursand hours on the telephone Then one
(01:33:58):
day I set you up to motorright out of my life Leaving me all
by myself I all along to cryevery night Sweet little girl, you
(01:34:33):
better wait so long now listento me I said I made up my mind I
wonder when you.
Left me there.
I was gonna find another sweetlover I'm gonna feel all of my, all
(01:34:59):
of my, all of my care so I meta sweet little girl Just about as
nice as she could be I fell inlove with that woman I did the same
(01:35:20):
thing again to me.
Baby, baby, please come aroundoh yeah, I know you oh yeah.
(01:36:07):
So I made up my mind I'm goingto crawl right back to you woman
I'm going to plead and pleadshould you're here by my side I can't
(01:36:31):
even walk down the same oldstreets we used to walk down Cuz
I keep thinking about all thegood times keep thinking about and.
I want to make you mine I.
(01:37:13):
Want you to come back runninghome Give me one love.
I want you.
To sing about when we walkthrough the trees together.
You know we had such a realgood time.
(01:37:39):
And there you have it.
My top 10 underrated andunderappreciated Songs from Led Zeppelin
this episode has been so muchfun to put together and quite exhausting
too, and honestly one of themost difficult to curate.
Narrowing it down to just 10songs from a band with a catalog
(01:38:01):
as deep and iconic as Zeppelin ones.
Not an easy task, but I lovedevery minute of it of digging through
the music, rediscoveringhidden gems, and sharing them with
you.
I hope you enjoyed thisepisode and I want to sincerely thank
you for taking the journeywith me.
Please stick around with me aswe continue to make our way through
the Alphabet.
There's so much more music to explore.
(01:38:23):
Can't wait to share what'scoming next.
Also, don't hesitate to reachout to me on social media, on Facebook,
ABC of Rock podcast, and myGmail abc of rock gmail.com I love
hearing your thoughts and your feedback.
It always means a lot to me toknow that you're out there listening.
(01:38:44):
All right.
It has been a pleasure to behere as your host and entertainer
over the past hour.
I know there are literallythousands of podcasts out there you
could be tuning into and Itruly appreciate you choosing to
spend your time with me.
It means the world.
The ABCs of rock is part ofthe Westin Media Podcast Network.
Thank you again and have agreat weekend.
(01:39:21):
Sa.
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