Nxg

Revisiting a classic album.
PRITISH SAI

Album: LED ZEPPELIN IV

Artist: Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page (Lead guitarist), Robert Plant (vocalist), John Paul Jones (Bassist and keyboardist) and John Bonham (drummer).

Release Date: November 8, 1971

 
“Led Zeppelin IV” was Led Zeppelin’s fourth album and one of the most commercially and critically successful albums in Rock History selling 23 million copies worldwide. It contains some of the most famous Zeppelin songs of all time.

Interestingly the album cover did not carry either the *Led Zeppelin’ name or any other name; a deliberate act because the media had dubbed Zeppelin *overhyped’. To prove the point that Led Zeppelin was all about the music, they left the album nameless. As Jimmy Page said, “Names don’t mean a thing”.

However on the cover were four hand-drawn symbols, which were significant to each member. These symbols became immensely popular and were embedded on the Led Zeppelin instruments. The four symbols were ‘Zoso’ (Page), Three Intersecting circles (Bonham), A circle with three intersecting pisces (Jones) and a circle with a feather (Plant).

The album’s most famous song “Stairway to heaven”, which till today is one of the best songs ever composed. It starts with a slow acoustic riff accompanied by three recorders — a fast rock riff, an iconic guitar solo (rated as the greatest rock solo ever played) and a heavy metal ending. Robert Plant’s tone dramatically changes from slow acoustic to fast rock as the song progresses. Page had said, “ It’s like a adrenaline flow.”

The opening riff was influenced by a riff in “Taurus” by the band Spirit. The vocals, Plant said, were “cynical”.

Till today “Stairway to heaven” remains one of the most-demanded songs on the radio and also the one that defines Zeppelin. Other iconic songs from the albums include “Black Dog”, “Rock and Roll”, “When the levee breaks” and “The Battle of Evermore”.

Pritish studies animation at Maya Academy for Advanced Cinematics (Maac).

Popularity: 3% [?]