![Led Zeppelin II [Deluxe Edition]](https://images-eu.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71+zclNEaeL._AC_UL200_SR200,200_.jpg)
After a more experimental third album, the band returned to their more forceful, blues driven rock sound, although now they had acquired many more song writing qualities, techniques, and had come to the studio with a greater knowledge of the world and her music. As if to prove they were the biggest band in the world, they didn’t even put their name on the album, instead provided cover art depicting an old man carrying a bunch of sticks. It went on to be one of the biggest selling albums ever. Of course, if the songs weren’t up to scratch the album would eventually have faded away; instead it thrives today as one of the best rock albums ever, with songs eternally played on radios and ipods all over the globe. Generally regarded as their best album, each of its eight songs is a classic and even if you don’t think you’ve heard them, most have parts which are instantly recognizable.
‘Black Dog’ opens with a swirling sound giving way to a classic Plant vocal blast, followed by one of Page’s most famous riffs. This start stop technique repeats a few times giving Bonham and Jones a chance to crash, bang, and wallop in the background. It’s pretty slow for one of the all time great rock songs and there is a post-coital languid feel to what goes on. There are some interludes with Plant singing ooh yeahs and pretty babies while Page bashes a wobbling solo out near the end, but this is all about a band of technical masters showing off how in tune they are with each other as well as how they have returned to a louder, forceful style.
‘Rock N Roll’ speeds proceedings up quite a few notches, a 12 bar blues progression sounding like they have gone back to the 50s and nuked the rock songs of those days. Like many songs in the band’s catalogue this came about during jam sessions and after twiddling with classic blues and rock standards- befitting then that the song should get such a plain title. Once again this highlights how tight the band were in terms up creativity and understanding- that one member would play a short piece which the others would immediately latch on to and take to completion. All four members get a songwriting credit here. Plant takes simple lyrics from a variety of earlier sources and mixes them enough to make them unique and we even get some bar hopping piano in the background.
‘Battle Of Evermore’ takes the album in a sudden different direction- a massive change of pace, tone, and theme. The song is primarily a folk duet with lyrics on mysticism and mythology, Sandy Denny adding the female vocals beautifully. Plant and Jones also duet with acoustic guitar and mandolin while Bonham presumably slugged some vodka and mouthed the words like a rampaging Viking. Amidst the folklore and LOTR words the melodies soar freely and each singer lets their vocals merge and clash without worry with the others. Thanks to the maturity of the vocals and playing, none of the silliness is allowed to become jarring.
‘Stairway To Heaven’ is, as you all understand, the greatest song of all time. Naturally I don’t have much to add that hasn’t been said a million times before but as I’m ‘reviewing’ the album I can’t pass it by. It’s the central point of the album and the band’s career- at this point they transcended everything they had done and became legendary, Gods, or whatever other superlative you wish to heap upon them. Every single second is perfect, every note, every word is exactly right and shows up where it should. Opening with quiet, folk style acoustics and woodwind instruments the song builds like a stairway in volume and intent, with all of Plant’s strange lyrical ideas eventually coming together. The song did start as a collection of guitar pieces and the band came together as a whole to try to gel them seamlessly. After a long set of similar verses Bonzo sends the song spinning with his introduction and after a few more verses the song comes to an apparent pause which in reality is a bridge between the soft and hard parts. With a sudden crash everyone is flying with a lethal Page solo and superb drumming before the 3 chord booming final section. And then it comes to an end and we press repeat.
‘Misty Mountain Hop’ keeps the high pace and standard going, although it is a more straight forward rock song led by a dual keyboard and guitar riff and kept in line by a blistering Bonham performance. Plant meanwhile sings seemingly of a meeting between groups of people and an eventual trip to the Misty Mountain of the title and from LOTR. Fans claim that this encounter is between the band and the police whilst high. Between all the jamming we get a manic solo from Page and a funky ‘chorus’ part.
‘Four Sticks’ opens like a callback to the second album thanks to a leading blues rock riff, the title coming from the fact that Bonham played here with 4 sticks instead of 2. There are eastern style strings and odd time signatures giving an other-worldly feel and giving a headache to budding cover artists. In stark contrast to how the song opens, it closes more like something from Physical Graffiti in the middle of fuzzing effects and strange sounds.
‘Going To California’ changes the direction of the album again and is one of the band’s softest songs, directly influenced by their love of Joni Mitchell. The lyrics and music meld beautifully to give an innocent, wistful feeling similar to that which many folk artists and hippy musicians of the time were trying to hold on to. The lyrics come across as both a dedication and infatuation, and though reading the words may make them seem twee they are a perfect snapshot of young, unashamed love and hope. It’s one of the most beautiful, tender tracks in the band’s catalogue and shows they were more than just clobbering rock giants.
‘When The Levee Breaks’ though does show the ground-shaking side of the band, opening with a stomping rhythm which does sound like a mammoth trampling underfoot all your cities. A cover of a blues classic about the Great Mississippi Flood, Zep turn around the lyrics and ideas to make it sounds more like social collapse in the 70s thanks to another massive Page riff and dwarfing booms from Bonham. Some interesting echo and reverb techniques are employed to give further dimensions and uniqueness to the performance and the recording was slowed from the original playing to give an added oddness. It ends in a mass of backwards fun, phasing, and noise all layered wonderfully and hinting at the direction the band would be taking next.
After 8 tracks of varying styles any listener will come to appreciate Led Zeppelin that bit more. Undeniably a classic in many artistic regards it stands the test of time as the band’s most famous release and one of the biggest and best albums ever. Of the many juxtapositions we get innocence and raw sexual tyranny, experimentation and supreme confidence, soft folk songs against heavy rock beasts and so on. The contrasting styles all feel complete in their merging and all of the trademarks of the band are here in all their glory. II may be a better place to start for the newbie but this is the seminal statement for the ages from the greatest rock band of them all.
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