“At the end of that number, I believe each and every one of us had a musical communion like no other. It would be a life-changing experience.”
Jimmy Page
Introduction
They are a band that defines the meaning of rock music. Raw, loud and raging with lyrics that could have easily come from the Bard’s own hand. High-octane music that is a natural drug that just draws you in and bewitches you. The corkscrew, long-haired musicians who make love to their musical instruments and produce a sound that blows your mind and sends your brain cells into a roller coaster of emotions. They are, of course, the one and only Led Zepplin.
I was hooked by their music since first hearing it when I was a teenager. The unique voice of Robert Plant drew me in and before I knew it, I had bought all their albums on tape. This is music that you get lost in and can quite easily lose a day listening to. It is magical, ahead of its time and displays a genius at work. My well-worn Led Zepplin t-shirt from HMV may be a distant memory but those heavy sounds and lyrics still fill my head to this very day. A symphony of glorious bass guitar, drums and poetic lyrics with a hook that sticks in your mind and claws at your soul. Music that whips you up into a frenzy and blows you off your feet. Timeless music that like a fine wine has to be savoured. Signposted by the black and white, burning zeppelin of naked nymphs crawling their way up the stones to the Houses of the Holy.
The Art of Led Zepplin
Born out of a London basement, the band was formed as a result of Jimmy Page looking for a new band after the breakup of The Yardbirds. Page organised a jam session with singer Robert Plant, drummer John Bonham and bassist John Paul Jones. This session was magical and cemented the belief that this ensemble had to happen. The first song they played was “Train Kept A-Rollin’,” a Tiny Bradshaw song the Yardbirds popularised. The magic was about to hit the road. Under the name of The New Yardbirds, the band toured Scandinavia, returning with a new movement of excited fans. They scrapped their original band name after Yardbird’s commitments no longer constrained them and took on the iconic Led Zepplin title.
This was a band that worked at a fast and frenetic pace. Their debut album included “Good Times Bad Times,” “Dazed and Confused” and “Communication Breakdown”, cementing their path to becoming rock icons. This was a band that did things their way and had an astonishing musical bond. Yet their success wasn’t formed overnight. They had to work for it. They had to play the small clubs before they could even contemplate the big stadiums. A band that was big in America before anywhere else and had to settle for club venues in Europe for a period of time. A group of musicians who took a leap of faith and it paid off. A journey that only ended after the tragic death of John Bonham which caused the band to split in December 1980, two months after John’s death.
