Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin will probably go down in history for a singular, hard-to-match distinction: contributing massively to the evolution of rock music while barely inventing anything at all, but rather pilfering left and right, drawing heavily first from the blues and rock-blues repertoire of the '50s and '60s, and later from folk and Eastern music. One of the most glaring paradoxes in rock history, and yet there it is.

In 1969 came "Led Zeppelin" (a name suggested to the band by the Who's drummer, Keith Moon), better known to most as "Led Zeppelin I", and the above is immediately apparent: most of the tracks on the record follow the typical harmonic structure of the blues (by 1969, come to think of it, there were already artists who had moved beyond that scheme: Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane and so on, without even needing to dig up niche acts like Red Crayola), and in some cases they're outright covers ("I Can't Quit You Baby" by Dixon, "You Shook Me" also by Dixon and Lenoir, and the quote from "The Hunter" tucked inside "How Many More Times") or reworked traditional songs, like the anguished ballad "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You". And then there's the famous "Dazed And Confused", which, although credited to Page, is really nothing more than a reworking of a Jack Holmes song.

And yet, in this record (as in the equally excellent "II", "III" and "IV" that followed), there's something great, something new. Each of the four members contributes something that creates a completely fresh sound, one that would leave indelible marks on the future of rock 'n' roll, even though, as noted above, the songs on this album don't actually present any striking novelty on the surface. And that's precisely the greatness of Zeppelin: they managed to get where other British bands before them had only attempted to go (like the Yardbirds — in which Page himself served — Cream, the Jeff Beck Group — with whom John Paul Jones collaborated — and the Kinks).

Led Zeppelin managed to create a unique, foundational sound simply by dressing music that was already starting to feel old in brand-new clothes. A formal revolution, based largely on sound, yet so massive that it swept up the substance along with it, effectively kickstarting much of the hard rock that would develop in the years to come, right up to the present day, where the spectre of the airship is still clearly visible looming over many bands.

It's true that this "I" is essentially a rock-blues record, but John Bonham's drumming is a relentless hammer, the very antithesis of delicacy, one of the most striking acoustic icons (pardon the synaesthesia) of all time; Robert Plant's voice is certainly no less impressive, with its gritty, inimitable falsetto; and then there's Jimmy Page's guitar style, one of the most imaginative and innovative six-string virtuosos of all time, with a mood both hysterical and precise at once, a great experimenter with guitar tunings ("Black Mountain Side", with its Eastern-tinged echoes, is a little gem in this respect) and with studio sounds (think, for instance, of the use of a violin bow on the guitar during the central, most psychedelic section of "Dazed And Confused"), with Jimi Hendrix perhaps the only more influential guitarist in rock history. A mention is also due to bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones, a figure somewhat overshadowed by the other three Zeppelins, but entirely undeservedly so, given that he is certainly the most refined connoisseur of music theory and the best arranger among the band's members (before joining the New Yardbirds — Led Zeppelin "in the making" — he was a highly sought-after session man, and had also worked with the Rolling Stones, recording some keyboard parts on "Their Satanic Majesties Request"), as well as an excellent and highly personal bassist. One of those cases where everyone is perfectly in their place, and nothing can be touched. The Rolling Stones got along fine even without Brian Jones; Led Zeppelin could not have existed without any one of its four members. Proof of this is the band's immediate breakup following John Bonham's death.

The blues, however, isn't the only thing present on this album. "Good Times, Bad Times" is a Yardbirds-style song, banal in itself, but made unique by the band's powerful, massive sound, particularly the drums, pounded with almost tribal ferocity by Bonham. The same, and even more so, goes for "Your Time Is Gonna Come", preceded by a long organ intro. Special mention goes to "Communication Breakdown", which, alongside "Dazed And Confused", is probably the album's most significant track. The opening guitar riff is simple, just the usual three blues-derived chords, but it draws a line between before and after. After this song, nothing would be the same again. The speed of execution and the sheer fury the four of them put into playing it make it a singular piece, a cornerstone of all hard rock; in certain respects it could even be read as a punk song avant la lettre. Plant screams like a man possessed, hitting peaks he would rarely match again in his career. Bonham, as usual, makes the skins cry out in pain. And Page fires off a blistering solo, making his guitar spit out a stream of notes at such speed that it lands almost like a punch to the gut.

It's 1969, and hard rock is born (or hard-blues, if you prefer, although in fairness a mention should go to Blue Cheer, who debuted back in 1968), just as, not far away, "Black Sabbath" was released, paving the way for heavy metal. Before long, "Led Zeppelin II" would follow, but that's another story.

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01/11/2006