The Fourth LED ZEPPELIN Album

fifty years ago Led Zeppelin released their self-titled debut sophomore effort followed just a handful of months later taking them from nearly unknown session players to a hardrock powerhouse but when the band shifted from their blues influenced towards folk for Led Zeppelin three a lukewarm response from fans and critics threatened their rise their success was being attributed to hype and aggressive marketing campaigns in protest Zeppelin would move away from the standard if not necessary way of selling records their fourth album would be left untitled and the band's name absent from the cover instead sigils appeared one for each member of the group they would strip everything away in order to let the music speak for itself they would have to push their creative limits forward experimenting with new production techniques and instruments Jimmy Page swore that their fourth album would be their best and if it wasn't they would give up and retire what followed was one of the most iconic rock albums ever made setting Led Zeppelin on a path to becoming legends of rock and roll after Led Zeppelin 3 the band would take an extended break from performing in order to begin planning the blueprints of their follow up engineer Andy Jones had worked with Zeppelin on their previous outing and suggested that the band utilized the Rolling Stones as mobile studio with it they could record anywhere but rather than paying to stay at Mick Jagger's home members of Fleetwood Mac suggested recording in a remote country house so in the winter of 1970 Led Zeppelin would head to the haunted Headley Grange void of any distractions or deadlines it would be the ideal environment to focus purely on the album and have them live in the music on their quest their page and plant visited an antique shop there they found a 19th century oil painting of an old man bent over bearing a bundle of sticks on his back page was obsessive when it came to the occult and thought the man resembled George picking gill he was thought to have been the father of modern witchcraft the image also closely resembles the 10 of Wands Terra card a symbol representative of carrying a burden and the need to rise to responsibilities very fitting considering the pressures their fourth album was now placing on them they bought the photo eventually placing on a partly demolished home to capture the album's cover within the gatefold stands the reworking of another terre card the Hermit with his lantern he acts as a guide for those seeking to acquire wisdom again fairly representative of the group's upcoming crusade but nor on the jacket was there information on the band instead they were all tasked with choosing a rune a symbol representative of their state of mind an opinion or anything they felt strongly about the feather of MOT Egyptian goddess of justice and fairness encompassed within a circle the emblem of a writer belonged to none other than Robert Plant the Borromean rings depicting man woman and child resided with John Bonham a Celtic knot portrayed a person both confident and competent was chosen by John Paul Jones finally Sousa designed by Paige himself it wasn't intended to be a word at all its meaning remains a complete mystery once they arrived at Headley Grange they took over the secluded mansion their equipment littered the house amplifiers wedged into cupboards the house quickly became a part of the production in the reinvention of Memphis Minnie's when the levee breaks Paige knew that in order to achieve the sound he wanted the drums are gonna have to breathe he had Bonham set up his Ludwig kit in the lobby and with microphones recording high above the stone stairwell added an ambience to what will become of the most sampled songs in music history [Music] the booming kick and snare of wind the levee breaks had even more delay added before being slowed down adding more weight to the truck in fact everything but plants vocals were recorded at a slightly higher tempo before being slowed down it gave the guitar and bass its dense and sludgy tones the entire song is magnificent showcase of pages production mastery plants harmonica recording was reversed before adding an echo effect to it so that one played forward the echo precedes his playing giving it a haunting effect with each verse plants voice is manipulated pans from left to right flanger effects [Music] it all adds to the tracks narrative of an approaching calamity nearing the conclusion plants vocals are distorted showcasing that the levee had indeed been broken named after a black labrador retriever that would often visit the country house the rift for black dog was crafted by bassist John Paul Jones after listening to Howlin wolf the start and stop structure and the opening sounds are evidence of pages overdubbing technique where he synched up three guitar tracks the end result of triple tracking his guitar produced a thicker and grittier set four sticks is proof of the group's simply having fun in the studio the track wasn't meeting Paige's expectations until Bonham casually decided to start playing the track with two sets of sticks giving the song its title and its unique drumming the rock standard rock and roll stemmed from a jam session that began as Little Richard's keep a knocking [Music] the group really wanted the music to be the forefront of this new album it's why the guitar and the song is buried in the mix and increases in volume as the song progresses it forces you to listen carefully to Page it was the small details that really mattered when recording stairway to heaven everyone thought the first take of the song was perfect everyone but page he thought it could be better outraged Bonham started beating the crap out of his drums on the second take and that's what you hear in the final recording page wanted the song to resemble an orgasm building from a delicate recorder driven folk ballad Bonhams drums join in just after the halfway mark [Music] before moving towards a climatic lock on the Gibson double neck guitar page became synonymous for was bought for this very track just so he could play all of the guitar sections on one instrument while the instrumentalists built the track and studio plant was already penning a legendary tale deliberately keeping the lyrics vague as to allow the listener to craft their own meaning the final track recorded for the album was the Battle of evermore the last minute edition includes page playing the mandolin an instrument he had never played before the track is also proof of plants slight shift in terms of lyrical themes his love for junior token is evident in the abundance of Lord of the Rings references the song is also unique in that it features a guest vocalist focusing her Sandy Denny sings in harmony with plant in the role of the town crier see to the law the record would go on to be mixed at sunset studios in LA but what's Paige arrived back home and listened to the supposed final mixes they sounded terrible every track but when the levee breaks had to be remixed it set them back in terms of time and money in all it took only four months of studio time to forge their fourth album released upon the world on November 8 1971 Led Zeppelin 4 was an instant hit the biggest album of their careers and one of the best-selling rock albums of all time the enormous popularity of 4 was even more impressive considering they left their name and title off of the cover in bypassing traditional marketing techniques they'd proved that people weren't buying them solely for the name but responding purely to the music the fourth Led Zeppelin album opens with a promise and that it did lets Epling for is the best example of the group's craft setting down a marker which was near impossible to surpass during the rest of their career it was the perfect marriage between the hard rock of their second album and the folk stylings of their third for the casual music fan it's the album with stairway to heaven on it but for the diehards the album showcases each band member coming into their own the album boasts some of Robert Plant's finest songwriting playing in odd time signatures and with extreme force it cemented John Bonham as one of if not the greatest rock and roll drummer it's an album that demonstrated John Paul Jones his array of musical instruments showcasing his competence not only as a bassist but as a jack-of-all-trades it displayed Jimmy Page's not just a wizard behind the guitar churning out some of rock's most iconic riffs but as one of rock's boldest producers and a master behind the mixing console containing a timeless collection of iconic songs Led Zeppelin 4 would define the future of hard rock today it's the classic rock masterpiece that cemented an already great group as one of the greatest of all time if you're looking to enter legendary rock status then I'd recommend checking out K theories music production class they break down their techniques when it comes to sampling drum programming and constructing hooks and melodies you can find the class on Skillshare whether it's music production graphic design or animation Skillshare has more than 25,000 classes to help you take that next step a subscription is super affordable at less than ten bucks a month but as Skillshare sponsoring this video my viewers can use the link in the description to get two months free it should give you enough time to join the classes and communities that are just right for you and your goals thanks for watching ladies and gents if you'd like to hear some of my favorite Led Zeppelin songs I've crafted a playlist on Spotify you can find the link to that in the description below if you enjoyed the video please give it a like rating subscribe to hear more stories behind the music you love if you can support the channel head over to our patreon page where you can earn some rewards for doing so and tell me what's your favorite Led Zeppelin song let me know in the comments below and that's it for me again thanks for watching and keep listening

Channel: Middle 8

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Keywords: led zeppelin, led zeppelin IV, led zeppelin 4, robert plant, jimmy page, john bonham, john paul jones, led zeppelin II, led zeppelin 2, led zeppelin III, houses of the holy, led zeppelin live, stairway to heaven live, led zeppelin album, the fourth led zeppelin album, physical graffiti, led zeppelin immigrant song, led zeppelin members, led zeppelin symbols, led zeppelin kashmir, led zeppelin video essay

Id: o-lsl7Smo3E

Length: 11min 25sec (685 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 19 2019