One thing that never seems to get mentioned is how young these guys were at the time this was recorded! Robert Plant and John Bonham were 19 and John Paul Jones about 21 and Jimmy Page the oldest at 23. We all think of this as "Classic rock", and it is, but this is young people's music full of youthful energy.
This was also a new frontier for music. In late 68/early 69 it was still the hippie movement and peace and love. The only other band of any recognition that was doing anything outside of the hippie love stuff was Black Sabbath that had just come on the scene at the same time.
Agreed. Third album and Houses Of The Holy, the ones before and after Led Zeppelin IV, those are the ones I'm most psyched for. Houses Of The Holy is like their Revolver. And the third album is just a beautiful record. Absolutely agree.
I bet her favourite will be either III or In Through The Out Door. Not throwing shade, they're both great albums, but they each have their own flavour that most Zep fans wouldn't put at the top of the list. I thing Caroline will.
Robert, you were so lucky. I lived in a small city about an hour & half away from Chicago. Nowhere USA. Try to get tickets to a Chicago concert in Rockford, IL - good luck. So, sadly, while I was a teen in the mid 70s and a huge Zeppelin fan I never got to see them. I live vicariously through you guys on TH-cam who did see them back then. hahahaha. No. seriously I now can watch my favorite band - still - on you tube and feel I can see myself in the audience. You tube has given me something I sorely missed as a teen.
I saw them perform their first and second albums live in 69. Zepellin's first tour in Dania, Florida and the second album tour in the old Boston Garden. Their first concert was the best concert I ever attended. The backdrop was astounding. The venue was an amusement park situated against a mile of mangroves behind it. Over the stage, their was heat lightning streaking directly over the audience. Over half the audience were tripping and every time the lightning went over the stage the crowd would let out a "wow". Side note: They had to stop the concert for about ten minutes after warning everyone to be cautious because the green acid was bad. About half a dozen ambulances we driving up to the gates. My friend and me split a tablet. Next thing I know my friend was throwing up. Me? I was too busy digging the music to get sick. I almost could have sworn when Plant ran across the stage he took off about twenty feet into the sky. Good times. Unfortunately, the second album tour that began in Boston and was one of the worst concerts I've ever attended. MC5 and Johnny Winter were the opening acts and all hell broke loose between the Boston PD and the Hell's Angels at the concert. Johnny shifted from his fast song and started playing some slow blues while the fight continued. Finally Zep hit the stage and Plant sang a song he composed about how they had come to America only to see our freedom being taken away. The police forced the lights in the garden to stay during the entire show. Not so good times.
Led Zeppelin II is a favorite among many Zeppelin fans. Personally my favorite is Physical Graffiti, but you simply can't go wrong with the mighty Zeppelin. Looking forward to your journey.
FINALLY!!! Ever since you did the Beatles I’ve been waiting for you to do Led Zeppelin - the OTHER greatest band in the history of rock n roll!! You’re in for one hell of a ride - buckle up and turn it up!!
In the context of the times this is an impressive debut album, a hybrid of blues, rock and folk. 1969's UK album chart was quite a polarised demographic one, with rock bands like the Who, Cream, King Crimson and Pink Floyd, competing with crooners like Frank Sinatra, Tom Jones, Dean Martin and Nat King Cole. The Beatles had yet to release their swansong recordings on their 'Abbey Road' album, and Led Zeppelin were ready to take up the mantle of 'greatest band in the world' for the decade of the 1970's.
@@stefan_becker heck no dude, dazed and good times stand out a lot. It definitely isn’t old. Yes, one of them like black mountain side does, but the rest are dope.
I'm a bit over a decade behind you and still loving me some Zeppelin. THough for me songs like Moby Dick and Bonzo's are among my top favs... might have something to do with being a drummer.....
To put this album in historical context this album was recorded around the time the Beatles released The White Album. The album was released while the Beatles were in the studio for the Get Back sessions that would eventually produce the Let It Be album.
I just need to let you know how much I respect you for your detailed anlizatons of the music you are listening to! You are really good at your reactions, giving a honest opinion. You have become one of my favorite "reactionist".❤
This was made very quickly once they got into the studio. Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones were studio musicians for several years so knew what to do. Page was an underrated producer.
Something I love about "Dazed and Confused" is that it's hard to tell where the downbeat of the measure is! There are times when I think the first "G" note of that riff is on count 1, and there are other times when it feels like that note lands on count 2. I think the disorientation is because of a combination of things: the beat from the drums, the timing of the vocal starting, and the instrumental riff on the B chord at the end of the verse. I'm still not entirely sure how to count that song.
One of my favourite reactions! I love that you are telling how you hear it and not swayed by their reputation. Led Zeppelin are one of my favourites, but some songs I adore, some not, that’s how it goes.
Love seeing you love this one. It was a bit much for me when I first heard it as an 11-year old, but evolved into my teendom eventually and have been a fan ever since.
Caroline, great fun as always! Note on music history: "Black Mountain Side" is largely borrowed from an old folk song, "Blackwaterside", which was brought back from Ireland by Annie Briggs, a well loved folk-singer, to her friend Bert Jansch, a legend in the early 60's folk revival. It is the old story of "kiss and run". If you listen to Jansch play it, you'll hear the guitar arrangement which "influenced" Jimmy Page 🙂
I can understand why Led Zeppelin IV sounds better in retrospect but I can assure you that when this record hit the streets it blew everyone's mind and hit like a truck since nobody had heard anything like it before. Over the next few months they knocked off Led Zeppelin II during tour breaks which opens with Whole Lotta Love on side 1 and Heartbreaker on side 2. That quickly silenced the remaining few dissenters. Still does today.
Most people in America were introduced to Led Zeppelin from the "Whole Lotta Love" single. To get a perspective on how unknown Led Zeppelin was at that time, some people thought that Led Zeppelin was a black woman until they saw the cover of Led Zeppelin II. Other people called it an acid rock song because they thought the musical parts were simulating an LSD experience. What's funny is today people claim that they were Led Zeppelin fans from their first album onwards but that just wasn't the case. It really started with Led Zeppelin II
After watching your videos for a while I’m going to guess Led Zeppelin III is going to be one of your favorites, maybe not as much as IV but to me it’s their underrated masterpiece
while some might erroneously assume Zeppelin is "too hard"(?) the reality is they use a lot of acoustic guitars and a lot of their songs come from the blues... which may take some getting used to. But one of the songs that you might end up liking a lot more over time is Dazed and Confused... especially when you hear it live. An epic song from their first album... recorded in 1968... whoah!
Exactly. Thank you! And while we're on the beginning of side 2, "Your Time Is Gonna Come" steals the "Dear Mr. Fantasy" riff. Their heavy slow blues is directly lifted from Moby Grape (especially Since You've Been Gone a couple of albums later). We can go on and on! Great as Zep is! The best steal! But they DID steal like bandits!!!! They're THE pirates of rock! lol
@@nikolai.c Oh totally. So happy to see so many pointing this stuff out; that's a real testament to Caroline's channel! Usually I get trolled like crazy for just deigning to mention this stuff! I will say that Zeppelin sometimes improved what they were ripping off (the Moby Grape song is not as great as Since I've Been Loving You, and Stairway To Heaven is better than the Spirit song it rips off) or at least did something novel with it (Whole Lotta Love). But Jimmy Page doing Bert - and taking the songwriter credit - isn't one of those times!
@TTM9691 Far more have stolen off Zep these last 55 years. Not just their music, but their style and even look. Hell, Lowell Fulson already stole off Jimmy Page in 1966 when he nicked Jimmy's riff from the Yardbirds 1966 song Happenings Ten Years Time Ago and used it in his later song Tramp. Led Zeppelin learned how to steal from the blues. It was rife within the blues. Even Dixon stole, so suing Zeppelin was ironic and hypocritical. At least Zeppelin usually improved what they took a thousand fold.
The descending guitar line in "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" would later be used/borrowed/stolen by Chicago for their song 25 or 6 to 4. Black Mountain Side is a version/theft of Bert Jansch's Black Waterside, which was taught to Jimmy by Al ("Year of the Cat") Stewart. The spoken part in How Many More Times is based in part on Kisses Sweeter Than Wine by the Weavers.
The bass drum triplets in "Good Times, Bad Times" are very impressive, not easy to execute, and if you notice, you don't hear many people imitating, even all these years later. And when you do hear it, you immediately say "Good Times, Bad Times"! The band I was in was on tour with Deerhoof a few years ago, and we were watching them play, and Greg the drummer fleetingly dropped those bass triplets into something, and the three of us all went "Heeeeeey!" in unison when he did it! Off the top of my head, that's the only time I've seen do a direct quote of those bass drum triplets into something original. When you hear it, you immediately know "Good Times Bad Times". What's difficult is he's just doing the last two notes of the triplet on the bass drum. He's not doing the first note of the triplet, the first note of the triplet is played with his right hand on the hgh-hat, so his right foot is only hitting the up-beats. While keeping up the high-hat and snare drum patterns. Trust me, it's something a drummer has to work on to nail, no one just sits down on a kit and does that instinctively! (- Tic Toc Melody. I changed my handle! You didn't lose me as a subscriber!)
It awesome to read that you opened for Deerhoof! I was the Drummer for local Los Angeles pop/punk band , Third Grade Teacher. We had the pleasure to also open for Deerhoof during many of their Los Angeles shows.
It's very interesting how you digest the songs compared to how I did. This was the soundtrack to my first parties, make-outs and blackouts. You analyse them for what they are separately, while we didn't analyse but experienced them in a haze of other related music of the time like the Stones, Sabbath, Cream etc.
It's great to see you doing more reaction videos Caroline! What I've kind of gathered is that you dislike more chaotic sounding songs. Which is fine because I think you have different tastes than other reviewers and it's nice to see someone give a different take. That's why your Beatles videos are so much better than other reviewers. I'm thinking Simon And Garfunkel would be a good band for you to deep dive into. You already did Joni Mitchell but I would've said her too. Maybe The Smiths would be good as well. The Doors are a little less chaotic sounding too, but still push the listener a bit. So they might be good because they have a good catalog, but might be a little outside your preferences.
One story about how highly regarded Bonzo was: not long after Led Zeppelin 1 was released, Jimmy Page ran into a drummer named Ronnie Verrell, who was a big band and session drummer with whom Page had worked a lot during his session man days - he was also the drummer who played the real life drum tracks for Animal on The Muppet Show, so he was no slouch on the drums. When Verrell ran into Page in early '69, the first words out of his mouth were something along the lines of "Holy shit, Jim, where'd you find that drummer Bonham? He's fantastic!!!"
Dazed and Confused is a great song, but you really need to listen and watch the live version of this song from the film The Song Remains the Same. Don’t be put off by it being half an hour long. It’s worth it.
Caroline used to either a) squirm or b) react with light amusement to harder rocking songs and instead go ga-ga over the soft material. This was particularly true of The Beatles. But now I see she's actually enjoying a hard rock album (her predictable reaction to "Communication Breakdown" aside)...hopefully she can go back now to songs like "Helter Skelter" and "I Want You" and see the value in them.
This is really interesting..., I came to this channel by following your jouney to the beatles, AND discovered YOUR own music in the process...., zep is kind of an uncharted territory for me....
Caroline, you don't have to make excuses or explain yourself for not liking songs. It's fine. We all have our favorites and not so favorites (and flat out dislikes), but this is your journey and you are entitled to your own opinions. And we enjoy them. They're fun, even when we don't agree. Be you.🙃😀
I hope you check out some of their live stuff. Bring it on Home from the How the West was Won live album has a lot of the call-and-response stuff between Page and Plant (guitar and vocals). Also the live concert from the Royal Albert Hall from, I want to say, 1970. It's raw and rocking and, in my opinion, is their best live stuff out there. The Madison Square Garden show(s) usually sits at the top of peoples' lists, but not for me.
The algorithm has just sent me your channel so I am only getting to know you and your content. I am a massive Queen fan and am curious to know if you know who they are and what you think about them. I believe they are the only other band to ever offer the differing range and styles of the Beatles mainly because all 4 members write extremely popular songs. You have no doubt heard Bohemian Rhapsody but if you haven't I would love you to do a first listen of it.
Led Zeppelin I was kind of hurried through, the band was already touring and getting great fan response so they had to get something out into the stores. It's still a great album but one can see by the amount of covers (credited or not) that they hadn't really started writing for THIS band yet. They knew they had magic in a bottle but they weren't totally sure of the best way to use that magic yet. I find it interesting that your least favorite song, Communication Breakdown, was one of the larger commercial successes from this album.
The GOATS OF GOATS! 😎🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 John Bahama is the GREATEST Bluse/Rock drummer ever, oh yeah he’s a great jazz drummer! This and as you will find out is: they are their own genre! Just remember, this is their first album. They are other worldly!
Hi Caroline, in my opinion I don't think "Mariachi" is the most accurate association to make with Babe I'm Gonna Leave you. Perhaps Flamenco tinged Folk? I love your videos! I'm in my 50s and most of the music you so deftly anylize is the soundtrack to my life. Thank you.
To start a potential brawl, get a bunch of Zep fans drunk and ask them to name their favorite Zeppelin album.... This one will invariably come up (defiantly in my top 3) and it's certainly in any conversation for greatest debut album of all time. What makes it stand out is just how polished each individual performance is and how masterfully it's tied together as a group for being a first album. This is explained by the fact that most of the band members are seasoned artists and producers from other groups and a few from decades in the music business (Jimmy Paige and John Paul Jones in particular). Fun fact: After hearing the rough takes of this album recording, one of the listeners commented, " This going to go over like a Lead Balloon..." and the band name was born....
I may not be as big on Zep as many are but for me this is easily their best album. None of the indulgences of their later stuff, especially in Plant's vocals, but pretty much all of the things that are great about them. They wrote very little of the music here, but songwriting was never their greatest strength so whatever. Some great songs on their other albums, to be sure, but as an album, this is the most consistently enjoyable to me (though yeah, I Can't Quit You Baby is the weak link here). Also, is there a better opening shot for a band than those pounding drums that open Good Times Bad Times? Imagine hearing that in 1969!
You might grow to like this one more after multiple hearings, although several numbers being blues-based may never float your boat. But you are right about their improvement by the time they reached the 4th LP, although it was not clearly along a straight line ...
@ 7:17 Into This Reaction I Do Not Blame You For Having A:😳Look On Your Face!😳😁 I Think 🤔 That That Is The Same Look On My Face 😳Way Back In 1985 , When I Saw A ( Temporary ) Reformed Led Zeppelin At Live Aid , And I Went To The Record Store 🏪 Bought 'Led Zeppelin'( 1969 ) Took The Album Home.🏡 And Played It On My Tape 📼 Player For The First Time.📼🎧😳🙋 I Was Blowned Away!📼🎧😳🙋😱🤯 Great Memories For Me As A 16 Year Old Teenager! Plus I Was Born In Memphis Tennessee. So I Was Happy 😁 To Find Out That Robert Plant Was Inspired By Elvis Presley Who Lived In Memphis Tennessee.🌁🛤️🛣️🏙️😁😎🤓🙂☺️ I Am Posting 📬 This At 7:46 p.m. , 🌞 Sunday Night 🌛🌉🌃🌌 , March 31, 2024.
Led Zeppelin were signed to Atlantic Records at the same time as Yes. Guess which one had a more successful debut album? 😉 It's impossible to overstate the number of hard rock bands that were the direct offspring of this band and album. There would be no Rush or Aerosmith without Led Zeppelin, for example. This album established a ton of classic rock and heavy metal tropes that we take for granted today. Re: Jimmy Page's propensity for nicking music from other people, I think of him as a hoarder of musical ideas. He had a knack for hearing something and then going "What if went like *this* instead?" Plus there's no denying he was a master of the Monster Riff. But in some ways, all the derivative elements of this album spotlight how special the other guys in the band were, Robert Plant and John Bonham especially.
I agree, Led Zep I didn't do as much for me as 3 and 4, the only two songs I still listen to from I are "Babe, I'm gonna leave you" and "Communication Breakdown"
The call and response forms come out of the Blues, along with the half step walk down. If I recall correctly, the step down pattern fits around a whole step walk down of fourths and fifths depending on the choice of chord voicings. LZ II further explores psychedelic heavy blues while also taking their sound in new directions. But I've got a feeling you might like LZ III more for the folksy content. Houses of The Holy, the album released after LZIV, features songs with some interesting chord progressions, like "The Rain Song", and interesting time signatures, like "The Ocean", and its sound is pure LZ, no cover songs.
Surprised you didn't like Communication Breakdown. I'm not into punk music but this was from 1969 and it does have early punk vibes to it. In fact the Ramones' guitarist said the quick downpicking is what he practiced learning punk guitar.
With Led Zeppelin I they were just beginning. The group had only been together a couple months. They wanted to do blues and a harder rock edge. But, also to branch out. My favorite was Good Times Bad Times. By IV they were pretty much going away from strictly blues rock and doing a lot more innovation. But, you will find Zeppelin II more fun. This is because the group is a lot more at ease with each other and can pretty much read the other and they feel a lot more at home around each other and bouncing off ideas. The first one you had a raw Robert Plant at just turning 20 in a band that was new to him. Bonzo was his friend for years but, he did not know JPJ or Jimmy very well. And Robert had a lot an awe for Jimmy Page. Page on his end did not really know what to totally expect or what he could get from the others.
very much similar in style is a less known not album song by them, also a cover "Travellin' Riverside Blues" which is very much in my top 5 LZ songs, well worth listening to.
I'm a 60 year old fan who would love to see Led Zeppelin live, The Song Remains The Same movie released in 1976 was the closest I came to that. Dazed And Confused is the one song I can play (very badly) on bass 😄
Chromatic movements are definitely a common feature in psychedelic music. At some point you may want to consider "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn", Pink Floyd's debut album (preferably the superior mono mix). It is psychedelic to the max, but yet manages to hold itself together with a unique kind of musicality.
That was great. Lovely to get an intelligent opinion on why you like some songs and are neutral or negative on others. I suspect that you have many, many suggestions on what to react to next but ... Here it comes ... have you considered Neil Young. He has a vast back catalogue, a range that varies from folk to rock, is a brilliant melodyist, has an unusual vocal style. Its hard to extrapolate anyones music taste but I think that you might enjoy him. I would try "Harvest" or "After the goldrush" or perhaps "Tonight's the night".
Fun to see this broken down by a musician...an album I loved from when it came out, just as a person who likes rock n roll. Def I is more raw, and IV more melodic. BUT, communication Breakdown is one of my fav LZ's of all time.
This is why I was recommending Houses of the Holy if you only did one more LZ album after IV. This one has some rough spots, as I think you noticed. It does give a sense of the improvement from the 1st to the 4th album, as you say.
Led Zeppelin II was already big development. But, however, this was one of the best debut albums I heard. IV is my all time favorite, but III and II are great. P.S. You'll see, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You is just beginning of Robert Plant's and word's "babe" special relationship. 😁
It's got one of the best debut MOMENTS of a band. If I had to distill the album to one thing, it's literally Good Times Bad Times, or just the intro to Good Times, Bad Times! That was THE new teaching of the album to me. The rest was good heavy English blues, or English folk, as many were doing at the time, but that intro and Bonham's bass drum triplets in that song......that song was definitely an announcement! :D
please listen to and for JPJ's (Jonesy) contribution to this band. Unsung, but he's the bassist, keyboardist and multi instrumentalist (tripleneck guitar, mandolin, flute or recorder, etc). and arranger that fills out the songs in ways you can't imagine until his parts are removed from the track. Page and JPJ were session musicians who knew each other well, and as a duo decided to form a new band. Page was the driving force to make his own band but he did not 'hire' JPJ, they agreed to firm and look for a singer and drummer to fill out the group. will send you a YT link of Jonesy playing When The Levee Breaks on lap steel guitar, in 2024.
I can understand not liking "Communication Breakdown" but can we all admit that song was decades ahead of it's time and likely the first punk / speed metal song ever recorded?
Jimmy Page said he borrowed from a Chicago song, 25 or 6 to 4 for the break in Babe I'm Gonna Leave You. Called Terry Kath the greatest guitarist. Give a listen to Chicago. Hope you are a fan of horns. You will love them.
One thing that never seems to get mentioned is how young these guys were at the time this was recorded!
Robert Plant and John Bonham were 19 and John Paul Jones about 21 and Jimmy Page the oldest at 23.
We all think of this as "Classic rock", and it is, but this is young people's music full of youthful energy.
Page and JPJ were already experienced industry veterans even at that age.
That's a great point! I could barely hold a tune at that age! lol
@@tmage23 Which is also quite remarkable, in and of itself.
This was also a new frontier for music. In late 68/early 69 it was still the hippie movement and peace and love. The only other band of any recognition that was doing anything outside of the hippie love stuff was Black Sabbath that had just come on the scene at the same time.
and they recorded this in 30 hours… I think it’s one of the biggest (if not the biggest) return for a record
there was nothing like this on the planet, they EXPLODED out of the gate and changed rock music forever
I think you’re really gonna love Led Zeppelin III, there is a lot of acoustic folk rock involved in that one
Agreed. Third album and Houses Of The Holy, the ones before and after Led Zeppelin IV, those are the ones I'm most psyched for. Houses Of The Holy is like their Revolver. And the third album is just a beautiful record. Absolutely agree.
@@TTM9691why do people still believe this 30yr old take? IV is clearly better than both of those albums
Except for Roy Harper.
@@fernandoluzuriagaacosta5338 Hats off to him
I bet her favourite will be either III or In Through The Out Door. Not throwing shade, they're both great albums, but they each have their own flavour that most Zep fans wouldn't put at the top of the list. I thing Caroline will.
I saw Led Zeppelin perform this album in concert in 1969, the same year it was released. They were electrifying in concert.
Robert, you were so lucky. I lived in a small city about an hour & half away from Chicago. Nowhere USA. Try to get tickets to a Chicago concert in Rockford, IL - good luck. So, sadly, while I was a teen in the mid 70s and a huge Zeppelin fan I never got to see them.
I live vicariously through you guys on TH-cam who did see them back then. hahahaha.
No. seriously I now can watch my favorite band - still - on you tube and feel I can see myself in the audience. You tube has given me something I sorely missed as a teen.
I saw them perform their first and second albums live in 69. Zepellin's first tour in Dania, Florida and the second album tour in the old Boston Garden. Their first concert was the best concert I ever attended. The backdrop was astounding. The venue was an amusement park situated against a mile of mangroves behind it. Over the stage, their was heat lightning streaking directly over the audience. Over half the audience were tripping and every time the lightning went over the stage the crowd would let out a "wow". Side note: They had to stop the concert for about ten minutes after warning everyone to be cautious because the green acid was bad. About half a dozen ambulances we driving up to the gates. My friend and me split a tablet. Next thing I know my friend was throwing up. Me? I was too busy digging the music to get sick. I almost could have sworn when Plant ran across the stage he took off about twenty feet into the sky. Good times. Unfortunately, the second album tour that began in Boston and was one of the worst concerts I've ever attended. MC5 and Johnny Winter were the opening acts and all hell broke loose between the Boston PD and the Hell's Angels at the concert. Johnny shifted from his fast song and started playing some slow blues while the fight continued. Finally Zep hit the stage and Plant sang a song he composed about how they had come to America only to see our freedom being taken away. The police forced the lights in the garden to stay during the entire show. Not so good times.
Led Zeppelin II is a favorite among many Zeppelin fans. Personally my favorite is Physical Graffiti, but you simply can't go wrong with the mighty Zeppelin. Looking forward to your journey.
Robert Plant is one of sexiest vocals of rock history.
Agreed.
Dazed and Confused is the TRUE vocal masterpiece on this album.
FINALLY!!! Ever since you did the Beatles I’ve been waiting for you to do Led Zeppelin - the OTHER greatest band in the history of rock n roll!!
You’re in for one hell of a ride - buckle up and turn it up!!
Thanks for sticking around!
One of my greatest debut records ever.
Absolute perfection.
In the context of the times this is an impressive debut album, a hybrid of blues, rock and folk. 1969's UK album chart was quite a polarised demographic one, with rock bands like the Who, Cream, King Crimson and Pink Floyd, competing with crooners like Frank Sinatra, Tom Jones, Dean Martin and Nat King Cole. The Beatles had yet to release their swansong recordings on their 'Abbey Road' album, and Led Zeppelin were ready to take up the mantle of 'greatest band in the world' for the decade of the 1970's.
LETS GO IT HAPPENED! Can’t wait for Led Zeppelin II!
Yes, because it's in my opinion a much more "modern" sounding album. LZ1 sounds really old in 2024, if you ask me.
@@stefan_becker heck no dude, dazed and good times stand out a lot. It definitely isn’t old. Yes, one of them like black mountain side does, but the rest are dope.
@@aaronjaehutcheson amen! love his moaning in dazed and confused!
likewise. Can't wait till she hits Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman).... and Moby Dick
It's time to Ramble On :)
Still rocking out to Zeppelin at age 63, Caroline. Love that first album. Heck, I love them all. 😎👍
I'm a bit over a decade behind you and still loving me some Zeppelin. THough for me songs like Moby Dick and Bonzo's are among my top favs... might have something to do with being a drummer.....
This was part of my drum awakening. In Rock, Made in Japan and these early Zeppelin albums.
Similar for me too, back in the day
Led Zep II has always been my fave of theirs, looking forward to your reaction. 🤘🏻😊
Led Zep I is the blues roots, Led Zep II rocks it up, Led Zep III brings in a heavy dose of folk and Led Zep IV blends them all together perfectly.
...and then "Houses" brings in every other genre under the sun (reggae, funk, prog, retro-50s).
To put this album in historical context this album was recorded around the time the Beatles released The White Album. The album was released while the Beatles were in the studio for the Get Back sessions that would eventually produce the Let It Be album.
Is there a moment in the Get Back film where the Beatles discuss 'Jimmy Page's new group'?
@@hackdaniels7253 yes.
I just need to let you know how much I respect you for your detailed anlizatons of the music you are listening to! You are really good at your reactions, giving a honest opinion. You have become one of my favorite "reactionist".❤
*analyzations, reactor
Oh thankyou!
We're definitely on this Led Zep journey with you. Keep going!
This was made very quickly once they got into the studio. Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones were studio musicians for several years so knew what to do. Page was an underrated producer.
I saw them live in 1970, and yes it was an experience I wish everyone could have had.
By any chance do you still have the ticket stub and/or the program from that memorable night?
Something I love about "Dazed and Confused" is that it's hard to tell where the downbeat of the measure is! There are times when I think the first "G" note of that riff is on count 1, and there are other times when it feels like that note lands on count 2. I think the disorientation is because of a combination of things: the beat from the drums, the timing of the vocal starting, and the instrumental riff on the B chord at the end of the verse. I'm still not entirely sure how to count that song.
You always cheer me up, Caroline. Happy Easter!
I'm old enough to remember taking this album home from the ecord store, getting high, and playing it over and over.
THIS IS THE VIDEO WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR
The only thing better than a good reaction is learning new perspectives and appreciations while watching a good reaction. thx
Pretty rad for 1968. You've got a lot to look forward to with the rest of the catalogue!
One of my favourite reactions! I love that you are telling how you hear it and not swayed by their reputation. Led Zeppelin are one of my favourites, but some songs I adore, some not, that’s how it goes.
Love seeing you love this one. It was a bit much for me when I first heard it as an 11-year old, but evolved into my teendom eventually and have been a fan ever since.
Nice! Now there's number 2, you won't be disappointed. Always enjoy your reactions. 👍
Dazed and confused always gives me goose bumps. It's the energy from all the instruments and Roberts vocals
This record changed the landscape of rock music forever,, You will never see another band this good again✌️
this is a great album😀 so good to see you here again,Caroline❤
Caroline, great fun as always!
Note on music history: "Black Mountain Side" is largely borrowed from an old folk song, "Blackwaterside", which was brought back from Ireland by Annie Briggs, a well loved folk-singer, to her friend Bert Jansch, a legend in the early 60's folk revival. It is the old story of "kiss and run". If you listen to Jansch play it, you'll hear the guitar arrangement which "influenced" Jimmy Page 🙂
I can understand why Led Zeppelin IV sounds better in retrospect but I can assure you that when this record hit the streets it blew everyone's mind and hit like a truck since nobody had heard anything like it before. Over the next few months they knocked off Led Zeppelin II during tour breaks which opens with Whole Lotta Love on side 1 and Heartbreaker on side 2. That quickly silenced the remaining few dissenters. Still does today.
Most people in America were introduced to Led Zeppelin from the "Whole Lotta Love" single. To get a perspective on how unknown Led Zeppelin was at that time, some people thought that Led Zeppelin was a black woman until they saw the cover of Led Zeppelin II. Other people called it an acid rock song because they thought the musical parts were simulating an LSD experience. What's funny is today people claim that they were Led Zeppelin fans from their first album onwards but that just wasn't the case. It really started with Led Zeppelin II
dazed and confused is a masterpiece
The live version of Dazed and Confused from 1973 on the live album takes up an entire album side. They really spread their wings on that one.
Have you ever heard The Yardbirds' version w/ Keith Relf on vocals and different lyrics?
@@alonenjersey I have, a long time ago.
@@soundhealer6043 Good to know. Were you as impressed as I was?
@@alonenjersey it's cool.
@@soundhealer6043 Thanks. Have yourself a good one.
Thank you Caroline for all you've done for the world of music!
After watching your videos for a while I’m going to guess Led Zeppelin III is going to be one of your favorites, maybe not as much as IV but to me it’s their underrated masterpiece
while some might erroneously assume Zeppelin is "too hard"(?) the reality is they use a lot of acoustic guitars and a lot of their songs come from the blues... which may take some getting used to. But one of the songs that you might end up liking a lot more over time is Dazed and Confused... especially when you hear it live. An epic song from their first album... recorded in 1968... whoah!
Check out Blackwaterside by Bert Jansch to see where Page got 'inspiration' from for Black Mountain Side.
I love Led Zeppelin, saw them live in -73, but I actually prefer Bert’s version.
Exactly. Thank you! And while we're on the beginning of side 2, "Your Time Is Gonna Come" steals the "Dear Mr. Fantasy" riff. Their heavy slow blues is directly lifted from Moby Grape (especially Since You've Been Gone a couple of albums later). We can go on and on! Great as Zep is! The best steal! But they DID steal like bandits!!!! They're THE pirates of rock! lol
@@TTM9691White Summer is particularly egregious as well.
@@nikolai.c Oh totally. So happy to see so many pointing this stuff out; that's a real testament to Caroline's channel! Usually I get trolled like crazy for just deigning to mention this stuff! I will say that Zeppelin sometimes improved what they were ripping off (the Moby Grape song is not as great as Since I've Been Loving You, and Stairway To Heaven is better than the Spirit song it rips off) or at least did something novel with it (Whole Lotta Love). But Jimmy Page doing Bert - and taking the songwriter credit - isn't one of those times!
@TTM9691
Far more have stolen off Zep these last 55 years. Not just their music, but their style and even look. Hell, Lowell Fulson already stole off Jimmy Page in 1966 when he nicked Jimmy's riff from the Yardbirds 1966 song Happenings Ten Years Time Ago and used it in his later song Tramp.
Led Zeppelin learned how to steal from the blues. It was rife within the blues. Even Dixon stole, so suing Zeppelin was ironic and hypocritical. At least Zeppelin usually improved what they took a thousand fold.
There are about 2 and a half years between the recording of Led Zeppelin 1 and 4, btw (October 1968-November 1970/ Summer 1971).
Every Led Zep Album is Gold.. some even Platinum
Highly recommend checking out the live version of How Many More Times on Danmarks Radio in 1969 - one of the best performances ever imo
Good Times Bad Times is one of the GREATEST opening songs of a debut album, EVER.
The descending guitar line in "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" would later be used/borrowed/stolen by Chicago for their song 25 or 6 to 4.
Black Mountain Side is a version/theft of Bert Jansch's Black Waterside, which was taught to Jimmy by Al ("Year of the Cat") Stewart.
The spoken part in How Many More Times is based in part on Kisses Sweeter Than Wine by the Weavers.
The bass drum triplets in "Good Times, Bad Times" are very impressive, not easy to execute, and if you notice, you don't hear many people imitating, even all these years later. And when you do hear it, you immediately say "Good Times, Bad Times"! The band I was in was on tour with Deerhoof a few years ago, and we were watching them play, and Greg the drummer fleetingly dropped those bass triplets into something, and the three of us all went "Heeeeeey!" in unison when he did it! Off the top of my head, that's the only time I've seen do a direct quote of those bass drum triplets into something original. When you hear it, you immediately know "Good Times Bad Times". What's difficult is he's just doing the last two notes of the triplet on the bass drum. He's not doing the first note of the triplet, the first note of the triplet is played with his right hand on the hgh-hat, so his right foot is only hitting the up-beats. While keeping up the high-hat and snare drum patterns. Trust me, it's something a drummer has to work on to nail, no one just sits down on a kit and does that instinctively! (- Tic Toc Melody. I changed my handle! You didn't lose me as a subscriber!)
It awesome to read that you opened for Deerhoof! I was the Drummer for local Los Angeles pop/punk band , Third Grade Teacher. We had the pleasure to also open for Deerhoof during many of their Los Angeles shows.
@@user-ys9fg4ol9s They actually opened for us on that tour, lol. But yeah, they're great, love 'em.
It's very interesting how you digest the songs compared to how I did. This was the soundtrack to my first parties, make-outs and blackouts. You analyse them for what they are separately, while we didn't analyse but experienced them in a haze of other related music of the time like the Stones, Sabbath, Cream etc.
It's great to see you doing more reaction videos Caroline! What I've kind of gathered is that you dislike more chaotic sounding songs. Which is fine because I think you have different tastes than other reviewers and it's nice to see someone give a different take. That's why your Beatles videos are so much better than other reviewers. I'm thinking Simon And Garfunkel would be a good band for you to deep dive into. You already did Joni Mitchell but I would've said her too. Maybe The Smiths would be good as well. The Doors are a little less chaotic sounding too, but still push the listener a bit. So they might be good because they have a good catalog, but might be a little outside your preferences.
One story about how highly regarded Bonzo was: not long after Led Zeppelin 1 was released, Jimmy Page ran into a drummer named Ronnie Verrell, who was a big band and session drummer with whom Page had worked a lot during his session man days - he was also the drummer who played the real life drum tracks for Animal on The Muppet Show, so he was no slouch on the drums. When Verrell ran into Page in early '69, the first words out of his mouth were something along the lines of "Holy shit, Jim, where'd you find that drummer Bonham? He's fantastic!!!"
Call and Response between Vocals and Guitar is iconic
If their first song was all they ever did (Good Times Bad Times) they still would be better than 99% of bands.
Zep's percussion is up there with RUSH and Sabbath!
Dazed and Confused is a great song, but you really need to listen and watch the live version of this song from the film The Song Remains the Same. Don’t be put off by it being half an hour long. It’s worth it.
Led Zeppelin is THE best Rock band ever! Please, please, please, do more Led Zeppelin! Just found your channel.
Caroline used to either a) squirm or b) react with light amusement to harder rocking songs and instead go ga-ga over the soft material. This was particularly true of The Beatles. But now I see she's actually enjoying a hard rock album (her predictable reaction to "Communication Breakdown" aside)...hopefully she can go back now to songs like "Helter Skelter" and "I Want You" and see the value in them.
You need to listen to "Physical Graffiti" by Zeppelin... that album is a freakin' masterpiece!!!!
the drummer and singer were 20 years old when they did this album!!
The guitar solo for How many more times? is from The Yardbird's Shapes of things which I believe was Jeff Beck. It could have been Jimmy Page?
Did anyone mention that they recorded this entire album TWO WEEKS after they met and jammed for the first time???? INSANE!!!!
You're a musician and a musical historian, and I am here for it. =)
❤ Led Zeppelin ❤
This is really interesting..., I came to this channel by following your jouney to the beatles, AND discovered YOUR own music in the process...., zep is kind of an uncharted territory for me....
Caroline, you don't have to make excuses or explain yourself for not liking songs. It's fine. We all have our favorites and not so favorites (and flat out dislikes), but this is your journey and you are entitled to your own opinions. And we enjoy them. They're fun, even when we don't agree. Be you.🙃😀
Ppl tend to get offended when someone doesn’t like a song they like, probably why she said that lol. Great song tho
I hope you check out some of their live stuff. Bring it on Home from the How the West was Won live album has a lot of the call-and-response stuff between Page and Plant (guitar and vocals). Also the live concert from the Royal Albert Hall from, I want to say, 1970. It's raw and rocking and, in my opinion, is their best live stuff out there. The Madison Square Garden show(s) usually sits at the top of peoples' lists, but not for me.
The algorithm has just sent me your channel so I am only getting to know you and your content. I am a massive Queen fan and am curious to know if you know who they are and what you think about them. I believe they are the only other band to ever offer the differing range and styles of the Beatles mainly because all 4 members write extremely popular songs. You have no doubt heard Bohemian Rhapsody but if you haven't I would love you to do a first listen of it.
Led Zeppelin I was kind of hurried through, the band was already touring and getting great fan response so they had to get something out into the stores. It's still a great album but one can see by the amount of covers (credited or not) that they hadn't really started writing for THIS band yet. They knew they had magic in a bottle but they weren't totally sure of the best way to use that magic yet. I find it interesting that your least favorite song, Communication Breakdown, was one of the larger commercial successes from this album.
The GOATS OF GOATS! 😎🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 John Bahama is the GREATEST Bluse/Rock drummer ever, oh yeah he’s a great jazz drummer! This and as you will find out is: they are their own genre! Just remember, this is their first album. They are other worldly!
Hi Caroline, in my opinion I don't think "Mariachi" is the most accurate association to make with Babe I'm Gonna Leave you. Perhaps Flamenco tinged Folk? I love your videos! I'm in my 50s and most of the music you so deftly anylize is the soundtrack to my life. Thank you.
Can't wait for led zep 2 !
Definitely try Led Zeppelin II, it's my favorite album by them by far
To start a potential brawl, get a bunch of Zep fans drunk and ask them to name their favorite Zeppelin album....
This one will invariably come up (defiantly in my top 3) and it's certainly in any conversation for greatest debut album of all time. What makes it stand out is just how polished each individual performance is and how masterfully it's tied together as a group for being a first album. This is explained by the fact that most of the band members are seasoned artists and producers from other groups and a few from decades in the music business (Jimmy Paige and John Paul Jones in particular).
Fun fact: After hearing the rough takes of this album recording, one of the listeners commented, " This going to go over like a Lead Balloon..." and the band name was born....
TYry listening to the Yardbirds version of the song with Jimmy playing it back then
You must do my fav lz album Houses of the holy, it will be your fav also cant wait to u here the rain song will be your fav lz song!!!
I may not be as big on Zep as many are but for me this is easily their best album. None of the indulgences of their later stuff, especially in Plant's vocals, but pretty much all of the things that are great about them. They wrote very little of the music here, but songwriting was never their greatest strength so whatever. Some great songs on their other albums, to be sure, but as an album, this is the most consistently enjoyable to me (though yeah, I Can't Quit You Baby is the weak link here). Also, is there a better opening shot for a band than those pounding drums that open Good Times Bad Times? Imagine hearing that in 1969!
greatest rock drummer to ever live..
How DARE you not like Communication Breakdown!!! 😮
You might grow to like this one more after multiple hearings, although several numbers being blues-based may never float your boat. But you are right about their improvement by the time they reached the 4th LP, although it was not clearly along a straight line ...
@ 7:17 Into This Reaction I Do Not Blame You For Having A:😳Look On Your Face!😳😁
I Think 🤔 That That Is The Same Look On My Face 😳Way Back In 1985 , When I Saw A ( Temporary ) Reformed Led Zeppelin At Live Aid , And I Went To The Record Store 🏪 Bought 'Led Zeppelin'( 1969 ) Took The Album Home.🏡 And Played It On My Tape 📼 Player For The First Time.📼🎧😳🙋
I Was Blowned Away!📼🎧😳🙋😱🤯
Great Memories For Me As A 16 Year Old Teenager!
Plus I Was Born In Memphis Tennessee.
So I Was Happy 😁 To Find Out That Robert Plant Was Inspired By Elvis Presley Who Lived In Memphis Tennessee.🌁🛤️🛣️🏙️😁😎🤓🙂☺️
I Am Posting 📬 This At 7:46 p.m. , 🌞 Sunday Night 🌛🌉🌃🌌 , March 31, 2024.
Led Zeppelin were signed to Atlantic Records at the same time as Yes. Guess which one had a more successful debut album? 😉 It's impossible to overstate the number of hard rock bands that were the direct offspring of this band and album. There would be no Rush or Aerosmith without Led Zeppelin, for example. This album established a ton of classic rock and heavy metal tropes that we take for granted today. Re: Jimmy Page's propensity for nicking music from other people, I think of him as a hoarder of musical ideas. He had a knack for hearing something and then going "What if went like *this* instead?" Plus there's no denying he was a master of the Monster Riff. But in some ways, all the derivative elements of this album spotlight how special the other guys in the band were, Robert Plant and John Bonham especially.
I agree, Led Zep I didn't do as much for me as 3 and 4, the only two songs I still listen to from I are "Babe, I'm gonna leave you" and "Communication Breakdown"
The call and response forms come out of the Blues, along with the half step walk down. If I recall correctly, the step down pattern fits around a whole step walk down of fourths and fifths depending on the choice of chord voicings. LZ II further explores psychedelic heavy blues while also taking their sound in new directions. But I've got a feeling you might like LZ III more for the folksy content. Houses of The Holy, the album released after LZIV, features songs with some interesting chord progressions, like "The Rain Song", and interesting time signatures, like "The Ocean", and its sound is pure LZ, no cover songs.
Beatles, led zeppelin, Queen, pink Floyd (and abba) can’t go wrong with them! I also liked inxs and midnight oil - maybe next cycle
Surprised you didn't like Communication Breakdown. I'm not into punk music but this was from 1969 and it does have early punk vibes to it. In fact the Ramones' guitarist said the quick downpicking is what he practiced learning punk guitar.
communication breakdown is proto punk
With Led Zeppelin I they were just beginning. The group had only been together a couple months. They wanted to do blues and a harder rock edge. But, also to branch out.
My favorite was Good Times Bad Times.
By IV they were pretty much going away from strictly blues rock and doing a lot more innovation.
But, you will find Zeppelin II more fun. This is because the group is a lot more at ease with each other and can pretty much read the other and they feel a lot more at home around each other and bouncing off ideas.
The first one you had a raw Robert Plant at just turning 20 in a band that was new to him. Bonzo was his friend for years but, he did not know JPJ or Jimmy very well. And Robert had a lot an awe for Jimmy Page.
Page on his end did not really know what to totally expect or what he could get from the others.
very much similar in style is a less known not album song by them, also a cover "Travellin' Riverside Blues" which is very much in my top 5 LZ songs, well worth listening to.
I hope you listen to their live album How The West was Won. They definitely sound best live.
I'm a 60 year old fan who would love to see Led Zeppelin live, The Song Remains The Same movie released in 1976 was the closest I came to that. Dazed And Confused is the one song I can play (very badly) on bass 😄
Chromatic movements are definitely a common feature in psychedelic music. At some point you may want to consider "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn", Pink Floyd's debut album (preferably the superior mono mix). It is psychedelic to the max, but yet manages to hold itself together with a unique kind of musicality.
That was great. Lovely to get an intelligent opinion on why you like some songs and are neutral or negative on others.
I suspect that you have many, many suggestions on what to react to next but ... Here it comes ... have you considered Neil Young. He has a vast back catalogue, a range that varies from folk to rock, is a brilliant melodyist, has an unusual vocal style. Its hard to extrapolate anyones music taste but I think that you might enjoy him. I would try "Harvest" or "After the goldrush" or perhaps "Tonight's the night".
Gran Album
Fun to see this broken down by a musician...an album I loved from when it came out, just as a person who likes rock n roll. Def I is more raw, and IV more melodic. BUT, communication Breakdown is one of my fav LZ's of all time.
'I don't know if karma is real but one can only hope!' 😅
This is why I was recommending Houses of the Holy if you only did one more LZ album after IV. This one has some rough spots, as I think you noticed. It does give a sense of the improvement from the 1st to the 4th album, as you say.
Led Zeppelin II was already big development. But, however, this was one of the best debut albums I heard.
IV is my all time favorite, but III and II are great.
P.S. You'll see, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You is just beginning of Robert Plant's and word's "babe" special relationship. 😁
It's got one of the best debut MOMENTS of a band. If I had to distill the album to one thing, it's literally Good Times Bad Times, or just the intro to Good Times, Bad Times! That was THE new teaching of the album to me. The rest was good heavy English blues, or English folk, as many were doing at the time, but that intro and Bonham's bass drum triplets in that song......that song was definitely an announcement! :D
please listen to and for JPJ's (Jonesy) contribution to this band. Unsung, but he's the bassist, keyboardist and multi instrumentalist (tripleneck guitar, mandolin, flute or recorder, etc). and arranger that fills out the songs in ways you can't imagine until his parts are removed from the track. Page and JPJ were session musicians who knew each other well, and as a duo decided to form a new band. Page was the driving force to make his own band but he did not 'hire' JPJ, they agreed to firm and look for a singer and drummer to fill out the group.
will send you a YT link of Jonesy playing When The Levee Breaks on lap steel guitar, in 2024.
Bohnam played drums like a lead instrument while still fullfilling his rhythm duties.
I know you're not a blues fan, but you noticed the sexiness in You Shook Me... what my friend from the UK called "humping music".
I can understand not liking "Communication Breakdown" but can we all admit that song was decades ahead of it's time and likely the first punk / speed metal song ever recorded?
Jimmy Page said he borrowed from a Chicago song, 25 or 6 to 4 for the break in Babe I'm Gonna Leave You. Called Terry Kath the greatest guitarist. Give a listen to Chicago. Hope you are a fan of horns. You will love them.