Music Thread

Northside Hawk said:
My favorite Zeppelin album, at the pinnacle of their career before debauchery and substance abuse began to take their toll. "Houses" had so much range, so much textural range, so much Jimmy as a genius, Robert singing at his best. Zeppelin was known for their blues influences, but aside from the chorus of "Over The Hills and Far Away" there wasn't a ton of it here. Maybe "The Crunge" but their were strong James Brown influences there. I would put Zeppelin's rythym section right up there with Sabbath's. You can't go wrong either way and the difference would probably be splitting hairs. "No Quarter is one of the most spine chilling songs ever recorded. Clearly the best band in the world from 1971-73 but thanks to the guarded cloak of secrecy manager Peter Grant kept over the band they didn't get as popular as they deserved to be until after Bonham's death.
You could do a whole new thread on how Grant changed the business of rock n roll and made a lot of bands, not just his own, rich young men. Their reluctance to release singles, for starters, forcing the customer to shell out for the entire LP.
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"Since I've Been Loving You," one of my all-time Zeppelin favorites, is heavily blues influenced. Every time l listen to it, I feel like I'm sitting in a smoke-filled dive Blues bar somewhere. "Levee" as well. "Gallows" has a very Blues verse, which is augmented by an almost Folk fusion guitar line. Only Zeppelin could make that work... Then, you have a song like "Bron-Y-Aur," which has elements of Bluegrass. Genius stuff. It's too bad that most mainstream music fans are only exposed to their bigger hits. There's so, so much more there.

I agree about the rhythm sections. That's why I hedged it by saying no one's "better." LOL. I think they're on-par. Jones and Bonham excelled in little intricacies, whereas, Geezer and Ward were at their best when the tempo picked up. They somehow managed to keep it tight and perfect even when their hairs were on fire.

Grant definitely was a double-edged sword. His refusal to release singles hurt them early, but probably propelled them late. It's a gamble, though. The only way that strategy works is if you're working with a really good band in the first place.

BTW, here is the first tune I listened to this morning when I got out of bed. Still gives me chills to this day:

 
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hawkeyebob62 said:
Anyone remember when they played Crow's Nest (not the huge one on Dubuque St, the old one next to Gabe's) in Spring of 1983? It was between Spring semester and Summer session. Very "blah" show, until they played that song, which brought everyone away from the bar and onto the dance floor.

Talk about a one-hit wonder that also milked the living crap out of it with re-issues, remixes, re-releases, and movie placements beyond all normal levels. Good song, but still...
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Yeah, it has been way overplayed over the years, but, for good reason...It just worked. Some songs just seem to come together, and Modern English struck gold here. Unfortunately, there's a graveyard of tunes that are great but people are simply fatigued by them. Flock of Seagulls' "I Ran" would be another example.
 
AreWeThereYet said:
Kraftwerk seems to be the first to successfully marry repetitive programmed loops with simple pop. Others quickly joined in.

Suicide - Keep Your Dreams - 1977 live
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Is there a song in there somewhere? It almost feels like an intro to a song that got hung up because of a technical malfunction. I kept waiting for it to start. LOL.
 
#1DieHardHawk said:
Is there a song in there somewhere? It almost feels like an intro to a song that got hung up because of a technical malfunction. I kept waiting for it to start. LOL.
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Definitely minimalist, a little too minimalist for most. The strange video complements it. The subsequent studio version was a bit more developed, but I decided against posting the seizure inducing video.

 
#1DieHardHawk said:
Yeah, it has been way overplayed over the years, but, for good reason...It just worked. Some songs just seem to come together, and Modern English struck gold here. Unfortunately, there's a graveyard of tunes that are great but people are simply fatigued by them. Flock of Seagulls' "I Ran" would be another example.
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I guess it would sort of be like writing an epic novel, having it made into a play, a movie, etc. No compelling reason to write anything else!
 
#1DieHardHawk said:
Actually, several.

But that could be the result of my brain rotting, as implied by the above poster......

That said, there are songs from my era that I refuse to listen to anymore since they were (and are) way overplayed. Layla would be a good example. Others would include, Paradise by the Dashboard Light, Hey Jude and Let it Be. Fingernails on a chalkboard at this point.
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I know what you mean. Never liked it when I found a band/album and had it to myself and maybe turn a few others on to it, then it goes on the radio and boom. You want to tell everyone - I liked it before it was cool! And they ruin it by over playing it.
 
#1DieHardHawk said:
"Since I've Been Loving You," one of my all-time Zeppelin favorites, is heavily blues influenced. Every time l listen to it, I feel like I'm sitting in a smoke-filled dive Blues bar somewhere. "Levee" as well. "Gallows" has a very Blues verse, which is augmented by an almost Folk fusion guitar line. Only Zeppelin could make that work... Then, you have a song like "Bron-Y-Aur," which has elements of Bluegrass. Genius stuff. It's too bad that most mainstream music fans are only exposed to their bigger hits. There's so, so much more there.

I agree about the rhythm sections. That's why I hedged it by saying no one's "better." LOL. I think they're on-par. Jones and Bonham excelled in little intricacies, whereas, Geezer and Ward were at their best when the tempo picked up. They somehow managed to keep it tight and perfect even when their hairs were on fire.

Grant definitely was a double-edged sword. His refusal to release singles hurt them early, but probably propelled them late. It's a gamble, though. The only way that strategy works is if you're working with a really good band in the first place.

BTW, here is the first tune I listened to this morning when I got out of bed. Still gives me chills to this day:

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So many good points here it's hard to figure out where to begin to reply. Let's start with Peter Grant. He revolutionized the business end of rock and roll by making sure the bands and musicians got rich. This wasn't always the case, especially in a band's club days, Zeppelin no exception. Until Peter Grant entered the picture. Led Zeppelin never got ripped off by a promoter again and it also allowed them to concentrate on what they did best. Music.

Grant didn't stop there, or with the hit single vs album deal. He did not allow his band to be shown on Midnight Special, Don Kirschner, those kind of shows. If you wanted to see Zeppelin you were going to shell out $$$ to see one of their concerts. Or buy the albums. Or pay for "The Song Remains The Same" MTV was born a year after their demise. It would have been interesting to see if they would have done videos.

I was specifically talking "Houses of the Holy" when I talked about limited blues. One, two and Zoso are loaded with blues based songs. Folk song like "Gallow's Pole" and "Battle of Nevermore" are among their best. My all-time favorite Zeppelin is probably "Immigrant Song"

You mentioned that you wished fans would give some of their less exposed songs a chance. Absolutey true and I would say the same about Nirvana. Cobain's obscurities and B-sides are a treasure trove of wild riffs, melodic riffs, moody midtempo songs, tearjerkers, even Leadbelly covers. His version of Lead belly's "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" is absolutely chilling, especially after we learned of Kurt's fate. Mark Lanegan of Screaming Trees, with Kurt's help, does an even more frightening version of that song. People who only know Nirvana for "Teen Spirit" and "Come As You Are" would be pleasantly surprised.

There is a lot to listen out there gang. Sometimes you have to open your eyes to open your ears. And like Die Hard says, the correct stereophonic equipment doesn't hurt, either.
 
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Was "Popcorn" the birth of synth pop? I thought Jean Michel Jarre, who occasionally popped up on FM radio in the seventies, did a version several years before Stan Free and Hot Butter did it.

Edit: after listening is does sound like the Jarre (original) version. Stan Free's version, which reached the top twenty in the early seventies, was in a higher key. My bad.
 
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