Led Zeppelin: Robert Plant (vocals, harmonica); Jimmy Page (acoustic, electric, & pedal steel guitars, background vocals); John Paul Jones (organ, bass, background vocals); John Bonham (drums, tympani, background vocals).
Additional personnel: Viram Jasani (tablas).
Recorded at Olympic Studios, London, England in October 1968.
Rising from the ashes of his old band the Yardbirds, session guitarist Jimmy Page formed Led Zeppelin, one of the most powerful, influential, and enduring British bands to emerge in the '60s. Despite the presence of such classic thrash-o-ramas as "Good Times Bad Times" and "Communication Breakdown," what set Led Zeppelin apart was the depth and range of their music. Their sound was bathed in the blues, from rootsy covers of Willie Dixon's "You Shook Me" and "I Can't Quit You Baby," to the crunching rhythm changes of "Dazed And Confused."
Few guitarists before or since possessed Page's sense of pacing and dynamics, as exemplified by the traditional acoustic folk elements framing the arena gestures on "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You," and the raga-flavored acoustic mystery of "Black Mountain Side." These elements would continue to evolve on subsequent albums, leading to some of Led Zeppelin's greatest moments.
What the critics say...
Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.106) - Ranked #29 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums Of All Time" - "...From the very beginning, Zeppelin had the astonishing fusion of Page's lyrical guitar playing and Robert Plant's paint-peeling love-hound yowl..."
Rolling Stone (9/13/01, p.112) - 5 stars out of 5 - "...No Zep album sounds quite as gratifyingly raw or is as comprehensive in defining the band's intentions..."
Q (10/94, p.141) - 3 Stars - Good - "...the rites of passage, Marquee-style bluesbreaker album, recorded in just 30 hours (no record contract, no cash), it's peak 'Dazed And Confused,' wherein half-inch blues exploded into riffology..."
