Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin IV [conventional title] by Led Zeppelin (1971) In 1982, eleven years after this album’s release, a 17-year-old ‘big man on campus’ named Benny walked into his private-school math class singing: “Hey, hey, mama, said the way you move Gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove”. His stern, no-nonsense Intermediate Algebra teacher (me) turned from writing the day’s assignment on the blackboard to shoot Benny a disapproving glare. Benny sheepishly clammed up. But as I turned back to the blackboard to finish, I sang softly: “Ah, ah, child, way you shake that thing Gonna make you burn, gonna make you sting” As I put down the chalk and turned again toward the class, smile met smile as Benny and I shared a trans-generational moment of awareness of the power of Led Zeppelin IV. Benny ended the semester with a surprisingly good ‘A-‘ in math. It would have been a ‘B+’, but his anachronistic love for Led Zeppelin tilted the scales in a positive direction, and I don’t regret it one bit. There was a time when I considered Led Zeppelin IV to be the greatest album ever, and I’m not sure that that time is past. Young people today should do themselves a favor and develop such a strong a familiarity with this record that they will be able to recognize each track from its opening strains, like Beethoven’s Symphony #5 or Bach’s Toccata and Fugue. It’s that good. Few albums have ever had both the variety and cohesiveness of Led Zeppelin IV. Each listen is an immersive experience, striding through an aural gallery of head-banging rock, moan-inducing blues, culture-resonating folk, and a time-transcending mysticism that carries perennial fascination. And tying all these disparate features together is a musical synthesis of sounds of today (the ‘now’) and images of the misty past (the ‘then’—see below). As musicians, each of the six performers (including Sandy Denny, ethereal backing vocal on “The Battle of Evermore” and Ian Stewart, piano on “Rock and Roll”) executes at peak virtuosity. The four members of Led Zeppelin (Jimmy Page [guitar], Robert Plant [lead vocals], John Bonham [drums], and John Paul Jones [bass & keyboards]) are each individually on lists of the ‘greatest of all time’ in their respective categories of performance. Yet no rock group (other than The Beatles) ever played better together. From the electro-windup intro on the opening track “Black Dog”, the listener knows he/she is in for a thrill and a treat, in that order. Robert Plant’s inimitably powerful yet soulful a cappella lead vocal storms onto the scene, grabbing the ears. Then, struggling to discern the meter, the listener immediately discovers the groove, even though it seems that John Bonham’s ingenious rhythmic composition is performing a different song altogether, ignoring the standard gum-chewing backbeat of early rock. But everything is in miraculous sync, as Page and Jones muscle on, all pausing to let Plant do his thing before kicking back in with pure power rock. We teenagers listening to this in 1971 had never heard anything like this before, because there never was anything like this before. Then, without letting up, we hear the smashing rock & roll of “Rock & Roll”, where Bonham reminds us that the backbeat still lives, and Page cooks like never before with wild guitar solo work. Page later said the track was written and recorded in fifteen minutes. I would have paid serious money to sit in a room with Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, and Chuck Berry to watch them hear this track for the first time. And by the way, the most convincing cover of this song was done by Heart (the closing track of Greatest Hits/Live [1980]). And just when we think the album is going to mash out hard rock from beginning to end, we are jolted into a little fantasy medievalism with the next two tracks, “The Battle of Evermore” (check out the Tolkien, Lord of the Rings references) and “Stairway to Heaven”, where Page’s first-time (!) experience with mandolin and iconic solo electric guitar passages wrap around Plant’s mystical lyrics (Plant was only 22 years old at the time). “Stairway to Heaven” is in the rock ballad canon because of its dramatically drawn out development and increased intensity over a steady chord structure. It’s one of the greatest songs ever, not because of profound lyrics, but because of its incomparable instrumentation and vocal performance. Yes, it has been overplayed and over analyzed, but it still moves. The amazing guitar solo (at 5:55) and the wailing lead vocal on the closing bridge (at 6:45) still bring shivers after a thousand listens. Side two begins with “Misty Mountain Hop” providing an explanation of the contrast on side one between the ‘now’ of the first two tracks and the ‘then’ of tracks three and four. After a tale of a druggie’s awkward encounter with a cop in the mundane ‘now’, the artist concludes with a flight to ‘then’: “So I'm packing my bags for the Misty Mountains Where the spirits go now Over the hills where the spirits fly, ooh” And the listener, clutching a copy of Tolkien, The Hobbit, is glad to go along for the ride. The ‘now/then’ duality is beautifully pictured in the cover art, where the front side shows the weathered ruins of an interior wall adorned with an old painting of a seemingly even older man, contrasting with a modern but dull and overcast cityscape where buildings battle with trees on the back side. And between concern for “when the river runs dry” (in “Four Sticks”, featuring Bonham’s superlative drumming with four drumsticks in 5/8 alternating with 6/8) to the droning blues dread of what will happen “When the Levee Breaks” we hear of a search for the perfect woman as the acoustic guitar (Page) and mandolin (Jones) accompany the softly melodic tune “Going to California”: “To find a queen without a king They say she plays guitar and cries and sings... La la la la Ride a white mare in the footsteps of dawn Tryin' to find a woman who's never, never, never been born.” When in fact she has been born, and her name is Joni Mitchell, and Robert Plant knows it. But he can dream, and so can we. I will listen to this album till the day I die. 5/5

Hard to argue this should be anything but a 5. I won't waste my time justifying. Go live your life

Oh we heard you like classic rock, lord of the rings, and poetry. Here is an album you might enjoy. Mastapiece

Unimpeachable. Nearly every song on this album is a classic.

Black Dog, Stairway, AND Levee?! You gotta be kidding me

I seem to be mostly alone with this opinion, but here goes: I find Led Zeppelin overrated. That said, this is still a really good album. I like it much better than the other two LZ albums we've had. And Stairway To Heaven and When The Levee Breaks are great songs. But I really can't see this as a masterpiece and tracks 5-7 were pretty weak.

I don't even know what to say about this one. This album is part of the fabric of my life. I remember being ten years old, listening to it as loud as possible with my friends' parents. Songs on this album underscored crushes on boys in Zeppelin t-shirts. I've listened to it on many car rides to cottages in the summer, from my first time having the car for a weekend in high school through to the last summer pre-pandemic. It's impossible to be objective, it's one of the greatest albums of my life.

1001 Albums To Never Hear Again Before You Die Chapter 1 - Led Zeppelin IV (Zoso, if you’re nasty) Dear Reader, In this first installment, I’ll ask you some baseline questions in order to gauge your eligibility for opting out of this album permanently: 1. Do you often find yourself in relationships (romantic or otherwise) with people you know are no good for you? If you answered no, do you enjoy feeding stray dogs? (Black Dog) 2. Are you partial to American made luxury cars?(Rock and Roll) 3. Do you like songs about hobbits and get amped up by J.R.R Tolkien and/or weed references? (Battle of Evermore, Misty Mountain Hop) 4. Would you like to reminisce about the time you got a chubby while slow dancing with your crush at your 8th grade dinner dance? (Stairway to Heaven) 5. Do you have a predilection for drum circles and a high tolerance for the phrase “oh, baby”? (Four Sticks) 6. Have you ever wondered what a Joni Mitchell song about wanting to sleep with Joni Mitchell would sound like? (Going to California - Give Zep some credit here, they were doing meta in 1971…truly innovative.) 7. Have you ever taken Quaaludes and tried to write a blues song? (When The Levee Breaks) Now, you’re probably asking yourself “how are these questions going to determine if I never have to listen to Led Zeppelin IV ever again?” The short answer is…they’re not. The truth is, you probably don’t ever need to hear this album again. You’ve probably already heard more than half of it on the radio/commercials/films/tv shows, or you’ve heard it in full hanging out at your weed guy’s apartment, or from an older relative who thinks it’s the pinnacle of mankind’s achievements in recorded music. But, if you find yourself enthralled by the prospect finding out the answers to the questions posed earlier, by all means, revisit this record. It’s actually pretty good.

One of the GOAT rock albums and a truely influential album. Zeppelin is like an all-star cast of musicians for this genre. When The Levee Breaks still has one of the most amazing intros of all time. A masterclass. Favourite Tracks: All of them, but special shout out to Misty Mountain Hop, Battle of Evermore, and When The Levee Breaks

This album is a fuckin' masterpiece. IMO stairway is the best song ever written (that I've heard) and totally deserves all the praise it gets. Black dog is surprisingly hard to play on guitar. Really jazzy feel but it's a rock song. Rock n Roll is such a simple tune but Plant's singing just sends it into the stratosphere. Even the more, uh, "adventurous" tunes are still interesting and hypnotic. The Battle of Evermore is basically a vocal solo. Interesting drumming, Jimmy fuckin' Page's leads... there's more or less nothing I can criticise about this album. It even goes for the perfect ~40min. And they were in their early 20s when they wrote it. It defies belief. 6/5 if I could.

This truly is one of the best albums ever released. 8 tracks, 6 huge hits. It's kinda unbelievable, even for Led Zeppelin.

Wait, this is supposed to be one of the greatest Rock albums of the early 70s? THIS?!? Granted, Stairway to Heaven is a powerful and classic (albeit severely overplayed) track, but outside of that, I hear a lot of generic white-men-playing-the-blues rambling and songs without too much variation or ideas. The Battle of Evermore is pointlessley meandering without going anywhere. The same could be said about Four sticks. Going to California is a welcome change of pace, but is too generic to be really good and sounds the same throughout. When the Levee Breaks left me shrugging. Led Zeppelin are supposed to be one of the best bands of the 60s/70s, but I've been suspecting for some time now that they are simply overrated. This is another case in point. 2/5

I have already written at length about the pros (great musicians, powerful production, swaggering performances, Bonzo's drums) and cons (weak songwriting, ridiculous lyrics, plagiarism, culpable business behaviour, sexual assault, Bonzo's behaviour) of Led Zeppelin, so I will avoid repeating myself. This album contains all the best and worst of Led Zep. How can an album bookended with Black Dog and When the Levee Breaks go too far wrong? I am going to suggest that Stairway To Heaven is, in fact, the weakest song on the record. It is cobbled together out of disjointed sweepings with the world's naffest lyrics. Robert Plant is right to be be embarrassed by this song. It does have an iconically great guitar solo (and typically great playing from Bonzo and JPJ), BUT THIS IS NO EXCUSE. Just because it was played on FM rock radio a hundred billion times does not make it good, just familiar. Ubiquity is not the same as quality (see also: Hotel California). That said, this album also has Sandy Denny and a couple of tunes with mandolin (hi Dave, those tracks are your favourites, aren't they?) and that monster drum beat on Levee. For all their myriad faults, Led Zep are still a band you have to hear. I'm not convinced it is actually their best record, but it's still pretty damn great. It's really hard to make a case that this isn't a five star classic.

I feel as if this album should be prescribed--at least every 10 years put on headphones, lie down, and listen to this album a little more loudly than you might typically (to 11, duh). Feel your brain be cleansed as incredibly tight, expertly played pure rock swaggers through your skull. Enjoy the vocals for the sound and whatever you do, don't think too much about the lyrics.

Compelling range, and several great songs - Black Dog, Stairway to Heaven, Going to California, When the Levee Breaks. They avoid the trap that they seem to fall into on other albums, of just rocking out in a way that sounds cool but doesn't go very deep. Their best album?

I'm supposed to love this but I just don't

Led Zep are abysmal. Not even listening.

Really dont like led zeppelin

Arguably the best album -by possibly the best rock band to ever grace the planet.

There are days when you are disappointed with the albums, others when you're surprised or pleased. Today is a very special day. It is akin to Charlie finding the golden ticket. Such a brilliant album from the first second to the last. It really makes my Monday feel a bit closer to a Friday.

The fiviest of five stars. Theory: though Robert Plant was necessary, as every hard rock band had to have a wailer, this is all about the other three. Case in point: Bonham's drumming on When The Levee Breaks. Case two: Stairway to Heaven is the best example of can hardly hear it/quiet/soft/nice/loud/very loud dynamics ever recorded. Who cares about the lady who knows? Not me Clive.

A bona fide goddamn rock 'n' roll masterpiece! It's way nerdier than you'd think, but it's fucking glorious. Imagine buying this album in 1971? You get it home, you put it on thinking "sweet, new Zep" and then they relentlessly assault you with so much motherfucking badassery for 42 minutes and 35 seconds you don't even think your brain can process one more shit hot guitar lick? What a time to be alive. Wish that's how I heard it for the first time.

You already KNOW this is getting 5 stars! What an incredible showing, from groovin rock songs to intimate, delicate acoustic arrangements, IV may be the peak of Zeppelin's performance. It's more polished than 1, but more raw than later work. Seriously dig it.

When they say "they don't make them like they used to", this is what they have in mind. In my humble opinion, Led Zeppelin IV is the second best album of all time. Apart of containing groundbreaking music (which, later, provided some "rejects" to Physical Graffiti) , with songs like Stairway to Heaven, there are plenty of spectacular individual performances here: John Paul Jones on mandolin in Going to California, John Bonham's solo at the start of Rock and Roll, and (of course) his so creatively recorded performance in When the Levee Breaks. Created by four individuals at the top of their craft, this is a masterpiece from start to finish.

I know this is usually the LZ album that appears on 'greatest albums' lists, but I didn't realise just how many classics they crammed on here. It's also a good touchpoint for a lot of their different styles: rocky, folky, bluesy, Stairway to Heaven-y. It's not perfect but it's still worth 5 stars.

Probably my favorite album of theirs, has quite a bit of range and they are quite far along with their style that this is a great vertical slice of Zeppelin. Unfortunately it's almost become too ubiquitous that I have a hard time separating it from a lot of people that taints the impression. However, it's not my favorite style of rock and I don't always wanna listen to Zeppelin in general. I actually prefer the slower songs like The Battle of Evermore and Stairway to Heaven (as much as it was overplayed). I quite enjoyed Four Sticks with the addition of synths and the percussion is a lot of fun. Culturally and of the genre a 5 but in terms of listening pleasure it's a 4.

Man, the hits here are absolute bangers. But the tracks that aren't hits are major misses. Miles off the mark. It's insane to me that the same album that contains "Black Dog," "When the Levee Breaks," and "Stairway to Heaven" also contains "The Battle of Evermore" and "Four Sticks" which are ... well, there's a reason you probably haven't heard them. They're not bad enough to tank the album but they do pull the rating down a star.

girl this sucks

Almost totally non-experimental, with the narrow exception of some parts of Four Sticks. Still an immaculate straight rock album: Inescapable, cohesive, with many corners which have been partially duplicated since. Even Battle, the low point of the tracklist, manages to make moving upper notes on a guitar sound moving, plaintive, not done-a-million times. The followup fails the latter criterion through no fault of its own.

I'm back and forth a lot over which Led Zeppelin album I think is their best. But honestly, I think, song for song, IV really delivers everything that Zeppelin is about as a band. If you listen to classic rock at all, you probably know most if not all of these songs. They are stone cold classics, all of them. I cannot stress enough how rare that is in an album. Yeah, a few have been overplayed somewhat in the past 50(!) years. But this is an album that holds up ridiculously well to repeat listening. From the mega energy “Rock and Roll,” to the grandiose, epic “Stairway to Heaven,” to the delicate acoustic “Going to California,” to the slow burning blues of “When the Levee Breaks,” every flavor of Zeppelin is present here. “Black Dog,” my word. That is possibly the best intro to any album that I have heard. It's perfection. Fave Songs (All songs, in order from most to least favorite, adding that I love them all): When the Levee Breaks, Going to California, Rock and Roll, Black Dog, Stairway to Heaven, Misty Mountain Hop, Four Sticks, The Battle of Evermore

Led Zeppelin provides crucial evidence in the age old debate about what would happen if the greatest cock rock band of all time was made up of a bunch of Tolkien nerds. Turns out it's pretty cool. This album is excellent the whole way through, and it finishes even stronger than it starts. Stairway to Heaven gets a lot of the attention for this album, but When the Levee Breaks is my nomination for the best Zeppelin song of all time. 5/5

ashamed this is the first time i'm listening to led zeppelin... liked this album to listen to again. misty mountain hop is dooooope i love the discordance and atonality!!

That's a guy with sticks on his back

Probably their best I've heard so far, which isn't really saying much. Stairway to Heaven is cool (if over played), the rest is pretty bland and typical. I'll be nice and give a 3 I guess. I don't hate it, but I definitely don't love it either.

ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm..... i'm bored LMAO

A classic for a reason. Great music, great memories.

Obviously.

Feels a little silly writing a review of this, so all I'll say is that in case you weren't aware, "When the Levee Breaks" is one of the most sampled beats of all time, for example on fellow 1001 album lister Beastie Boys' Licensed to Ill (Rhymin' and Stealin'). It's one of the hugest, heaviest grooves you'll ever hear, mainly because John Bonham is has a devastating sense of time that makes him one of the funkiest drummers ever and people will continue to borrow his beats for many years to come. Go listen to it again right now if you can, focusing on the drums. Magnificent. Listen to Black Dog, for example. The guitar and bass are playing these ridiculously complicated riffs and Bonham cuts through it all like Alexander The Great slicing through the Gordian knot, with an incredibly simple beat that takes great maturity and musical instinct to conceive, and immaculate sense of time to execute so effectively, and provides a powerful contrast to the busy strings. People tend to get distracted with the fiery guitar and Lord of the Rings references and blues thievery but for me at least, Bonham is the most interesting and probably most influential musician in this band and this album is a tremendous showcase for his talents.

That was so good 😊

"When you get down to making out, whenever possible, put on the first side of Led Zeppelin IV" - Mike Damone

Well, come on now…. Could there be a more influential rock album? Rock song? There’s an argument to be made, but probably a waste of breath. It’s not my all-time, but deserves the accolades of a top ten. So 5, despite the plagiarism.

Another classic, even if Stairway is the most overplayed song in history.

Starts well, ends well, goes on a bit in the middle. Honestly, like, Zeppelin are good, they're just not as good as their fans or, more important, they themselves think they are.

A classic of course - can't really review it neutrally as I have the vinyl and have listened to it repeatedly, though not for a while. Not sure my 52 year old self likes it quite as much as my 17 year old self did, but it is still pretty good.

Yes! Finally an album that I'm quite familiar with. Immersed my self in all the 60's classic bands when I was just a young pup coming of age to the realization of what music means. What an album. Hell, what a band! Full blown classic Zep' immediately on display in Led Zeppelin IV from the opening riff of Black Dog to the unmistakable hard drumming of Bonham in When the Levee Breaks. Been a long time since America simply rock and rolled and no one did it better than LZ. The fantasy interlude of The Battle of Evermore slows down the album and not one of my favorites but an enjoyable tune non the less. Admittedly, I switch the station if Stairway to Heaven comes on but still fully appreciate the impact and value of Stairway and the lyrics. And if I do listen to it, can still bring on the goose bumps...does anybody remember laughter (added in one of their live versions). Right back into the head banging, body thumpin' with Misty Mountain hop. Why don't you take a good look at yourself and describe what you see and Baby, Baby, Baby do you like it? Always thought the lyrics were drowned out in Four Sticks. Going to California is one of my favorites, not of just Led Zeppelin's. Could listen to it over and over. Meet you up there where the path runs straight and high...Tellin' myself it's not as hard, hard, hard as it seems...it's hard (it's hard included in a live version). And one last full blown hard rock song with Plant's unique singing exhibited: Don't it make you feel bad When you're tryin' to find your way home You don't know which way to go? If you're goin' down south They got no work to do If you're going down to Chicago. A-ah, a-ah, a-ah...

Not much care here. III for me. But yeah, should be on this here list.

Misty Mountain Hop and Going to California are forever favorites. It's really hard not to love this album and really hard not to skip Stairway to Heaven.

There is a lot of plagiarism on this album, it’s so brazen, like one of those hiding in plain sight situations (Jimmy Saville). I get that stairway is a boomer anthem but it made me feel nothing. It’s a decent album overall but it’s like they colonised black music and copywrited it.

The fourth rock album from Led Zeppelin was a critical and commercial success, as well as the band's best selling album. The album is certified 24x platinum which makes it diamond certified too. The band's most popular song "Stairway to Heaven" also comes from this album. This album is regarded as a cornerstone of the 1970's hard rock music, because it had a great diversity of songs and was so popular. I thoroughly liked this album and will listen to more Led Zeppelin songs I haven't heard yet.

Messieurs Boombastic (Not quite telephontastic) The good here is very very good. The not so good is just that.

it’s like a country album but with rock. i don’t like it, i only like one song. 4/10

My friend Twelve Pint Simon loves this record. He used to travel to Belgium every weekend and play it LOUD so all Belgians could hear and kiss him on his mouth. I said "Nobody likes phlegmish kisses" and he said "did you just say phlegmish or flemish?" Then I pointed out that they are homonyns and I was making a pun. Simon laughed, went outside and ate crisps in the carpark.

10/10, Obviously awesome album.

This is the album that won me over after years and years of resistance. I was a firm believer that if you liked The Doors, you didn’t like Led Zeppelin. It went the same the other way. It’s what I saw around me in my musical journey with friends. There was no in between from what I saw. I have since learned that there is enough room in the musical landscape for both bands and many more. This is a pretty much flawless album by them. I mean, the first 4 of 5 songs are top hits. That’s not a greatest hits album people. That was just a band putting out their next effort. The only flaw is The Battle of Evermore. Waaaaayyyy too hippy sounding. It’s probably the Joni Mitchell voice in the song. I don’t stand for that peace and love voice nor the shit. War and hate is my realm. Ok anyways. Good album. It’s timeless as in it will be on a top list from here to eternity. Write that down. Choice cut: Going to California

Godly

Probably their best Better than the rest Don't say it in jest

I read this article once (I want to say it was penned by Chuck Klosterman, but AI was no help in confirming) in which a bunch of straight dudes were asked, "if you had to sleep with another dude, who would it be?" The overwhelming response was Robert Plant. I'm telling you this because I feel compelled to write something interesting about Led Zep that hasn't already been said a gazillion times. They're the greatest rock n roll band of all time. Anyone who doesn't give this album 5 stars is an edgelord, a pearl clutcher, or one of those dudes I just mentioned who isn't ready to to confront their feelings about Robert Plant.

Timeless

Gutes Album mit dem Titel für die Ewigkeit, „Stairway to Haven“. Dieser gibt auch dem Album seinen vollen Glanz.

Oh, the greatest album of all time also made this list? Shocker...

Yeah this is a classic I love the mysticism of this album 5/5

Ottimo album, un rock aggressivo. Poi l'intro di black dog mi gasa un botto.

Magic, mysterious, innovative, original, to-the-point, clever and perfect. 8 superb tracks and no tittle needed

Not bad

From the hills of the misty mountains to the Mississippi delta, this album rips. I was traveling and didn’t have time for a lengthy review but I wanted to pop back in and make it clear that this may be the best rock album of all time and maybe is my favorite ever. The big 4 get all the love but evermore, misty mountain, four sticks and especially going to California are fucking awesome. Ok back out.

Dear Gabriella, I'm sorry I blasted Misty Mountain Hop and Four Sticks in the car on prom night instead of asking if you were excited for the evening but John Bonham's drumming seemed more interesting than the way you had done your hair.

1. Banger 2. Keep your foot on the motherfucking pedal baby. That long screech followed by that nifty lick *chef's kiss* Also, the bombast of the drums in this album so far is peak 3. slow it down, haunting duet vocals, mandolins aplenty, and we're talking LOTR; I feel like I've been transported to Middle Earth, stop I can only get so erect 4. Are you kidding me?? What?? This? This ... masterpiece? The slow build from the ethereal to the hot and heavy? Mama Mia, we got a spicy meatball here. 5. how about a little jaunt to take the edge off. And god damn, those drums 6. Driven by the rollicking main lick, I think its underrated 7. A little reprieve before the big finale; still has some edge though 8. that harmonica haunts my dreams and nightmares. Truly one of the greatest rock n roll albums of all time 0/5

Obviously biased opinion but this is my absolute fav album by them and will continue to be on of the best for rock of all time

This is an easy 5 stars for me! Favourite tracks: Battle of Evermore, Going to California, When the Levee Breaks

Absolute classic. My favorite Led Zeppelin by a lot, Stairway will never be overplayed and When The Levee Breaks is my fav song in their catalogue, and one of my favorite of all time.

C'mon

precisa ouvir? 1.112.871.266 (um BIlhão cento e doze milhões...) de reproduções de STH.

Side A nearly perfect, didn’t care too much for battle of evermore for some reason. Side B was cool with one too many blues but still great. A monument of rock.

Don’t need to say much about this. All killer, no filler, one of the many 5-star Zep records. I skip Stairway most of the time, but that’s just a personal preference (denied!). Damn, trying to find something nit-picky to say about this record, but I’m coming up with nothing.

This might be a hot take but Led Zeppelin,,,,, is pretty good. I loved every bit of even the most self-indulgent noodling bits. Also this is my first time listening to IV all the way through despite being raised on Zep, and my god is putting Stairway right after The Battle of Evermore a CHOICE

What else to say that hasn't been said. I can't officially name a "favorite album of all time" because it's constantly changing - but this album is always in that discussion.

Listened to the original vinyl, CD and remastered CD of this hard rocking classic. Definitely benefits from the big bass and fuzzy sound of the big home stereo. Black Dog, Stairway to Heaven and Going to California never get old, even though I've heard them a million times. Just a great album.

May be the finest side A in rock history

The best Led Zeppelin album and the third best Sandy Denny album.

My dad never listened to led zeppelin. Hated Robert plants voice. The bloody weirdo (my dad, not Robert Plant). Meant I had to discover them on my own later, meant I missed out on a lot of references and jokes over the years and later on spent a lot of time going "oh... Stairway, I see". They're quite good aren't they. Even if I'm heavily expecting all the allegations to be confirmed (those that haven't already) the second they all die and even if they ripped off 75% of all their riffs. This one is especially good.

GREAT! Always on deck

After getting Led Zeppelin's debut as album #28 on my journey, I got to skip to their fourth album today. This is a real treat because I consider IV the peak of their blues-influenced hard rock songcraft. Every song on this album is as enjoyable as when I first heard them. From the opening bouncing riffs and Robert Plant's wails on "Black Dog", to the updated blues standard of "Rock and Roll", to the fantasy narrative duet between Plant and Sandy Denny on "The Battle of Evermore", to the eight-minute epic that is "Stairway to Heaven", to the electric piano riff of "Misty Mountain Hop", to John Bonham's complex drumming pattern on "Four Sticks", to the serene acoustic ballad "Going to California" as a neat tribute to Joni Mitchell, culminating in the otherworldly stomp that is their cover of Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe McCoy's "When the Levee Breaks". Not a single moment felt wasted here, as everyone in the group gave an outstanding performance, elevated by top-notch production from Jimmy Page. There's not much else I need to say here. Led Zeppelin IV set a high standard for later hard rock acts to follow.

A Detroit station used to play Stairway to Heaven every night at midnight and thy is pretty much the perfect time to listen to it.

I’m not the biggest Led Zeppelin fan but I enjoyed this way more than I was expecting. Smooth listen to have in the background. Banger after banger. Could not end on a better note, I love When the Levee Breaks.

The best LZ album probably

If you had asked me before embarking on this project how I’d rate this album and Led Zeppelin in general, I’d probably have said a strong 3 ⭐️ to middling 4 ⭐️ and have said something about how it’s got some good songs and the musicianship is good, but it’s overplayed, overhyped, and maybe something about them being plagiarists. This project has shown me the true depth, breadth and scope of all the truly bad and, what’s more, simply forgettable music that exists in the world and has allowed me to listen to Led Zeppelin with somewhat fresh ears. When I do, it’s evident that the songs on this record are so incredibly popular because they are just that good. The allegations of plagiarism that are often lodged against LZ I think are contradicted by their massive success in their time and their staying power 50+ years later. They were heavily inspired by blues music, yes, as many artists at the time were. On some songs this is a more direct and obvious inspiration, like “When the Levee Breaks”, but they still manage to form it into a sound that is very much their own and unlike anything else that was going on at the time. It is bluesy and heavy and medieval and harmonic and anthemic and loud and just… unmistakably Led Zeppelin. Could they have done more to recognize the blues artists they were inspired by and share some of the obscene wealth and stardom they accumulated? Yeah, they could have and probably should’ve. But I do not think they were plagiarists, and them being bad people in other respects is pretty thoroughly documented anyway. So. In other news I appreciate that they have done more PR for the mandolin in popular music than almost any other group/musician in recent times. It’s really hard to single out favorite tracks from an album with only eight tracks when 6 of them are as absolutely massive of songs as “Black Dog” or “Stairway to Heaven”… but if I had to choose, I really just love “Stairway to Heaven”. The multi-part composition gets me every time. Their reinvention of “When the Levee Breaks” is a close second for me, and “Black Dog” and “Rock and Roll” are of an equal tier not far below. Deductions to “Battle of Evermore” and “Misty Mountain Hop” for being about nerdy LOTR shit (just kidding, but not really. Sort of.) Of all the categorically classic “classic rock” bands, Led Zeppelin has always been among my favorites, and I’m glad this project has renewed my appreciation for their music to some extent. ‘IV’ gets a resounding hell yeah 🤘 from me.

One of the all time greats. 5 stars just for Stairway to Heaven. This was one of those albums that introduced me to a new (to me) genre of music at a young age. Should be required listening for everyone.

A classic. Particularly enjoyed the battle for evermore this go around. When the Levee Breaks has gotta be my favorite. I love the grungy groove of that song..

Great album

I didn't even realize how ingrained in my brain this album is. I sank into it like it was the old couch I grew up on. The flow and feel of this is something that is rare nowadays I feel like, and I miss it a lot. 5/5, no doubt.

This album is threaded so deeply throughout my entire life that it's challenging to try to listen to it with fresh ears. I find myself examining it through the lens of sound engineering and songwriting. Bonzo's brass sounds amazing and I hate the rest of his kit. The snare is thin and the toms are tuned cardboard. The instrumentation throughout is impressively varied, well recorded and mixed. The songs are dynamic, interesting in form, and well crafted. Hooks abound and I really like the use of dissonance that I never zeroed in on before this listen. I also really like the layering of the instruments. Sooo much going on in every song but they don't seem to trip over one another or get in each other's way. Kudos to the band for their choices and to the engineers for keeping things clean. Most songs feel longer than they are, which I think is because there is so much going on. Not a typical fourth album by any means. Most bands run out of ideas by their second album. Zep definitely flexes in a lot of dimensions on this album.

Brilliant album containing arguably the greatest song of all time

A timeless classic, even if it’s not their best and sort of at the back-end of their greatness. There’s so much depth to this album with an incredibly stunning finale.

Gear: Grado Hemp Artwork: 👨‍🌾🌿🖼️ Production (2014 Remaster): 🎧😘🤌 Music: 🎸🏔️✨ Rating: 🪜🪜🪜🪜🪜/5

Wow, absolutely timeless, magical, legendary.

Iconic album that is near perfect end to end. When the Levee Breaks is possibly my favorite LZ song ever, and for someone looking to get in to Zeppelin this is an easy one to step into.

One of the iconic best

All time classic. All time fave.

Yep 🫡 - love it.

I worshipped this record when I was a teenager. There was a period where I thought “Stairway to Heaven” was the most beautiful song ever, and I’d listen on headphones to ease myself to sleep. So, does it hold up to my personal and general cultural lore? Goddamn right it does! Every track is a standout. Zep is undefeated, this remains a 5.