That a group that sounded like Led Zeppelin should appear when they did was pretty much a total inevitability. Building on the British blues movement of the 1960s, this 1969 debut from the quartet throws numerous different sounds and influences (and nicked ideas) together to produce a record that is quite fitting for the end of the decade. Jimi Hendrix and Cream had shown that heavy metal was about to be born via amped-up blues rock, and Jim Morrison had opened the door (no pun intended) to the darker side of music. Led Zeppelin was a natural outcome of this trend. Formed in 1968 out of the remnants of the Yardbirds, Jimmy Page recruited session musician John ...  Read the complete review

This album, Led Zeppelin's 1969 debut begins with the crunching bare chords of "Good Times, Bad Times". This heavy start to the album gives it the jump start it needs to belt out more rock classics further up the track listing and sets the tone for Zeppelin's brand of guitar based rock. "Is that all there is to expect from this album?" I hear you say. Well, as soon as the second track "Babe I’m gonna leave you" begins Led Zep's dual-pronged acoustic/heavy rock approach is fully exposed to the listener. The classic from this album to most fans is "Dazed and Confused" - a Jimmy Page written piece which starts with a brooding riff from John Paul Jones' bass then ...  Read the complete review

This debut album was recorded within their first weeks together after testing the songs while on tour to Scandinavian audiences under the name of the New Yardbirds. Rehearsed and arranged ahead of their arrival in the studio, the nine tracks took only 30 hours to record over nine days and for a reputed cost of £1,782. The four members of the band were, Guitarist - Jimmy Page, Vocalist - Robert Plant, Bassist - John Paul Jones and Drummer - John Bonham. Jimmy Page chose the black and white cover illustration of the Hindenburg airship going down, as The Who’s Keith Moon had put it, like a "Lead" Zeppelin. Track 1 – Good ...  Read the complete review

The first album was recorded in less than 30 hours just a few weeks after Led Zep's formation. This album contains a old song named "Dazed & Confused" which starts of as a ballad blues number and becomes fused with metal riffs, a classic song. "Dazed & Confused" and "How Many More Times" were leftovers from Page's last days with the Yardbirds. "Good Times Bad Times" combines funk with rock and was created alongside "Communications Breakdown" from their initial rehearsals. "Black Mountain Side" was based on folk guitarist Bert Jansch's Black Water Side. "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" starts .  Read the complete review

While they were receiving too much praise for originality at the time, Led Zeppelin would later be heralded amongst the founders of the Heavy Metal and Hard Rock movement that carried over from the late sixties into the early seventies. Their début self-entitled record was highly-instrumental in setting the foundations in having such high praise. Rolling Stone initially brushed the record off as a release without real creativity, before the Blues-Rock sound morphed into Metal completely and the music world changed forever. Subsequently, it's no surprise it was later claimed by Rolling Stone to be one of their '500 Greatest Albums of All Time'. The Led Zeppelin ...  Read the complete review