LED ZEPPELIN

Led Zeppelin didn't invent hard rock but they took it to a more free art form.The band was formed in 1968 from the ashes of the Yardbirds.Jimmy Page was the only member of the Yardbirds left entitled to the name after singer Keith Relf left the band to pursue a more bluesy direction.Led Zeppelin included John Paul Jones on bass who was also a former session musician like Jimmy Page.Page,having played for other artists such as the Kinks,Donovan and the Rolling Stones,used his experience as a session musician,as a resume to fill in the Yardbirds-first as a bass player then later on,as a lead guitarist.

Led Zeppelin first toured Scandinavia as the New Yardbirds with singer Robert Plant and drummer John Bonham  completing the band's lineup.They said they changed their name to Led Zeppelin after Keith Moon made a suggestion that the band would go down like a "Lead Zeppelin"--Lead was instantly changed to Led by Page to avoid mispronounciation.

The band released their debut album of the same title and it was an instant smash hit.

Led Zeppelin was warmly received by the public and thus began a non-stop concert tour for the band,with albums being recorded in between tour breaks and charting brilliantly on Billboard.One album,Led Zeppelin II reached the top spot of the charts and went head to head with the Beatles' Abbey Road on December 1969.

Jimmy Page is one of the greatest guitarist ever to come into existence.When I first heard Led Zeppelin,it was love at first sight and sound.

One could never explain the power and the mystery of Led Zeppelin.With 1971's Led Zeppelin IV(actually untitled) was ranked among one of the best hard rock albums of all time.For the latter,the band chose not to include any title,band credits, logos,and even catalogue and record labels.Before, Atlantic Records warned the band of  a possible lawsuit,but later on it was revealed by Page that the main reason they stripped down Led Zeppelin IV coz they got sick of constant bad reviews and the statement of the music press saying that their fame came from hip and not from talent.Jimmy Page insisted of stripping down their fourth album and let the music do the talking.Well,it did more than just talk,coz the album spawned classic after classic hits-including "Black Dog","Misty Mountain Hop" and the mother of all FM radio rock ballads "Stairway To Heaven".

Rumours circulated at the time about Jimmy Page's use of the occult to enhance the band's popularity which was later on denied by Page himself.Though Page did bought Boleskine House formerly owned by English occultist Aleister Crowley.

Endless tours and more albums followed towards the seventies and the last one which unfortunately became their last number one album in the United States,was 1979's In Through The Outdoor.The album was described by Page as a soft one compared to their early albums and state that he wasn' t too keen on those particularly.Page told an interviewer from Guitar Magazine that he and John Bonham were planning a hard driven rock album after this one.The touring went ahead until the fall of 1980,unfortunately,John Bonham died of alcohol intoxication during the rehearsals and sessions of what would be their follow up album.

Led Zeppelin finally called it quits after Bonham's death,deciding they could not continue without him.Led Zeppelin appealed to newer generations of fans mostly to those who wasn't even born yet during the band's heyday(including myself).

The power and mystery of Led Zeppelin remains a question on how or why their music,style and charisma had so much appeal.Same thing with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.Few people regard occult as the main reason why these bands has endured time and space.I'd rather say not,its the extraordinary talent and songwriting capabilities that made these bands unique--just like any other band from the 1960s.