Editing Led Zeppelin (section)

== Artistry ==
[[File:John Bonham-2cropped.jpg|thumb|John Bonham's aggressive drumming style was critical to the hard rock sound associated with the band.|alt=A black and white photograph of John Bonham wearing a headband and behind the cymbals of a drum kit]]Led Zeppelin's music was rooted in the [[blues]].{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} The influence of American blues artists such as [[Muddy Waters]] and [[Skip James]] was particularly apparent on their first two albums, as was the distinct [[country blues]] style of [[Howlin' Wolf]].{{sfn|Gulla|2001|pp=153–159}} There were tracks structured around the [[twelve-bar blues]] on every studio album except for one, and the blues directly and indirectly influenced other songs both musically and lyrically.{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=8}} The band were also strongly influenced by the music of the [[British folk revival|British]], [[Celtic music|Celtic]], and [[American folk music revival|American folk revivals]].{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} Scottish folk guitarist [[Bert Jansch]] helped inspire Page, and from him he adapted [[Guitar tunings#Open tunings|open tunings]] and aggressive strokes into his playing.{{sfn|Wall|2008|p=94}} The band also drew on a wide variety of genres, including [[world music]],{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} and elements of early [[rock and roll]], [[jazz]], [[country music|country]], [[funk]], [[soul music|soul]], and [[reggae]], particularly on ''Houses of the Holy'' and the albums that followed.{{sfn|Gulla|2001|pp=153–159}}

The material on the first two albums was largely constructed out of extended jams of [[List of blues standards|blues standards]]{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} and [[Folk music|folk songs]].{{sfn|Wall|2008|pp=56–59}}{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=26}} Page recounted the process, saying "We didn’t over-rehearse things. We just had them so that they were just right, so that there was this tension – maybe there might be a mistake. But there won’t be, because this is how we’re all going to do it and it’s gonna work!"<ref>{{Cite web |last=Scaramangapublished |first=Jenna |date=2022-08-19 |title=The greatest guitar albums of the '70s: Getting the Led out with Sabbath, the Who, Pink Floyd and more |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/features/greatest-guitar-albums-of-the-70s |access-date=2025-03-17 |website=guitarworld |language=en}}</ref> This method led to musical and lyrical elements from different songs and versions, as well as improvised passages, being mixed together to create new material—which would also lead to later accusations of plagiarism and legal disputes over copyright.{{sfn|Wall|2008|pp=56–59}} Usually the music was developed first, sometimes with improvised lyrics that might then be rewritten for the final version of the song.{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=26}} From the visit to [[Bron-Yr-Aur]] in 1970, the songwriting partnership between Page and Plant became predominant, with Page supplying the music, largely via his acoustic guitar, and Plant emerging as the band's chief lyricist. Jones and Bonham then added to the material, in rehearsal or in the studio, as a song was developed.{{sfn|Wall|2008|pp=294–296 and 364–366}} In the later stages of the band's career, Page took a back seat in composition and Jones became increasingly important in producing music, often composed on the keyboard. Plant then added lyrics before Page and Bonham developed their parts.{{sfn|Yorke|1993|pp=236–237}}{{sfn|Wall|2008|pp=412–413}}

[[File:Jimmy Page early.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Page with the double-neck [[Gibson EDS-1275]] used for playing "Stairway to Heaven" among other songs live|alt=A black and white photograph of Jimmy Page playing a double-necked guitar]]
Early lyrics drew on the band's blues and folk roots, often mixing lyrical fragments from different songs.{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=25}} Many of the band's songs dealt with themes of romance, unrequited love and sexual conquest, which were common in rock, pop and blues music.{{Sfn|Cope|2010|p=81}} Some of their lyrics, especially those derived from the blues, have been interpreted as [[misogyny|misogynistic]].{{sfn|Cope|2010|p=81}} Particularly on ''Led Zeppelin III'', they incorporated elements of [[mythology]] and [[mysticism]] into their music,{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} which largely grew out of Plant's interest in legends and history.{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=59}} These elements were often taken to reflect Page's interest in the [[occult]], which resulted in accusations that the recordings contained [[subliminal stimuli|subliminal]] satanic messages, some of which were said to be contained in [[backmasking]]; these claims were generally dismissed by the band and music critics.{{sfn|Wall|2008|pp=278–279}} The pastoral fantasies in Plant's songwriting were inspired by the landscape of the [[Black Country]] region and [[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s high fantasy novel ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.{{sfn|Schinder |Schwartz|2008|p=383}} Susan Fast argues that as Plant emerged as the band's main lyricist, the songs more obviously reflected his alignment with the West Coast [[counterculture of the 1960s]].{{sfn|Fast|2001|pp=9–10}} In the later part of the band's career Plant's lyrics became more autobiographical, and less optimistic, drawing on his own experiences and circumstances.{{sfn|Wall|2008|pp=364–365}}

According to musicologist [[Robert Walser (musicologist)|Robert Walser]], "Led Zeppelin's sound was marked by speed and power, unusual rhythmic patterns, contrasting terraced dynamics, singer Robert Plant's wailing vocals, and guitarist Jimmy Page's heavily distorted crunch".{{sfn|Walser|1993|p=10}} These elements mean that they are often cited as one of the originators of [[hard rock]]{{sfn|Fast|2011|p=5}} and [[heavy metal music|heavy metal]]{{sfn|Walser|1993|p=10}}<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Led Zeppelin |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/led-zeppelin/biography |url-status=dead |magazine=Rolling Stone |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110505012026/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/led-zeppelin/biography |archive-date=5 May 2011 |access-date=24 December 2009}}</ref> and they have been described as the "definitive heavy metal band",{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} although the band members have often eschewed the label.{{sfn|Bukszpan|2003|p=124}} Led Zeppelin, together with [[Deep Purple]] and [[Black Sabbath]], have been referred to as the "unholy trinity of British hard rock and heavy metal in the early to mid- seventies".{{sfn|McIver|2006|loc=Chapter 11, p. 1}} Part of this reputation depends on the band's use of distorted guitar riffs on songs like "Whole Lotta Love" and "[[The Wanton Song]]".{{sfn|Buckley|2003|p=1198}}{{sfn|Fast|2001|pp=113–117}} Often riffs were not doubled by guitar, bass and drums exactly, but instead there were melodic or rhythmic variations.{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=96}} Page's guitar playing incorporated elements of the [[blues scale]] with those of [[Music of Asia|eastern music]].{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=87}} Plant's use of high-pitched shrieks has been compared to [[Janis Joplin]]'s vocal technique.{{sfn|Buckley|2003|p=1198}}{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=45}} [[Robert Christgau]] found him integral to the group's heavy "power blues" aesthetic, functioning as a "mechanical effect" similarly to Page's guitar parts. While noting Plant "hints at real feeling" on some of their acoustic songs, Christgau believed he abandoned traditional blues singing's emphasis on emotional projection in favour of vocal precision and dynamics: "Whether he is mouthing sexist blues cliches or running through one of the band's half-audible, half-comprehensible ... lyrics about chivalry or the counter-culture, his voice is devoid of feeling. Like the tenors and baritones of yore, he wants his voice to be an instrument—specifically, an electric guitar."{{sfn|Christgau|1972a}} Bonham's drumming was noted for its power, his rapid rolls and his fast beats on a single bass drum; while Jones' basslines have been described as melodic and his keyboard playing added a classical touch to the band's sound.{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=13}}{{sfn|Buckley|2003|p=1198}}

{{quote box
| quote = At some deep level, Led Zeppelin's music is about the relationship between humanity and technology. Philosophically, the band prefers humanity pure and simple, but in practice it must realize its humanity technologically. That seems truer than most good-time pastoral fantasies.{{sfn|Christgau|1972a}}
| source = —[[Robert Christgau]], 1972
| width = 30%
| align = right
| style = padding:8px;
}}

Led Zeppelin have been widely viewed as a hard rock band, although Christgau regarded them as [[art rock]] as well.{{sfn|Christgau|1980}} According to popular music scholar [[Reebee Garofalo]], "because hip critics could not find a constructive way of positioning themselves in relation to Led Zeppelin's ultra-macho presentation, they were excluded from the art rock category despite their broad range of influences."{{sfn|Garofalo|2008|p=233}} Christgau wrote in 1972, the band could be considered art rock because they "relate to rock and roll not organically but intellectually", idealising the "amplified beat" as "a kind of formal challenge". Unlike their contemporaries in [[Jethro Tull (band)|Jethro Tull]] and [[Yes (band)|Yes]], who use "the physical compulsion of beat and volume to involve the mind", Led Zeppelin "make body music of an oddly cerebral cast, arousing aggression rather than sexuality." As such, along with other second-generation English hard rock bands like [[Black Sabbath]] and [[Mott the Hoople]], they can attract both intellectuals and working-class youths in "a strange potential double audience."{{sfn|Christgau|1972b}} Years later, ''In Through the Out Door''{{'}}s "tuneful synthesizer pomp" further confirmed for Christgau they were an art rock band.{{sfn|Christgau|1980}}

Page stated that he wanted Led Zeppelin to produce music that had "light and shade", and held the belief that instrumentation could be used to "set the scene."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rachel |first=Daniel |title=The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters |publisher=St. Martin's Griffin |year=2014 |publication-date=October 7, 2014 |pages=48}}</ref> This began to be more clearly realised beginning with ''Led Zeppelin III'', which made greater use of acoustic instruments.{{sfn|Erlewine|2011a}} This approach has been seen as exemplified in the fourth album, particularly on "[[Stairway to Heaven]]", which begins with acoustic guitar and recorder and ends with drums and heavy electric sounds.{{sfn|Schinder |Schwartz|2008|p=390}}{{sfn|Fast|2001|p=79}} Page was quoted saying, "The music is lyrical without lyrics. The lyrics are telling a story and they're conveying a situation or a person or a reflection or an observation, and the construction of the music I felt was doing the same sort of thing. It was lyrical in the way it was being played."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rachel |first=Daniel |title=The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters |publisher=St. Martin's Griffin |year=2014 |publication-date=October 7, 2014 |pages=55}}</ref> Towards the end of their recording career, they moved to a more mellow and [[progressive rock|progressive]] sound, dominated by Jones' keyboard motifs.{{sfn|Schinder |Schwartz|2008|pp=380–391}} They also increasingly made use of various layering and production techniques, including multi-tracking and [[Overdubbing|overdubbed]] guitar parts.{{sfn|Gulla|2001|pp=153–159}} Their emphasis on the sense of dynamics and ensemble arrangement{{sfn|Gulla|2001|pp=153–159}} has been seen as producing an individualistic style that transcends any single music genre.{{sfn|Brackett|2008|pp=53–76}}{{sfn|Buckley|2003|p=585}} Ian Peddie argues that they were "...&nbsp;loud, powerful and often heavy, but their music was also humorous, self-reflective and extremely subtle".{{sfn|Peddie|2006|p=136}} Page stated that the band's albums were intended to be taken as a whole. He was quoted saying, "We were crafting albums for the album market. It was important, I felt, to have the flow and the rise and fall of the music and the contrast, so that each song would have more impact against the other."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Scaramangapublished |first=Jenna |date=2022-08-19 |title=The greatest guitar albums of the '70s: Getting the Led out with Sabbath, the Who, Pink Floyd and more |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/features/greatest-guitar-albums-of-the-70s |access-date=2025-03-17 |website=guitarworld |language=en}}</ref>