Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin II

THE REVIEW

Begin where one should end. The Led Zeppelin had created a masterpiece, whose central piece turned out better than captain Page himself had predicted. When he and Peter Grant, the manager and fifth member of the band, committed to honoring the engagements under the name of New Yardbirds, they never would have thought of such success. The Led Zeppelin, in 1969, with their first strike, with Led Zeppelin I, had already become a "classic". It was hard to wait for a second album: the material was already there, and they could always draw something from the blues repertoire, full of inspiration, or leverage some anecdotes. The impression was that something had already changed compared to the first album. The sound was becoming less wild, more studied, more tame and alluring. And Led Zeppelin II would contain the anthem symbolizing the hippie generation, which deserved the first spot in the tracklist: "Whole Lotta Love". Atlantic didn't want to release this song as a single: too long, not market-standard. So Page rebelled and decided not to print the single, releasing the album immediately. And the album sold as if it were a single, even managing to knock the Beatles, who seemed untouchable, from the top. The music world stood still: the "Brown Zeppelin" (as the album was called in America) was about to storm the record market. "Whole Lotta Love", the album's first track, would drag into an orgasmic vortex, rich in adulterous passions and adolescent disturbances, the libido of young people who screamed excitedly at the onstage climax amidst Plant's verbal fireworks and Page's fervent guitar melody.

Bonzo's drum bursts, raiding the virgin hearts of adolescents, coupled with Jones' sweet organ preludes, would drag entire crowds of young people into a fervor. Next was "What Is And What Should Never Be," a song as delicate as it was aggressive, a caress to an imaginary young woman, between castles in the air and broken promises, a song Led Zeppelin especially often performed during their early musical life. "The Lemon Song" came next, a more or less explicit cover of a famous blues repertoire song, with Plant urging his woman "to squeeze my lemon till the juice runs down my legs," suggestive and excited. "Thank You" is the first song entirely written by Robert Plant, and it shows. A very simple, romantic lyric, exalting love at any cost, peace with nature, as Plant truly believed. Page wrote the music, letting Robert be, although he was not yet blindly convinced of Plant's compositional skills. He would reconsider when Plant wrote the lyrics of a "whatever" song like "Stairway To Heaven". After the small autonomy left to Plant, Page was back at the Zeppelin helm with "Heartbreaker," whose lyrics are unquestionably a product of the burning misogynistic vein that inflamed Pagey at the time. Alluring lyrics, nonetheless, with an interesting rhythm. Next up is "Living Loving Maid (She's Just A Woman)." This song is written in honor of an American groupie, particularly "agée," particularly interested in bedding the youngest, Plant. Percy obviously never considered it and Page was deeply annoyed. It is said, but it is a legend, that Bonzo and other "roadies" intended to share her as a group, but Grant stopped them. There was no shortage of derision, however, with this song, the B-side of the "Heartbreaker" vinyl. "Ramble On" is a song that doesn't particularly fascinate me, it moves quickly because right after there's the masterful drum solo of Bonzo in "Moby Dick," which when performed live, took even 30 minutes of just Bonzo skinning his hands on the percussion while playing other drums. Incredible. It concludes with the brilliant "Bring It On Home," a total invention by Jimmy Page, closing the album with this orientally flavored madrigal.

Why a 5, you might ask. This CD, as a discographic product, deserves a 5. Because it was prepared in such a short time, it managed to reconfirm the astronomical success of the first CD and because it's a CD not only catchy but capable of being deep. It’s not my favorite of the Zeppelin, but if someone is looking for a CD with a decidedly rock-blues vein, you can't miss it. Bliss!