at a glance...

Hometown: London, England
Year Formed: 1968

Members:
Robert Plant -vocals
Jimmy Page -guitar
John Paul Jones - bass, keyboards
John Bonham - drums

Bands In The Family:
The Yardbirds, The Firm

On this two-CD set, the lads combine the majestic, overwrought, cathedral sound of heavy Led Zeppelin with the playful, back-to-the-roots blues band. John Paul Jones' clavinet and Jimmy Page's wah-wah guitar set up a funky grooves on "Custard Pie" and "Trampled Under Foot." "The Rover" is straight-ahead hard rock while "In My Time of Dying" serves as the obligatory, excruciatingly long blues workout. Radio staples such as the Eastern-tinged "Kashmir" and the catchy cruncher "Houses of the Holy" fill out the first disc.

However, it's not until disc two that the band truly reaches the creative heights. Here, they offer a diverse mix of influences and elements to present some of their greatest compositions. "In the Light" begins with psychedelic keyboard and an eerie and echoey Robert Plant vocal introduction, only to give way to the plodding, Goliathlike churn of the classic Zeppelin machine, anchored by John Bonham's heavy hitting. "Bron-Yr-Aur" is a pretty showcase for Page's acoustic work, accented nicely by Bonham's cymbals. The wonderfully happy and soothing ballad "Down By the Seaside" offers Plant's childlike lyrics while the tense bridge provides the ideal contrast to the rest of the song. Layers and layers of Page's guitars form the foundation of "Ten Years Gone." Plant writes sensitively about the inevitable passing of time and lost love, delivering his lyrics with great depth of emotion. On this cut, the quiet verses create the tension and the instrumental break provides the release. "Night Flight," a buoyant hit-the-road tune, leaves the typical grandeur behind for a simple and direct blues shuffle. "Boogie with Stu" includes Ian "Stu" Stewart's rollicking ragtime piano and a boogie-woogie beat while "Black Country Woman," a humorous and lilting acoustic blues, nods in the direction of the Delta.

The classic rock pounding of the first disc is certainly formidable, but disc two steals the show. In fact, disc two alone would probably be Zeppelin's greatest single album.