Led Zeppelin fans weren’t the only ones blown away by the band’s music. Its members were, too. He’s turned in some powerful solo work over the years, but Robert Plant didn’t appreciate the power of headphones until he heard Led Zeppelin I through the cans.
Robert Plant’s favorite Led Zeppelin album is ‘Physical Graffiti’
There’s something to appreciate about each Led Zeppelin album. Even the keyboard-heavy In Through the Out Door and odd-and-ends collection Coda have their charms. For Plant, Physical Graffiti was Led Zeppelin’s apex, and he called it his favorite Zep album.
The double album has several high points, but “Kashmir” might be the highest. Led Zeppelin IV centerpiece “Stairway to Heaven” is Zeppelin’s most enduring song. Still, the three surviving band members — Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones — cite “Kashmir” as the definitive Led Zeppelin song.
The band’s 1975 album gets a lot of love from the three remaining members. Yet Plant didn’t truly appreciate headphones until he heard Led Zeppelin I, and we totally understand where he’s coming from.
Plant didn’t appreciate headphones until he heard ‘Led Zeppelin I,’ and we totally get it
Page once said the key to Led Zeppelin’s first album was that all four members had a chance to shine. The debut clearly impacted the singer because Plant said he didn’t appreciate headphones until he heard Led Zeppelin I, per Beast author C.M. Kushins:
“That first album was the first time that headphones meant anything to me. What I heard coming back to me over the cans while I was singing was better than any chick in all the land. It had so much weight, so much power, it was devastating. It was all very raunchy.”
Robert Plant
The sound of LZ I through the headphone bowled over Plant, and we totally get it.
Listening on headphones generally offers a richer experience. In the musical climate of 1968, when heavier music was still fledging and guitar effects and recording tricks were in their infancy, we’re not surprised Plant was blown away by the first Led Zeppelin album. He hadn’t heard anything remotely close to that music before,
Closer listening to ‘Led Zeppelin I’ with headphones reveals several sonic flourishes
Musically, Page achieved his goal of showcasing each Led Zeppelin member on the debut record.
Drummer John Bonham, whose vision for his drum playing was to make them more of a lead instrument instead of background timekeeping, found a kindred spirit in Page. Bonzo’s lightning-quick bass drum triplets on the opener, “Good Times Bad Times,” don’t sound the same without headphones. The same goes for the fills he plays during Page’s “You Shook Me” solo. For his part, the guitarist, who produced the album, doesn’t attempt to bury his bandmate.
It’s easy to appreciate Jones’ galloping bass as an essential counterpoint to Page’s solo on “Dazed and Confused,” even more so through earbuds. His church organ solo that opens “Your Time Is Gonna Come” sounds even more lush and enveloping through headphones.
The album features two of Page’s best solos, but those aren’t the guitarist’s standout moments. His matching of Plant’s vocals in the early and late portions of “You Shook Me” and the atmospheric bowed guitar segment leading into the “Dazed and Confused” solo hit much harder with headphones. Even the acoustic “Black Mountain Side” sounds richer piped straight into your ears.
Plant needed Led Zeppelin I to care about listening to music through headphones, and we understand. The hard-hitting debut packs a bigger punch when you clearly hear every cymbal crash, bass line, and bent guitar string through the cans.
‘Led Zeppelin I’ found a large audience
The band had bigger-selling albums in their career, but Led Zeppelin I set the sonic precedent.
Zep quickly built a following with their live performances. Once the debut album hit the shelves, it didn’t take long for word of mouth about England’s newest rock band to spread and sales to take off. The Recording Industry Association of America certified it gold (500,000 copies sold) just over six months after its January 1969 release. It has since gone platinum eight times over (meaning eight million sold). Only Led Zeppelin IV, Physical Graffiti, Houses of the Holy, and Led Zeppelin II have sold more among the band’s studio albums.
Every Led Zeppelin album featured memorable moments and interesting sonic flourishes. You can thank Page’s innovative guitar playing and recording techniques and Jones’ array of synthesizers for that. Still, the seismic wave triggered by Led Zeppelin I’s music made Robert Plant finally appreciate listening to music on headphones.
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