I can get the argument that they ‘stole’ from black musicians and there is injustice there, but at the same time Led Zeppelin were the gods of rock, nothing that came before was so electric, everything that came after was a shadow. The loss of their incredible drummer, who may have been influenced but was paralleled by few (Mitch Mitchell comes to mind), was the end of the band and illustrates how they were more than just thieves. Moby Dick is one of my all time favourite songs (and Ramble On is one of my personal jams).
My favorite Zep album has got to be Physical Graffiti. That album just kills. My favorite song is probably Out on the Tiles from Zep III.
People love to enshrine Zep, and they were definitely great, but Free was also great back in the day. I’ve never been a big Bad Co. fan, but yeah, Fire and Water is epic.
Yes, they made the songs their own. And let’s not forget that these and other guys from that era basically saved the blues. I know I got my first taste of the blues from Hendrix, Zeppelin, Cream, Janis Joplin, etc. before moving on to the Blues Breakers and eventually what many would consider more genuine blues. So, so much originality in songs like I Can’t Quit You Baby.
