Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin was a British rock band formed in London in 1968. It consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, vocalist Robert Plant, bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. Their heavy, violent guitar sound, rooted in the blues and psychedelic music of their first two albums, is often recognized as one of the founders of heavy metal. His style was inspired by a wide variety of influences, including folk, psychedelic, and blues music.

After changing their old name from the New Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin signed a favourable contract with Atlantic Records, which offered them considerable artistic freedom. The group did not like to release their songs as singles, as they saw their albums as indivisible and complete listening experiences. Although initially unpopular with critics, the group achieved significant commercial sales impact with Led Zeppelin (1969), Led Zeppelin II (1969), Led Zeppelin III (1970), the untitled fourth album (1971), Houses of the Holy (1973), and Physical Graffiti (1975). The fourth album, featuring the song “Stairway to Heaven,” is among rock’s most popular and influential works and helped cement the group’s popularity.

Later albums by the band aimed for greater experimentation and were accompanied by extensive records and concerts that earned the band a reputation for their excesses and debauchery. Although they remained commercially and critically successful, their output and concert schedule was limited in the late 1970s, and the group disbanded after the sudden death of Bonzo (John Bonham’s nickname) in 1980. Since then, the remaining members have sporadically collaborated and participated in rare reunions together. The most successful of these was in 2007 at the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert in London, with Jason Bonham in his father’s place.

Led Zeppelin is widely regarded as one of the most successful, innovative and influential rock groups in history, and to this day is one of the best-selling artists of all time. It is one of the best-selling bands in music history, with various sources estimating record sales of the group at between 200 and 300 million units worldwide. With 111.5 million units certified by the Recording Industry Association of America, it is the second highest-selling record band in the United States. Each of their nine studio albums has appeared in the Billboard Top 10, and six of them have reached the top spot. Musician Dave Grohl has described them as “the greatest rock and roll band of all time,” “the greatest band of the 1970s,” and Rolling Stone magazine as the 14th greatest artist in music. They are one of the most bootlegged bands in music history, with several notable illegal recordings that indirectly formed part of their discography. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Their museum biography cites that the band was “as influential” in the 1970s as the Beatles were in the decade before.

Tendo conhecido Jones em seus dias de estúdio, Page concordou em deixar que ele se juntasse como o membro final.1780 / 5000 English (US) GlossaryLed Zeppelin was a British rock band formed in London in 1968. It consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, vocalist Robert Plant, bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. Their heavy, violent guitar sound, rooted in the blues and psychedelic music of their first two albums, is often recognized as one of the founders of heavy metal. His style was inspired by a wide variety of influences, including folk, psychedelic, and blues music.

The four played together for the first time in a room below a record store on Gerrard Street in London. Page suggested they try “Train Kept A-Rollin’,” originally a jump blues song popularized in a rockabilly version by Johnny Burnette, which had been re-recorded by The Yardbirds. “As soon as I heard John Bonham play,” recalled Jones, “I knew he would be perfect … We came together as a team immediately. Before leaving for Scandinavia the group participated in a recording session for P.J. Proby’s Three Week Hero album. The track “Jim’s Blues”, – which would be released in 1969 – featuring Plant on harmonica, was the first studio track to feature all four members of the future Led Zeppelin.

The band completed a tour of Scandinavia as The New Yardbirds, playing together for the first time in front of a live audience at the Teen Clubs in Gladsaxe, Denmark on September 7, 1968. Later that month, they began recording their first album, which was based on their live concerts. It was recorded and mixed in nine days, and Page covered the costs. After the album was completed, the band was forced to change their name after Dreja issued a letter of annulment, stating to Page that they were only allowed to use the New Yardbirds nickname for Scandinavian concerts. One account of how the name of the new band was chosen considered that Moon and Entwistle had suggested that the supergroup with Page and Beck would go down like a “lead balloon”, an expression for disastrous results. The group removed the “a” in lead at the suggestion of their manager, Peter Grant, so that those unfamiliar with the term would not pronounce it “leed”. The word “balloon” was changed to “zeppelin,” a word that, according to music journalist Keith Shadwick, brought “the perfect combination of heavy and light, combustibility and grace” into the guitarist’s mind.

Grant secured a £75,000 advance, about $143,000, from Atlantic Records in November 1968. At the time this was one of the biggest deals for a budding band. Atlantic was a record label comprised mainly of blues, soul and jazz artists, but in the 1960s began to take an interest in British progressive rock bands. Most record company executives invested in Led Zeppelin without ever having seen them and they were recommended by singer Dusty Springfield. Under the terms of their contract, the band had the autonomy to decide when they would release albums and tour and also had the final say on the content and cover art for each album. They could also decide how to release and promote each version of their songs and whether to release them as singles. They formed their own company, Superhype, to handle all publishing rights.