|
|
|
|
|
|
 Discography
|
|
|
Statistics
|
Released:
Aug. 15, 1979 (US)
Aug. 20, 1979 (UK)
Chart Position:
#1 (US) #1 (UK)
Certified:
Gold 1-07-80
Multi Platinum 6.0 11-25-97
|
|
|
Tracks
|
• In The Evening
• South Bound Saurez
• Fool In The Rain
• Hot Dog
• Carouselambra
• All My Love
• I'm Gonna Crawl
|
|
Quick Fact
|
All six of the album covers, both the front and back side, are of the same scene, but with a completely different perspective.
When released, the sleeve covers were prepared so that if exposed to warm water, their colors change.
|
|
|
IN THROUGH THE OUT DOOR
After a three-year lapse between releases that
was caused in part by the tragic death of Plant’s son Karac, Led Zeppelin’s
final studio album was a significant departure from anything that
had come before it. More than any other Zeppelin album this one belongs
to John Paul Jones, who co-wrote all but one song, and gave the synthesizer/piano
parts a major presence. The album begins with the eerie effects and
powerful guitar swirl of In The Evening, which also contains
a cocky Plant vocal that confidently told the punk pretenders (who
had cropped up in the band’s absence and who were supposed to render
older rockers such as Led Zeppelin irrelevant) who was still boss.
South Bound Saurez is an upbeat piano rocker highlighted by
Page’s guitar solo and some sunny “sha la la” harmonies, while the
#21 (in US charts) single Fool In The Rain presented more catchy
piano pop while also creatively making use of the studio.
Unfortunately, Hot Dog is a barrelhouse Texas rocker, and the 10+ minute Carousalambra is rather low-key compared to past epics. It’s still a solid song with a bright synthesizer melody, but it definitely doesn’t completely warrant its long running time. All Of My Love continues the album with a pretty, if somewhat schmaltzy, song that registers due to the band’s beautifully understated playing and Plant’s heartfelt vocals, while I’m Gonna Crawl enjoyably closes the album with a slow, confident blues performance, albeit one that still features modern synthesizers most prominently.
In short, this album was an enjoyable affair that saw the veteran band keeping pace with the snarling young punk upstarts by, ironically enough, toning things down. Yet Zeppelin’s slicker new sound was notably less powerful than on previous albums, and though the band was still very relevant they were no longer revelatory. Ironically, John Bonham’s death by asphyxiation and Led Zeppelin’s subsequent breakup prevented the band from hanging around past their prime, leaving an untarnished musical legacy.
|
|
![[Click here to enlarge]](http://www.led-zeppelin.org/images/s-ittod_paper_front.jpg)
[Click above for larger image]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
