The Rolling Stones vs Led Zeppelin: Who had the better album run?
When talking about the best artists of all time, it’s easy to think of them in certain eras. Most people can’t think of David Bowie as a single entity without bringing up his glam-focused period, and while Pink Floyd might have had various incarnations, their string of albums in the mid-1970s is still opening people’s eyes to what music could be. However, in terms of impressive streaks in the 1970s, The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin feel like two sides of the same coin.
Whereas both bands started playing a harder version of rock and roll, they both managed to make the genre more dangerous over time. Even when filling out stadiums worldwide, each band seemed to be growing every time they went to make a record, eventually giving fans classic tracks like ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ or ‘Stairway to Heaven’ in between their massive successes.
But out of each band, which one had the better impact during their initial run? Both of them certainly have some great music to go around, but in terms of how much it has impacted the greatest world of music, there is still a lot to compare and contrast regarding both of their recorded output.
So, when looking at both of their contributions to music, it’s important not to simply look at the hooks that they crammed into their songs. It’s okay to love ‘Gimme Shelter’ on the same level as ‘Black Dog’, but while each band started with blues, let’s take a look at what made them special and perhaps determine who pushed rock and roll forward the most during their time in the spotlight.
The Rolling Stones and their best albums
First off, it’s easy to give The Stones seniority right out of the gate. They had already been one of the breakout bands of the British Invasion, and seeing them grow past being a cover band into hardened bluesmen is still one of the best examples of growth in music history. And compared to every other rock act in the late 1960s, no one could write raw heartache like Mick Jagger and Keith Richards could.
Starting with Beggars Banquet, the band’s astonishing run through the biggest songs of their career is still a hodgepodge of every great genre of rock and roll. They had already started making waves thanks to tracks like ‘Brown Sugar’, but looking at the less famous tracks off their albums, ‘Rip This Joint’ off Exile on Main Street is a precursor to punk, and ‘Dead Flowers’ is one of the best country rock songs ever made.
Whereas most people treated The Stones as a cheap facsimile of the blues in their time, this is when they fully grew into that format. Most people could try to emulate them, but even though many people have tried their hand at playing their tunes in bars, no one can truly capture that sense of mojo.
Led Zeppelin’s incredible LPs
But if The Stones were the bluesy side, Jimmy Page was more into raw chaos. He had played his fair share of blues and even had multiple covers from bluesmen under his belt in Led Zeppelin, but he had something else under his belt he wanted to explore. And looking through Zeppelin’s run throughout the 1970s, some of their biggest moments came when transcending the genre altogether.
Jagger and Richards had their moments of making epic songs, but Page was still determined to make something no one had heard before. Even if it was a horrible mistake like on ‘Hot Dog’ or ‘The Crunge’, hearing them take blues into a different area on tracks like ‘No Quarter’ or bringing in Eastern sounds on ‘Kashmir’ helped establish them as one of the most adventurous bands of their time.
And even though The Stones had covered more ground before, the only limitation to Zeppelin was their own self-preservation after John Bonham’s death. They had the strength to carry on if they wanted to, but if they wanted to be the biggest band in the world like they claimed, there was no way that anyone could have replaced ‘Bonzo.’
Who had the better album run?
So, given that both bands showed incredible growth during their lifespans, it’s easy to see why both deserve the top spot. Each of them managed to change rock and roll during their time in the sun, but when looked at objectively, Led Zeppelin was responsible for having a far better run than The Rolling Stones.
Even though ‘The Glimmer Twins’ were able to unearth even more magic after their 1970s run, Led Zeppelin condensed all of their best material into a few years, with most people still finding ways of twisting it around. The world will never lose its appetite for great Stones-y rock and roll, but everyone from Rush to Nirvana to Greta Van Fleet has bits of Zeppelin combing through their DNA.
And while fans will still preach the good word of The Stones, there are still places that Zeppelin touched that no band has managed to capture since. Richards might never have played a song the same way twice, but listening to how Page worked off of Robert Plant, there’s a good chance that Keef was never going to write something that had as many moving parts as ‘Black Dog’ or make a symphony of guitars like ‘Achilles Last Stand.’
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