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The two songs Robert Plant called a highlight of Led Zeppelin’s career: “It was so electric”

Mon 2 September 2024 17:30, UK

By any rock band’s standards, the Led Zeppelin catalogue looks pretty much flawless. Even though things began to go in different directions following their self-titled tetralogy, each of their creative swerves always spit out something worthwhile, whether that was the interesting flirtations with world music on ‘Kashmir’ or hearing Robert Plant pour his heart out about the death of his son on ‘All My Love’. When looking at where Zeppelin had gone in just a few short years, though, Plant felt that there was nothing that could compare with the sessions for ‘The Wanton Song’ and ‘Trampled Under Foot’.

When making Physical Graffiti, though, the band could do whatever they wanted. No one had ever managed to get the traction they had without the help of any knockout single, and since they were still selling albums so quickly, having them release a lavish double album of material was their way of staking their claim as the biggest rock act on the planet.

Although a lot of material on here fits into the Zeppelin mould, some of the greatest tracks come from the chances they took behind the board. ‘Kashmir’ is put up on such a high pedestal for a reason, but hearing Page break out the acoustic for the brilliant ‘Bron-Yr-Aur’ or toy with strange chord sequences on ‘Ten Years Gone’ should be celebrated right alongside their more iconic moments.

But when looking at ‘The Wanton Song’ or ‘Trampled Under Foot, they’re not exactly reinventing the wheel by Zeppelin’s standards. While they had already abandoned the blues a long time ago, hearing Page twist his riffs in different directions has a certain spontaneity that doesn’t really come through on massive pieces like ‘In My Time of Dying’.

If anything, this is one of the best showcases for what the group can do as a four-piece. Considering Plant doesn’t play an instrument, hearing Page work off of John Bonham with this riff is absolutely electric. As Page stays in front of the beat, ‘Bonzo’ is trailing behind the beat the entire time, which makes for a disorientation feel but also delivers that trademark swagger they were known for.

Whereas other tracks had to have massive arrangements behind them, that didn’t matter to Plant. He was always interested in the group mentality, and when asked about the highlight of his Zeppelin career, he went for these cuts first, saying, “I remember recording [‘The Wanton Song’], the whole session. It was so electric, so quick, and so fruitful. ‘Trampled Underfoot’ was another one. The more impromptu numbers are the ones that really come to mind, rather than the time-consuming things that were worked out and constructed.”

Then again, Zeppelin always worked best when they were flying blind. After all, if they hadn’t decided to keep the tape rolling after tearing through the song ‘Four Sticks’ in the studio, the world would have missed out on hearing ‘Rock and Roll’ spring to life.

But the group’s work in the studio was always more than just light jamming. They sculpted tunes whenever they put tracks together, and even if not all of them saw the light of day, it was always more important for them to have a song that excited them before anyone else even heard it.