Which Led Zeppelin songs have Tool covered?
By 1973, stadium rock behemoths Led Zeppelin were at the peak of their creative powers. As their hard rock foundations progressed from their 1969 eponymous debut through to their untitled fourth album, the folkloric mythos that shrouded principal songwriters Robert Plant and Jimmy Page’s mystical lyricism and thunderous compositions wandered into even deeper, headier terrain on the fifth LP, Houses of the Holy.
Its lysergic-soaked cover illustrates the mysterious, fantastical energy that palpitates throughout: strange blonde children navigating alien terrain under a burning orange sky, designed by the famous prog art collective Hipgnosis.
If one band were considered as carrying Led Zeppelin’s mantle for the alternative ’90s, Los Angeles’ progressive metal cerebralists Tool could confidently claim to be their album-oriented rock successors. Dropping their debut album Undertow amid grunge’s domination of the underground, Tool cut a distinct character with their dynamic songcraft and complex arrangements, its lead single ‘Sober’ initially doing the rounds on MTV until its graphic stop-motion video rubbed the network’s censors the wrong way.
A deeper immersion in metal’s left side of the brain was pursued on ’96’s Ænima, recruiting infrequent King Crimson producer Dave Bottrill for further expansive sonic sculpting, fusing the dissociative effects of ketamine, Timothy Leary’s psychedelic theories, and comedian Bill Hicks’ societal probing in another step into furrowed-brow enlightening hard rock. Their sophomore effort did even better, reaching ten on the Billboard 200 and number one on their Top Rock Albums chart.
During the Ænima sessions, Tool looked back to the elder statesmen and stepped up to cover one of Led Zeppelin’s most lauded cuts and staple of their live shows.
So, what Zeppelin songs did Tool cover?
Inspired by the ancient military practice of sparing no prisoners, Houses of the Holy‘s ‘No Quarter’ sees bassist John Paul Jones step up to flex his dab hand behind the synthesizer. Dropping the speed a touch to lower the track’s semi-tone, the swirling epic hangs with the thick, heavy atmosphere that coats Page’s raw and compressed guitar churn, cutting one of the most evocative pieces in the Zeppelin canon.
‘No Quarter’ proved to be a standout work that appeared in ’73’s The Song Remains the Same concert film and was resurrected for their acclaimed 2007 O2 Arena Celebration Day reunion. Clearly holding affection for their evocative cut, Page and Plant included the track in their ’94 Unledded live album.
Initially intended to feature in Howard Stern’s Private Parts movie, Tool invited Melvins’ Buzz Osborne to cut a cover of the Zeppelin centrepiece, stretching the track by an extra five minutes to allow further transportation evocation. Having played ‘No Quarter’ live numerous times, the studio version had almost become a piece of Tool lore until its inclusion in ’00’s curios and oddities Salival compilation.
Tool’s most memorable live rendition was at Monster Mash Music Festival in Tempe, Arizona, opening their set with the ’73 opus they hadn’t played live in 17 years, embracing the Halloween date of the show by dressing up as each of Led Zeppelin’s members. With Plant’s enthusiastic photo with two Tool fans a few years later, it’s safe to assume he saw the funny side.
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