Jennings Farm Blues: The Best of Led Zeppelin
Contents
Looking for the perfect album to add to your Led Zeppelin collection? Jennings Farm Blues: The Best of Led Zeppelin is a must-have for any fan of the band. This compilation album features some of their best-loved songs, including “Stairway to Heaven” and ” Kashmir.”
Introduction
Jennings Farm Blues: The Best of Led Zeppelin is a compilation album by English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on November 22, 1990 by Atlantic Records. It contains songs recorded between 1969 and 1974, many of which were previously unreleased on albums.
The album was compiled by band members Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, with assistance from Kevin Shirley and Jean-Paul Gaster. Page and Plant oversaw the remastering of the album’s tracks from the original master tapes. Jennings Farm Blues was produced by Page and released in conjunction with the band’s box set release Led Zeppelin, which contained all nine of their studio albums remastered by Page.
The album artwork was designed by Michael Whelan. It features a painting of the band’s country estate, Headley Grange, where they wrote and rehearsed many of the songs featured on the album.
Jennings Farm Blues received mixed reviews from music critics upon its release. Some praised its selection of tracks, while others found it to be superfluous given the presence ofLed Zeppelin’s definitive studio albums. The album peaked at number 31 on the UK Albums Chart and number 54 on the Billboard 200 in the United States.
The Early Years
The best of Led Zeppelin is a compilation album consisting of material recorded during the band’s early years, when they were first starting out. The album was released in 1999, and features a selection of tracks from their first three albums.
“Good Times Bad Times”
“Good Times Bad Times” is the first track on Led Zeppelin’s self-titled debut album. The song was released as the band’s first single in the UK, but did not chart. “Good Times Bad Times” was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant during Led Zeppelin’s formative years in 1967.
The song is a blues-rock number with a simple structure and lyrics about hard times. Page has said that the song was influenced by Muddy Waters’ “I Can’t Be Satisfied”. The song features John Bonham’s drumming and Page’s guitar playing, which includes elements of the blues scale and distortion.
“Good Times Bad Times” was recorded in October 1968 at Olympic Studios in London, England. The song was produced by Jimmy Page and engineered by Glyn Johns.
“Babe I’m Gonna Leave You”
“Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” is a song written by Anne Bredon, Band member Jimmy Page, and Singer Robert Plant in 1968. The song was first recorded by British folk musician Carolyn Hester on her self titled third album in 1968. It was subsequently recorded and released as Led Zeppelin’s debut single in the United Kingdom in August 1969.
The song is based on a traditional folk tune called “Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You”, which was collected by British musicologist Maria Boardman. The song became one of Led Zeppelin’s most popular songs and has been covered by a number of artists.
“Dazed and Confused”
“Dazed and Confused” is a song written by Jimmy Page and released by the English rock band Led Zeppelin on their eponymous debut album in early 1969. With its heavy, guitar-driven sound and ambiguous lyrics, the song became one of Led Zeppelin’s most popular songs and has influenced a number of other artists over the years.
The song is based on a 1956 infantry training film called “Dazed and Confused”, which was used by Page to create the musical backing track. The lyrics, which were added later by Robert Plant, are about a young man’s first experience with love and heartbreak.
Over the years, “Dazed and Confused” has been covered by a number of artists, including Jackson Browne, Jerry Garcia, Beck, Queens of the Stone Age, and Foo Fighters.
The Golden Years
“Whole Lotta Love”
“Whole Lotta Love” is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is the opening track on the band’s second album, Led Zeppelin II, and was first released in the US on 23 October 1969. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked it number 75 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song also appeared at number 90 on VH1’s 100 Greatest Songs of Hard Rock.
The song is credited to Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and John Bonham. However, Page claims he wrote most of the music and all of the riffs while Plant was concerned with writing lyrics. The opening fanfare is based on parts of “Everybody Needs Somebody to Love” by Solomon Burke, while other sections were borrowed from Bobby Parker’s “Watch Your Step”.
“Ramble On”
“Ramble On” is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, from their 1969 album Led Zeppelin II. It was co-written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant during led Zeppelin’s 1968 tour of the United States.
The song is based on J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, specifically the character Gollum and his relationship with the Ringwraiths. Page was a fan of Tolkien’s work and had been influenced by it since he Was a child. The reference to “Mordor” in the lyrics is taken directly from the Lord of the Rings books.
The song is in the key of A major and features Page’s use of a capo on the second fret of his acoustic guitar, giving the song a folk-like sound. The opening chords are played on a 12-string acoustic guitar, which gives the song a signature sound.
Plant’s vocals are backed by simple harmony from Page and John Paul Jones. Jones also plays bass guitar and electric piano on the track, while John Bonham plays drums.
“Heartbreaker”
Heartbreaker is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in 1969 on their second album, Led Zeppelin II.It was co-written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant during rehearsals in Studio B at Olympic Studios, following the recording of the basic tracks for “What Is and What Should Never Be”.
The Later Years
Jennings Farm Blues: The Best of Led Zeppelin is a album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 16 November 1999. The album is a compilation of previously unreleased tracks recorded between 1970 and 1973.
“Over the Hills and Far Away”
“Over the Hills and Far Away” is a song by Led Zeppelin, included on their 1973 album Houses of the Holy. It was also issued as a single in 1974.
The song is in the folk style, with Robert Plant’s lyrics inspired by Irish ballads. Jimmy Page’s guitar playing utilises an acoustic guitar with a echoplex to create an “infinite sustain” solo, while John Paul Jones plays a bouzouki drones on the track. The single edit of the song was shorter than the album version, and was cut down from over seven minutes to three-and-a-half minutes.
The song was well received by critics and went on to be one of Led Zeppelin’s most popular songs. In 2004, it was ranked No. 11 on Guitar World’s list of the “100 Greatest Guitar Solos”.
“Kashmir”
“Kashmir” is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is the opening track on their sixth studio album Physical Graffiti, and was released as a double A-side with “Trampled Underfoot”. It was composed by Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones, and produced by Page.
The song is one of Led Zeppelin’s most popular and enduring works, and has been praised by music critics. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it number 29 on their list of “The 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time”. In 2004, it was voted the greatest song of all time in an international poll conducted by Planet Rock. In 2014, readers of Guitar World magazine ranked it number 8 in their list of “The 30 Greatest Led Zeppelin Songs”.
Conclusion
After years of touring and recording, Led Zeppelin was one of the most popular and influential rock bands of the 1970s. They developed a unique sound that blended elements of blues, rock, and folk music. Led Zeppelin’s popularity continued to grow in the 1980s and 1990s, as their music was re-discovered by new generations of fans. In 2008, Led Zeppelin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
