Perhaps the most imposing band of all time, Led Zeppelin didn’t rely entirely on charisma or charm to gain their place in the pantheon of rock and roll. The band were formed from the iron ore of several strong and substantial rock groups, all of which were formed in the fires of blues, jazz and other highly skilled areas of music. Led Zeppelin may well have been a highly successful commercial outfit, but their foundations were rooted in the fundamentals of music itself.
Whether it was the routinely used skills of a young Jimmy Page, who got his first taste of success as a gifted session musician, the jazz-inspired brilliance of John Paul Jones on bass or the bombastic drum performances of John Bonham, the band were a powerhouse outfit. But while the other three members of the band had their status as impressive instrumentalists slowly added to their respective CVs, it was Robert Plant’s vocal performance that blinded audiences initially.
From the very first bars of the band’s debut single ‘Good Times Bad Times’, the strength of Plant’s vocals were clear for all to see. Perfecting what would become known as the archetypal rock wail, Plant stood toe to toe with the imposing musicianship of his band and turned himself from a singer to the proverbial Golden God we know today. While there are countless instances of Plant’s supreme singing voice, we thought we’d look back at his isolated vocals on the lesser-viewed ‘Black Dog’.
The song is most famously known for being one of the band’s most triumphant riffs that didn’t arrive from the mercurial mind of Jimmy Page. For us, this is Led Zeppelin at their magical best. While John Paul Jones brings the groove, Jimmy Page weaves a delicate tapestry of steel, intertwining them all. And that’s just the first 30 seconds of 1971’s ‘Black Dog’.
The sounds at the song’s beginning are Page warming up his guitar, which he called: “Waking up the army of guitars.” But this genius was primarily John Paul Jones’ creation rather than Page. The guitarist was busier on production duties during the making of this track but without this smattering of erudite flair on Jones’ behalf, who knows if we would still be discussing the track in such detail almost 50 years on. John Paul Jones was said to be inspired to write this riff by Muddy Waters’ controversial 1968 album Electric Mud.
But while all the electric guitar goodness rattles on, Robert Plant delivers vocal licks that would make a Nun shudder. It’s truly the kind of bedevilment that turned an entire religion against the band. Within the simple vocal take, there is a danger and a desire that simply wasn’t a part of rock and roll before Led Zeppelin got to it.
Of course, who could forget the opening lines: “Hey hey mama said the way you move/ Gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove.” From that moment on, Plant embodies the very essence of the music and captivates us as an audience, leading us into the dramatic riff and the pulsating backing. However, when isolating these vocals, we are given not only a lesson in perfect rock singing but also a reminder of why Plant should be considered the holy grail in the art form.
