Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy - noob review

[Mister Triscuits]

Always got a kick outta the pronunciation of Dyer Maker. I've always called it Dye Er Make Er.

I heard DJs at the time pronounce it the same way. It took a while for us Yanks to get the joke; that spelling doesn't really work in American.

[The Dark Elf]

Ian Stewart on boogie piano is always a treat.

Love that album and loved that song since 1975 in high school. We thought at the time that Bonham was banging away on trash can lids. Hilarious!

[Vic2012]

I heard DJs at the time pronounce it the same way. It took a while for us Yanks to get the joke; that spelling doesn't really work in American.

It was hilarious. Even Robert Plant made fun of us. Dyer Maker......

[Trane]

I heard DJs at the time pronounce it the same way. It took a while for us Yanks to get the joke; that spelling doesn't really work in American.

pronounced quickly with a cockney accent, legend has it was supposed to be "Jamaica"

[Koreabruce]

That is correct. D'yer Ma'ker, or Jer-may-ker, = Jamaica. This is quite well documented. See "When Giants Walked the Earth" by Mick Wall, which by the way is an excellent book.

I heard a bootleg recording from their 1980 European tour where someone in the audience calls this out as a request. Robert responds very dryly, "'Dyer Maker'? Never heard of it."

[the winter tree]

Over the years I have tried many times to see what others see. I am always disappointed. The mixing on their albums is horrible, the singing is weak, the bass-playing is pedestrian at best. Page's guitar and Bonham's drums make up 90% of the sound, when they should have been a "band" in the true sense of the word.

.

Bass playing pedestrian at best??!!??? Seriously?

[Plasmatopia]

Bass playing pedestrian at best??!!??? Seriously?

Yeah, I'm scratching my head over that one too.

[ThomasKDye]

I've listened to it a few more times. It's growing on me fast. I still can't make out anything Plant is singing during "The Song Remains the Same" apart from "Hare Hare" and "Hoochie Koo," and "D'yer Mak'er" gives me a headache, but in general it's solid stuff. Page and Bonham really do know how to work a hard rock rhythm. I just think Plant should have been there to turn these things into real songs. Favorites are still "The Rain Song," "Dancing Days" and "No Quarter."

P.S. "The Crunge" is even growing on me.

[Mister Triscuits]

P.S. "The Crunge" is even growing on me.

You can get an ointment for that.

[ThomasKDye]

You can get an ointment for that.

Curly Howard.jpg

Nyuk nyuk nyuk...

[Wounded Land]

"The Crunge" is the only funk song in 9/8 I know. It's all about that groove!

Love Houses. Such a diverse collection of songs!

[NeonKnight]

I've listened to it a few more times. It's growing on me fast. I still can't make out anything Plant is singing during "The Song Remains the Same" apart from "Hare Hare" and "Hoochie Koo,"

One of the original reviews I remember reading somewhere (probably Circus magazine) quoted Linda Ronstadt's reaction the first time she heard the guitar on TSRTS.

"It sounds like a swarm of bees about to attack me."

Weird how random comments remain in the mind all these decades later...

[rcarlberg]

Yeah, I'm scratching my head over that one too.

I would challenge you to point out any section of any music by LZ that had a bassline anywhere near as complex as anything played by McCartney... but I don't really care what you think.

[Plasmatopia]

I would challenge you to point out any section of any music by LZ that had a bassline anywhere near as complex as anything played by McCartney... but I don't really care what you think.

(first of all thank you for setting the stage properly for the futility of my response, lol...but anyway...)

Really? I definitely think McCartney wrote tasteful basslines...and I have to say that's far more important to me than something "complex"...but I confess ignorance here - did McCartney play anything as complex as The Lemon Song?

[JJ88]

but I don't really care what you think.

Nice.

[JeffCarney]

I would challenge you to point out any section of any music by LZ that had a bassline anywhere near as complex as anything played by McCartney...

Is your measurement for great bass playing the degree of "complexity?"

FTR, Jones has some very complex stuff.

Personally, I find him overrated by the drooling level Zeppelin fans and underrated by the general music listening public. His early work was sometimes overly influenced by James Jamerson but often this is his work I like best. As the years passed, to me he sometimes just sounded uninspired. He often just did NOT play with enough intensity or passion for my taste. I do realize Zep sometimes like to get into those slow grooves, so I'm not talking about that type of playing so much as what sometimes seemed like an overall lack of passion in his playing.

And there were some tours where he had simply awful tones.

[rcarlberg]

Nice recommendation.

[JeffCarney]

Nice recommendation.

Don't confuse my question for you with a recommendation or lack thereof.

Considering the number of components involved in musicianship, asking someone to point out the "complexity" of a musician's work as evidence of his "greatness" is arguably the simplest form of analysis imaginable, IMO.

[the winter tree]

The opening track of HOTH (TSRTS) souds like the tape was sped up.

[Trane]

The opening track of HOTH (TSRTS) souds like the tape was sped up.

Maybe you were playing your vinyl at 45 RPM

JK, but yah, something is not 100% right with Page's guitar parts.

[JJ88]

It does have a few sonic issues...'The Ocean' for example has some distortion.

[at least 100 dead]

(first of all thank you for setting the stage properly for the futility of my response, lol...but anyway...)

Really? I definitely think McCartney wrote tasteful basslines...and I have to say that's far more important to me than something "complex"...but I confess ignorance here - did McCartney play anything as complex as The Lemon Song?

Good call. IIRC that was the first or second take and JPJ essentially improvised it. Pretty amazing. “Ramble on”, on the other hand, is a more thoroughly composed bassline and (IMO) matches anything Macca did with The Beatles in terms of counterpoint melodies.

As the years passed, to me he sometimes just sounded uninspired. He often just did NOT play with enough intensity or passion for my taste. I do realize Zep sometimes like to get into those slow grooves, so I'm not talking about that type of playing so much as what sometimes seemed like an overall lack of passion in his playing.

And there were some tours where he had simply awful tones.

JPJ actually considered quitting Led Zeppelin (ca. Physical Graffiti, I think) to become a church organist (EDIT: choirmaster at Winchester Cathedral, as per Wiki), so that may partially account for the perceived “lack of passion”. Somewhat agree with the tonal issue on later tours, though, to be fair, that’s mainly judging by bootlegs taken from soundboards, which generally render the bass somewhat “clicky”. Yet, all of this nitpicking ignores his compositional contributions to the band, which were essential.

[the winter tree]

Maybe you were playing your vinyl at 45 RPM

JK, but yah, something is not 100% right with Page's guitar parts.

Page used to often experiment with tape speed. He decreased the speed on the B side only "Hey Hey What Can I Do" (I think that was the title), thus bringing the pitch down. "When The Levee Breaks" sounds like it might have been messed with.

[JJ88]

As I said, 'No Quarter' also had its speed changed.

JPJ actually considered quitting Led Zeppelin (ca. Physical Graffiti, I think) to become a church organist (EDIT: choirmaster at Winchester Cathedral, as per Wiki), so that may partially account for the perceived “lack of passion”.

I recall a BBC documentary on Plant where he said he also wanted to throw the towel in after the death of his son. He credited John Bonham with changing his mind, so you can see why Plant never wanted to continue after Bonham died.

[JeffCarney]

Only the vocal tracks sound sped up to me on TSRTS.

What I don't get is why? It sounds awful. I'm guessing they wanted Plant to really get up there on that track and it just wasn't working, but in the end it really seems like a case of overdoing something when maybe a little would have gone a long way.