A lot of people either love this album or hate it. I think the majority of the people that say they hate it probably use the "Double LP" or it's "too long" as the excuse. Sure, it's got a lot more songs than what we have gotten up to this point and can be looked on as being overblown if you looking for an 8 song LP. More songs means more chances for the album to falter with potential filler tracks. I love this album and I'll be the first to say that it's not perfect, but it's damn near close. And I'm gonna try and convince you why this is an album that you should LOVE.
One of the coolest things about
Physical Graffiti, other than the song arrangements themselves is
John Paul Jones bass playing. There are some pretty kick-ass bass-patterns and bass-lines he is throwing in there with a ton of punch. Also, the way the bass itself was mixed sounds phenomenal here. It's actually one of the best sounding bass records ever to my ears. If you want to learn how to play bass and pick up on what to do within a song, this is definitely the one to study. Just listen to
Custard Pie and
The Rover for prime examples. But the entire album is just a good when looking for ways to add to your bass playing arsenal.
In
My Time Of Dying has all the elements working seemlessly with each other and the drums in particular sounds incredible.
Bonham is attacking the skins with such force. At a whopping 11 minutes, this is by far the longest track on the album and one of the longest ever for any band. Songs this long generally tend to fall apart, but here you're in it from start to finish. I Love it.
Trampled Under Foot is a really unique song for
Zep with is funk-heavy bassline. It's different, but I like the different spin here and wouldn't necessarily think of
Zep as being comfortabl doing. But they pull it off extremely well giving us a memorable song in the process.
Next up is not only the best song on this album, but it's without a doubt the greatest
Zep song of all time. I speak of
Kashmir of course. Not only is it their definitive song, I put this song in the
Top 5 of all time in music history. It's that f u c k i n g good!! From the arrangement to the melody that holds it all together to
Robert Plant's vocals. It's just an amazing song where the stars were aligned perfectly to create a masterpiece that will stand the test of time. When I hear people criticize and say that
Zep is overrated, I just point to this song and tell them to shut the f u c k up.
For those that don't want all rock anthems all the time, this has one of the coolest acoutic pieces by
Jimmy Page. I speak of
Bron-Yr-Aur. It's just a really cool song that everyone can enjoy.
Down By The Seaside will also fill that role if you want to zone out to a song, which is heavily influenced by
The Beatles. It's been said by the band themselves that
Neil Young was its biggest influence, but it has always been a
Beatles song to me more so than
Young. To each their own..........Anyway, this is probably my 2nd fave song on this album with
Night Flight trailing just by a smidgen, which is an awesome rock song, anchored by
Jone's stellar bass playing. The entire song has a lush texture which gives me a sonic orgasm.
I can go on and on about how great
Physical Graffiti is, but I will leave it up to you to make your way to the album and give it a try. Trust me, you won't be disappointed. Along with awesome songs, it sounds amazing. Overall, I just loved the way the entire album is mixed, showcasing everyone from
Jones to
Page to
Bonham to
Plant. Everyone gets to shine here and there is no getting "buried in the mix" like most productions are prone to happening when egos get involved where each member wants to have the spotlight on him and him alone. I highly recommend this to anyone that's never gotten into
Led Zeppelin. It's a must-own album and belongs in your collection.
Fave Songs:
Custard Pie, The Rover, In My Time Of Dying, Kashmir, Bron-Yr-Aur, Down By The Seaside, Night Flight, Boogie Sue and
Black Country Woman. Actually, you can just say that all the songs are my faves. MVP goes to Kashmir. Duh.
Album Cover is actually pretty cool for something so "simple" looking. I like it.