Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II (1969; Atlantic Records)
The Song of the Week is a little late this week due to unforeseen circumstances, but here I am, publishing in a strange location, looking out a strange window at a gloomy sky and in need of a song that just brings a smile to my face. It may not be Here Comes the Sun, but it is at least just as good (in my opinion). So, let's do this thing.
When I think of "epic" songs, there are a number of tunes from the 60's, 70's and even the 90's that come to mind. My definition of epic may vary from another's but I picture a song with a strong theme or story, powerful lyrics filled with imagery and poetry, and a sound that is big and a song that is not necessarily long, but is definitely somewhat of a journey. So a big journey, a big epic quest, a story filled with imagery and poetry; yeah, let's roll with that.
Led Zeppelin is a strong contender for the greatest rock band of all time, standing strong alongside the Beatles and the Rolling Stones as amazingly talented, influential and indelible, and one of my personal favorites is their homage to the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, Ramble On. The song is filled with slightly abstract references to themes and phrases from Tolkien's works including the Hobbit, the Lord of the Rings and some of Tolkien's standalone poetry.
Now, if you aren't a fan of at least one Led Zeppelin song then I can only assume you are either hearing impaired or you have never heard one, so this is your chance. That said, Ramble On is not considered Zeppelin's greatest tune by most "experts". No, that honor would most likely go to Whole Lotta Love, their inspirational and accessible anthem from the very same year. Still, I love the rhythm and sudden changes in tone that this song takes. The sounds flow together so smoothly, the melody is catchy as hell and Robert Plant's voice is at its best here. I always though he sounded better when he's able to hold his notes just a little longer, but that is purely subjective.
The Song:
Another game soundtrack spotlight is coming very, very soon. Until next time...
Led Zeppelin II and all contents therein are property of Atlantic Records (1969). The video is from youtube.com and I do not own it or its contents.
It really is impossible to name a song that will or will not live on through the years and across generations. As bizzare as it is, Yellow Submarine is a song everyone knows, has heard and probably knows the words to. Did the general public of 1968 know that Yellow Submarine would go down in history as a legendary song? I doubt it. When I look back at the songs that were hits when I was younger like, say, "Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia, I could not have forseen that song being so forgotten. Do YOU remember that song? Well that song was a big hit in the late 90's and hit number 1 on the Billboard charts. So, yeah, that song has had zero staying power. Now, the same can be said for most songs from any era, but for some reason, a vast number of songs from the late 60's have survived the decades. Why? Why do you hear THESE songs on ads and in movies to this day when there are plenty of other songs from the current charts to choose from?
It is hard to say if it is just because the songs are "better" because "better" is subjective. I am not entirely sure, but I know there has to be a mass of people that openly dispised White Rabbit when it first came out. I have to admit, it is a peculiar song. This brings me to the point of that opening, why does THIS song, one that is such an interesting and different tune, stand out over other acts from the same year that were more in tune to the popular uvre? One could argue that the fact that it is different IS why it remains but that contradicts popular music at any given time, does it not? At any point you can go back to the pop charts, find songs that were successful, listen to them and find that they are all often characterized by similar styles, genres and tones. I dunno, but I have to say that with all of the songs of the 1960's to love, I cannot tell you why I feel that White Rabbit ranks among some of my all-time favorites. It is strange, that is for damn sure, but it is strange in a way that makes me smile, kind of like a song by Beck, or a Wes Anderson film.
Okay, enough blathering about nothing. White Rabbit. Okay. This is a weird song. I mean... WEIRD. Even by late 60's standards. The lyrics were inspired heavily by Lewis Carrol's Wonderland books, stories that were near and dear to singer/songwriter Grace Slick, who in the late 60's took up the lead for the soon-to-be icon of Psychadelia, Jefferson Airplane. Her undeniably distinct vocals, intense singing and unique style made them a huge hit and their first album with her fronting, Surreallist Pillow, had two mega hits: Somebody to Love and White Rabbit.
White Rabbit has a sound that really stands out. It is the very definition of a Bolero. Defying a verse/chorus/verse structure it, insteads, paints a picture of what is said to be an acid trip. Yes, it is actually about the effects of drugs. PCP, LSD and other psychoactive substances were really, really popular at the time but the standards of radio and government censorship (UGH!) prevented songs that outwardly spoke of drug use to be played, so artists who chose to sing about these things did not chart. It is because of this that the airwaves started getting countless tunes using metaphor, vague analogies and obscure slang to get the subject of druge use out there in song without the artist being blacklisted by the looming and puritanical agents of standards and practices.
White Rabbit is an interesting song though. It seems to really have little to no understanding of the actual stories but I would point out that it has been said that these "misinterpretations and inaccuracies" were intentional, to push other slang into parts of the song where they would not really fit. But the song has undeniably catchy, memorable, forcefull and I guess that is why it is so beloved by fans of classic rock. As far as its impact on popular culture, it still pops up here and there, though it is not really pounded into us like other songs from the era like "Happy Together" or "Hey Jude," two great songs that seem to pop up everywere. No, the occasional mainstream appearance for this song comes from obscure jokes in a few popular TV series over the years and it is also played over the trailer of the X-Box 360 game Lost Odyssey. White Rabbit, it seems, really remains dear to music fans without really breaking through to the modern generation through pop culture and word of mouth like so many other tunes.
I do have to say that I love the bass in this song, it sounds great with the pulsing drums. The worldly sound works with the bellowing vocals that fill out the song beautifully. This is just a good song all around, despite being under two and a half minutes, which is very short for a single.
Sorry if it seemed like I was just rambling through this one, I am not feeling well but wanted to get this one out there tonight. I will get back into posting game soundtrack spotlights here soon too, I've just been too sick to really do anything of late. But there you have it, stay tuned for more content.
The Song-
"White Rabbit" and "Surreallist Pillow", 1967 RCA Victor Records.
Three years after Nevermind changed mainstream rock music forever, Seattle rock band Soundgarden released Superunknown, their fourth album and despite a few songs that I love (Outshined for instance), the band had nothing one would really call a "hit". That all changed, however, when they released the third single off of Superunkown, Black Hole Sun. Black Hole Sun is now stands alongside Smells Like Teen Spirit, Everlong and EnterSandman as a shining example of why 90's rock was awesome.
Soundgarden had been around for a decade at this point, forming in 1984, signing with an indie label and playing around with the Seattle sound that was growing at the time, but had not yet broken through as most mainstream rock still took the form of hairspray and Spandex. The Seattle scene was dirtier; kind of how the punk era of the 70's must have looked and sounded to the Who crowd. It was a grittier, more serious and angrier-sound than most rockers were used to at the time and it took one loud, aggressive and amazing single in 1991 from an unknown band called Nirvana to change all of that. Grunge then became king.
Now, in all fairness, Soundgraden was not a grunge band. Rather, they embodied a purer, more agile and agressive rock that still employed classical tropes like guitar solos and heavy vocalization that most grungers rejected. They were sort of a breakthrough band, blurring the lines between the Anthrax and Iron Maiden crowd and the long haired, Sunset Strip folks who still clung to their Hagar-fronted Van Halen relics. This is why Black Hole Sun was so important.
In the early 90's despite its influential nature, Smells Like Teen Spirit was heavily snubbed by the guys who still listened to Bon Jovi and the eager twenty-somethings awaiting that ill-fated 90's Whitesnake breakthrough. However, there was something about Black Hole Sun that was much more acceptable, much more accessible even. People who did not like modern rock music liked it. It conjured memories of Don't Fear the Reaper while filling in the modern idea of rock with heavy distortion, squealing guitar, and a not-quite-screaming vocal style.
Much of this, I believe, can be attributed to singer Chris Cornell's voice. He is, in my opinion, one of the greatest rock singers of all time. He actually sings rather than grunts or mumbles, yet it did not sound ironic and sunny like Roth or overblown and emotional like Live's Ed Kowalczyk (I happen to like Live though. I was just making a point.). Instead, he was gritty without being offensive and mild enough, even in his heavier vocal stylings, to be able to find his melody in the song. It was a nice blend.
So, the big hit, Black Hole Sun. The song was actually not really about anything. Cornell, who wrote the song on his own, described it as a lyrical experiment. I see it too. At first listen it sounds quite literal, yet any attempt to seek metaphor leaves one filling in the blanks for themselves. My interpretation is it is a meloncholy tribute to an end to suffering, coming any way it can. The famous creepy video for the song shows a distorted view of Americana, something that was popular in the 90's as the youth began rejecting the forms and ideas of their parents. This chaotic and subversive world is then sucked up by a literal Black Hole Sun, destroying everything. I can see the director of the video also coming to a this literal interpretation in his work. That leaves me feeling that any sort of subtext or undertone may be completely invalid, but hey, that's the beauty of any sort of art. It is all subjective.
Tears for Fears, "Songs from the Big Chair" (1985; Mercury Records / Phonogram Records)
Originally, I was going to do a "This Week in 1985" themed Song of the Week, but then I found out that the number one song in rock this week in '85 was We Belong to the City (ugh) and the top adult contemporary song was Part Time Lover (UGH!!!), so I decided to go with a GOOD song!
Tears for Fears had a big impact on my music tastes very early on. They were one of the 80's bands that, like INXS and Dire Straits, were not all that influenced by the bubblegum that was oozing in all around them. They sounded more sophisticated, more adult and more intelligent. Songs like Mad World were almost experimental and Everybody Wants to Rule the World, their most mainstream-sounding hit, is a classic.
This one goes back to that syncopation I mentioned in my Halo article that I love so much. The song is filled with nice little rhythmic touches that make it bouncy, but not exactly dancy (I'm adding that word to my dictionary, so should you!). Instead it was a fascinating, flowing tune that moves with a liquidity that typical, more pedestrian pop hits from the era tended to miss.
The band, Tears for Fears, for those who do not know, was an extremely popular New Wave act that peaked in the 80's and dispatched in the early 90's. While they had a backup band, they were principally a two-man act. Composed of Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal, the band was able to create songs that sounded adult while not ever going overboard in excess like much of hair metal or bubblegum pop tended to. It is a nice middle area that is safe, but not boring.
Basically, the song is about lust. Particularly the lust for power and the lengths the powerful will go to to seize more or even just hold onto that power, and the lengths a common man will go to to obtain it. It has been called an anti-war protest song too, and I see it. It has elements of that sort of "Fight the Power" narrative, though it is not anywhere near as explicit as it was the Vietnam protest songs of the 60's and the militant hip hop of the late 80's and early 90's.
The Song -
Tears for Fears "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" Songs From the Big Chair 1985 Mercury Records / Phonogram Records
