Led Zeppelin II

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Led Zeppelin II
Image:LedZeppelinLedZeppelinIIalbumcover.jpg
Album by Led Zeppelin
Released	October 22, 1969
Recorded	January-August, 1969 Olympic Studios, London; Mirror Sound, LA; Mystic Studios, LA; Morgan Studios, London; A&R Studios, NY; Juggy Sound Studio, NY; Atlantic Studios, NY; Mayfair Studios, NY; Hut, Vancouver. Mixed at A&R Studios, NY.
Genre	Hard Rock
Length	41 min 29 s
Label	Atlantic Records
Producer(s)	Jimmy Page
Professional reviews
Q Image:4 out of 5.png October 2000
Led Zeppelin chronology
Led Zeppelin (1969)	Led Zeppelin II (1969)	Led Zeppelin III (1970)

Led Zeppelin II was a rock and roll album released October 22, 1969 (see 1969 in music) by Led Zeppelin. The album was released on Atlantic Records. The band took the ideas established on their debut album and developed them forward, creating an even more influential and acclaimed album with Led Zeppelin II. Unlike the first record, the band faced no allegations of musical plagiarism from other artists ¹, leading many Led Zeppelin fans to consider this the first undisputed classic by the band (although the first album is still extremely well-thought of in all music circles).

The groundbreaking album was instrumental in defining the sound of hard rock. The songs on Led Zeppelin II were driven by powerful riffs and heavy rhythms, crafting a pure rock sound that has proven more influential than almost any other album in the genre. Songs like "Whole Lotta Love" and "Heartbreaker" pushed the hard rock riff to the front, defining the song and providing the key hook rather than the vocal. This was very uncommon in 1969, particularly in a mainstream band.

One of the more popular albums by Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II was an early forerunner of heavy metal, and helped inspire a lot of the next generation of metal performers, including Blue Öyster Cult, Van Halen and Deep Purple.

Commercially, "Whole Lotta Love" was Led Zeppelin's biggest hit; it reached #4 on the Billboard Top 100 in January 1970, which was after the record company went against the group's wishes by releasing an edited, shorter version on a 45. It may not be as well-known as the later hit Stairway to Heaven, but as that song was not released as a single, "Whole Lotta Love" was the song that yielded the band's highest chart position. The song is an example of compound AABA form. "Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)" peaked at #65.

In 2003 the TV network VH1 named Led Zeppelin II the 43rd greatest album of all time.

Track listing

1. "Whole Lotta Love" (Bonham/Dixon/Jones/Page/Plant) 5:34 ¹
2. "What Is and What Should Never Be" (Page/Plant) 4:44
3. "The Lemon Song" (Bonham/Jones/Page/Plant) 6:19 ²
4. "Thank You" (Page/Plant) 4:47
5. "Heartbreaker" (Bonham/Jones/Page/Plant) 4:14
6. "Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)" (Page/Plant) 2:39
7. "Ramble On" (Page/Plant) 4:23
8. "Moby Dick" (Bonham/Jones/Page) 4:21 [instrumental]
9. "Bring It On Home" (Dixon/Page/Plant) 4:20 ³

Personnel

• Jimmy Page - Acoustic, electric, and pedal steel guitar, backing vocals
• Robert Plant - Vocals, harmonica
• John Paul Jones - Bass guitar, organ, backing vocals
• John Bonham - Drums, backing vocals
• Peter Grant - Executive producer
• Eddie Kramer - Engineer, mixing
• George Chkiantz - Engineer (Tracks 1, 2)
• Chris Huston - Engineer (Tracks 3, 8)
• Andy Johns - Engineer (Track 4)

Notes

Note 1: In 1985 Willie Dixon won damages, and the right to a credit, over allegations that the lyrics of "Whole Lotta Love" plagiarised his "You Need Love", first recorded by Muddy Waters in 1962. Dixon is credited on the album How the West was Won.

Note 2: "The Lemon Song" was written by Howlin' Wolf (Chester Arthur Burnett), but he receives no credit on the album.

Note 3: "Bring it on Home" is lifted from a Willie Dixon song of the same name, and recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson in 1963. Dixon is not listed on the original album, but is credited on the album How the West was Won. Williamson sound clip (in Windows Media format)

Led Zeppelin
John Bonham · John Paul Jones · Jimmy Page · Robert Plant
Studio Albums: Led Zeppelin · II · III · Image:Zoso.png (IV) · Houses of the Holy · Physical Graffiti · Presence · In Through the Out Door · Coda
Live Albums: The Song Remains the Same · BBC Sessions · How the West Was Won
Compilations: Box Set · Profiled · Remasters · Box Set 2 · Complete Studio Recordings · Early Days · Latter Days
Films: The Song Remains the Same · Led Zeppelin DVD
Other: Peter Grant · Page and Plant · Swan Song Records · The Yardbirds · XYZ