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I remember the first time I heard Stairway to Heaven on the radio. I wasn't allowed to listen to rock n roll music. My parents were strict southern baptist and it was the music of the devil. So I had to sneak. Which made it even better. And this song hit in 1971. Oh My God. I was in love. But it was 8 fucking minutes long. So it was hard to get to listen to the whole thing without getting caught. But it was worth going to hell for.
edit-the sound quality on my AM FM radio was a pile of shit also.
Do you want to dance while also thinking about all the ways you've failed as a human?
UPCOMING SHOWS 5/14 - Neil Young & Crazy Horse @ Forest Hills 6/8 and maybe 6/9 - Governors Ball 8/17 - King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard @ Forest Hills 9/4 - Pearl Jam @ MSG 9/7 - Pearl Jam @ Wells Fargo Center 9/11 - St. Vincent @ Brooklyn Paramount
I still am confused when the spotify version of Stairway doesn't warp like my cassette did after getting eaten. I miss those imperfections a bit, if I'm being honest.
Jimmy's undertone in the final verse is so good and then Bonham just rips it, perfectly timed to the vocals. and that verse is probably as hard as plant goes without completely defaulting to sex noises
I remember Stairway to Heaven being the last song at a dance at my camp every year and planning very carefully who I wanted to dance with for it since it lasted so long. Gotta dance with that crush!
Welcome back Bonz, but I do not find it strange that your presence being requested in the Orgy thread and then you showing up, like it was the quacking Bonzai Bat Signal.
esteban
Which Ditch Bridge Troll Frequently eggs on parrots & cockatoos & macaws
Post by TRANTER INDUSTRIES on Jan 22, 2024 11:06:13 GMT -5
Stairway. I like Free Bird but outside of a couple lines, you're spending half the song waiting for the solo. Even then, I think the solo in Stairway is better. The "your head is humming and it won't go" part always hits something in me too. Everything about the middle part of the song is perfect. This is coming from someone who doesn't particularly like Zeppelin either.
hate to say this because i love a mellotron but it's implementation at the beginning here is little cheesy. lyrically the pastoral fantasy thing adds to the cheese. i don't know why these things work for genesis but don't work super good here. but the guitar work is beautiful, as is the subtle bass guitar.
the drums kicking in is elite. one of the great moments in rock history.
first guitar solo kicking in is unassailable. just effortlessly cool. again one of the great moments in rock history.
funny how short the song feels because it all just works. despite a little bit of cheese at the beginning the song lifts you up and takes you on a quest that is engaging through and through.
free bird
right away the organ at the beginning rules, as does the piano notes rolling over it.
and that fucking slide guitar is so good. beautiful tonality. again kind of like the first solo in stairway there is an effortless cool to it. makes you feel like you are flying.
kind of comparing apples to oranges but lyrically you can wrap your arms around free bird right away. we aren't off on a flight of fancy, no jimmy page practicing black magick in aleister crowley's castle, we are rooted in the real world. it's just a guy whose gotta go you know? he's gotta hit the road. he loves this lady but he's gotta go. but he knows it's his fault! it's not her fault she is a good woman.
i take issue with the people saying with free bird you are just waiting for the solo. song actually gets great right away, which means it gets great before stairway gets great. but man when that "loooord i can't change" part comes and the pace picks up it's more intense and high energy than anything that happens in stairway.
and it's a rad ass solo too.
free bird is a minute longer than stairway, but it feels like it's a few minutes longer. stairway has more pieces parts and feels like a more cohesive journey, whereas once free bird locks you into the tension of that solo there is a slight anxiety that is fun but also there is a piece of you saying "ok damn let me out of here" that makes the whole thing feel longer. but you keep getting those tension and release moments that keeps a smile on your face throughout.
conclusion
stairway is a flying carpet ride through magical rock and roll realms. you feel like you are soaring with the wind in your hair with a beautiful view of the world. it's awesome. but free bird is that southern rock freight train hurtling down the tracks at a dangerous speed. you are a little afraid and it's loud and you can smell the coal burning. scary but exhilarating.
both songs rule. i make no objective claim but due to my personal musical biases i prefer free bird.
maybe my hottest take here is i prefer ronnie's vocals to page's plant's. i recognize page plant is technically more talented and definitely more iconic, but van zant just has that bloody muscle shoals-y blues thing that feels so tactile and present.
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but I do not find it strange that your presence being requested in the Orgy thread and then you showing up, like it was the quacking Bonzai Bat Signal. 
