More from Led Zeppelin
(1969) Led Zeppelin
(1969) Led Zeppelin II
(1970) Led Zeppelin III
(1971) Led Zeppelin IV
(1973) Houses Of The Holy
(1975) Physical Graffiti
(1976) Presence
(1976) The Song Remains The Same
(1979) In Through The Out Door
(1980) Coda
(2003) How The West Was Won
Presence
by Led Zeppelin (1976)
Written by milindaledzep (2)
Presence, released on the Swan Song label in 1976, is the sixth Led Zeppelin album; it took them only two weeks to complete.
It's a very passionate album and a rebellious stand for Led Zeppelin against all the things that were troubling them at this time. This can be seen from a quote by Robert Plant:
"Presence was our stand against everything. Our stand against the elements, against chance."
You can see that there was already an inner angst surfacing that would play itself out throughout Presence.
Let us continue with the way all the band were feeling at the time (again Robert Plant from 1976):
"We were literally fighting against existence itself. We left home for twelve months and it seemed that everything was about to crumble."
Members of Led Zeppelin at this time were feeling that they were being put in a position of outcasts and nomads. Jimmy Page said at the time:
"It was recorded while the group was on the move, technological gypsies. No base, no home, all you could relate to was a new horizon and a suitcase. So there's a lot of movement and aggression. A lot of bad feeling towards being put in that situation."
Throughout this time Robert Plant was coming to terms both psychologically and physically with the aftermath of a car accident. This shows itself especially on the track "Achilles Last Stand", as can be seen on the official DVD, where he introduces the song as "The wheelchair powerful piece".
Robert Plant, 1976:
"The lyrics were all reflections on the time near and before the accident and that time afterwards that contemplative thing, so I was very determined lyrically but Jimmy put his energy into it. He worked so hard and the guitar playing on this album surpasses anything I've heard for ages and ages. Brilliant... so much life in it."
Jimmy Page continued at the same time along the same vain by adding:
"I think it was just a reflection of the total anxiety and emotion at the period of time during which it was recorded.
There was a lot of hurt evident at this time and feelings of being let down that can be seen from this quote:
"Alone of all the albums we've recorded, Presence relates specifically to a point in time. Presence isn't a précis on aspects of life in general, but aspects of hurt. That's what songs like "Tea For One" and "Hots On For Nowhere" are all about."
All in all, having listened to this album several times I feel that it has been highly underrated. It is a real gem and deserves any listener's serious attention.
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Led Zeppelin — Presence: Track-by-track review
1. "Achilles' Last Stand"
The gentle entry of Jimmy Page's guitar almost fools the listener into believing this, the longest track on the CD, to be of mellow substance. Then the thunderous entry of Bonzo's first hit of the drums confirms the track as anything but! Drumming that gathers momentum throughout as only Bonzo can deliver.
Robert Plant comes in with an almost folklore/mystical style lyrically and vocally while Jimmy Page's mini guitar riff adds the awareness of an aloof kind of presence into the listener's mind. This is coupled with Bonzo's double background beat to accompany and compliment the guitar.
Towards the end, Robert Plant comes into his own stating, "I know the way". The way to where? Perhaps another land not visible to the ordinary eye, only accessible through a third eye with Bonzo's marked out beats pointing the way!
This is an upbeat track throughout.
2. "For Your Life"
This second track is not as intense as the first track on this album ("Achilles Last Stand"), allowing the listener time to relax somewhat with an intro where drums, guitar and vocals are all in unison.
Lyrically Robert Plant is depicting a journey of sorts as he proclaims "Oh, ho" and "in the city of the damned", sounding almost irritated as he softly delivers the words. However, there is an undercurrent of tension as he shows his skill at holding long notes.
Jimmy delivers a beautiful solo in the middle of the song that ebbs and flows along, relaxing the listener's ear, cruising along on a non-threatening wave of audible bliss.
Then Robert comes in, still following a vocal passage which is gathering momentum and culminates with him enthusiastically pronouncing "for your life", repeating this to the echo of Bonzo's drums.
3. "Royal Orleans"
This third offering on the album, being only 2 minutes 58 seconds, is the shortest track on here. It starts with a tumbling drum roll which is married perfectly to Jimmy's guitar and joined to a pleasant flowing vocal from Robert.
The guitar moves with an almost funkadelic lead style travelling to a jazzy short solo. Double-beat drums then return which lead to a chorus of instruments topped with vocals.
This short melody is sharp and to the point, yet it can still leave the listener debating whether they feel at ease or on edge.
4. "Nobody's Fault But Mine"
Guitar/synthesiser, followed by Robert's non-lyrical vocals, is all tame enough until the crashing sound of Bonzo's drums join in then we really get started.
Robert seems to be taking and shouldering the blame for something here, stating "it's nobody's fault but mine". He then proceeds with more non-lyrical vocals travelling up and down the harmonic vocal scale which he follows with a solo on the harmonica.
Then it's back to himself, blaring out "now there's a monkey on my back", indicating an irritant of sorts.
Jimmy then calms things down with a well timed guitar solo, but it's no good because as they reach the climax of the tune Robert is still announcing that it's his fault, "O Lordy, it's nobody's fault but mine".
All in all this is a very powerful track lyrically, musically and vocally, my personal favourite on this particular CD.
5. "Candy Store Rock"
The first few riffs of this song are very reminiscent of the Stranglers "No More Heroes" but as this song pre-dates the Stranglers perhaps Hugh and company drew some inspiration from this track.
The guitar then develops a more country and western feel before descending into an almost 50s Buddy Holly style, with Robert Plant borrowing from Buddy's unique style for a few bars chanting "Oh baby, baby" repeatedly.
Picture if you can Robert at the microphone dressed as Buddy Holly (lol). Not exactly the traditional Zep image but the whole thing works vocally, catching momentum to a rapturous end.
Robert manages to portray an undercurrent of loneliness coupled with high positive expectations as he states "Caught in the heat of the moment, or was it the heat of the day", feelings that prevail throughout the track.
Watch out for a little treat from Jimmy with a sliding twang effect mid solo.
6. "Hots On For Nowhere"
This is an upbeat tune that jigs along in a jolly fashion, tempting you to sing along whilst washing up as Robert Plant encourages you to look on the bright side — "La la la la la yeah".
The brightness fades somewhat however as an element of pain and hurt creeps in, echoed throughout the song.
Good clean cut guitar riffs effortlessly continue through the track, jarring here and there in a powerful way with drums skipping along, dancing away to take the lead with the guitar.
The sadness in the lyrics, however, prevails as Plant announces "hey babe I lost my way" and you almost want to shed a tear as the sorrow continues. It's almost as if he cannot take this detachment for much longer.
Yet, despite this there is a powerful, positive feel instrumentally that makes you want to dance along, even though the whole undercurrent is lyrically quite melancholy.
7. "Tea For One"
The last track on Presence is a beauty. Guitar and drums create the picture, gently and easily taking you into a bluesy drowsy late afternoon "rocking chair" style guitar that sweeps the listener into such a state of relaxation they are almost lulled into peaceful sleep.
The truly exotic blend of guitar and gentle drums combine to create a blues-style number, with a soulful and sorrowful vocal track from Robert Plant that kind of reminds one of summer days or youthful first highs as he slurs his words in a dreamy fashion, announcing, "Slippin' in a daze, slip sliding away".
Then Robert returns to a more familiar vocal style with more gusto and rolling drums in the background. Now it seems as if there is a sense of underlying urgency and desperation depicted, as the vocal range reaches a climactic crescendo.
A fitting piece to close an album created at a time of great tension and personal sorrow for the Zep.
thank you so much for anhonest and generous overview ant,your absolutly right,presence is a beaut,a little bitter in places,sometimes reaching to the dark side of the emotions,non the less,still a beaut ;).
milindaledzep, I would love to talk Zep with you some time. My MySpace profile is myspace.com/crawlingalong, contact me there, and we'll discuss Plant's tightest pair of pants.
no worrys mik,we all make mistakes,thanks for your comments ;)
and jake,im glad you liked my review ;D
ant May 28, 2008 10:56 AM Quote ↓
Nice one milinda ('my beautiful' in Spanish?) Recently relistened to Presence, back to albums after years of Remasters. It IS a real beaut, fully recommended into anyone interested in Zep but not yet fully initiated.
This review tells it very nicely!