LED ZEPPELIN IV

As for many other people, this album was an essential part of my teenage years. After being raised on Prog by my older brother from the brittle age of 11, classic hard rock was one of the first other genres I set out to discover on my own.

When I was around 15, Zep IV was an almost daily feature, only rivalled by Rainbow's On Stage and Zeppelin's and Sabbath's debut albums. Of those 4 albums, only Zeppelin's IV doesn't seem to move me like it used to, or rather only half of the album still does. Songs like Battle of Evermore, Stairway, Four Sticks and When The Levee Breaks have proven to be indestructible. The other 4 songs, the shortest by coincidence, are ok but do not touch the consistently high level energy-pack that was their debut.

A great Zeppelin album but not the essential one for me.