Led Zeppelin Prog Rock Songs

I think you'd have to listen to "When the Levee Breaks". It is by my definition, a progressive blues song. Also many songs off Physical Grafitti, a particular favorite being "Ten Years Gone"

Zep is Zep, beyond catagory,

I agree. Zeppelin were progressive in many ways... progressive just wasn't really a term yet. Of course there are distinctions but they we're definitely forward thinking.

in my honest opinion Led Zeppelin are a full-fledged progressive rock band, as are for example Deep Purple or Wishbone Ash too.  but I know that many won't agree with me. however, in the 70s these distinctions were never made anyway. Led Zeppelin were one of the bands which tried something different. and that's what counted

Edited by BaldJean - May 31 2010 at 05:41

Chris S wrote: moshkito wrote: valravennz wrote: Achilles Last Stand Kashmir No Quarter The Rain Song Dazed and Confused All the above have tons of prog elements and then some!!    Too bad that your reflection is 35 years later, and the term was not even used until 20 years ago!   At the time music had a lot of experimental elements and Led Zeppelin were just as much at the forefront of it, specially in concert, as they were in their music.   Sadly no one gives Jimmy the credit he should deserve as being a master musician that was way up and ahead of others and he had a good knack for adjusting, adding and bringing things together in any jam and experiment, which is something that you can't teach and is the most important factor in the definition and birth of what we came to call "progressive".   It was a special time. And it we are not men enough to consider those progressive, then we need to come up with a new term and I, for one, will quit the "prog" scene ... and call it DIVINE.   It's just weird seeing terminology aplied to music that could have given a damn about what it was ... and most people are missing the point of the music and what it meant to those that were doing it ,.. it wasn't because it was "prog" ... it was because that's what you had inside your heart and the time and place helped you bring it out! ... this f**king prog illusion is so sick! Hey I wouldn't be so hard on the genre tagging side of things. A charcteristic of humans ( most) that we compartmentalize and PA's strength is that we do what is best to find the right fit for the artists..   I wholeheartedley agree however that Jimmy Page was well ahead of his time, does not get enough credit sometimes and LZ were experimental ( playing a guitar with a violin bow springs to mind) ( Sandy Denny singing on Battle of Evermore another)   They truly were the Rock masters. Untouchable IMO.

Thanks Chris for your comments.
Moshkito:
I am surprised that using the terminology highlighted in my quote could draw such criticism and pedantic analysis!! Yes - I agree Jimmy Page should be given more credit as a Master musician. But what has that got to do with the term "prog" - which is a commonly used shortened version of "progressive" and used by most PA'ers.??. In relation to my posting that is all that it implied and nothing else - but then why am I justifying my use of that terminology? It certainly was not a throw away remark. I think there are better things to focus on than a commonly used term, which I and most others use with affection! 

AbrahamSapien wrote: What about Tea For one and in fact the whole Presence album?

Tea For One is basically a slow blues.

moshkito wrote: valravennz wrote: Achilles Last Stand Kashmir No Quarter The Rain Song Dazed and Confused All the above have tons of prog elements and then some!!    Too bad that your reflection is 35 years later, and the term was not even used until 20 years ago!   At the time music had a lot of experimental elements and Led Zeppelin were just as much at the forefront of it, specially in concert, as they were in their music.   Sadly no one gives Jimmy the credit he should deserve as being a master musician that was way up and ahead of others and he had a good knack for adjusting, adding and bringing things together in any jam and experiment, which is something that you can't teach and is the most important factor in the definition and birth of what we came to call "progressive".   It was a special time. And it we are not men enough to consider those progressive, then we need to come up with a new term and I, for one, will quit the "prog" scene ... and call it DIVINE.   It's just weird seeing terminology aplied to music that could have given a damn about what it was ... and most people are missing the point of the music and what it meant to those that were doing it ,.. it wasn't because it was "prog" ... it was because that's what you had inside your heart and the time and place helped you bring it out! ... this f**king prog illusion is so sick!

Hey I wouldn't be so hard on the genre tagging side of things. A charcteristic of humans ( most) that we compartmentalize and PA's strength is that we do what is best to find the right fit for the artists..

Gernerally just the longer songs and those with multiple genres incorporated, which is many.

The Rain Song is my favorite prog song from Zep. Mostly because it showcases the criminally underrated talent of John Paul Jones. He was very prog if you think about it: just playing there, not as wild as Plant, Page or Bonzo. Also he provided keyboards and mellotron. JPJ could have been a great prog rock musician.... imagine him in 70's Crimson.

WatcherOfTheSkies88 wrote: Led Zeppelin isn't really a progressive rock band... most of their songs aren't that complex or prog sounding, although they did have a fair share of 6+ minute long songs. However, IMO, they've made a few excellent progressive rock songs in their history. "Stairway to Heaven" is probably the most obvious example, since it is multi-part and is longer than 8 minutes. "Whole Lotta Love" is another one, with the long middle section with lots of weird noises. Other ones: No Quarter, Kashmir, Dazed and Confused, Battle of Evermore, How Many More Times, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, In My Time of Dying, Caroselambra, When The Levee Breaks, In The Light and Friends. However, I think their prog masterpiece, and the best song they've ever done, is the 10 minute "Achilles Last Stand". It's probably the most complex song they've done, and it is just incredible. Page's guitar solo is one of the all time best. Anyway, what songs of Zeppelin do you consider progressive, and which is your favorite?