Hey all. This is another blog because of course I'm too important for just one. This one is basically just so I can post videos of songs I like, and rant for ages about how much I like them. Basically just putting all my thoughts into some digital garbage disposal for nobody to read.
The first song is one of my favorites by my favorite band, that band being Led Zeppelin. Ten Years Gone is virtually unknown to the "casual" fan: I've only heard it on the radio once, and it was a (very) deep cut. But it's one of their best... I'd say my second favorite on Physical Graffiti. Just like many other Zeppelin songs, this one alone is enough proof that Jimmy Page is a genius, as a guitarist, songwriter/arranger, and a producer.
Ten Years Gone Guitar Tracks (sorry, they didn't allow embedding for this video)
This video is the audio of the recording process for the multiple guitar tracks for the middle section of the song. As much as I love the final studio version, I find myself listening to the first two minutes of this track (which is an acoustic demo track for the section) quite often. The guitar has such a pleasant, almost comforting sound to it, and the lo-fi nature of the recording just adds to the "nostalgic" feel to it. The next minute is the electric rhythm guitar, and after that it cuts back to the original spot repeatedly, and every time he adds a different melody to it, which, combined, comprise the section from 3:45 to 4:08.
Even though Jimmy Page is obviously the star of this song, I also really like Robert Plant's vocals, mainly because of what he doesn't do. I like his wailing, but I also like how he doesn't do that here. He also has a great softer voice, which is displayed here. And the lyrics are some of my favorites of his, about one of his girlfriends giving him the choice of either her or his music, and naturally he went with music. They're intelligent and lovely, and not as dense and wordy as his later Zeppelin lyrics. And not "baby baby baby" either. Ahem. Basically it's like the bridge between their simpler folk songs (Going to California, Tangerine) and their unashamedly epic songs.
They didn't play it live much, most likely because of how impossible it is to play ten or so guitar tracks at once. They played it throughout 1977, and at a couple shows in 1979, which, unfortunately, weren't their best years, but regardless, there are some good performances.
The above video is from Seattle, 1977. It's usually considered one of their worst shows, but this song is a relatively smoother song than the majority of the show. For some reason Robert Plant completely loses his voice halfway through (and that harmonizer that he used at the end is just god awful, I hate it in this song and every other song he used it in) and Jimmy Page is somewhat sticky fingered throughout, but it's still a good'un.
