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Whole Lotta Love
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Whole Lotta Love" | |||||
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| Single by Led Zeppelin from the album Led Zeppelin II |
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| Released | October 22, 1969 | ||||
| Format | 7" single: US, Japan, France, The Netherlands, Belgium, CD single | ||||
| Recorded | May 1969 | ||||
| Genre | Heavy metal, hard rock | ||||
| Length | Album Version: 5:34 Single: 3:10 | ||||
| Label | Atlantic Records | ||||
| Writer | Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Bonham, John Paul Jones, Willie Dixon | ||||
| Producer | Jimmy Page | ||||
| Certification | Gold | ||||
| Led Zeppelin singles chronology | |||||
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"Whole Lotta Love" is a song originated by blues songwriter Willie Dixon and most famously covered by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is featured as the opening track on their second album, Led Zeppelin II. It was their first hit single. In 2004, the song was ranked #75 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and in March 2005, Q magazine placed "Whole Lotta Love" at number 3 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks.
It was recorded at various studios in New York and Los Angeles during a 1969 concert tour of the United States and assembled by Jimmy Page at Olympic Studios in London. Already part of their live repertoire, it saw its first official release on the LP Led Zeppelin II on October 22, 1969 (Atlantic LP #8236).
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In 1962, Muddy Waters recorded "You Need Love" by peer Willie Dixon. In 1966 British soul band The Small Faces recorded the song as "You Need Loving" for their debut Decca LP. Much of the lyrics of Led Zeppelin's version are taken from the Willie Dixon song, a favorite of the band's. Plant's phrasing is particularly similar to that of Steve Marriott's in the Small Faces' version. Similarities with "You Need Love" (and "Bring It On Home") would lead to a lawsuit settled out of court in the favor of Dixon in 1985. The song does incorporate lyrical nods to other influences, however, including Dixon's "Back Door Man" and "Shake for Me", the latter recorded by Howlin' Wolf. Lyrics from Elvis Presley's "Mystery Train" also appear during the instrumental break.
Robert Plant was (and is) a huge fan of blues and soul singers, and regularly quoted other songs, especially live. The practice of borrowing others' lyrics has long been integral to the blues style. To quote Robert Plant:
| “ | Page's riff was Page's riff. It was there before anything else. I just thought, 'well, what am I going to sing?' That was it, a nick. Now happily paid for. At the time, there was a lot of conversation about what to do. It was decided that it was so far away in time (it was in fact 7 years) and influence that...well, you only get caught when you're successful. That's the game.[1] | ” |
The song begins with a trademark Page riff and moves into the first chorus. Then, beginning at 1:24 (and lasting until 3:02) the song dissolves to a free jazz-like break involving a theremin solo and the moans of Robert Plant (sometimes called the "orgasm section"). As audio engineer Eddie Kramer has explained: "The famous Whole Lotta Love mix, where everything is going bananas, is a combination of Jimmy and myself just flying around on a small console twiddling every knob known to man."
Upon release of the LP, radio stations looked for a track that would fit their on-air formats from the quickly successful LP with the pulsing, skronk-raunch lead track "Whole Lotta Love" being the prime contender. However, because many radio stations saw the freeform middle section as unfit to air they simply created their own edited versions. Atlantic Records was quick to respond and in addition to the release of the regular single in the US (coupled with "Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)" from the same LP as the B-side) released a 3:10 version of the track with the freeform section cut and an earlier fade-out on November 7, 1969. Both versions were released as Atlantic #45-2690. The edited version was intended for radio station promotional release but some copies were apparently released commercially in the US and are a collector's item for fans. Band manager Peter Grant was adamant that the band maintain a "no-singles" approach to marketing their recorded music in the UK. The song was released as a single in the US, France, Germany (as No 1), Switzerland, The Netherlands, Belgium and Japan (countries where the band had less control). The edited version was withdrawn.
Several years later, Atlantic Records reissued "Whole Lotta Love" (with its original B-side "Living Loving Maid") on its Oldies Series label (OS-13116) with a slight error. The edited 3:10 version was used for the reissue, but the labels were printed with the unedited running time of 5:33.
In 1997 Atlantic Records released a CD-single edited (to 4:50 this time) from the original 1969 recording of the song. This version charted in the UK where the band had maintained control over single releases during their existence.
The song entered the Billboard Top 40 singles chart on December 6, 1969. It remained on the chart for 13 weeks, peaking at #4 and becoming the band's only Top 10 single in the US. A famous show closer at Led Zeppelin concerts, it was usually performed as a medley of blues and R&B covers favored by the band. This included 1950s and 1960s standards such as:
- "Let that Boy Boogie", "Boogie Chillen" and "I'm in the Mood" all by John Lee Hooker
- "I'm Movin' On" by Hank Snow
- "Hello Mary Lou" written by Gene Pitney, a hit for Ricky Nelson
- "Mess o' the Blues" written for Elvis Presley by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman
- "Rave On" written by Sonny West and popularized by Buddy Holly
- "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" written by Lloyd Price, a hit for Elvis among others
- "Hideaway" by Freddie King
- "Fixin' to Die" and "Shake 'em on Down" by Bukka White
- "Killing Floor" by Howlin' Wolf
- "Voodoo Chile" by Jimi Hendrix
- "For What It's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield
- "The Hunter" by Albert King
- "That's Alright Mama" by Arthur Crudup; popularized by Elvis
- "Honeydripper" by Joe Liggins
- "Blueberry Hill" by Vincent Rose, a hit for Louis Armstrong and Fats Domino
- "Trucking Little Woman" and "I Can't Be Satisfied" by Big Bill Broonzy
- "Let's Have a Party" written by Jessie Mae Robinson for Elvis; a hit for Wanda Jackson
- "Drop Down Mama" written by Sleepy John Estes and covered by Big Joe Williams
- "Some Other Guy" written by Leiber/Stoller/Barrett; popularized by The Beatles
- "Susie Q" by Dale Hawkins
- "Everybody Needs Somebody" by Solomon Burke; written by Russell/Burke/Wexler
- "Baby I Don't Care" written by Leiber & Stoller; recorded by Elvis
- "Licking Stick" and "Sex Machine" by James Brown
- "Long Distance Call" and "Honey Bee" performed by Muddy Waters
- "Going Down Slow" by St. Louis Jimmy Oden
- "Heartbreak Hotel, Jailhouse Rock, and Mystery Train by Elvis Presley
- "Only the Lonely by Roy Orbison
When performed live, "Whole Lotta Love" also occasionally included segments of other Led Zeppelin songs such as "I Can't Quit You Baby", "You Shook Me", "How Many More Times (inc. The Hunter)", "Your Time Is Gonna Come", "Good Times, Bad Times", "The Lemon Song", "The Crunge", "D'yer Mak'er", and "Ramble On".
Live versions of "Whole Lotta Love" were released officially on the following titles:
- The Song Remains the Same; 2xLP (September 28, 1976; Swan Song #SS2-201; from a 1973 concert and movie soundtrack)
- Led Zeppelin BBC Sessions; 2xCD (November 11, 1997; Atlantic #83061; from a 1971 concert)
- How the West Was Won; 3xCD (May 27, 2003; Atlantic #83587; from a 1972 concert)
- Led Zeppelin; DVD (2003; from a 1979 and a 1970 concert)
"Whole Lotta Love" was the last song Led Zeppelin ever played live in their original lineup. It was however performed at Led Zeppelin's reunion show at the O2 Arena, London on December 10, 2007, with Jason Bonham sitting in on drums for his late father.
Several artists have covered Led Zeppelin's version or have played it live:
- In 1985 Page, Plant and John Paul Jones reunited and performed the song at the Live Aid concert at JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, as part of the Led Zeppelin set featuring drummers Tony Thompson and Phil Collins.
- In 1988 the surviving members of Led Zeppelin again performed "Whole Lotta Love" at the Atlantic Records 40th anniversary party at Madison Square Garden in New York, with John's son Jason Bonham on drums.
- Jimmy Page performed this song on his tour with The Black Crowes in 1999. A version of "Whole Lotta Love" performed by Page and The Black Crowes can be found on the album Live at the Greek.
- Robert Plant also played a version of the song during his solo tour in 2005, as is included on the DVD release Soundstage: Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation.
- A cover version of "Whole Lotta Love" was recorded by Jason Bonham, son of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, and released on his 1997 album In the Name of My Father - The Zepset
- Dread Zeppelin recorded a version of this song on their album Un-Led-Ed.
- Missouri metalcore band Coalesce recorded a version of this song for their album There is Nothing New Under the Sun, an album entirely composed of Led Zeppelin covers.
- Since 1985, American comedian Wayne Federman plays the main riff plus the solo on his electric ukulele (with Marshall Amplification).
- Oasis segued "Whole Lotta Love" into the end of their own song "Cigarettes & Alcohol" at their Wembley Stadium gig on 21 July 2000. It was released in the concert DVD/CD compilation Familiar to Millions.
- A song by The Prodigy, "Rhythm of Life", samples Robert Plant's scream heard from 4:20 to 4:27 on the studio version of "Whole Lotta Love". The sample appears several times throughout the song.
- The band Foreigner often play the intro and first verse as part of the extended solo to "Jukebox Hero" when playing live.
- Tina Turner sung a cover of "Whole Lotta Love" on her Acid Queen album. This song is on the LP Funkier Than a Mosquito's tweeter with Ike.
- Dance band Goldbug covered "Whole Lotta Love" in a single released in the UK in 1995, featuring a sample of the Pearl and Dean theme tune, Asteroid.
- Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell covered the song for his 1999 solo debut "Rev", and Jane's Addiction used to cover the song live.
- The Pussycat Dolls performed their own cover version of the song as part of their recent world tour.
- In the mid-90's, a parody of the song, "Whole Lotta Lucy", was made by Nick-at-Nite for a commercial promoting their two-hour Saturday night I Love Lucy/Lucy/Desi Comedy Hour block. Sound clips of Lucille Ball wailing on I Love Lucy replaced the chorus' famous guitar riffs.
- A cover version by C.C.S. was used as the theme song for the British television show Top of the Pops
- In 2002, Prince did a version on his 'One Nite Alone' tour in Europe and also featured on a live DVD, "Live From The Aladdin".
- 70's Funk guitarist Dennis Coffey recorded a cover version which is featuerd prominently on the Product Placement cd by DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist
- Reckless Kelly did a live cover of the song on their album Live at Stubb's.
- Lead singer from the Grammy-winning band Train and solo artist Pat Monahan has been doing "a killer version" of Whole Lotta Love during his 2007 solo tour.
- Multi-Genre artist Ben Harper has performed this song in conjunction with his own song, Faded. A version of this can be found on Harper's 2001 live album, Live From Mars
- English Heavy Metal Parody band Bad News (feat. Adrian Edmondson, Rik Mayall, Nigel Planer) use the structure of the guitar solo of 'Whole lotta love' to do their own version during the song 'Bad News'. Vim Fuego's (Edmondson) solo is note for note to the original for the first four breaks, then it seques into a parody of Brian May's Brighton Rock solo from the Queen album, Sheer Heart Attack. (May produced the album on which it appears.)
- Kid Rock bridges together Somebody's Gotta Feel This and Fist of Rage with Whole Lotta Love on his 2006 Live Trucker album.
- Muse used the song as part of a jam at the KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas in 2007.
- Led Zeppelin: Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song, by Chris Welch, ISBN 1-56025-818-7
- The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin, by Dave Lewis, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9
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| Whole Lotta Love · What Is and What Should Never Be · The Lemon Song · Thank You · Heartbreaker · Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman) · Ramble On · Moby Dick · Bring It on Home |