Record #490: Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV (1971)

By their second album, Led Zeppelin had already revolutionized hard rock. By their third, they had injected traditional folk elements to round out their songwriting.

So where could they possibly go for their fourth? They had already subverted every expectation of their genre and broken every limitation of the recording process.

But they weren’t about to rest now.

Their fourth album (technically untitled) finds them melding their blistering hard rock with their intricate folk dabbling to create a cohesive masterwork that is undeniably a capital G Great record.

This disk probably showcases the Zeppelin ethos better than any other album. There’s the mythic folk of “The Battle of Evermore,” the pastoral “Going to California” with a menacing minor shift, and the pounding hugeness of “When the Levee Breaks.” Even the deep cuts are great—especially the bouncing, synth-tinged “Four Sticks.”

And that’s completely ignoring their indelible eight-minute epic “Stairway to Heaven,” which is still probably the greatest rock song of all time, ignoring all of the jokes and overplay. Its otherworldly baroque shifts into folk rock before breaking into Jimmy Page’s most lyrical guitar solo ever. It is the pinnacle of their ambition, and they nail it.

Which isn’t to say the entire record is a home run. The first two tracks are, honestly, a bit lackluster.

And I know it might be the hottest of takes to say that about two of the band’s biggest singles, but it’s true. “Black Dog” has one of most iconic guitar riffs in history, but it stumbles a bit between verses. “Rock and Roll” is pure-octane rock and roll excitement, but it falls a few ticks short of the brilliant composition that they’ve proved time and again that they are capable of.

But let’s be honest—that bar is incredibly high. And even if they fall short of it, they’re still great tracks. And they certainly don’t do enough damage to make this anything less than a ten-out-of-ten record.

If this isn’t the best Led Zeppelin record, it’s certainly the Led Zeppeliniest. And that’s enough.