# Can anyone identify this rock song? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 15, 2005, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714 "2005-03-15T22:15:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Othersider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/cab0a1/32.png) [@Othersider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Othersider)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/21 "2005-03-16T10:38:58Z")
> [@mamboman](#): > > While we’re onthe subject, I have never for the life of me been able to figure out what the guy is singing in “When the levee Breaks” when he says “it’s got what it takes to make a ??? leave his home”. Can anyone help? > > mm A mountain man, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/22 "2005-03-16T10:54:06Z")
> [@Othersider](#): > > A mountain man, apparently. That’s the way I’ve always heard it, too, but could be a mondegreen. Why would a man living in the mountains care if the levee broke? ---
**Author:** ![owlstretchingtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/958977/32.png) [@owlstretchingtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/owlstretchingtime)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/23 "2005-03-16T11:00:07Z")
Another thing about this song is that it has the most sampled drums in the whole wide world. It was recorded in an old country house near where I grew up and the drums were put at the bottom of the stairwell and the mikes at the top. Here’s where it happened: [http://www.johnowensmith.co.uk/headley/grange.htm](http://www.johnowensmith.co.uk/headley/grange.htm) [Spinal tap] Dont’t look for it now - it’s not there anymore [/spinal tap] If you’re looking for an album that covers all aspects of Zep then you can’t go wrong with Physical Graffitti - especially side two. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Clanger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@Small\_Clanger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Clanger)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/24 "2005-03-16T11:13:01Z")
> [@Rufus Xavier](#): > > Or perhaps these songs represent a part of a larger work, one whose pieces are scattered across their recordings, that, when grouped together, make an “aah-aah” epic, if you will. See the songs _The Immigrant Song_: > > Aah wa-aah, ahh. . . > > and _Nobody’s Fault But Mine_: > > Aah aah aah aah. . . > > for example. Not forgetting **The Ocean** Nah nah, na-na-na nah Nah nah, na-na na-na nah Nah nah, na-na-na nah Nah-nah na-na na-na na-na nah And what’s that bit from **In My Time of Dying**? Oh my Jeebus Oh my Jeebus Oh my Jeeee–ee-bus Oh my Jeebus. . . (something like that anyway). **JoSki** Check out \*\*Physical Graffiti \*\* it has more **Levee** type stuff on it than Zep2 or Zep4. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/25 "2005-03-16T11:21:02Z")
> [@owlstretchingtime](#): > > If you’re looking for an album that covers all aspects of Zep then you can’t go wrong with Physical Graffitti - especially side two. I was going to ask, side two of which record… then realized I was dating myself. ---
**Author:** ![owlstretchingtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/958977/32.png) [@owlstretchingtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/owlstretchingtime)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/26 "2005-03-16T11:23:08Z")
I have all the remastered Cds but still think in terms of sides - eg LZ III with the noisy side and the quiet side. I am proper old. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/27 "2005-03-16T11:33:10Z")
What I still want to know is: Where _is_ that confounded bridge? ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/28 "2005-03-16T11:34:27Z")
> [@owlstretchingtime](#): > > I have all the remastered Cds but still think in terms of sides - eg LZ III with the noisy side and the quiet side. I had forgotten that the SwanSong vinyl listed sides 1-4, rather than sides 1 and 2 of each. That being the case, I wouldn’t recommend side 2 of PG to **JoeSKi** to start out. Doesn’t sound so much like what he’s after. Side 4 (Boogie with Stu etc) might be more his speed, and of course the first part of side 1 – hard to go wrong with Custard Pie and The Rover! ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/29 "2005-03-16T11:35:38Z")
> [@fishbicycle](#): > > What I still want to know is: > > Where _is_ that confounded bridge? They should’ve asked James Brown. His boys took him there every time. ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8c91f0/32.png) [@Frank\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_2)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/30 "2005-03-16T13:56:13Z")
They never find the bridge, which is why the song ends so abruptly. Maybe James Brown stole it. **JoeSki** , you really can’t go wrong with any of the Zep albums, if you’re buying your first. However, Led Zeppelin III is an accoustic album (one of the best ever made) and isn’t exactly the default Led Zep sound. Also, stay away from Coda. Just stay away. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/31 "2005-03-16T14:18:31Z")
> [@Sample\_the\_Dog](#): > > That’s the way I’ve always heard it, too, but could be a mondegreen. Why would a man living in the mountains care if the levee broke? Better ask Robert Plant. That’s not how Memphis Minnie originally sang it; her version goes _Mean ol’ levee taught me to weep and moan Gonna leave my baby and my happy home._ ---
**Author:** ![The\_Chao\_Goes\_Mu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_chao_goes_mu/32/3191_2.png) [@The\_Chao\_Goes\_Mu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Chao_Goes_Mu)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/32 "2005-03-16T14:29:02Z")
> [@Sample\_the\_Dog](#): > > They should’ve asked James Brown. His boys took him there every time. Yep, right before they hit it and quit. Regarding **In My Time of Dying** it’s a kick ass song. It may not seem so by today’s standards but the whole Crowleyian homoeroticism in that song regarding wanting to blow Gabriel’s horn was pretty edgy at the time. Zepplin has got to one of the coolest bands, ever! Gosh! ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/33 "2005-03-16T14:42:20Z")
> [@owlstretchingtime](#): > > Another thing about this song is that it has the most sampled drums in the whole wide world. > > It was recorded in an old country house near where I grew up and the drums were put at the bottom of the stairwell and the mikes at the top. I seem to remember reading that they brought the original tapes in for mixing and whatnot at the studio, and somehow every track was ruined with the exception of “When the Levee Breaks.” Which was great, because the setup they had going on that one is just incredible. I could be wrong, though, about which track was saved, but I’m pretty sure that was the only one. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/34 "2005-03-16T14:48:57Z")
> [@The Chao Goes Mu](#): > > Regarding **In My Time of Dying** it’s a kick ass song. It may not seem so by today’s standards but the whole Crowleyian homoeroticism in that song regarding wanting to blow Gabriel’s horn was pretty edgy at the time. Please. Cole Porter did that riff in “Blow, Gabriel, Blow” in the 1930s. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Clanger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@Small\_Clanger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Clanger)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/35 "2005-03-16T14:53:52Z")
> [@audiobottle](#): > > . . . the setup they had going on that one is just incredible. It’s a bit stranger than that. The reason the song is such a weird key (for a guitar based blues song) is that the whole backing track is slowed down – making it sound so massive. I’ll check it out. ---
**Author:** ![owlstretchingtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/958977/32.png) [@owlstretchingtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/owlstretchingtime)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/36 "2005-03-16T14:55:19Z")
It’s older than even that - it’s a straight rip-off lyrically of an old blues song called “make up my dying bed” from the early 20s. Also - despite looking good on the cover etc avoid the Song Remains the Same album and film (unless you like spinal tappisms). How the west Was Won and the live DVD are miles better. I still say that side 2 of PG is the bestest thing they ever did - Houses of the Holy, trampled underfoot\* and Kashmir. Pretty much perfect. - if you have trouble with the lyrics to when the levee breaks, you’re in for a treat with Trampled Underfoot. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/37 "2005-03-16T15:13:42Z")
> [@JoeSki](#): > > I told myself if it was indeed a Zepplin song, I’d _have_ to buy one of their CDs. :eek: Now **Joe** , for a house with many walls, would you only buy one Van Gogh? For a library with many shelves, would you only buy one Faulkner? Why only one Zepplin when all have sooooo much to offer and are available in a number of complete, remastered sets? Trust us on this. It ain’t just the popular, on the radio stuff of theirs that’s worth being exposed to. It’s all good and it’s all worth experiencing… in some of our cases over and over and over again. We think it’s that damn good. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/38 "2005-03-16T15:23:33Z")
> [@JoeSki](#): > > ThatLZ2 doesn’t sound bad. When The Levee Breaks has a bluesy/rock sound to it which is part of the reason I love it. I’d definately be interested in similiar sounding songs. I’ll look into the various albums next time I go into my CD store in the mall and sample them. Definitely go with these recos first, but if you like that sort of feel you might do well to check out the first four Aerosmith albums. **Owl** , my brain (old as it is), is having trouble bringing up “Trampled Under Foot”. How’s it go? ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/39 "2005-03-16T15:24:30Z")
> [@owlstretchingtime](#): > > It’s older than even that - it’s a straight rip-off lyrically of an old blues song called “make up my dying bed” from the early 20s. > > Also - despite looking good on the cover etc avoid the Song Remains the Same album and film (unless you like spinal tappisms). How the west Was Won and the live DVD are miles better. > > I still say that side 2 of PG is the bestest thing they ever did - Houses of the Holy, trampled underfoot\* and Kashmir. Pretty much perfect. > > - if you have trouble with the lyrics to when the levee breaks, you’re in for a treat with Trampled Underfoot. Ah, the film. That was pretty great. Especially the awe inspiring special effects employed in its making. I heard\* that before Titanic came out, it was the most expensive film ever made due to its massive SFX budget. Unbelievable. Seriously, the movie sucks. And I’m a huge Zep fan. \*Note: I may or may not have actually heard this. \*\*Note: It may be worth watching for the fantastic view of Robert Plant’s teeth. It gives you hope that someday you too can be a symbol of sex. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2005, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714/40 "2005-03-16T15:29:04Z")
I always thought TSRTS movie should have been called “Robert Plant’s Crotch”. Much of the footage of him singing is taken from below the stage, so his crotch ends up displayed prominently in the middle of the screen. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-identify-this-rock-song/294714.md?page=3)