Okay - so last night, Terri Gross interviewed Robert Plant, who was supporting his release of “66 to Timbuktu” a compilation of material he recorded before and after Zep. At one point, she asked him about the classically un-interpretable line from Stairway “If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be a lawman…” and that’s right when my wife walked in and started talking! Arrrrgh!
Who listened to the interview? How was the line explained?
Thanks!
the lines actually "if theres a bustle in your hedgerow, dont be alarmed now , not dont be a lawman.
next line, “its just a sprinkling for the may queen” (i think). its all to do with Plant & Pages obsession with LOTR and i think its something to do with A Midsummer Nights Dream too.
Someone else should be along shortly to give full mashings details on what its all about, I dont have the right stuff here with me right now.
ERRRRRRRNNNKKKKKK!
Sorry, wrong answer. Thanks for playing, though. We’ve got some great parting gifts for you…Johnny, tell them what they’ve won.
“If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow,
Don’t be alarmed, now
Its just a spring clean for the May Queen.”
Terri Gross had the “sprinkling” and “spring clean” mixed up, too.
The references are about a return to a more organic, natural way of life. Tolkein had nothing to do with the song.
I missed the show but it was covered once by SD here.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030425.html
I found a little more text on the whole coming of age theory here… This site also gives info. on the whole backward masking hoopla.
http://www.durangocoloradousa.com/stairwaytoheaven.html
Still, I would be interested in knowing if anyone actually got to hear what Plant had to say…
alright, my mistake. note the fact i said ‘i think’. I didnt say it was definitive. And theres plenty Tolkien references in other Led Zep songs to think Stairways included. Without having the lyrics, I always thought it was ‘sprinkling’. and thats after, oo, about 5000 listens.
Wasn’t trying to give you a hard time. Plant had some fun correcting Terri’s mistake, too.
She played a version of Tiny Tim and a lounge act doing the song and it was pretty good. Plant said that he’s heard just about every interpretation of the song that you can imagine, and that the song has reached that stage where it needs to be made fun of from time to time.
His explanation of why they didn’t originally credit Willie Dixon for “Whole Lotta Love” was lame, though. “We just thought of it as a long continuation of the blues tradition.” Right…and it took a law suit for you to see the error of your ways.