My Top 1000 Songs #970: Misty Mountain Hop

[I've been writing up my Top 1000 songs on a daily basis--you can see them all in descending order by hitting the All My Favorite Songs tag.]

Yeah, it feels a little inimical to the spirit of this enterprise to be giving airtime to Led Zeppelin IV. Cuz, c'mon, Led Zeppelin IV. But here we are again, for the second time... but, hey, at least no "Stairway."

Anyway, I remember checking the album out from the local public library as a pre-teen, just as I was starting to explore classic rock and Zeppelin seemed to be one of those bands I was supposed to know all about. I think it took all of a week of FM dial explorations to already be kinda sick of "Stairway" and "Black Dog" and "Rock And Roll"--but I kinda liked "Misty Mountain Hop." It was a little quirkier than the blues-based stuff, something about the weirdly discordant vocals a little intriguing, and I always appreciated their more keyboard-dominant John Paul Jones-heavy tracks. Plus, when you hit that one point near the end--3:55 into the song, if we're being specific--where John Bonham drops off the beat, then launches into a drumroll and finds his way back into the song--jesus, that was fucking cool.

Live 1973:

2007 reunion:

4 Non Blondes cover:

Heart, live 2007. Ann Wilson, fuck yes.

Zepparella (tribute band):