Thanks Rachel from Scenestars for pointing me to this video about Bill Graham’s unearthed rock ‘n’ roll treasure trove.
Collectors will have a blast looking through Wolfgang’s Vault. Don’t forget to stop by the gift shop for a Huey Lewis polo shirt! (The apparel prices may seem steep, but they actually sell this stuff for 3x more money at vintage stores in the Village.)
Of course WV has a blog too, where I learned some fun facts about “Stairway To Heaven”…
There are those who would argue that “Stairway to Heaven” is the finest musical achievement of the past 700 years. This is questionable, particularly since it is only the third best song on Led Zeppelin IV. In fact, it has been my experience that most Americans secretly loathe this song and will do anything to avoid remembering it; this probably caused the drastic lineup change of Kingdom Come in 1989. The problem, it seems, is that modern listeners can no longer separate the sonic experience of “Stairway to Heaven” from the mythology that surrounds it, which is as follows:
1. Many say that the opening bars of “Stairway to Heaven” were blatantly lifted from the instrumental track “Taurus” by Spirit, a group Zeppelin opened for in 1968. (This is almost certainly true.)
2. Robert Plant wrote the lyrics to “Stairway to Heaven” while sitting on a log near a fire, attempting to find enlightenment. The ephemeral image of a gnome emerged from those flames and entered Plant’s body through his nose and mouth; Plant then scribbled the 341 words in a dream-state rush. (This could be partly true).
3. Though never released as a single, “Stairway to Heaven” is the most requested song in FM radio history. (This is false).
Read the rest here.
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isn’t the zeppelin post taken from a chuck klosterman piece? i know i’ve read that before.
I certainly hate that song with a passion. Smug, pretentious, only mildly-rocking, and profoundly gay (and not in a good way).
I love that parody record “Stairway to Gilligan’s Island.” Too bad Zep’s lawyers sued it off the market…
definitely klosterman.
They credited it to someone else. Are you sure? If so, that’s lame and they should stick to selling overpriced posters.
an article or book from klosterman?
the coolset thing i ever saw done with the song was by Drivin’ and Cryin’ where they did a cover of Stairway to heaven and Freebird (at the same time), BUT during Stairway they sang the lyrics to Freebird and vice versa when playing Freebird.
it was both hilarious and lighter worthy.
(wolfgang is right is saying that is the worst song on the album give me When The Levee Breaks any day!)
yep, it’s from the may ’06 issue of spin.
Reminds me of the southern rockabilly band Dash Rip Rock’s parody, Stairway to Freebird. Now THAT’s earth-shaking!
The apparel is cool (and expensive) at WB, but the best part of the site is the radio station, which plays unreleased performances from various Graham shows going back to the sixties.
The apparel is cool (and expensive) at WV, but the best part of the site is the radio station, which plays unreleased performances from various Graham shows going back to the sixties.