A while back I found a list which ranked all The Beatles songs in order from worst to best (you can read that list here). The list had a whopping 213 songs on it, a tribute to the fact that in the seven years they were releasing albums (from 1963’s Please Please Me to 1970’s Let It Be, which was actually recorded before 1969’s Abbey Road), The Beatles released an insane amount of songs -so many of which were of such high quality- that it truly is hard to create a list such as this.
Welp, I stumbled across another list a few days back, this one devoted to ranking all the Led Zeppelin songs. The group released albums from 1969 (Led Zeppelin) to 1982 (Coda) which means they were “active” and releasing albums for thirteen years versus The Beatles’ seven years. One could quibble about that time frame as Coda was an “odds and ends” album comprised of stuff left over in the studio from the previous years. Their last “real” album was 1979’s In Through The Out Door, so take that as you will.
Regardless, though together a longer time they released some 92 songs. This is not a knock against Led Zeppelin, whose music I REALLY like, only pointing out the incredible industry of The Beatles.
Anyway, without further ado and written by Michael Gallucci and presented in ultimateclassicrock.com:
All 92 Led Zeppelin songs ranked worst to best
Unlike The Beatles, I’m not quite as familiar with Led Zeppelin’s tunes to the point where seeing a title instantly makes me know the song. Some had titles that don’t necessarily follow the song while others are only too obvious.
With this ranking, I have to admit I was scratching my head at the placement of some of the selections, perhaps moreso than with The Beatles list. But as with The Beatles list, I’m going to add my own .02 cents and present what I think are the 10 best Led Zeppelin songs, in no particular order…
Stairway to Heaven. What more need be said about this song? It’s transcendent and classic.
Immigrant Song. Another one of those songs whose driving music and wonderful singing by Robert Plant propels it into the stratosphere.
Communication Breakdown. Love, love, love this hard crunching, almost metal song, found on their very first album.
Hey Hey What Can I Do. Never formally released on an album, this “B” side of Immigrant Song may well be one of Led Zeppelin’s all time best songs ever. A real curiosity that it was never put into a formal album!
Kashmir. Another one of those instantly identifiable Led Zeppelin songs. Some may complain it goes on too long, but I feel it goes on just long enough. Chilling.
Heartbreaker/Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman). Yeah, I know, they’re two songs actually mashed up together but I’ve always viewed them as intertwined and, therefore, one work.
Whole Lotta Love. Another of those songs that is intricately tied to Led Zeppelin. Great tune.
Black Dog. Yet another song that is soooo Led Zeppelin. Opening song on their famous fourth album.
What Is And What Should Never Be. From their second album and featuring yet another incredible Jimmy Page riff.
Ramble On. Led Zeppelin were very much into J. R. R. Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings Trilogy/The Hobbit. Here’s a song that most certainly makes allusions to it.