Official Led Zeppelin Top 40 Countdown Thread!! (Top 2 revealed!!)

[Dave_Manchester]

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

It made my top 5.

[HOF]

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

It made my top 5.

Reading about it now, and apparently John Paul Jones didn't like it. The lyrics are silly (and I never would have gotten the joke implied by the title without looking it up), but so are lots of Zeppelin lyrics.

[Stadler]

Confession: I just learned the other day while listening to Houses of the Holy for the first time that the song that goes "oh oh oh oh oh oh, you don't have to go" is called D'yer Mak'er. If I had made a list, I would have tried to rank it but not had any clue what it was called.

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

Both D'yer Mak'er (a pun on "Jamaica!"; #78 on my list) and The Crunge (#82 on my list) were the result of Bonham playing with traditional beats, the former a mix of reggae and 50's doo-wop, the latter a funk number, but purposefully done so you couldn't dance to it. "The Bridge" is a tongue in cheek reference to James Brown.  They were controversial at the time, and according to many critics, led to the mixed reviews for the album.

It's worth noting that "Houses Of The Holy", "The Rover", "Black Country Woman" and "Walter's Walk" were all recorded during these sessions. 

Can you imagine this:
Side One
1.   "The Song Remains the Same"   
2.   "The Rain Song"
3.   "Over the Hills and Far Away"
4.   "Houses Of The Holy"   

Side two
1.   "Dancing Days"   
2.   "The Rover"   
3.   "No Quarter"   
4.   "The Ocean"

[Dave_Manchester]

Speaking of 'the pastry song', what's with Plant so often addressing sexually suggestive lyrics to "mama"? Was this a thing in the 70s? I mean bands using that word as a pet name for a lover; not Oedipal shenanigans. The only other time I've heard it done is by that Zeppelin clone, Greta van Whatsherface.   

[HOF]

Speaking of 'the pastry song', what's with Plant so often addressing sexually suggestive lyrics to "mama"? Was this a thing in the 70s? I mean bands using that word as a pet name for a lover, not Oedipal shenanigans. The only other time I've heard it done is by that Zeppelin clone, Greta van Whatsherface.   

Oh, yeah, it was definitely a thing. There is a story about Phil Collins not wanting to sing "mama" on Many Too Many, and Tony Banks had to convince him by telling him Stevie Wonder uses mama in his lyrics all the time. And then of course a few years later Phil wrote a whole song called Mama (which is a really icky lyric).

[pg1067]

I had Immigrant Song at 23.  I love it, and it gets in and out in fine fashion, but "da-DUH-duhduh-daduh" for 3 straight minutes sometimes is a bit much.

Achilles is far and away my favorite Zeppelin song.  It's really not close.  The layering of the guitars (I shudder to think what this must have sounded like live), JPJ's bass work, the drum patterns.  The whole thing is excellent from start to finish.

[jingle.boy]

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

It made my top 5.

 

For me, 2nd worst song in their catalog.  Instant skip and station change - every. single. time. 

[TAC]

Two songs in my 5 didn't even make the list! 

[devieira73]

I had Immigrant Song at 23.  I love it, and it gets in and out in fine fashion, but "da-DUH-duhduh-daduh" for 3 straight minutes sometimes is a bit much.

Achilles is far and away my favorite Zeppelin song.  It's really not close.  The layering of the guitars (I shudder to think what this must have sounded like live), JPJ's bass work, the drum patterns.  The whole thing is excellent from start to finish.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWOuzYvksRw
Jimmy's performance is rough, especially in the solos, but it's worth overall, for what it is.

[Zoom E]

I originally had Immigrant Song at #6 but ended up shuffling things around and it ended up at #3. Love this song.

I have Achilles Last Stand at #16. I actually had never listened to Presence until listening to a few times for this countdown. I feel like Achilles would probably rank higher for me if I had more familiarity with it.

[KevShmev]

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

I love it and ranked it 24th.  I was hopeful it would squeeze in, but it ended up 44th.

Tangerine was the one song I had in my top 20 that didn't finish in the top 40.  That makes me a little sad.  I hear that and think of Almost Famous, every single time.

[TAC]

I had Immigrant Song at 23.  I love it, and it gets in and out in fine fashion, but "da-DUH-duhduh-daduh" for 3 straight minutes sometimes is a bit much.

Achilles is far and away my favorite Zeppelin song.  It's really not close.  The layering of the guitars (I shudder to think what this must have sounded like live), JPJ's bass work, the drum patterns.  The whole thing is excellent from start to finish.

This post does not compute. You complain about Immigrant Song doing the same thing for three minutes, but Achilles does the same thing for over 10 minutes.

[King Postwhore]

I've been out a bit with my dad's issues but these 2 songs are engraved in my heart, mind and soul forever.

[Cool Chris]

I never would have pegged Achilles ranking this high.

[DragonAttack]

I never would have pegged Achilles ranking this high.

Me neither 😉

[Animal]

Confession: I just learned the other day while listening to Houses of the Holy for the first time that the song that goes "oh oh oh oh oh oh, you don't have to go" is called D'yer Mak'er. If I had made a list, I would have tried to rank it but not had any clue what it was called.

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

Both D'yer Mak'er (a pun on "Jamaica!"; #78 on my list) and The Crunge (#82 on my list) were the result of Bonham playing with traditional beats, the former a mix of reggae and 50's doo-wop, the latter a funk number, but purposefully done so you couldn't dance to it. "The Bridge" is a tongue in cheek reference to James Brown.  They were controversial at the time, and according to many critics, led to the mixed reviews for the album.

It's worth noting that "Houses Of The Holy", "The Rover", "Black Country Woman" and "Walter's Walk" were all recorded during these sessions. 

Can you imagine this:
Side One
1.   "The Song Remains the Same"   
2.   "The Rain Song"
3.   "Over the Hills and Far Away"
4.   "Houses Of The Holy"   

Side two
1.   "Dancing Days"   
2.   "The Rover"   
3.   "No Quarter"   
4.   "The Ocean"

This would have been the best LZ album, hands down. I still don't really care for The Ocean but at least, it is not annoying. I think LZ had a knack for spoiling for what could be a great of perfect albums with a  bad apple or two or spoiling what could be a good or great song with an annoying element or two.  The cases in point: As great as III is, it contains inexplicably terrible Hats off to Roy Harper, HotH is blemished with Crunge and, maybe, Dyers Maker (even though with the latter, it probably depends on how much you like or dislike reggae. I can't stand it so LZ making it at least tolerable is a feat). IV has songs like Misty Mountain Hop or Battle of Evermore with good or great instrumentals but annoying vocals....and so on.
   

[jammindude]

Can’t stand the hate for Misty Mountain Hop.

I had it at 7 and Levee at 5. My two highest from Zoso.

[KevShmev]

Thanks again to everyone who submitted a list, participated in the thread, etc.!  This one was fun.

And with that, here are the top two, which won't surprise anyone...

02 Kashmir
Appeared on 21 of 21 lists
Highest Finish: 1 (The Realm, jammindude)
15 Top 10 Finishes

30 years ago, this would have been top 5 for me, but the repetitive nature of the song made the song wear off me over time. I still think it is really good, and I ranked it 20th, but I can't say it is one of my top favorites anymore.  That said, I totally get why it is for many, and I fully expected a top 3 finish for it.


01 Stairway to Heaven
Appeared on 21 of 21 lists
Highest Finish: 1 (Animal, Mladen, Stadler, TAC, hefaddy42)
18 Top 10 Finishes

Well done, DTF.  Going in, I was hoping this wouldn't receive the "it's overrated" or "it's not as good anymore" treatment from submitters, and with 18 top 10 finishes and 5 number 1s, that was not the case.  I ranked it 2nd because Over the Hills and Far Away has been my personal favorite for as long as I can remember, but this really is their best song.  It is a monster classic for a reason.  It is the perfect rock song, in just about every way imaginable.

[TAC]

02 Kashmir
Appeared on 21 of 21 lists
Highest Finish: 1 (The Realm, jammindude)
15 Top 10 Finishes


01 Stairway to Heaven
Appeared on 21 of 21 lists
Highest Finish: 1 (Animal, Mladen, Stadler, TAC, hefaddy42)
18 Top 10 Finishes

I had Kashmir at #11. A monster track. Every time I'd hear it on the radio, it would stop me dead in my tracks. Really powerful.

I had Stairway To Heaven at #1. What can I say. It speaks for itself. Magical.



Top 40                                                                      Not Rated
40. D'yer Mak'er                                                    Communication Breakdown
39. Custard Pie                                                      Misty Mountain Hop
38. Thank You                                                           The Battle Of Evermore
37. Carouselambra                                                    Since I've Been Loving You
36. Dazed And Confused                                            Good Times Bad Times
35. Living Loving Maid                                                Whole Lotta Love
34. Ramble On                                                           Black Dog
33. Dancing Days                                                       The Rain Song
32. Celebration Day
31. Achilles Last Stand
30. Rock And Roll
29. Going To California
28. For Your Life
27. All My Love
26. Over The Hills And Far Away
25. Hey Hey What Can I Do
24. Immigrant Song
23. What Is And What Should Never Be
22. The Ocean
21. Trampled Under Foot
20. Down By The Seaside
19. When The Levee Breaks
18. How Many More Times
17. Nobody's Fault But Mine
16. Heartbreaker
15. Fool In The Rain
14. Tea For One
13. Dancing Days
12. Ten Years Gone
11. Kashmir
10. In The Evening
9. No Quarter
8. In My Time Of Dying
7. The Rover
6. The Song Remains The Same
5. Babe I'm Gonna Leave You
4. Wearing And Tearing
3. In The Light
2. The Wanton Song
1. Stairway To Heaven





Awesome Job Kev!!!
Thank you.

[KevShmev]

Full list with point totals:

   
01 Stairway to Heaven   740
02 Kashmir   692
03 Achilles Last Stand   584
04 Immigrant Song   535
05 When the Levee Breaks   464
06 No Quarter   458
07 The Rain Song   448
08 Dazed and Confused   434
09 Rock and Roll   432
10 Black Dog   425
11 Whole Lotta Love   424
12 Babe I'm Gonna Leave You   422
13 Good Times Bad Times   411
14 The Song Remains the Same   391
15 Ten Years Gone   390
16 In the Evening   382
17 Over the Hills and Far Away   381
18 Ramble On   380
19 Since I've Been Loving You   373
20 Heartbreaker   372
21 What Is and What Should Never Be   361
22 The Battle of Evermore   349
23 In My Time of Dying   343
24 The Rover   337
25 Trampled Under Foot   330
26 Going to California   307
27 Misty Mountain Hop   306
28 Houses of the Holy   304
29 Communication Breakdown   264
30 The Ocean   252
31 Thank You   243
32 (t) Dancing Days   241
32 (t) How Many More Times   241
34 In the Light   239
35 (t) All My Love   216
35 (t) Fool in the Rain   216
37 Carouselambra   214
38 Nobody's Fault But Mine   212
39 Hey, Hey, What Can I Do   203
40 Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)   195
41 Four Sticks   179
42 Custard Pie   177
43 Gallows Pole   176
44 D'yer Mak'er   167
45 Tangerine   156
46 (t) That's the Way   151
46 (t) The Wanton Song   151
48 Your Time Is Gonna Come   140
49 Celebration Day   132
50 Sick Again   107
51 Friends   100
52 You Shook Me   97
53 Out on the Tiles   94
54 Down by the Seaside   77
55 I Can't Quit You Baby   76
56 The Lemon Song   67
57 Tea for One   63
58 Wearing and Tearing   60
59 Moby Dick   56
60 Bring It On Home   55
61 Travelling Riverside Blues   52
62 I'm Gonna Crawl   50
63 For Your Life   49
64 Night Flight   45
65 South Bound Saurez   42
66 Bron-Y-Aur Stomp   36
67 The Crunge   34
68 Bron-Yr-Aur   32
69 Boogie with Stu   26
70 Hot Dog   17
71 Black Mountain Side   15
72 Baby Come On Home   11
73 Ozone Baby   8
74 (t) Black Country Woman   4
74 (t) Hots On for Nowhere   4
76 Candy Store Rock   2
77(t) Bonzo's Montreux   0
77 (t) Darlene   0
77 (t) Hats off to (Roy) Harper   0
77 (t) Poor Tom   0
77 (t) Royal Orleans   0
77 (t) Walter's Walk   0
77 (t) We're Gonna Groove   0

[KevShmev]

Songs I had in my top 40 that did not make the list:

39 Your Time Is Gonna Come
37 Black Country Woman
33 The Wanton Song
32 Down by the Seaside
30 Bron-Yr-Stomp
26 The Lemon Song
24 D'yer Mak'er
14 Tangerine

[TAC]

Songs I had in my top 40 that did not make the list:

39 Your Time Is Gonna Come
37 Black Country Woman
33 The Wanton Song
32 Down by the Seaside
30 Bron-Yr-Stomp
26 The Lemon Song
24 D'yer Mak'er
14 Tangerine

Much love for these tracks.

[jingle.boy]

It's hard to argue these as the top-2 collective "favorites".  #4 and #5 for me respectively.

Well, at 12 entries of mine Not Ranked, I gather my list is one of the hottest-takes.  Largely influenced by my love for III it seems.  I can honestly say that Custard Pie not making the list at all is the biggest WTF.  I mean, that's a top-3 riff in the LZ catalog afaic.  For my ears, it's about a bajillion times better than The Rover.  More comments later.

40. Fool in the Rain [35]
39. Bring It On Home [NR]
38. Black Dog [10]
37. The Ocean [30]
36. Dazed and Confused [8]
35. What Is and What Should Never Be [21]
34. The Wanton Song [NR]
33. Misty Mountain Hop [27]
32. Babe I'm Gonna Leave You [10]
31. Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman) [40]
30. Heartbreaker [20]
29. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp [NR]
28. Wearing and Tearing [NR]
27. Night Flight [NR]
26. Celebration Day [NR]
25. Friends [NR]
24. Over the Hills and Far Away [17]
23. Good Times Bad Times [13]
22. Whole Lotta Love [11]
21. The Song Remains the Same [14]
20. Out on the Tiles [NR]
19. No Quarter [6]
18. Ten Years Gone [15]
17. Hey, Hey, What Can I Do [39]
16. Rock and Roll [9]
15. Four Sticks [NR]
14. How Many More Times [32]
13. Custard Pie [NR]
12. Achilles Last Stand [3]
11. Carouselambra [37]
10. The Rain Song [7]
9. In My Time of Dying [23]
8. Since I've Been Loving You [19]
7. Gallows Pole [NR]
6. Immigrant Song [4]
5. Kashmir [2]
4. Stairway to Heaven [1]
3. That's the Way [NR]
2. Ramble On [18]
1. The Battle of Evermore [22]

My not ranked:
38. Nobody's Fault But Mine
35. All of My Love
34. In the Light
32. Dancing Days
31. Thank You
29. Communication Breakdown
28. Houses of the Holy
26. Going to California
25. Trampled Under Foot
24. The Rover
16. In the Evening
5. When The Levee Breaks

[TAC]

Chad, I don't know of Custard Pie not making it is the biggest WTF. I like it, and it made my list, but it was down near the bottom at #39. That's a great riff indeed, but the song is a tad monotonous. That's the thing I found in a lot of these songs that I never really realized before...just how straight line a lot of these tracks actually are.

[jingle.boy]

Chad, I don't know of Custard Pie not making it is the biggest WTF. I like it, and it made my list, but it was down near the bottom at #39. That's a great riff indeed, but the song is a tad monotonous. That's the thing I found in a lot of these songs that I never really realized before...just how straight line a lot of these tracks actually are.

It could be a me thing, but I always thought it was generally more revered and a Top-5 track from PG - at least, in my circle of musical friends from my teens/20s, it certainly was.

[TAC]

Chad, I don't know of Custard Pie not making it is the biggest WTF. I like it, and it made my list, but it was down near the bottom at #39. That's a great riff indeed, but the song is a tad monotonous. That's the thing I found in a lot of these songs that I never really realized before...just how straight line a lot of these tracks actually are.

It could be a me thing, but I always thought it was generally more revered and a Top-5 track from PG - at least, in my circle of musical friends from my teens/20s, it certainly was.

I feel like I definitely liked it more when I was a kid.

[nobloodyname]

On that note, do people not like D'yer Mak'er? It's pretty great IMO.

It made my top 5.

 

For me, 2nd worst song in their catalog.  Instant skip and station change - every. single. time.

One of my personal favourites. We've all said it a thousand times, of course, but isn't it amazing how opinions diverge?

[HOF]

Two of Zeppelin’s proggiest pieces, which I find interesting that they are two of the more revered songs in rock history. People like prog, they just don’t know it!

Kashmir is just a great epic track with a really cool arrangement and that constant drum beat. Not a ton needs to said here, but it would have been right around here if I had made a list.

Stairway is one I always liked but probably did burn out on at one point just from rock radio. However, a couple years ago I realized I probably hadn’t heard it in 15+ years. Listening to it again now, it really is excellent as it winds through it’s various sections. Iconic, and definitely worthy of this finish.

[Animal]

Wow. I expected Stairway to win by much wider margin. But looking at the list with point totals and the gap between n. 2 and 3 and further down, it was more a case of Kashmir doing really well than Stairway doing badly.

Speaking of Kashmir, I ranked it at 5. It is a bit of slog and vocals are kind of monotone... but....the riff, groove, atmosphere, all are just unique.

There was no doubt about what my n.1 is going to be. I have loved Stairway since the moment I heard the opening guitar arpeggios joined by the recorder for the first time...I have heard it quite a few times since then and I have played and sung it even more (hopefully better than the numerous budding guitarists in music stores WilliamMunny and Stadler were talking about). I even played it at my brother's wedding ceremony. And I still haven't gotten tired of it. Pure beauty.

[DTwwbwMP]

40 Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman) #25

39 Hey, Hey, What Can I Do #39!

38 Nobody's Fault But Mine #11

37 Carouselambra #24

35 (t) All My Love NR

35 (t) Fool In The Rain NR

34 In The Light NR

32 (t) Dancing Days #7

32 (t) How Many More Times NR

31 Thank You #3

30 The Ocean NR

29 Communication Breakdown #28

28 Houses of the Holy #9

27 Misty Mountain Hop #32

26 Going to California #29

25 Trampled Under Foot #6

24 The Rover #26
 
23 In My Time of Dying NR

22 The Battle of Evermore #15

21 What Is and What Should Never Be #27

20 Heartbreaker #35

19 Since I've Been Loving You NR

18 Ramble On #13

17 Over the Hills #14

16 In the Evening #12

15 Ten Years Gone #19

14 The Song Remains the Same #10

13 Good Times Bad Times #38

12 Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You #20

11 Whole Lotta Love #8

10 Black Dog #17

09 Rock & Roll #4

08 Dazed and Confused #31

07 The Rain Song #34

06 No Quarter #23

05 When the Levee Breaks NR

04 Immigrant Song #18

03 Achilles Last Stand #1

02 Kashmir #2!

01 Stairway to Heaven #5

[Stadler]

Top 40                                         
40. The Wanton Song                                         
39. Out On The Tiles
38. Nobody's Fault But Mine
37. Celebration Day
36. Babe I'm Going To Leave You
35. Ramble On
34. Bring It On Home
33. Bron-Yr-Aur
32. The Ocean
31. Fool In The Rain
30. Baby Come On Home
29. In My Time Of Dying
28. In The Evening
27. When The Levee Breaks
26. How Many More Times
25. Traveling Riverside Blues
24. Four Sticks
23. Sick Again
22.  Good Times, Bad Times
21. Houses Of The Holy
20. Down By The Seaside
19. No Quarter
18. Night Flight
17. Achilles Last Stand
16. Carouselambra
15. What Is And What Should Never Be
14. In The Light
13. Tangerine
12. Kashmir
11. Over The Hills And Far Away
10. Your Time Is Gonna Come
9.  Misty Mountain Hop
8.  Hey Hey What Can I Do
7.  The Song Remains The Same
6.  Going To California
5.  The Rain Song
4.  The Rover
3.  The Battle Of Evermore
2.  Ten Years Gone
1.  Stairway To Heaven

Not Rated:
42. Rock And Roll
44. Dancing Days
45. Living Loving Maid (She's Just A Woman)
48. Thank You
50. Immigrant Song
51. Heartbreaker
52. All My Love
53. Black Dog
62. Whole Lotta Love
63. Trampled Underfoot
72. Communication Breakdown
74. Dazed And Confused
75. Since I've Been Loving You

Note: As you can tell, I LOVE Physical Graffiti; it's a top ten all time album for me.   Even the lesser tracks are solid, IMO.  It and IV are probably the two best albums in the catalogue for just putting on and listening to all the way through.  All killer and no filler.

My biggest surprise is "Bring It On Home".  I thought that would be higher.  Close second(s) are: Tangerine and Your Time Is Gonna Come (one of the better early songs to mix Plant's regular singing and upper register singing). 

[jammindude]

Sorry that personal life tragedies have prevented me from participating more… but here’s my list.

40. Bring it on Home
39. Immigrant Song
38. You Shook Me
37. South Bound Saurez
36. For Your Life
35. Celebration Day
34. Heartbreaker
33. Hey, Hey, What Can I Do?
32. In the Evening
31. Gallows Pole
30. Tea for One
29. The Song Remains the Same
28. The Rover
27. Whole Lotta Love
26. How Many More Times
25. Nobody’s Fault But Mine
24. Custard Pie
23. The Ocean
22. The Battle of Evermore
21. In the Light
20. Over the Hills and Far Away
19. Stairway to Heaven
18. Black Dog
17. Houses of the Holy
16. What Is and What Should Never Be
15. Friends
14. The Wanton Song
13. Rock and Roll
12. Dazed and Confused
11. Achilles Last Stand
10. Trampled Under Foot
9. Babe I’m Gonna Leave You
8. In My Time of Dying
7. Misty Mountain Hop
6. Since I’ve Been Loving You
5. When the Levee Breaks
4. The Rain Song
3. Ten Years Gone
2. No Quarter
1. Kashmir

[jingle.boy]

For anyone with Bring it on Home, Celebration Day, Friends, Out on the Tiles, Gallows Pole, Four Sticks, Custard Pie, Night Flight, Wearing & Tearing.

[Stadler]

For anyone with Bring it on Home, Celebration Day, Friends, Out on the Tiles, Gallows Pole, Four Sticks, Custard Pie, Night Flight, Wearing & Tearing.

I got most of those; and those I don't - Custard Pie, Gallows Pole, Friends - they could easily have been there.

[jingle.boy]

For anyone with Bring it on Home, Celebration Day, Friends, Out on the Tiles, Gallows Pole, Four Sticks, Custard Pie, Night Flight, Wearing & Tearing.

I got most of those; and those I don't - Custard Pie, Gallows Pole, Friends - they could easily have been there.

:hithree: