The Rain Song

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"The Rain Song"
Song by Led Zeppelin
from the album Houses of the Holy
Released28 March 1973 (1973-03-28)
Recorded1972
StudioStargroves, East Woodhay, England
GenreProgressive rock[1]
Length7:32
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Jimmy Page
Audio sample
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"The Rain Song" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin, and the second track from their fifth album Houses of the Holy, released in 1973.

Recording[]

"The Rain Song" is a ballad of over seven minutes in length. Guitarist Jimmy Page originally constructed the melody of this song at his home in Plumpton, England, where he had recently installed a studio mixing console. A new Vista model, it was partly made up from the Pye Mobile Studio which had been used to record the group's 1970 Royal Albert Hall performance and The Who's Live at Leeds album.[2]

With a working title of "Slush", a reference to its easy listening simulated orchestral arrangement,[2] Page was able to bring in a completed arrangement of the melody, for which singer Robert Plant composed the words. Plant ranks his vocal performance on the track as one of his best.[3] The song also features a Mellotron played by John Paul Jones to add to the orchestral effect, while Page plays a Danelectro guitar.[2]

George Harrison was reportedly the inspiration for "The Rain Song" when he made a comment to Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, about the fact that the group never wrote any ballads.[4] In Light and Shade: Conversations with Jimmy Page, biographer Brad Tolinski quotes Page:

George [Harrison] was talking to Bonzo one evening and said, 'The problem with you guys is that you never do ballads.' I said, 'I'll give him a ballad,' and I wrote 'Rain Song,' which appears on Houses of the Holy. In fact, you'll notice I even quote 'Something' in the song's first two chords.[4]

However, there is some disagreement about exactly what was said by whom.[2][5][6][7]

Live history[]

During Led Zeppelin concerts from late 1972 until 1975, the band played this song immediately following "The Song Remains the Same", presenting the songs in the same order as they appeared on the album. They organized their set list in this manner because Page used a Gibson EDS-1275 double-necked guitar for both songs: the top, 12-string neck for "The Song Remains the Same" and then switching to the bottom, 6-string neck for "The Rain Song". Often, the band would perform the song in the key of A major, a whole step up from the studio version (as heard on The Song Remains the Same). The song was dropped from the 1977 U.S. tour, but returned for Led Zeppelin's 1979 concerts in Copenhagen, Denmark and at the Knebworth Music Festival, as well as their European tour in 1980.[2] "The Rain Song" was the only song from Houses of the Holy performed on the 1980 European tour. In this incarnation, Page again utilized the double-neck, the only known time he used that guitar solely for the 6-string portion without using the 12-string portion on a preceding song. For all live versions of the song, the orchestral string sounds were played by Jones on either the mellotron (1972–1975) or a Yamaha synthesizer (1979–1980), as Led Zeppelin never utilised a string section on-stage.

Reception[]

In a contemporary review for Houses of the Holy, Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone gave "The Rain Song" a negative review, describing this track and "No Quarter" as "nothing more than drawn-out vehicles for the further display of Jones' unknowledgeable use of mellotron and synthesizer."[8]

In a retrospective review of Houses of the Holy (Deluxe Edition), Kristofer Lenz of Consequence of Sound gave "The Rain Song" a more positive review, describing the track as "one of the most sentimental tracks in Led Zeppelin’s catalog", along with calling it "patient and beautifully arranged".[9] Lenz further wrote that Plant's lyrics and vocals "infuse a sense of humanity, loss, and transcendence – a touch of emotional maturity."[9]

Record producer Rick Rubin says, "I don't even know what kind of music this is ["The Rain Song"]. It defies classification. There's such tasteful, beautiful detail in the guitar, and a triumphant feel when the drums come in — it's sad and moody and strong, all at the same time. I could listen to this song all day. That would be a good day."[10]

Other versions[]

A different version of this song is featured on the second disc of the remastered 2CD deluxe edition of Houses of the Holy. Titled "The Rain Song (Mix Minus Piano)", it was recorded on 18 May 1972 at the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio at Stargroves with engineer Eddie Kramer and mix engineer Keith Harwood. Page and Plant recorded a version of the song in 1994 but it was not originally released on their album No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded. It was, however, released on the special tenth anniversary reissue of that album in 2004.

Cover versions[]

Main article: List of cover versions of Led Zeppelin songs

References[]

  1. ^ Whitaker, Sterling. "No. 37: 'The Rain Song' – Top 50 Led Zeppelin Songs".
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Dave Lewis (1994), The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin, Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.
  3. ^ Austin Scaggs, Q&A: Robert Plant, Rolling Stone, May 5, 2005.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Brad Tolinski (2012), Light & Shade Conversations Jimmy Page, Crown Publishing Group, ISBN 0307985717
  5. ^ Edwards, Gavin (30 July 2003). "Led Zeppelin review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2011-01-26.
  6. ^ George Case (2007). Jimmy Page: Magus, Musician, Man: an Unauthorized Biography. p. 126. ISBN 9781423404071.
  7. ^ Gregg Akkerman (2014). Experiencing Led Zeppelin: A Listener's Companion. p. 66. ISBN 9780810889163.
  8. ^ Fletcher, Gordon (7 June 1973). "Houses of the Holy". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b Lenz, Kristofer (3 November 2014). "Led Zeppelin – Houses of the Holy [Reissue]". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  10. ^ The Playlist Special: Fifty Artists Pick Their Personal Top 10s Archived 2010-12-11 at the Wayback Machine. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2 January 2011.

External links[]

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