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Kashmir (song)

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"Kashmir"
Song

"Kashmir" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin from their sixth album Physical Graffiti, released in 1975. It was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant (with contributions from John Bonham) over a period of three years, with the lyrics dating back to 1973.

Overview

The song centres around a signature chord progression guitar riff, which first appeared on Page's home-studio work tapes.[1] It was initially created in a tuning, an extension of a guitar-cycle that Page had been working on for years. This was the same cycle that produced "Black Mountain Side," "White Summer" and the unreleased track, "Swan-song."[1] As bass player and keyboardist John Paul Jones had been late for the recording sessions, Page used the time to work on the riff with drummer John Bonham. The two demoed it late in 1973.[2] Plant later added the middle section and in early 1974 Jones added all the string parts.[1][2]

The guitar was played in an alternative guitar tuning: the strings are tuned to 'Open Dsus4' or DADGAD. Bonham's drums feature a phasing effect courtesy of an early Eventide phaser supplied by engineer Ron Nevison.[3] Plant has stated that Bonham's drumming is the key to the song: "It was what he didn't do that made it work".[1]

The song also includes many distinctive musical patterns of classical Moroccan, Indian and Middle Eastern music. Page explained that "I had a sitar for some time and I was interested in modal tunings and Arabic stuff. It started off with a riff and then employed Eastern lines underneath."[4]

Orchestral brass and strings with electric guitar and mellotron strings are also used in the song. This is one of the few Led Zeppelin songs to use outside musicians. Session players were brought in for the string and horn sections.[2] According to Jones, "the secret of successful keyboard string parts is to play only the parts that a real string section would play. That is, one line for the First Violins, one line for Second Violins, one for Violas, one for Cellos, one for Basses. Some divided parts [two or more notes to a line] are allowed, but keep them to a minimum. Think melodically".[5]

The lyrics to the song - originally called "Driving to Kashmir" - were written by Plant in 1973 immediately after Led Zeppelin's 1973 US Tour, in an area he called "the waste lands"[4] of Southern Morocco, while driving from Goulimine to Tantan in the Sahara Desert.[1][2] This was despite the fact that the song is named for Kashmir, a region in the northernmost part of India.[6] As Plant explained to rock journalist Cameron Crowe:

The whole inspiration came from the fact that the road went on and on and on. It was a single-track road which neatly cut through the desert. Two miles to the East and West were ridges of sandrock. It basically looked like you were driving down a channel, this dilapidated road, and there was seemingly no end to it. 'Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face, stars to fill my dreams...' It's one of my favourites...that, 'All My Love' and 'In the Light' and two or three others really were the finest moments. But 'Kashmir' in particular. It was so positive, lyrically.[1]

Plant has also commented on the challenges he faced in writing lyrics for such a complex piece of music:

It was an amazing piece of music to write to, and an incredible challenge for me ... Because of the time signature, the whole deal of the song is… not grandiose, but powerful: it required some kind of epithet, or abstract lyrical setting about the whole idea of life being an adventure and being a series of illuminated moments. But everything is not what you see. It was quite a task, ’cause I couldn’t sing it. It was like the song was bigger than me. It’s true: I was petrified, it’s true. It was painful; I was virtually in tears..[7]

In an interview he gave to William S. Burroughs in 1975, Page mentioned that at the time the song was composed, none of the band members had even been to Kashmir.[8]

The song runs for 8:28, a length that radio stations usually consider too long to play. However, upon its release radio stations had no problem playing "Kashmir," especially after seeing "Stairway to Heaven", which was almost as long, do so well. (Original LP releases of Physical Graffiti incorrectly list the song's length as 9:41.)

Live performances

"Kashmir" was played live at almost every Led Zeppelin concert from its debut in 1975. One live version, from Led Zeppelin's performance at Knebworth in 1979, is featured on disc 2 of the Led Zeppelin DVD. This performance came from the band's first show at the venue, on 4 August. The former members of Led Zeppelin also performed "Kashmir" at the Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary concert in 1988. It was again performed at Led Zeppelin's reunion show at the The O2, London on 10 December 2007.

When the band performed the song live, Robert Plant would switch the last verse with the second verse after singing the first verse normally. The third verse would also be sung normally in its original spot. When Led Zeppelin came together for Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary, Robert accidentally sang the second verse twice. He admitted to doing this by singing "Oh father of the four winds fill my sails (again) across the sea of years" during the fourth verse. He never ended up singing the third verse ("Oh pilot of the storm...") before the mistake. However, he did sing "With talk and song from tongues..." during the third verse while trying to correct it by singing "I will return again..." half way through.

Plant, known generally for his improvision while performing live, would ad lib a lot during live performances of "Kashmir". He would add in "sweet mama", "slowly dyin'", "now just a minute", "sweet darlin'", and he would stutter the words "baby" and "mama". He would also end that section with "there's no denyin' what ma gunna do yeah."

Page and Plant recorded another live version of "Kashmir" in 1994, released on their album No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded. For this arrangement, they added an orchestra and Egyptian musicians.

Accolades

All four members of Led Zeppelin have agreed that "Kashmir" is one of their best musical achievements.[9] John Paul Jones suggested that it showcases all of the elements that made up the Led Zeppelin sound.[1] Plant has stated that "Kashmir" is the "definitive Led Zeppelin song",[10] and that it "was one of my favourite [Led] Zeppelin tracks because it possessed all the latent energy and power that wasn't heavy metal. It was something else. It was the pride of Led Zeppelin."[4] During a television interview in January 2008, he also named "Kashmir" as his first choice of all Led Zeppelin songs that he would perform, commenting "I'm most proud of that one".[11] Page has indicated he thinks that the song is one of the band's best compositions.[12]

Led Zeppelin expert Dave Lewis describes "Kashmir" as:

Unquestionably the most startling and impressive track on Physical Graffiti, and arguably the most progressive and original track that Led Zeppelin ever recorded. 'Kashmir' went a long way towards establishing their credibility with otherwise sceptical rock critics. Many would regard this track as the finest example of the sheer majesty of Zeppelin's special chemistry.[2]

The song is listed highly in a number of professional music rankings:

Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
"Classic Rock" United States "The Top Fifty Classic Rock Songs of All Time"[13] 1995 20
"Classic Rock" United Kingdom "Ten of the Best Songs Ever!!.. (Bubbling under)"[14] 1999 23
VH1 United States "The 100 Greatest Rock Songs of All Time"[15] 2000 62
Rolling Stone United States "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time"[16] 2003 140
Blender United States "Standout Tracks from the 500 CDs You Must Own"[17] 2003 *
Q United Kingdom "1010 Songs You Must Own!"[18] 2004 *
Q United Kingdom "Ultimate Music Collection - Rock"[19] 2005 *
Q United Kingdom "100 Greatest Songs of All Time"[20] 2006 74
VH1 United States "VH1 Greatest Hard Rock Songs"[21] 2009 21
JJJ Australia "Hottest 100 of All Time"[22] 2009 98

(*) designates unordered lists.

Influence

  • The tune was sampled by Sean "Puffy" Combs (now known as Diddy) in his song "Come With Me" from the soundtrack to the movie Godzilla (1998), which featured Jimmy Page, who endorsed Combs' adaptation, appears in the video and also played it with him on Saturday Night Live.
  • The opening riff of the song "Wake Up" by Rage Against the Machine is adapted from the opening chords of Kashmir.
  • Snippets of the song were used in the X Factor series 3 and in the German TV show TV Total.
  • Since mid-2006, the wrestling company Total Nonstop Action Wrestling has used an instrumental remix of "Kashmir" for one of the top superstars of that company, Kevin Nash.
  • The song was employed on the soundtrack to the French 1977 action-adventure film Le Crabe-Tambour (The Drummer Crab).[23]
  • The song is sampled in the D12 song "Fight music"
  • In the movie Ocean's 12, Linus (Matt Damon) requests to play a more central role in the heist and convinces Danny (George Clooney) and Rusty (Brad Pitt) to let him join them in the meeting with a contact named Matsui. In the meeting, Matsui, Danny and Rusty speak in a strange, metaphorical code-language. When it comes to Linus's turn to say something, who is already baffled as he cannot understand what the other are saying, he can't think of anything so he recites the first two lines of the song. However, Matsui takes this as an insult and Linus is forced to wait outside for the remainder of the interview. When Danny and Rusty come outside afterwards, Rusty asks him "Kashmir?"
  • In the movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High, when Mike Damone tells Mark Ratner "when it comes down to making out, whenever possible, put on side one of Led Zeppelin IV", "Kashmir" can be heard playing in Mark's (Brian Backer) car while he is on a date.
  • In an episode of The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson, Craig Ferguson brought out a monkey puppet named Cronus that said that he was going to perform Kashmir that evening, but he forgot the words due to taking too many drugs in the 1970s.[24]
  • Philadelphia Phillies second basemen Chase Utley uses the song as his batter introductory music at home games.
  • Musician William Joseph covers this song on his Within album.

Formats and tracklistings

1975 7" single (Thailand: Atlantic T 026)

  • A. "Kashmir" (Bonham, Page, Plant) 8:28
  • B1. "Boogie with Stu" (Bonham, Jones, Page, Plant, Stewart, Mrs. Valens) 3:51
  • B2. "Black Country Woman" (Page, Plant) 4:24

Chart positions

Single (Digital download)

Chart (2007) Peak position
UK Singles Chart[25] 80
Swiss Singles Chart[26] 64
US Billboard Hot Digital Songs Chart[27] 42
US Billboard Hot Digital Tracks Chart[28] 49
Canadian Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart[29] 33

Note: The official UK Singles Chart incorporated legal downloads as of 17 April 2005.

Sources

  • Lewis, Dave (2004) The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9
  • Welch, Chris (1998) Led Zeppelin: Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song, ISBN 1-56025-818-7

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Liner notes by Cameron Crowe for The Complete Studio Recordings.
  2. ^ 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. ^ Guitar World, May 2005
  4. ^ a b c Chris Welch (1994) Led Zeppelin, London: Orion Books. ISBN 0-85797-930-3, p. 76.
  5. ^ John Paul Jones' Mellotron
  6. ^ Gilmore, Mikal (10 August 2006). "The Long Shadow of Led Zeppelin". Rolling Stone (1006). Retrieved 2007-12-09.
  7. ^ "Hottest 100 of All Time", Triple J, Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
  8. ^ William S. Burroughs, Rock Magic: Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin, and a Search for the Elusive Stairway to Heaven, Crawdaddy!, June 1975.
  9. ^ Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography by Ritchie Yorke
  10. ^ Led-Zeppelin.org. "Led Zeppelin Assorted Info".
  11. ^ Tight But Loose: News
  12. ^ Dave Schulps, Interview with Jimmy Page, Trouser Press, October 1977.
  13. ^ ROCK SONGS "The Top Fifty Classic Rock Songs of All Time - 1995". Jacobs Media. Retrieved 2009-02-10. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  14. ^ "Ten of the Best Songs Ever!.. (Bubbling under) - September 1999". Classic Rock. Retrieved 2009-02-10. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ "The 100 Greatest Rock Songs of All Time - July 2000". VH1. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  16. ^ "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time - November 2003". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  17. ^ "Standout Tracks from the 500 CDs You Must Own - 2003". Blender. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  18. ^ "1010 Songs You Must Own! Q50 – #2: Air Guitar - September 2004". Q. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  19. ^ "Ultimate Music Collection: Rock - April 2005". Q. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  20. ^ greatest songs "100 Greatest Songs of All Time - October 2006". Q. Retrieved 2009-02-10. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  21. ^ "VH1 Greatest Hard Rock Songs - January 2009". VH1. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  22. ^ "Hottest 100 - Of All Time". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2009-07-09.
  23. ^ Le Crabe-Tambour soundtrack
  24. ^ [1]
    • Mixed Martial Artist Randy Couture used the song as entrance music for his bout against Brandon Vera at UFC 105.
  25. ^ "UK Top Singles - 24 November 2007". chartstats.com. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  26. ^ "Top 100 Singles - 25 November 2007". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  27. ^ "Hot 100 Digital Songs - 1 December 2007". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  28. ^ "Hot 100 Digital Tracks - 1 December 2007". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
  29. ^ "Hot Digital Singles - 1 December 2007". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-01-19.

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