Led Zeppelin
Presence
1976 Swan Song
Why was it forgotten?
Led Zeppelin may have more fans than any rock group or artist short of the Beatles, and yet many of their followers, for one reason or another, aren’t familiar with their entire discography. Many of the group’s most ardent supporters seem to have only a passing knowledge of Led Zeppelin’s later works, like 1979’s In Through The Out Door and 1982’s “posthumously” released Coda. In these cases, ignorance may be bliss, as both albums left much to be desired (and Coda wasn’t really an album at all, rather a collection of outtakes released following the death of drummer John Bonham in 1980). Today’s subject, 1976’s Presence, is unfairly lumped in with these aforementioned albums. It failed to spawn a true hit at its time of release, which essentially led to its lack of airplay on modern (then) and classic (now) rock radio, which in turn led to its lack of discovery.
It’s easy to understand why today’s Led Zeppelin fans often forget about Presence when discussing the group’s great albums. Led Zeppelin are thought of as a legendary, pioneering, larger than life rock and roll outfit, and their first five albums (Led Zeppelin, II, III, [IV], and Houses Of The Holy) are considered some of the greatest of all time. An album like Presence, which wasn’t accompanied by a world famous “Stairway To Heaven”-size single, easily gets lost amidst the sea of fantastic music the band has put out before it. There’s “classic Zeppelin” (the first five albums) and then there’s everything after (including Physical Graffiti, another criminally underrated album), and unfortunately Presence was not released during the most famous era of the band’s history.
Presence was simply swallowed by what came before it, and oddly enough, even the passing of time hasn’t helped to bring it to the attention of the masses. Classic rock stations continue to play tracks from the band’s first four or five albums, and only die-hard fans bother to delve into the back catalogue to see what they might be missing. New Zeppelin fans haven’t bothered to venture far beyond Houses Of The Holy, and older fans haven’t been able to lend Presence an heir of importance over time.
Should it be forgotten?
Absolutely not. Presence is chock-full of amazing songs, beginning with the spiraling ten-minute epic “Achilles Last Stand”. “Achilles” is perhaps the most epic song Led Zeppelin ever created, featuring tremendous guitar riffs, fantastical lyrics and constant movement in the song from one section to another. Only length prevented this from being a smash hit, but this is one of the band’s finest hours.
“Achilles Last Stand” is a standard heavy and big Zeppelin song, but it’s smarter than that, and sets the tone for the rest of the album. Where some of their previous epic/fantasy songs could be a bit clumsy or repetitive, “Achilles” continues a trend first seen on Physical Graffiti (1975). It teases moving to different tempos and places first, then delves into them full bore minutes later. We might anticipate these changes, but the band sets things up so that we want them to come and we feel a payoff when they do. “Achilles Last Stand” is frantic and urgent, but also delicate, strong, and enormous.
Presence veers right into a classic sleazy Zeppelin riff that kicks off “For Your Life”, a customarily bloated, yet strong, production, clocking in at 6 ½ minutes. “For Your Life” is an anti-cocaine statement, where Plant embodies the seductive, grimily grandiose nature of the drug. The song helps move the album from the fantasy elements of “Achilles” to the barroom splendor of early Zeppelin, but maintains the overall ideology of the album, with numerous tempo changes and bridges to different pieces. The largeness of “Achilles” makes it a classic, and the straight-ahead riffing of “For Your Life” does the same for it.
“Royal Orleans” follows, a three minute romp that rolls through quickly (compared to the first two songs), carrying on the momentum the album has built. This leads into “Nobody’s Fault But Mine”, with Jimmy Page’s introductory buzzing, layered guitar riff matched note for note by Robert Plant’s vocals. It’s another ass-kicker, with a memorable riff and assaulting drum blasts. “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” returns to the guitar/vocal intro for an unorthodox chorus of sorts, which is pulled off seamlessly and rolls back into the main riff. It, too, matches and adds to the incredible pace of the album.
In many ways the first four songs on Presence represent the group at the absolute top of their game. All four songs are great (even including a “Stairway”-like epic in “Achilles”), the musicianship is perfect, their ideas are simple but also complex, and everything sounds good.
“Candy Store Rock” is the fifth track, an Elvis-type number with a harder edge. It passes without much fanfare, save for a strong guitar part that accompanies its chorus. It doesn’t live up to the album’s early standard, but it’s certainly not a bad song. “Hots On For Nowhere” bounces around, carrying on the slightly lighter tone introduced by “Candy Store Rock”. It also rules. Great guitar, forceful drums, great vocals, great chorus. Every riff on Presence is essentially a hook; nothing is wasted, everything is catchy, and everything works.
“Tea For One” finishes things, opening with an amazing riff, albeit briefly, that then blends into a slower, bluesy tune; think of “Since I’ve Been Loving You” from the third album. The opening riff shows that they could have finished the album off with another rocker, and I almost wish they had. “Tea For One” is a fine song, but it’s the only song on the record that feels remotely out of place. Even at its reduced pace, however, it changes direction repeatedly and carries on the ingenuity of the songs before it.
If Presence had been released in 1970 as Led Zeppelin II, this would be one of the most famous albums in the world. Every song is terrific; Presence finds Led Zeppelin at their most stripped down and focused, and they don’t fuck around. It’s a shame Presence isn’t more well-known, and hopefully someday the album’s reputation will be for more than its intriguing artwork.
A-
John Lacey
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