Oakland's Vinyl Vault

I'm back! It is looking like I won't be sitting around doing nothing all day at my new job, and thus I will actually have to do posts here on my own free time. So, expect a drastic decline in the number of posts in the future. But the good news is that I enjoyed the first week at my new job. I'm still in that warm, fuzzy period where everything is new and exciting and it doesn't feel like work yet. I'm sure that will end pretty quickly, but I'm happy to be out of the legal profession, and doing something that I can envision myself having a future in. With that in mind, this week, to celebrate, the randomizer spit out an album that is a legit contender for best album of all time. The only difficult thing is that, well, it doesn't exactly have a name. Yes, it is Led Zeppelin's untitled masterpiece, most often referred to as Led Zeppelin IV.

Release date: November 8, 1971
Singles: Black Dog, Rock and Roll

When Led Zeppelin decided that they wanted to release their fourth album with no title, and no writing of any kind on the outer sleeve, I have to imagine that the record company and the music stores were none too pleased. They didn't know then, of course, that the album would go on to become one of the best selling albums of all time, despite its difficulty in being identified. In retrospect, releasing an album without the band's name on the cover, and with no title, is a very "rock and roll" thing to do. And it takes a great band like Led Zeppelin to pull it off.

The reason that "Led Zeppelin IV" is one of the best selling albums of all time is because it is one of the best albums of all time. Just look at the lineup of songs: Black Dog. Rock and Roll. The Battle of Evermore. Stairway to Heaven. Those are not only four of Led Zeppelin's best songs, those are four of rock and roll's best songs. And that's just the first side. The second side is almost as good, with classics like "Misty Mountain Hop" and my personal favorite Led Zeppelin song, "When the Levee Breaks." This album is simply ridiculous. And yes, one of the greatest albums of all time has two songs with explicit Lord of the Rings references in it. Eat it, Harry Potter.

Rating: 42 thumbs up - If you do not own this album, go out and buy it right now. I'll wait.



Ok, so we all have the album? Good. Now listen to it. You're welcome.

Picking one song to play off this album is difficult, because they are all so good, and you've probably heard all of them on the radio if you listen to the classic rock station. So, because I am in California, I am going to give you "Going to California." Enjoy.