I'm Gonna Crawl
I bought an album at Best Buy over the weekend, which gives me a chance to trash Eddie Van Halen. So I will.
First, about the album that I bought:
In Through the Out Door is a studio album by Led Zeppelin, released by Swan Song Records on August 15, 1979. The album was named by the group as such, because of their recent problems and the rise of punk music, trying to get back into the public mind is like "trying to get in through the 'Out' door, than through the 'In' door". In the same way that Presence is largely Jimmy Page's work, so In Through The Out Door belongs to John Paul Jones, with the bassist/keyboardist taking lead songwriting credits on 6 out of the 7 songs.
And why was Jones so dominant? 'Cause someone was riding the white horse:
In 1976 Page started using heroin....Page and drummer John Bonham would frequently be absent from the recording studio in the band's later years, showing up after songs were already written. As a result their final studio album (In Through the Out Door) was more heavily influenced by bassist John Paul Jones and singer Robert Plant.
You have to remember that Page attended Art College in Britain, just like half of the other musicians of the 1960s. It appears that in British Art Colleges, many of the courses revolved around the skills needed by these musicians, including "Getting In Trouble With Groupies," "Embarrassing Nobility By Living Rock Star Excess in Palatial Mansions," and "Intense Pharmacology." By 1979, Page was getting his doctorate in the latter subject.
So one would expect Page to be off his best during this album. He was being taunted by Billy Idol and other punks, he was strung out on heroin, and there was a new guitar god in town:
Eddie Van Halen
Hot Fingers
Guitar God. In every concert he plays, the fans chant his name. "Eddie! Eddie! Eddie!" He is one of the most respected and loved guitar players of his generation, and is now mentioned among the greats like Eric Clapton and Jimmi [sic] Hendrix. Eddie Van Halen has reached the top of the guitar world....
OK. Now listen to "I'm Gonna Crawl." It starts off with John Paul Jones standing on top of a synthetic Walton's Mountain. (I like synthetica.) After a few seconds, the rest of the band kicks in with some late 20th century blues, Jones continuing with the synthetica, Bonham tapping away, Plant doing his Birmingham blues moan, and Page noodling in the background...for a while. (Listen to the 30 second song sample for track 7 to hear this part of the song.) Plant's voice was still in rare form at this stage, and he powers the first part of the song, with accompaniment from Jones and the rest...for a while.
Then Jones gives Page a solo spot, and he blows all of his detractors away. Page (and Clapton, and in some cases Hendrix) are capable of making a guitar sing and emote, unlike Eddie, who just plays really really fast. I suspect that even blues purists will respect the solo that Page lays down here.
But I'm not the only one who loves this solo. Adam Kirk:
The album ends with the slow blues of "I'm Gonna Crawl". The Jones intro doesn't prepare one for the depth of emotion that is at the heart of the track. Page's solo is pure feeling and Plant put's everything he's got into the vocal.
simegen.com:
The solo in I'm Gonna Crawl. Jimmy's best blues solo--nothin' like saving the best for last. Also best Plant scream ever.
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