10 Greatest Classic Rock Led Zeppelin Songs

Ask any hard rock lover to name their favorite albums, and there's about a 101% chance that Led Zeppelin II will be brought up. Every single kid who has dreamed of being a rockstar holds this record in the highest regard for bringing riff-based rock to the masses.

Ironically enough, the song that really captures everything great about the record is actually not based around one central riff. "Ramble On" is a great example of Zeppelin blending both sides of their sound, with the song starting off as a subtle acoustic passage. The roles are flipped in this scenario, with John Paul Jones's melodic bassline leading the charge over Page's strummed chords. Once the chorus kicks in, Page marks his territory with a guitar part that seems slightly off-kilter. By being just off the beat, it's exactly where it needs to be.

This is also one of the first songs where Robert Plant expresses his love for the work of JRR Tolkien, with most of the track being in the setting of Mordor and frequent references to the wide open surroundings of Middle Earth. This not only started a new lyrical approach for Zeppelin, but opened the door for other bands to include more literary characters in their lyrics. With one foot in ballads and another in hard rock, Zeppelin created a musical freak of nature that has permeated the minds of rock fans for decades.