Hi jimjam, It's an interesting topic. Zep was an almost immediate hit in the U.S., and started becoming huge here almost as soon as they began touring. One writer said something along the lines of "Zep took to America like Islam in the desert." Or, perhaps, as a few of my relative's old high school buddies used to joke, it was really more about, "Mom, Apple Pie, and Led Zeppelin."

Excellent post (quote name="Cofa" post="762593" timestamp="1402696445"] I concur completely with your observations on the differences between the perception of class in the US and UK. For sure I think there are many reasons why Zeppelin's popularity flourished in the US. Strider makes some excellent points above. One thing is for sure. For all of us who have lived with this band's music for the majority of our lives no matter what side of the Atlantic we come from they were and always will be the biggest and best band ever !

Thanks for replying, Cofa. I have spent some time in the U.K.; a fair amount of time in London and traveling around England, Scotland and Wales. My perception (rightly or wrongly) was that the class system in the U.K. is more...what's the word...entrenched? That people are more aware of it's existence? That perhaps there is less upward social mobility in the U.K.? Your absolutely correct, though, America does have a prevalent and entrenched class system, although many Americans either don't acknowledge it or pretend not to be aware of it's existence. (or believe social class is solely based on money, etc.) What I wonder is this: Did Zep's massive popularity in the U.S. have something to do with the fact that America had a large upwardly mobile middle class, fewer (or fewer perceived) social/class divides, no monarchy or official aristocracy, and an adventurous "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps" frontier mentality? I'm not sure it did, but I wonder. Allow me to share an anecdote to illustrate just how big Zep were in the U.S. at their peak. A relative of mine was a suburban high school student at an American high school in the late 70's. He has told me that some of his friends would occasionally make the joking (half joking?) remark that something (whatever subject they happened to be discussing) was as great or as big as "Mom, Apple Pie, and Led Zeppelin." For me, the fact that American students of that era were making such remarks -- as a joke or not -- speaks volumes.

I just hope Mickleson finally wins one

True. Zep obviously toured a lot more in the States than they did in Britain, and the U.S. undoubtedly had a proportionately larger and more prosperous record buying public, but I still suspect there was more to it.

I'm glad you made it through too, redrum -- your posts are fascinating My impression has always been that there were times when the purest, most noble, and totally uncorrupted ideals of "flower power" really were being lived out and experienced by people in the real world; not just in the Haight, but on communes, etc. It wasn't just a beautiful dream, it was a real phenomenon, a social experiment that briefly worked. Of course, it usually didn't last long: Communes would succumb to internal power struggles, leadership battles, personal rivalries, jealousy issues, etc.

This thread has long been dormant, but I've decided to post here nevertheless. I don't think there is any doubt that Zep was bigger in America, on a per-capita basis, than in Britain. The band clearly appealed to and "clicked" with Americans in a unique and powerful way. I can't offer any definitive explanations for why this occurred -- any number of complex social and psychological factors may have been involved -- but I suspect that Zep's U.S. popularity had a lot to do with America's less hierarchal and rigid class system, and its frontier mentality and ethos.

Great post

I have four items left on my bucket list: a) travel overland or, possibly, take a cruise from Seattle up to Vancouver and then on to Anchorage and other Alaskan cities visit Kenya and Tanzania in East Africa c) raft the Bio-Bio River in Chile d) play golf at St. Andrews

I have a few of his live cd's too. It's difficult to choose, but my favorite live Hendrix songs are probably Little Wing, Red House, and Purple Haze.

That's funny, classic. I was too young to remember our Border Collie very well, but I do remember that she was friendly and affectionate. My gf's German Shepard puppy is adorable and friendly -- he's only about 5 months old. He's also smart. It's remarkable how intelligent many of the Shepard breeds are.

I've enjoyed all the comments here as well. The fact that so many of us are interested in Page's childhood is a powerful testament to his impact as an adult -- and to his genius. Page has mentioned how as a young child he was alone much of the time, had few playmates, and enjoyed solitude. It was that solitary, introspective, imaginative and dreamy little boy who would one day grow up to become THE ultimate rock star and guitar god -- a man idolized and revered by millions. Page's odyssey has indeed been remarkable.

Any dog lovers here? I grew up in a family that owned a Border Collie (she died when I was 5) and then a "regular" Collie who looked like Lassie (she died when I was 20). I've never owned a dog myself -- I'm still do busy to do so -- but my older brother owns three dogs: A Dutch Shepard, an Australian Shepard, and a Golden Retriever; and my girlfriend owns a German Shepard puppy. If I do obtain a dog -- hopefully in the next few years -- I'm thinking about getting either a Collie or an Alaskan Huskie.

Well, Nadal has now unequivocally established himself as the greatest clay court player of all-time. I'm now convinced that Nadal -- barring serious injury or illness -- will equal and then surpass Federer's record.

Thanks, Steve I know that a number of books describing the lives and plight of men/women/children in post-war Europe have been published in just the past decade.

Good question. I don't imagine that post-war London -- with the continued food rationing, etc. -- was a particularly pleasant place to live. If I recall correctly, Jimmy's father was a personnel supervisor/manager of some sort in an aircraft factory. If true, it would be interesting to know what type of planes his father's factory produced. Spitfires? Hurricanes? Etc.

A few observations: a) I'm fairly certain Presence has been outsold by TSRTS. (btw, also a double album -- 8.8m?) The Early Days/Later Days 3 to 1 ratio does indeed seem odd. c) As the Chase pointed out, PG is probably about 16X, and the overall numbers increase greatly if you count multi discs d) If each of these above factors are taken into account, then Zep probably still remains right up near/alongside the Stones in terms of sales Edited to add: I agree that both the Presence and TSRTS numbers seem a bit low

Great work, Tatty73 I'd be interested to know how many albums the Stones and Floyd have sold at this point. My (totally uneducated) guess would be maybe 210m and 230m respectively.

This is great

Try not to allow the sorry state of the human condition get you down, Slave. Try not to worry about what you can't control.

I do perceive a similarity.

Thanks so much for posting this. It's absolutely awesome -- and touching -- it may be the best thing I have seen posted here on the forum. I LOVE the artwork. I ADORE it. I'm going to buy some of these paintings.

Let's pray that's all he does

As jimjam said, the list goes on and on. Some of the older members here on the forum might be able to share their insights and tell you some great stories. When I think of U.S. politics and history in that year, I think of President Johnson's Great Society programs and our country's increasingly deep involvement in the Vietnam War (Johnson was under a lot of pressure).I think of the anti-Vietnam War protest movement, and the Civil Rights movement, and the Black power movement, and the women's liberation movement, all gaining strength. The pediatrician Dr. Spock's revolutionary and permissive methods for raising babies and children were very popular in the country. The next year -- 1968 -- stands out more in my mind; it was one of the most eventful and pivotal years in American (and music!!!) history.

Me, too. All the Stones fans I've known, dating back to high school, have respected Zeppelin and appreciated their music. I've also observed that many Stones fans are highly knowledgable about music in general. Several of their fans have told me that they view Zep and it's fanbase as being members of a "huge cult," albeit a benign one. It should be mentioned that serious Stones fans are keenly aware that Zep decisively surpassed "the world's greatest rock n roll band" during the 1970's, both in terms of album sales and concert attendances, and this has undoubtedly caused a tremendous amount of long-lingering resentment and jealously among some fans. I've only known a handful of Who fans, and some of them despised Zeppelin.