Wolfman Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 One of my favorite moments during a Zep show in Japan is when JPJ starts the bass line to LLM (right after Celebration Day???) and Bonzo responds with "Oh no. Not that again." Classic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackDog71 Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 This is my weirdness: I LOVE "LIVING LOVING MAID"! It's everything that Led Zeppelin's detractors said the band lacked: Conciseness, swing, a good beat you could dance to, humour. It is a short, snappy song that really moves. Again, it's what the band doesn't play that gives the song its groove. I loved it the first time I heard it. One of the few songs less than three minutes in the Led Zeppelin canon. It also has some great lyrics that, unlike some of their mystical musings or recycled blues shouts, you could relate to everyday life. "Alimony, alimony, paying your bills When your conscience hits You knock it back with pills" Just the way Robert Plant begins the song, turning the word 'umbrella' into a four-syllable hook...um-ber-el-la. It tickles me pink...or purple. In fact, I love Plant's phrasing and delivery on this whole song...the line "with her butler and her maid and her servants three" is a gem and listen to how he draws out the "Nooobody hears a single woooord you say". Man(and women) can not live on mystical epics alone. There has to be some room for brevity and wit. Songs like "Living Loving Maid", "Dancing Days", "Hey Hey What Can I Do", "Misty Mountain Hop", "Rock and Roll", "Hot Dog", and "Boogie With Stu" add a large dose of fun to the Zeppelin oevre, and make the epics stand out even more in relief. I always considered it a damn shame that the band never played it in concert...just as I could never fathom why "Good Times Bad Times" was never performed in its entirety, especially on their first couple of tours. It's one of the few misjudgments Jimmy Page had, in my opinion, if he truly was the reason for the song's banishment. A quirky fact about this song: Because of the way "Living Loving Maid" would immediately follow "Heartbreaker" on the album with nary a pause, at most U.S. FM rock radio stations, whenever they played "Heartbreaker" the station would just let "Living Loving Maid" follow. As such, there are generations of us who grew up listening to the radio who always expect to hear "Living Loving Maid" after hearing "Heartbreaker" on the radio. It's like a Pavlovian response. I've never been a huge fan of the song, but you really laid out some good things about the song. I might have to give the song more of a listen now and see if I can find more things to love about it. That has happened with so many of Zeppelin's songs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckenbauer 6 Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 Van Halen did a rip off of Zep's LLM with a song called Top Jimmy from 1984. Van Halen ripping off Led Zeppelin? Surely not... I've read a few things about Jimmy, Robert, JPJ and Bonzo not liking ‘Livin' Lovin' Maid’, but I reckon it's just a fun little rock tune with plenty of energy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed A Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 What sets it apart from most everything else they did is its commercial and somewhat cheesy feel... But I love it!... To me no matter how hard they try (if they were trying for real), nothing they did in 1969 will ever sound like anything else on pop AM radio... Its still '69 Zep complete with great vocals, a nasty twelve string guitar riff, tasteful solo, a great Bonzo groove and Jones doing his usual early days walking bass on the chorus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LivingLovingHeartbreaker Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 I love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Led_Rock_Hard Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 I love Livin' Lovin' Maid! It's just a really fun song. Plus it was one of the first Zeppelin riffs I learned to play on guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justawoman Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 Love Livin' Lovin' Maid! It is THE perfect follow-up to Heartbreaker, can't possibly listen to Heartbreaker and not LLM. In fact, just this afternoon Heartbreaker and LLM were the last songs I heard. I was driving home and they came on, I got home before LLM ended and I had to sit in the car until the end - I hate it when that happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe (Liverpool) Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 There have been a few negative comments about LLM in this thread, but I bet that every Led Zeppelin fan in the world would sing along to it if it were played on the radio where they were at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallas Knebs Posted November 16, 2012 Share Posted November 16, 2012 ..and play air guitar on the solo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dalsh327 Posted November 17, 2012 Share Posted November 17, 2012 I wonder who it was about, we know it's an older married woman. Could be Rod's "Maggie May"? We do know Robert DID emulate Rod Stewart. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dallas Knebs Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 We do know Robert DID emulate Rod Stewart. in what way(s)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charmed Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 LLM is about an aging NY groupie that Jimmy literally could not stand. In HAMMER OF THE GODS, Jimmy is quoted referencing the song: "Its about a degenerate old woman trying desperately to be young." He hated the song because it was about her. I'm surprised he wrote it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ledastray Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Having listened to BBC sessions a lot, Heartbreaker for me is always followed by Since I've Been Loving You. They sound amazing back to back on that recording. Living Loving Maid seems too commercial for Zeppelin. I wouldn't have minded them leaving it off the album. It's probably a combination of the sound of the song and the horrid groupie that made JP dislike it and not want to play it in concert. He liked a concert to have good positive energy and maybe this piece gave him a negative energy vibe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimm Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Living Loving Maid is great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juxtiphi Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 This is my weirdness: I LOVE "LIVING LOVING MAID"! Man(and women) can not live on mystical epics alone. There has to be some room for brevity and wit. Songs like "Living Loving Maid", "Dancing Days", "Hey Hey What Can I Do", "Misty Mountain Hop", "Rock and Roll", "Hot Dog", and "Boogie With Stu" add a large dose of fun to the Zeppelin oevre, and make the epics stand out even more in relief. I A quirky fact about this song: Because of the way "Living Loving Maid" would immediately follow "Heartbreaker" on the album with nary a pause, at most U.S. FM rock radio stations, whenever they played "Heartbreaker" the station would just let "Living Loving Maid" follow. As such, there are generations of us who grew up listening to the radio who always expect to hear "Living Loving Maid" after hearing "Heartbreaker" on the radio. It's like a Pavlovian response. Well said, and so true to this day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dark Lord Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 My least favorite Zep song. Pop music a la Day Tripper meets the Monkees. Glad to have it, but this is a song that was beneath their ability, IMHO. The lyrics are actually pretty fun though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trapper Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 I love this song. Sure, it's simple, but it's catchy! The solo is great and Plant's singing is among the best he's done. "...but you keep on taaaaaalking...." I love it! Sure ALS, Kashmir etc are more impressive but LLM always brings a smile on my face! I always turn up the volume and belt along! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimm Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 Agreed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeppMan93 Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 I like the song as well, the drumming in it is awesome and catchy as the rest of the song is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ddladner Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 It reminds me of a Partidge Family song. Kinda catchy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walter Posted April 28, 2014 Share Posted April 28, 2014 One of my favorite moments during a Zep show in Japan is when JPJ starts the bass line to LLM (right after Celebration Day???) and Bonzo responds with "Oh no. Not that again." Classic!Or when Robert references the LLM lyrics at Earl's Court May 24th show, by joking they wouldn't be playing anything "groovy" like that during the show. Personally, I LOVE the song - always have! I remember when SNL would use it as the closing song from their "weekend update" portion of the show. Walter Jr. loves it also, except he has his own lyrics ...."live it, love it, you know you want it!". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheTraveller Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 I adore this song, unreservedly. All four musicians are pumping along, Jimmy's tone (as usual) is gorgeous, Plant is forceful and stern. Bonham and Jones are a delight as always, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsmanup1971 Posted November 1, 2014 Share Posted November 1, 2014 Livin Lovin Maid was the first Zep song I ever heard. I loved it. I think compared to the overall work by the band they would consider this song kind of like the way the beatles thought of "I want to hold your hand." The song served its purpose and put Zep on the charts so they could concentrate on developing their own unique body of work. For Page this song probably felt too commercial. They moved on and did not want to dwell on some of their earlier success. Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macdog Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Great song. It's also huge fun if you're a guitarist - pretty easy to play and you feel like Jimmy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Rudolph Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 In an interview Mr. Page dissed these lyrics as being "sarcastic". He said this was when he realized that Mr. Plant should take over lyrics. I like the tune, it's catchy and quick. But the lyrics are hateful and mean. I read in one of those unauthorized biographies this song is about a record company's executive's ex-wife that went around schtupping all her ex's clients. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.