What's Your Favorite Led Zeppelin Album?

[RainbowElf]

My favorite Zeppelin is Led Zeppelin III, love this album it strikes such emotion in me, That's The Way is so beautiful, that's the only way I can describe it.

I'm interested to see other diehard's favorites and the reason why it's your favorite.

[paul carruthers]

Houses of the Holy -- if I had to give specific reasons, usually what the detractors hate about this album is what I like or love: Robert's sped up vocals on a few of the tracks, the funny songs like Crunge & D'yer M'aker, the mostly happy vibes feel from the whole album. And of course, some shade with the dark & gloomy NQ. Perfect album & I wrestle with whether ITTOD or PG should be #2....

 

 

[chillumpuffer]

1st Album for me. Raw, ballsey blues and rock. It was first album I ever bought when I was 13 in 1974. Dazed and Confused was just so amazing when I first heard it. Brings back many memories for me. I recall going into a record store in my home town. They had listening booths where you put on a set of cans and they played the record. As soon as "Good times bad times" hit my ears I was hooked, line and sinker. 

[Muskee]

How the West Was Won. Personally this is my favorite era of Zeppelin, the 70-73 era. Featuring tracks off of every album up to Houses of the Holy with great live performances of Dancing Days and my favorite rendition of Over the Hills and Far Away. This album holds up even with the MSG shows. The quality is amazing and it is put together incredibly well for being two shows mixed (the LA Forum and Long Beach Arena) and really shows what made Led Zeppelin such a great live band.

[Stryder1978]

Physical Graffiti.....twice as much Zeppelin is always better!

[Wolfman]

PG 

[tmtomh]

Physical Graffiti, without a doubt. It has everything - the light and shade, hard electric blues, funk, beautiful acoustics, long epics, fun goofs, the whole nine yards.

Also, if you break it down between the 1974 tracks and the other tracks, the early tracks make up one of the best outtakes albums of all time (The Rover, Houses of the Holy, Down by the Seaside, Night Flight, Boogie with Stu, Black Country Woman).

Meanwhile, the 1974 tracks - the tracks they came up with just for that album - are incredible: Custard Pie, In My Time of Dying, Trampled Under Foot, Kashmir, In the Light, Ten Years Gone, The Wanton Song, Sick Again. There's not a weak or even so-so track in the bunch. And it includes not one or two but three long epics, plus arguably the best ballad they ever did (Ten Years Gone).

All that said, Led Zeppelin III is a close second for me.

And How the West Was Won is one of the best live albums in all of rock history.

 

[RainbowElf]

Great post ^^^^ LED III is my favorite of them all.

[pageluvva]

9 hours ago, tmtomh said:

Physical Graffiti, without a doubt. It has everything - the light and shade, hard electric blues, funk, beautiful acoustics, long epics, fun goofs, the whole nine yards.

Also, if you break it down between the 1974 tracks and the other tracks, the early tracks make up one of the best outtakes albums of all time (The Rover, Houses of the Holy, Down by the Seaside, Night Flight, Boogie with Stu, Black Country Woman).

Meanwhile, the 1974 tracks - the tracks they came up with just for that album - are incredible: Custard Pie, In My Time of Dying, Trampled Under Foot, Kashmir, In the Light, Ten Years Gone, The Wanton Song, Sick Again. There's not a weak or even so-so track in the bunch. And it includes not one or two but three long epics, plus arguably the best ballad they ever did (Ten Years Gone)

 

Oh hell yeah. Well said my friend. In The Light, TYG and Kashmir are, for me, THE masterpieces. 

And as a guitar player, the TYG solo is an underrated work of art. 

[sixpense]

First Album or Fourth Album. (Depending on the day)

[gcczep]

Hard to choose since I've loved the band's music for so long but push comes to shove? It will have to be the fourth. 

[JTM]

My fiirst favourite was II because it's the first one I heard, then it was I, followed by HOTH, then back to I then II again, back to I  So for years it alternated between I and II, nowadays it's HOTH, has been for years, not a tune on it that I don't like. None of the other albums have ever made my top three.

HOTH is special because it's the first LZ album I bought the week it was released. I didn't even have a record player when the fourth album was released.

[John M]

At one time or another every one of the albums has been my favorite.  The albums are so different from each other, and each is so special.  The only way for me to answer this question is to say that my favorite album is the one I am listening to at the time.   Each one I listen to I think about how great it is, and I am reminded of all the reasons I like it so much.

[RainbowElf]

2 hours ago, John M said:

At one time or another every one of the albums has been my favorite.  The albums are so different from each other, and each is so special.  The only way for me to answer this question is to say that my favorite album is the one I am listening to at the time.   Each one I listen to I think about how great it is, and I am reminded of all the reasons I like it so much.

I see what you mean, at one time Led Zeppelin IV was my favorite, but every time I listen to III, man the feelings the album invokes in me I just can't explain it. 

[JohnOsbourne]

Physical Graffiti.  (III would probably be 2nd.)

[LedZed66]

I - IV. Impossible to choose a favorite one

[ZepRocker]

I would go with III, cause my favourites songs are Inmmigrant Song and Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

[RainbowElf]

On 9/20/2020 at 10:16 AM, ZepRocker said:

I would go with III, cause my favourites songs are Inmmigrant Song and Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

That’s my favorite Zep album.

[price.pittsburgh]

My favorite Zep song is from III, which is Since I've Been Loving You. However, favorite album is tough. It's between I and II.

I always saw those as sister albums 

[LedZep123]

One of my favourites in Physical Graffiti. Led Zeppelin II is a very good album as well. 

[zeppatic]

It's mpossible to pick a favourite album.

Depending on the time of day, occassion, mood etc, determines which album I choose to play.

Simply pick the album in the moment, pull the record from the sleeve, put it on the turntable,  sit down on my comfy chair whilst holding the album cover, feel it, read it, and enjoy side one. Hop up & change the record over to side two. Sit back again & enjoy the experience on my good quality sound system.

Oh So Good.....

Nothing Better

[Annamilia]

On 7/15/2020 at 5:48 PM, chillumpuffer said:

1st Album for me. Raw, ballsey blues and rock. It was first album I ever bought when I was 13 in 1974. Dazed and Confused was just so amazing when I first heard it. Brings back many memories for me. I recall going into a record store in my home town. They had listening booths where you put on a set of cans and they played the record. As soon as "Good times bad times" hit my ears I was hooked, line and sinker. 

Totally with you on that one. Such a masterpiece, especially considering how little time it took to produce it and how short the band had played together. 

[McSeven]

Zep 2 and PG are tied at #1.  Zoso and Zep 1 are tied at #2. Zep 3 and HOTH are tied at 3.  Then ITTOD and Presence is last.

[JTM]

My favourite has changed over the years, at first it was II then I back to II, but the most constant has been HOTH for along time.

Fwiw the fave order is 

HOTH, II, I, III The Fourth album, PG, Presence, ITTOD.

[Kathykmp]

I love every album because they are so diverse. Unlike most other bands, LZ is the only band in which there are zero songs that I don’t like. But to the point, I have to say IV because of Battle of Evermore and Stairway. Stairway was the first song of LZ that I heard. It was 1972 and I was in 7th grade. I was instantly in love. Robert Plant, if you happen to read any of this, you shouldn’t criticize or be passé about your lyrics to Stairway, as you said in an interview that well it was the thoughts of a guy 21-22 years old. These lyrics are so profound and meaningful, and may mean something a little different to everyone. But I have never had a song touch me so deeply that I’ve lived my life guided by the words of this song. You have given so many of us a piece of spirituality, and food for thought. Robert, regardless of what your feelings are, or your meaning of the lyrics at the time, be proud that you have touched the souls of so many with this gift.