Led Zeppelin – “Kashmir” Live
Let Me Take You There!
“Kashmir” was released on February 24, 1975 for Led Zeppelin’s sixth studio album “Physical Graffiti.” Jimmy Page and Robert Plant worked on the song for over three years (Plant began writing the lyrics in 1973 and its working title was “Driving To Kashmir”). They also released a live version, notably longer, which was performed with an Egyptian/Moroccan orchestra.
- Number 62 in VH1’s “The 100 Greatest Rock Songs of All Time”
- Number 141 in The Rolling Stone Magazine’s “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time”
All band members agreed this was one of their best musical achievements. Robert Plant said it was “One of my favorites… it was so positive, lyrically.” Page has answered the question “What is the greatest Zeppelin riff of all” by citing this song.
At the time of composition, not one of the band members has ever stepped foot in Kashmir. It was merely an inspiration. Plant was on his way to a festival in Morocco and he was driving through Sahara Desert. Though the song is more than eight minutes, radio stations didn’t mind playing it since “Stairway To Heaven” did well even if it was just as long.
Plant also commented on the challenges he faced in writing lyrics for such a complex piece of music:
It was an amazing piece of music to write to, and an incredible challenge for me … Because of the time signature, the whole deal of the song is… not grandiose, but powerful: it required some kind of epithet, or abstract lyrical setting about the whole idea of life being an adventure and being a series of illuminated moments.
This is one intense classic!
