Booker T and the MGs-McLemore Avenue (1970): Abbey Road was an extremely influential and popular album even as soon as it was released. The next year, American group Booker T & the MGs made an instrumental album that covered most of Abbey Road, putting a good portion of the songs into three medleys. The only songs not present are "Octopus's Garden," "Oh! Darling," "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" and "Her Majesty," which shows that the artists were capable of handling most of the moods and styles of Abbey Road, mostly with only four instruments, electric guitar, keyboards, bass and drums. The keyboards and guitar work are solid and it's a good album for fans of Beatles covers. There's a recent remastered version that contains the group's other Beatles covers, including "You Can't Do That," "Day Tripper," Eleanor Rigby" and "Lady Madonna."
Led Zeppelin-Houses of the Holy (1973): Their next album after IV, Houses of the Holy showcases more of Led Zeppelin's various styles and some of their best songs. The driving "The Song Remains the Same" became the title for the group's concert film, with live performances often leading into the next track, "The Rain Song" being a love ballad allegedly brought about by a comment George Harrison gave to John Bonham. "Over the Hills and Far Away" was a concert staple since the year before the album was released, with Robert Plant adding "Acapulco Gold" after the line "a pocket full of gold" in most live performances. The next track is the funk-laden jam session "The Crunge," which ends with Robert Plant asking if anyone's seen the bridge. It's a hilarious moment that doesn't get old. "Dancing Days" is the next one, a fairly straightforward rocker they also would perform as early as 1972. The lyrics go from understandable (Dancing Days are here again as the summer evening shows, I got my flower, I got my power, I got my woman who knows) to strange (I saw a lion, he was standing alone with a tadpole in a jar). The next, D'yer Maker (pronounced Jamaica), shows Zeppelin performing reggae, and they do a good job. The spooky No Quarter became a live hit, and Heart has produced a great live cover as well. The Ocean finishes the album and has become one of Zeppelin's most popular anthems with its catchy riff, fun lyrics about singing to the big audiences and exciting drumming. One of my favorite endorsements for the whole album was in Sammy Hagar's supergroup Chickenfoot's song "Big Foot;" "I got Houses of the Holy on the box, I got it all cranked up for Joe, yeah that **** rocks!"
Rainbow-Rising (1976): This album probably didn't receive much notice when first released, but is easily a huge influence on what made the heavy metal of the 1980s the way it was and how it similarly influenced metal bands beyond. Ronnie James Dio and Ritchie Blackmore composed six songs for this album and Blackmore's driving riffs, combined with Dio's lyrics about fantasy elements, influenced Rob Halford of Judas Priest and at least the bands Iron Maiden and Jorn. It starts with talking about the "Tarot Woman," a figure from a fairground who can kill a man. The next track, "Run with the Wolf," contains several fantastic lyrics related to running through a snowy landscape at night and fighting evil forces. "Starstruck" tells of a woman obsessed to the point "I could fly to the moon, but she'd still find a way to be there." There's a self-explanatory song called "Do You Close Your Eyes" (exempt from the title is the follow-up phrase "when you're making love"). The last two are intense, "Stargazer," an over 8-minute track of an evil wizard who has kidnapped a huge populace to build a tower for astrological purposes. When they have finished, he climbs to the top and falls, dying. "A Light in the Black," the 8 minute track that follows, according to Ronnie James Dio, is about the populace running in panic, wondering where to go and what to do with their newfound freedom. Intense work that influenced heavy metal's desire to write stories dealing with mythology, kings, queens and bloody battles between larger than life figures.
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