ZZ 20 005
When this song began getting play in Chicago, there was always a sense of heightened anticipation as the instrumental’s intro would start slowly sliding into a mix. By the time the arpeggio began, dancers were halfway to a true frenzy. The piercing lead synth that picks up a third of the way through the song simply sealed the deal. The fuzzy bass drum that hammers alone relentlessly for 16 bars was an unusual sound for the time and probably influenced a lot of harder tracks to come later. Speed it up to about 150 bpm and you’ve got a Gabber track.
When this song began getting play in Chicago, there was always a sense of heightened anticipation as the instrumental’s intro would start slowly sliding into a mix. By the time the arpeggio began, dancers were halfway to a true frenzy. The piercing lead synth that picks up a third of the way through the song simply sealed the deal. The fuzzy bass drum that hammers alone relentlessly for 16 bars was an unusual sound for the time and probably influenced a lot of harder tracks to come later. Speed it up to about 150 bpm and you’ve got a Gabber track.
I have to confess that I had been hearing this track in mixes and on the radio long before I realized it was a Led Zeppelin cover. Granted the instrumental version is the one that got the most play but I was also pretty clueless about rock music back then. When I finally bought the single, I recognized the names Page/Plant on the label credits but didn’t know why. My buddy Todd, who was much more knowledgeable about rock (and all music for that matter), finally explained the history of the song to me. It didn’t matter; THIS song was the one that mattered. I think it was sometime in the 90's when I finally heard the Zeppelin version. By then I was SO familiar with this track and its nuances that it felt (and still feels to me) like Zeppelin was the doing the cover (and an awkward one at that).
One online review I found says that “while Robert Plant sounds like a dude who really needs to get laid, Barsotti sounds like that dude who got laid the night before, plans to get laid again that night and every night for the foreseeable future.” Maybe that’s true but it might just be the accent. I’m pretty sure Mr. Barsotti didn’t speak English when he recorded this but just tried imitating what he heard. Sure Robert Plant slides words together just like any other rock singer but here the chorus literally goes “ah wanna walla la love.”
Really though, all of that is beside the point. This song (especially the instrumental) is a driving, funky, dark, weird thing that is near perfect. Even the record is gorgeous. The Fuzz Dance label out of Italy released a string of singles with oversized, custom labels that look just great. Alexander Robotnick’s Problemes D’amour (another great track) also got this packaging. Take a look at the high-stepping girl on this label. Is she scared? Excited? Crazy? Whatever (it’s probably all three), she is DEFINITELY dancing to this song.
cool blogspot side,
ReplyDeleteawsome music!