We can strap ourselves in and debate about what the best Led Zeppelin album ever is, but we would never come to a definitive answer. The exciting thing about Led Zep is the fact that the band have always refused to subscribe to a specific sound. Instead, they dabble in various genres, such as acoustic music, blues, R&B, hard rock and folk. The result is a haphazard concoction that people still can’t get enough of.
Because of this mixture of sounds which is available when you listen to Led Zeppelin, it’s very hard trying to pick a favourite album. No two records sound the same, and therefore your favourite album by the band will very much depend on the kind of mood you’re in. That being said, when each member of Led Zeppelin have admitted that one of their favourite songs is on the same album, we have to consider said album might be the best they ever did. So, what is the album? Physical Graffiti. And more importantly, what was the song? ‘Kashmir’.
“Graffiti was starting to happen around London with the William Blake thing, Tigers of Wrath, on Portobello Road,” said Jimmy Page when discussing his inspiration for the album’s title. “I was also aware of what was going on in New York with graffiti there. Physical Graffiti, it’s like an entity, isn’t it, the album and the music on it. I think I probably volunteered physical graffiti at Headley. I knew it was a brilliant title.”
The album cements itself as a hard-hitting piece of rock ‘n’ roll right from the word go. ‘Custard Pie’ is one of the greatest opening songs that Led Zeppelin have ever written, and things refuse to let up from there. Every song such as ‘The Rover’ and ‘In My Time of Dying’ shows Led Zeppelin at their very best; however, they really come into their own when ‘Kashmir’ begins.
‘Kashmir’ could be the theme for rock music as a whole, as it represents everything that makes the genre great. The guitar, drums, bass and vocals are all killer, absolutely filled to the brim with energy and with no intention of easing off the gas. No wonder the song has been used in so many different films and TV series, as the track makes for the perfect badass backdrop.
The rest of the band agreed, as they all said that out of every song Led Zeppelin put out, ‘Kashmir’ was one of his favourites. Jimmy Page said that the riff he plays on the track is arguably the best Led Zeppelin riff of all time. Meanwhile, Robert Plant said that he was a big fan of the vocals and the message of the song. “One of my favourites,” he said when asked about the track, “It was so positive, lyrically.”
It’s interesting to note that Plant was fond of the lyrics, as many people don’t actually know what the song’s title refers to. Some think it’s merely something that Plant came up with; meanwhile, many fans are convinced that Kashmir is a real place. Well, it’s time to settle this.
So, is ‘Kashmir’ actually about a real place?
The short answer is: yes. The Led Zeppelin song ‘Kashmir’ is about a real place. It’s located in Southern Asia and is the focal point of the track. You might find this little fact interesting, but it’s nowhere near as interesting as this next piece of information: Robert Plant was nowhere near ‘Kashmir’ when he wrote the song.
When Led Zeppelin were writing the track, they were making their way to the National Festival of Folklore, situated in Morocco. This is hundreds of miles away from the location of ‘Kashmir’, and so it doesn’t make loads of sense as to why Plant stuck with that name. However, despite the rationale being relatively nonsensical, he stood by it when asked about his inspiration behind the title.
“’Kashmir’ came from a trip Jimmy and me made down the Moroccan Atlantic Coast,” said Plant, “From Agadir down to Sidi Ifni. We were just the same as the other hippies really.”
