Imagine telling your record label that your next album will have no title, no band name, and no information of any kind on the sleeve. That is the gamble at the heart of this week in rock history, because on Nov. 8, 1971, Led Zeppelin released the record we all call Led Zeppelin IV, and it did not even say Led Zeppelin on the cover. It also never reached No. 1 in America, and we think that makes it the most interesting album of the week.
The Anchor: Led Zeppelin IV Needed No Name
Jimmy Page later explained the idea: “It seemed as though it would be an interesting proposition to actually put out an album with no information on it at all…and see how it would sell.” The answer, per Wikipedia, is more than 37 million copies worldwide, the best-selling album in the Led Zeppelin catalog. It entered the UK chart at No. 10, then jumped to No. 1. In the U.S. it peaked at No. 2, behind Sly and the Family Stone’s There’s a Riot Goin’ On and Carole King’s Music.
Here is our take. The band refused to release “Stairway to Heaven” as a single, and the song still became an FM radio institution (we have written about it before). That is the whole argument for the album as the product. Nobody remembers who sat at No. 1 that month, but everybody knows “When the Levee Breaks,” “Going to California” and “The Battle of Evermore.” The chart is a scoreboard. The record is the thing that lasted.
The Rest of the Week in Rock History
Nov. 2, 1967: Cream Release Disraeli Gears
Cream’s Disraeli Gears came out in the UK and US on Nov. 2, 1967. It was recorded mostly at Atlantic Studios in New York in May 1967 with producer Felix Pappalardi, and it reached No. 4 on the Billboard 200. Heavy blues rock had a blueprint four years before IV.
Nov. 4, 1977: Ramones Release Rocket to Russia
The Ramones’ Rocket to Russia hit shelves on Nov. 4, 1977 and peaked at No. 49. Robert Christgau gave it an A and called it a “ready-made punk-rock classic.” If a No. 2 peak cannot measure Zeppelin, a No. 49 peak sure cannot measure this.
Nov. 6, 1948: Glenn Frey Is Born in Detroit
The Eagles co-founder, co-lead singer and frontman was born in Detroit on Nov. 6, 1948. He sang lead on their first single, “Take It Easy,” in 1972, and died on Jan. 18, 2016 at age 67. The band went into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998.
Nov. 7, 1983: Yes Release 90125
With Trevor Rabin on guitar and Trevor Horn producing, Yes put out 90125 on Nov. 7, 1983. It reached No. 5 in the U.S., went 3x Platinum, and remains the band’s best-selling album. Prog purists still call it a betrayal. Fans of a hit record call it a rescue.
Nov. 8, 1974: Thin Lizzy Release Nightlife
Three years to the day after IV, Thin Lizzy released Nightlife on Vertigo. It was their first album as a quartet, with guitarists Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson on board, and it includes “Philomena,” which Phil Lynott wrote for his mother.
Settle It in the Comments
Is Led Zeppelin IV the greatest rock album ever made, or is it “Stairway to Heaven” with great company? And if No. 2 is the worst place a masterpiece can finish, name the album that deserved to finish ahead of it. Catch up on last week’s Bohemian Rhapsody debate, the Street Survivors piece, and our look at the Bonham loss that ended Zeppelin.
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