LED ZEPPELIN - HOUSES OF THE HOLY @ 50

 

Marking its 50th anniversary today is Led Zeppelin’s fifth studio LP, Houses of the Holy, which was released on March 28th, 1973. It marked a distinct evolution in the groups songwriting prowess and was the first LP from the band not to be given an eponymous title.

Prior to recording this album, both Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones had built recording studios in their homes. This allowed them to develop ideas well in advance of the album’s recording schedule and take their time to explore more complex arrangements and compositional techniques. With these resources at hand, they were able to come to the table with songs that were far more fleshed out and developed than on previous albums. This also had the effect of expanding the group’s range of musical styles as they began branching out into reggae and funk influenced rhythms.

When it came time to begin formal production on the album, the group booked The Rolling Stones mobile recording facility and set up camp at Mick Jagger’s StarGroves manor house at East Woodhay in the English county of Hampshire. The bulk of the album was recorded there, where the group took the songs that had been started at Page & Jones’ studios and added to them by jamming out additional compositions in the studio. They then moved to Olympic Studios in London for additional work and, finally, finished off recording in NYC at Electric Lady Studios. While in NYC, the group also recorded a series of classic rock ’n’ roll covers which remain unreleased.

In terms of its place in the group’s canon of recordings, Houses of the Holy, veered away from the dark, heavy blues of the first two albums and went for a much cleaner, expansive rock sound, which is particularly evident in Jimmy Page’s guitar tone throughout. The variety of musical styles was also key to the album’s eclectic sound. Though it lacked a standout classic like Stairway to Heaven from the previous album, it does contain pieces which became concert staples in tours following its release, like The Song Remains the Same and No Quarter. Not all of the material recorded during the sessions made the album, including the title track, which ended up being released on Physical Graffiti. Walker’s Walk eventually found its home on the posthumous Coda LP, released after the band’s demise following the death of John Bonham.

For the cover graphics, legendary ‘70s design house, Hipgnosis were hired to do the job. This was the first cover they’d do for the band, but they would end up designing all the future covers for them going forward. Aubrey Powell was the lead photographer and designer for this project. Initially, they had considered shooting in Peru, but ended up going to Giant’s Causeway in North Ireland where a series of photos were shot in order to create a collage for the front image. Two children, Stefan and Samantha Gates, were hired and sessions took place at dawn and dusk over the course of several days in an attempt to get the right lighting. The photo sessions turned out to be something of a frustrating affair as it rained constantly throughout the shoot, thwarting attempts to get the desired results. Images were shot in black & white and then combined to create the impression of many children climbing on the rocks. The results were deemed unsatisfying until a tinting accident inadvertently produced an effect which brought the whole thing together. Whatever the struggles to get a finished work, it ultimately ended up winning a Grammy award for packaging. Powell’s work was actually the second concept submitted for the album with Hipgnosis partner, Storm Thorgerson. initially submitting an image featuring an electric green tennis court with a tennis racket on it. Furious that Thorgerson was implying, by means of a visual pun, that their music sounded like a "racket", the band fired him and hired Powell in his place.

At the time of its release, it was met with mixed critical responses, though it still became a commercial success. Critics were not impressed with the eclectic mix of styles on the album and found it unfocused and derivative. Gordon Fletcher from Rolling Stone called the album "one of the dullest and most confusing albums I've heard this year", believing the band had digressed from "the epitome of everything good about rock" to a watered down heavy metal act. Such critiques didn’t hurt sales, however, as the album topped the UK charts and spent 39 weeks on Billboard's US top 200 albums chart including two weeks at number one (their longest stint since Led Zeppelin III). The album was number four on Billboard magazine's top albums of 1973 year-end chart. Personally, It’s certainly not my favorite album from the band. I tend to agree that the forays into lighter musical styles are not particularly convincing. I prefer my Zeppelin either hot and heavy or folksy and mellow. ’50s rock, funk and reggae felt strained in their hands, at least to my ears.