What I’ve Been Listening To: Led Zeppelin/In Through The Out Door

In Through The Out Door is an unusual Led Zeppelin album. When it was released in August 1979, critics and fans were divided. Some felt the synthesizer-driven sound on tracks like All Of My Love and Carouselambra was forward-thinking, while others criticized the band for having abandoned its hard-charging rock sound. To me Zep’s final record prior to drummer John Bonham’s death shows a willingness to push into new sonic territory rather than simply repeating the tried and true. That’s what great bands do!

When looking at In Through The Out Door, it is also important to understand the challenging circumstances under which the record came together. A serious car accident in August 1975 had left Robert Plant unable to tour for the remainder of the year and in 1976. This had made the recording of In Through The Out Door predecessor Presence very difficult. Jimmy Page had started a heroin habit during the studio sessions. The band’s concert film The Song Remains The Same had received a lukewarm reception upon its release in October 1976. In late July 1977, Plant’s five-year-old son Karac had died from a stomach virus. Last but not least, Bonham was struggling with alcoholism.

In Through The Out Door was originally available in six different album jackets

With Page and Bonham frequently not showing up in time at the recording studio, John Paul Jones and Plant took a much bigger role than on previous Zep albums, while Page’s and Bonham’s relative influence was diminished. Jones, who had obtained a Yamaha GX-1 polyphonic synthesizer from Keith Emerson, ended up getting writing credits on all except one track: Hot Dog, a rockabilly song co-written by Plant and Page. Bonham did not receive writing credits for any of the album’s seven tunes, though he was included in the credits for Darlene, which was recorded at the time but not released until 1982’s Coda, the band’s final album.

During a December 2008 interview with Uncut, Jones put the making of In Through The Out Door this way: “I had this big new keyboard. And Robert and I just got to rehearsals early, basically, and as I said… [pause] actually, I’m not sure if I did say it in this interview… [laughs]… With Zeppelin writing, if you came up with good things, and everybody agreed that they were good things, they got used. There was no formula for writing. So Robert and I, by the time everybody turned up for rehearsals, we’d written three or four songs. So we started rehearsing those immediately, because they were something to be getting on with.”

In Through The Out Door opens with In The Evening, a track that was largely written by Jones, though it is credited to him, Plant and Page. The tune introduces the fabulous sound of the GX-1, the synthesizer that is omnipresent on the album.

Fool In The Rain is an unusual track, which features a Latin samba-like section in the middle. Co-written by Jones, Plant and Page, it was also released separately and became the band’s last single.

Carouselambra, with its synthesizer-dominated sound and Page’s guitar mostly feeling like an afterthought, is Led Zeppelin’s most radical sonic departure from their previous albums. Clocking in at a mighty 10:34 minutes, it is also the band’s second longest studio recording; only In My Time Of Dying from 1975’s Physical Graffiti was longer with 11:06 minutes.

The last tune I’d like to call out is All My Love, a rock ballad in honor of Plant’s above mentioned son. Co-written by Jones and Plant, I think it is the album’s highlight. In addition to Plant’s strong vocals, I really dig the sound of Jones’ synthesizer.

According to Wikipedia, Plant, Page and Bonham expressed some reservations about the album following its release. In a December 1990 story in UK music magazine Q, Plant reportedly said: “In Through The Out Door wasn’t the greatest thing in the world, but at least we were trying to vary what we were doing, for our own integrity’s sake…In ’77, when I lost my boy, I didn’t really want to go swinging around—”Hey hey mama say the way you move” didn’t really have a great deal of import any more.”

During a 1998 interview with Guitar World, Page reportedly commented, “We [Bonham and Page] both felt that In Through The Out Door was a little soft. I was not really very keen on “All My Love.” I was a little worried about the chorus. I could just imagine people doing the wave and all of that. And I thought, ‘That is not us. That is not us.’ In its place it was fine, but I would not have wanted to pursue that direction in the future.”

In Through The Out Door was recorded between November and December 1978 at ABBA’s Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden – almost one year prior to its actual release by Swan Song Records. Like all of Led Zeppelin’s albums, it was produced by Page. Despite its mixed reception, the record peaked at no. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and is said to have sold 1.7 million copies only within days after its release. The album also topped albums charts in the UK, Canada and New Zealand. In November 1997, it was certified six times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Sources: Wikipedia, Uncut, YouTube