I have a pretty embarrassing confession. I had never heard Stairway to Heaven in it’s entirety until last week.
It’s possible I’d heard the whole thing and just don’t remember it; that sheltered, Christian me tried to block it from my memory. After all, Led Zeppelin is one of those satan bands. There’s a whole controversy about how the song played backwards says, “So here’s to my sweet Satan.” Yeah.
I must say, Led Zeppelin is not a band I’d listen to much. As talented as they are (the drummer and bassist are IN-SANE), classic rock is just not my music of choice. But just because you don’t always listen to a particular genre doesn’t mean you can’t respect it, learn from it, and even enjoy it.
Drew played this version of Stairway to Heaven last week. It’s from a concert honoring Led Zeppelin, and it brought tears to Robert Plant’s eyes. I can see why.
I love the passion, the energy, the excitement the musicians put into this song. I mean, WOW. The way it builds and builds until the music just slaps you in the face. I especially love the drummer; he looks so excited just to be there, simply ecstatic to play music. You can read a bit more of the story here.
After watching the video, Drew played the original version. And I heard where the passion and excitement from the remake came from. No wonder this song is so legendary.
I’m ashamed that I’ve missed out on these classic songs. That my sheltered, Christian existence led me to believe that passionate songs like this are evil. I now believe that God is in all things, even if they weren’t created with Him specifically in mind.
I really have no idea about the meaning of the song (my husband who’s heard it for years didn’t really know either) and honestly, I don’t even want to attempt to figure it out. I’d rather just bask in the awesomeness of the music.
(I do want to make clear that I do not think this song would be appropriate in worship. This whole secular worship series is not about songs that we need to include in our worship sets. It’s merely me, finding beauty and passion in music again. And where there’s beauty and passion, I truly believe that God is not far behind.)
What do you think about songs like this? Have you ever “over sheltered” your life? Are there other classic songs that I need to hear?
I was brought up to believe that all rock after 1970 was bad. Somehow for my dad, the 60’s contained the last good rock music. I thought KISS was devil music. Then when I began to be independent in the 80’s, I spread my wings. Now I love almost every genre of music.
BTW, I’m guessing Stairway To Heaven came from Led Zeppelin’s love for Celtic mythology with maybe some Tolkien thrown in.
When I was young, Led Zeppelin was the music my brother played so loud the walls in the house shook. You’ve met my dad, so you can imagine how that went down. I came to love them in College, though. If you want to try something very different, but also amazing, listen (fully, no distractions) to Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” Album. I won’t wax poetic here about it (or the band). It speaks for itself. You have my number if you’d like to hear such mad ramblings, though. 🙂
Tim, thanks for sharing. 🙂
Anytime. Though after further reflection, I wonder if “Wish You Were Here” isn’t the best Pink Floyd album to start with. I do love it, but it perhaps doesn’t stand alone as well as some of the others. Hmm.. I need to ponder this further.