The untitled fourth studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, commonly known as Led Zeppelin IV, was released on 8 November 1971. The album is one of the best-selling albums of all time with more than 37 million copies sold as of 2014. As of 2018 It is tied for third-highest-certified album in the US by the Recording Industry Association of America at 23× Platinum. After the band’s previous album Led Zeppelin III received lukewarm reviews from critics, they decided their fourth album would officially be untitled, and would be represented instead by four symbols chosen by each band member, without featuring the name or any other details on the cover.
“Misty Mountain Hop” was written at Headley Grange and featured Jones playing electric piano. The title comes from J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit.
songfacts.com trivia:
This is about a “love-in” near London that was broken up by the police. Robert Plant explained: “It’s about a bunch of hippies getting busted, about the problems you can come across when you have a simple walk in the park on a nice sunny afternoon. In England it’s understandable, because wherever you go to enjoy yourself, ‘Big Brother’ is not far behind.”
Walkin’ in the park just the other day, baby
What do you what do you think I saw?
Crowds of people sittin’ on the grass with flowers in their hair said
Hey Boy do you want to score?
And you know how it is
I really don’t know what time it was oh, oh
So I asked them if I could stay awhile
I didn’t notice but it had got very dark and I was really
Really out of my mind.
Just then a policeman stepped up to me and asked us said
Please, hey, would we care to all get in line
Get in line
Well you know
They asked us to stay for tea and have some fun
Oh, oh, he said that his friends would all drop by, oh
Why don’t you take a good look at yourself and describe what you see
And baby, baby, baby, do you like it?
There you sit, sitting spare like a book on a shelf rustin’
Ah, not trying to fight it
You really don’t care if they’re coming oh, oh
I know that it’s all a state of mind, oh.
If you go down in the streets today, Baby, you better
You better open your eyes
Folk down there really don’t care, really don’t care
Don’t care, really don’t
Which, which way the pressure lies
So I’ve decided what I’m gonna do now
So I’m packing my bags for the Misty Mountains
Where the spirits go now
Over the hills where the spirits fly, oh, I really don’t know
Songwriters: John Paul Jones /
James Patrick (jimmy) Page /
Robert Anthony Plant
Tao Talk 
I like all the pauses that they incorporate between the words in this song.
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It has a weird time to it, maybe that’s the pauses? We are talking skilled musicians to do what they do.
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I love the drumming that drives the song. John Bonham changed the complexity of a lot of their songs by his timing…Keith Moon did the same with the Who. Excellent song! And I love mushrooms.
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I can believe it about the complexity! Listening to it partying is one thrill, listening to it quietly is another. I haven’t listened to much Who music, but maybe I should give it a try. Thanks on the mushrooms. It was easy peasy and fun.
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The Who and Zeppelin would not have been as different and great as they were without those two. Listen to The Real Me and Goin’ Mobile by the Who…
They really drove their respective bands.
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added them to my list
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Whooo… I love this song, and didn’t recognize the name of it. Those symbols they chose look a lot like the ones you’ve been featuring on the AtoZ!
Cool mushrooms! :)
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Yes they do! wiki said they each chose a symbol for themselves. jimmy created the first one and plant created to one with the feather, but the other two took existing. one is the vesica piscis!
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Bonham and Moon were key- The Who should have done like Zeppelin did when they lost Bonham- call it quits when Moon died. They were never the same without him. They were perfect for their bands- as Ringo was for The Beatles.
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This is their best album IMO- a lot of folks like to select other albums maybe because IV was so popular- but I think this is by far their total masterpiece- you agree?
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I like II best probably because it was the first one I heard. The last one I heard is Physical Grafitti. I do think IV is II-Phys are all excellent so really hard to choose.
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Physical Graffiti is my #2 for sure. Love that one too.
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Ah geez. I never did acid, but I think I just had an acid flashback. :) I haven’t heard this song in soooooo long.
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lol it takes me back to another time as well…
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Plant was besotted with Tolkein and Jones was partial, their movie Song Remains The Same shows those themes, enjoyed the read and shrooms too. Could it lead to Led Mushroom? :)
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