I think there's an important distinction that needs to be made here: George Harrison never said "Led Zeppelin *_can't_* write ballads." He said that they "never do ballads." He wasn't insulting them but rather encouraging them with a bit of constructive criticism. Thankfully, it worked lol because this is such a beautiful song! 😊
I'm old enough to have gotten 'Houses of the Holy' on its release, and it still sounds as fresh and innovative today as it did back in '73. "Rain Song" has always been a standout track, and you do it great justice here, Rhett. Well done!
You are not kidding, I can hardly ever listen to one with the other if they come up in a Playlist I just play the whole album or side. Same thing happened to me the other day with 'Over the Hills and Far Away' leading into 'The Crunge', however when the Playlist just gave me another Zep track, I was like "Nope, whole album time!" 😅
@@SpiderDan2099 It seems they had already "custard pie" written. Imagine that - SRtS, tRS and OtHaFA toghether with custard pie and not the crunge... Never mind D'yer M'aker, It would be like Abbey Road or Who's Next, a f***g masterpiece
I'm in a Zeppelin tribute band in Phoenix and when we decided that we would learn this for an upcoming show, I never gained such an appreciation for this song until I actually learned it. As the keyboard player, I learned the string arrangement and that, in addition to the guitar work, is amazing as well!
You are correct. Total Mellotron part. I use my string orchestra patch with a low res eq setting to recreate the tape. Yes… we do No Quarter. We also do In The Light which is also quite fun!
Sounds like George was asking them to grow, and they did, good for them and good for George. Everyone riding high needs to be reminded that they need to keep trying.
Imagine thinking a band couldn't do ballads after they had already written Thank You, That's the way, and possibly Going to California and Stairway to Heaven. I love George Harrison but he didn't know what he was talking about.
@TheNathanJasper maybe he meant real good ballads, as I can't think of any real good ballads they made. Sure they made good songs that started slow, they made bad songs that remained slow, but good ballads? He had a point
Exactly. On the 'Spiritual Side' that's referred to as a "Bump Contract". When one isn't on their true course, another 'Soul' who they've known and spent many a millennia with, comes in and "bumps" or disturbs another in order to wake him/her up and get back on course. I've had it happen to me, and I've bumped others. It's NOT a bad thing to bring out the Best in another. It's a loving gesture! Jimmy Page should be thankful to George. George knew that Jimmy had it in him.
One of the greatest acoustic songs ever written. It's hard to explain the feeling this song provokes. It's nostalgic but also existential while feeling extremely comforting at the same time. I can't explain it. I cried when I heard this for the first time. It felt like all it means to be human compressed into one song.
@@robertmarszalek1978 You mean steal it. Thank you Randy California for that opening riff. Certainly not a ballad either. Also this story is bogus anyway. Way after Beatles are split a quip like that to Bonzo doesn't sound like George unless he was taking the piss. As one of his Thames Valley Gang neighbors Jon Lord of Deep Purple invited George to a gig and he got a kick out of how rowdy Deep Purple was. I believe there is footage of him onstage with Deep Purple. So I can't see him giving a sh*t about Zep enough to say anything like that to Bonzo. Jimmy stealing parts of Beatle themes makes sense though.
@@m1244r What about the ones he steals and has to pay for like My Sweet Lord? You are wrong. He was a marginal songwriter with maybe one LPs worth of good songs from his entire career.
When I first tried playing the rain song, the first few chord strums reminded me of the Beetles song Something. I learnt it in standard tuning which is a little more difficult to grasp. I recall the first chord being a G type chord which is the same chord used in Something by the Beetles. The rest of the Rain Song is musical brilliance by Page matched by awesome lyrics and vocals by Plant. I like Something as a song as well
@@youtoo2233 The way I heard the story, and it's a few times, is that George Harrison said to Jimmy Page "you should write MORE ballads". I mean, Ten Years Gone is a sleeper "best Zeppelin song ever", but that came later. Ballads are a pretty low slice of their total output.
@@cincox3919 Stairway is a chromatic descent, The Rain Song is down G-Major. It matters. A chromatic descent is a bit of a flex in songwriting -- it's why Jazz musicians do it a lot -- but going 4 notes down a major scale is... not.
Rhett, imho, this is THE FINEST video you've ever produced. 🎉 I grew up with Zep, always LOVED this song, knew it was in a different tuning. That ended my desire to learn the tune. Seeing THIS, learning that the opening sequence is a troll, all this background, it's eye opening! Thanks! 🎉
Many years ago when Houses Of The Holy was first released, I fell in love with The Rain Song and I had to learn it. Problem was, I had no idea it was in an altered tuning and I nearly crippled myself trying to find the notes I was hearing. Naturally, there is no way to play this song properly in standard tuning, but I managed to find a reasonable approximation for most of the sections. Years later when I found the tuning Rhett shows here, I was shocked at how much easier it was to play and it finally sounded right. Great video, Rhett!
The rain song is the best zeppelin song ever. It's everything in one shot, almost too much. The soft, lifting melody. The crunch and screams of Plant and Jimmy's Gibson, right at the end. It's just.....perfect
Definitely Page was at the top of his game at the time! Production, Song writing, etc., So magical. Even just as good live, but different in its own way!
There's no question that this is one of the most beautiful, uplifting acoustic pieces. But add in the message of the lyrics and melody and it rockets to the very top of my list of best songs EVER in any style.
I e heard you “noodle” around with “10 years gone” a few time (one of my favorite Zep songs) but this dive into “the Rain Song” has inspired me to learn it completely. One of the few Zep songs I have not learned yet. I always wanted a catalog of only Jimmys acoustic songs. He’s a master! The depth of his imagination and creativity is second to none. Great vid! Thanks Rhett! Happy new year!
I've always thought Page was a greater acoustic player than electric. A genius. I rarely learn songs but I love playing Bron Y Aur. Might get the acoustic out for this! Thanks!
At first I wondered if you were wrong about the song being recorded in 1972 since I think of Houses of the Holy as being one of their "later" albums, but I totally forgot that Zeppelin I through IV all came out between 1969 and 1971. It's honestly hard to comprehend so much great stuff in such a short time.
They really just came up at the perfect time where they could get away with stealing all "their" best songs. Don't get me wrong led zeppelin is legendary and deserves their iconic status, but they wouldn't be known as much more than a cover band had they came out today
@@sboy1955 Buddy Rich even said, "A great musician is just a thief who doesn't get caught." Problem is they very much got caught because they didn't just borrow a few phrases or licks, they just did covers lol Doesn't take away from the amazing ways they transformed the songs tho. Even today everyone just copies everyone for the most part, it just is what it is
Thanks, George and Page. I was in high school around 90' when I discovered this song. I was 16-17 and had a beautiful mistress that I adored very much, and is still close to my heart. This song has always defined our romance, whether in the back seat of my car, or now, in the back seat of my soul, and always, in the springtime of my love.
I was just watching this curious about the tuning( I’d forgotten) and wanted to see how you do it. I’ve dabbled with this song over the years and I had it kinda close. Thanks for the lesson but you didn’t do the end and it’s gonna drive me nuts until I go learn it. Thanks for the motivation lol
I remember back in the late sixties when I got criticized for liking hard rock from friends who preferred CSNY and James Taylor. Then my other friends wondered why I liked Zeppelin III so much with the acoustic numbers. Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, and Neil Young always drew me in with their acoustic and hard driving songs. I play 12-string acoustic most of the time, but I end up playing hard rock with it most of the time.
Lovely song! Where we were you 20 years ago when I spent an entire summer trying to figure it out 🤣 I always play this song to check out the sound of a new guitar 😊
Hey thank you for this !! Watching you play it, the chord progression has a smooth flow. As a kid trying to figure out this song, it seemed unnecessarily complicated !! It made me delve deeper into it until suddenly the door swung open to alternate tunings !! What a revelation to a young guitarist. Sounds funny now, but imagine trying to play this in standard tuning. To this day, I have so much fun messing around with different tunings , or simply just blissfully chugging away in drop d. Thank You Jimmy !!
My favorite song from my favorite band! Every time I listen to this song it puts me in a relaxed mood. Nice job explaining the theory and history of this wonderful piece of music.
So been watching your videos recently and you put a few snippets of this in. Got me wanting a song lesson and voila here it is. You're amazing! Thank you. And more Zep would be fantastic!
Very well made video. Thanks for offering it up. 1/My take would be that Harrison's famous quote was said half tongue in cheek with the intent to be provocative. Zeppelin were thought of at the time as a "Hard Rock" band, maybe even a "boogie" band by their detractors. His little quip worked far better, and got way farther under their skin, than he could've ever imagined. 2/This song is loaded with generic bags of tricks-like the various chromatic climbs and descents, the bouncing in with major and minor chords, traditional turnarounds, etc.-are all well worn ideas going back ages from the classic songbook of pop music. The brilliance of this song was how in those tricks were disguised within the tune so that it's the melody catches you. You aren't even aware that devices are how he does it, you just get carried away by the sound.
1) Awesome sound! 2) Your Martin shootout got me intrigued so I had to learn this.Thanks for putting this video together to give me a much deeper theory lesson on an amazing track. 3) Learning to play in OpenPage tuning blows my mind every time I pick up my Martin. Thanks for the nudge!
It's great to find yourself getting all fired up by a tune that you've heard for decades and kind of taken for granted; then suddenly, for whatever reason, a 'Page' turns and you get to see it in a different light, and it opens up a 'new world' in your perception of the piece, the writer/player, the tuning; even the period in time which it came out. Glad one this is inspiring you going into the New Year! The song remains a gorgeous tune, and Page one of my favorite and most inspiring players/writers of that time.
Wow! Thanks Rhett, this has always been one of my favorite songs. I've heard of a lot of different tunings for it, but yours sounds right, so I'll give it a try.
Great vid and breakdown. I’m a high beginner/low intermediate player and have been trying to learn this song as something new beyond E standard tuning. So fun and fairly simple once you start to really break it down. Now trying to add JP’s feel is a different story.😎. Additionally just noodling around in this tuning is a blast. You can really get awesome chord progression out of it with very simple fingering and shapes. 🤘
Nobody, I repeat.. NOBODY, will ever touch Jimmy when it comes to acoustic composition. I mean everytime he touch an acoustic, it always become gold : The Rain Song, Tangerine, Bron Y Aur, That's The Way, Going to California, to name a few.
Absolutely LOVE Rain Song, always have, the first time I heard it I was blown away. Zep were an absolute machine, unrivaled to this day. I recently learned how to play it, it's not HARD but it's not easy to pull off and make it sound good, either, it takes a bit of work to get it smooth. What is key, though, is what there is to learn in the structure of it, all those little passing notes and transitional bits. You really get a feel for the way Jimmy approached the guitar with songs like this.
Thoroughly enjoyed watching the video! You asked for our comments and here is mine. Can you do a deep dive on Travis Meeks and days of the new? I always found their way of playing invoking and skillful. They are a lesser known band of the 90s but in all honesty. My favorite.
There is a great video on UA-cam of the rain song live from the unledded session and the challenge is to try and play alongside jimmy. And yes you are right probably one of the best acoustic track ever written in modern music by . Thank you for reminding me of that.
Page does this brilliance throughout many songs. In that, he uses several different open tunings throughout his entire body of work but Rain Song is the pinnacle of his brilliance, I must agree. Page has always been my most favorite guitarist and Zeppelin my most favorite band since I first heard them 1972. Nothing like them existed before and the smooth combination of acoustic and electric guitars with such fluidity,.. that after a while you didn't notice when simply jamming to the tune! I remember thinking Kashmir sound like a symphony orchestra with an entire string section to me. Brilliant!
Just a little tip for this song: it’s mostly up-strums. That’s what gives it such a unique sound. If you watch him play it in TSRTS you can really see how he strums everything. Page really was a genius
I have never seen you try a guitar synthesizer. This song is one of the reasons I have a Fishman midi guitar on my acoustic guitar. Having the string section and the guitar together is awesome. You should check out the tripleplay midi pickup system.
I learned this song, decades ago, as a teenager, in standard tuning. We didn't have tab books, nor the internet, back then. Had no idea it was an open tuning, or even that there was such a thing as a non-standard tuning.
Rain Song is the MOST beautiful and perfect combo of "tears in my eyes" ballad (the same way opera brings tears) and ROCK!! The music stands on it's own BUT...Robert Plant. The difference in GREAT music and timeless classic that moves people as much today as day one. Familiarity is most often important in enjoying music. This is an exception. First listen, hooked 4ever. Thank you Mr Page. Thank You to the whole of Zep ❤
Jimmy Page, the guitarist of Led Zeppelin, confirmed in an interview that the first two chords of “The Rain Song” are a nod to The Beatles’ song “Something,” written by Harrison.
I learned how to play this back around 1974 when I was 15 by looking at chord charts in the Zeppelin Song Book and filled in things that were missing by listening to the record. That was all in standard tuning. I must say, it sounds much better in the original tuning hearing the open strings ringing out. Back then there was no way for me to know - and I wasn't smart enough to figure out - that the song wasn't written in standard tuning.
I remember the day I finally learned the correct tuning for this song, I played it over and over and absolutely fell in love with the entire piece. Then I tried to play along to the live version from TSRTS(my fav version) and discovered I yet again had no idea what tuning he was using! Why Jimmy, WHY?? lol
That's one of my favorite songs to play. I intended to play it on my Martin D-28, discovered how nice a Telecaster handles it. I had a 26 year break from guitar and piano. It was basically a start from scratch. I was supposed to learn conventional tuning so I could relearn music reading, instead I was using Dsus tuning. Must admit this song is addictive.
I still argue that Page is the best in his class. No slight to Clapton or Beck or Townshend, Lee, etc. but the run of Zeppelin albums in a little over a decade is so rich, powerful, stylistically varied, brilliantly arranged, recorded and produced that I feel it's unmatched by his peers. And it is SO guitar-y, so much guitar fire and color and emotional and communicative majesty. Everything from riffs, leads, textures, moods and colors and vistas. Acoustics, electrics, 12s, alternate tunings, slide, etc. And then there's his band-- that singer, that drummer and the Swiss Army knife that is John Paul Jones. Sure, the thievery, debauchery, addictions etc. But dude, that catalog is so masterful, GUTSY and beautiful. Much as I love the others, that catalog, that body of work is just... dude, you can't do it, no one can, no one has, maybe no one ever will. I vote Page.
The only way in which I disagree with you is that he is in a class of his own 🙃 The other Jimi was probably a more transcendent guitar player, but in terms of, as you point out, depth and breadth of musical variety, as well as songwriting excellence, whilst STILL being a top-notch guitarist (maybe #2 ever? and I think he himself put Hendrix at the top), no-one else compares. His taste is unparalleled.
Well, I was thinking of the classic debate on the British guitar kings, so even though Jimi got known in the UK he wasn't British, excluding him from the classic debate. Page would, probably like the others, vote Beck or McLaughlin probably king of guitar mountain amongst his fellow UK group, at least in terms of electric wizardry, but I think Page's decade far exceeds the others, which is no small feat.
Somehow this channel always has something I would have wished for in a video if I had the choice. Analysis of the Rain Song? Hell yeah. The corrections that start at 7:08 make me wonder if Rhett sent this to Rick Beato before uploading to get his own musical analysis, or if he's just correcting himself. Brilliant stuff.
Nice demonstration! I remember learning that song a few years ago. I had to sing it as well as a special request for a private gig. Quite an adventure, but very rewarding. B/t/w, that ascending line on the 1 chord is called a "line cliche."
Is that Adam Neely helping with naming the chords @ 7:15 ? Nice job with the video, Rhett! Your guitar sounds amazing. The Rain Song is such a great track and you call out the elements that have always been ear candy for me when listening to it.
I learned this in standard tuning - 5yrs before I learned it was an alt tuning. Honestly, its way more fun and *cooler* in standard tuning. Way *way* harder but a lot of fun and hands down my fave acoustic rock song, ever.
Місяць тому+3
Same here! Can also nail those fun licks he does in TSRTS movie.
How it really was, Harrison went to one of their concerts, afterwards he went backstage & told Bonham they need some ballads. Bonham of course told Jimmy, Jimmy & Robert both wrote this beautiful masterpiece. Though Led Zeppelin did have the beautiful song Thank You, that Plant wrote for his wife. Harrison & Bonham were friends, even vacationing together. I thank Harrison for saying that, because we got one of if not the most beautiful song ever.
thank you .. i had tab for the acoustic guitar but had forgotten about the overlay of the electric in the one section. not sure I can do all that and actually try and sing the song at the same time but thanks.
![The Song Led Zeppelin Could Never Recreate Live: Ten Years Gone [Song Breakdown]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/1flLoy9VXtk/mqdefault.jpg)
I think there's an important distinction that needs to be made here: George Harrison never said "Led Zeppelin *_can't_* write ballads." He said that they "never do ballads." He wasn't insulting them but rather encouraging them with a bit of constructive criticism. Thankfully, it worked lol because this is such a beautiful song! 😊
Correct!. It was a gentle dig with no ill will it.
Nicely said
You got it right😁
yes, clickbait everywhere.
Typical English dry humour which Americans never quite get sometimes
I'm old enough to have gotten 'Houses of the Holy' on its release, and it still sounds as fresh and innovative today as it did back in '73. "Rain Song" has always been a standout track, and you do it great justice here, Rhett. Well done!
The Song Remains The Same followed by The Rain Song is so magical. The way they change from one song to the next is superb.
The sequence Song Remains The Same, Rain Song and Over the Hills and Far Away is one of the best ever in rock history
You are not kidding, I can hardly ever listen to one with the other if they come up in a Playlist I just play the whole album or side. Same thing happened to me the other day with 'Over the Hills and Far Away' leading into 'The Crunge', however when the Playlist just gave me another Zep track, I was like "Nope, whole album time!" 😅
@@SpiderDan2099 It seems they had already "custard pie" written. Imagine that - SRtS, tRS and OtHaFA toghether with custard pie and not the crunge... Never mind D'yer M'aker, It would be like Abbey Road or Who's Next, a f***g masterpiece
With Over the Hills after that - maybe the best first 3 songs on a Zeppelin album
Nice Rhett. I used to fall asleep to that song with my black light and Zeppelin posters. One of the beautiful ending progressions ever!
I'm in a Zeppelin tribute band in Phoenix and when we decided that we would learn this for an upcoming show, I never gained such an appreciation for this song until I actually learned it. As the keyboard player, I learned the string arrangement and that, in addition to the guitar work, is amazing as well!
The strings aren't actually strings though, right? They're JPJ on Mellotron, I think. Do you do "No Quarter", too? That's another great keyboard song.
You are correct. Total Mellotron part. I use my string orchestra patch with a low res eq setting to recreate the tape. Yes… we do No Quarter. We also do In The Light which is also quite fun!
@@B3PlayerAZ but do you do The Crunge?!!! ;)
@ Yes. I don’t play on that one though.
@@B3PlayerAZ pity, that. Your bandmates should get you to perform the spoken "...the bridge?!" bits with a processed voice. ;)
Sounds like George was asking them to grow, and they did, good for them and good for George. Everyone riding high needs to be reminded that they need to keep trying.
Good call
Imagine thinking a band couldn't do ballads after they had already written Thank You, That's the way, and possibly Going to California and Stairway to Heaven. I love George Harrison but he didn't know what he was talking about.
@TheNathanJasper maybe he meant real good ballads, as I can't think of any real good ballads they made. Sure they made good songs that started slow, they made bad songs that remained slow, but good ballads? He had a point
Exactly. On the 'Spiritual Side' that's referred to as a "Bump Contract". When one isn't on their true course, another 'Soul' who they've known and spent many a millennia with, comes in and "bumps" or disturbs another in order to wake him/her up and get back on course. I've had it happen to me, and I've bumped others. It's NOT a bad thing to bring out the Best in another. It's a loving gesture! Jimmy Page should be thankful to George. George knew that Jimmy had it in him.
@@johnwallace2319 bro what? That's an absurd take
One of the greatest acoustic songs ever written. It's hard to explain the feeling this song provokes. It's nostalgic but also existential while feeling extremely comforting at the same time. I can't explain it.
I cried when I heard this for the first time. It felt like all it means to be human compressed into one song.
That guitar and your playing sound so good here
Thank you!
Great job Rick. Impressed.
Typo. Rhett not Rick, apologies.
@@RhettShull
I agree. You kept the right guitar. I’m looking forward to the comparison in a year.
Yeah, there's a reason Martin D-18s are some of the most-recorded guitars in history, and Rhett's playing is always so damn good.
When you have written Here comes the sun and Something you have proven you know ballads...
When you've written It's All Too Much and Wah Wah you know garbage, too. 👀
When you write a song like Stairway to Heaven, you can pretty much write anything
@@robertmarszalek1978 You mean steal it. Thank you Randy California for that opening riff. Certainly not a ballad either. Also this story is bogus anyway. Way after Beatles are split a quip like that to Bonzo doesn't sound like George unless he was taking the piss. As one of his Thames Valley Gang neighbors Jon Lord of Deep Purple invited George to a gig and he got a kick out of how rowdy Deep Purple was. I believe there is footage of him onstage with Deep Purple. So I can't see him giving a sh*t about Zep enough to say anything like that to Bonzo. Jimmy stealing parts of Beatle themes makes sense though.
@@cuda426hemi all of harrison's songs are masterpieces, even the strangest ones
@@m1244r What about the ones he steals and has to pay for like My Sweet Lord? You are wrong. He was a marginal songwriter with maybe one LPs worth of good songs from his entire career.
That guitar and mic combination sound absolutely fantastic together! That is a great song, and cool tuning. Good lesson. Thanks
Your guitar sounds beautiful. I could listen to you play this song with that tuning all day. Thanks Rhett.
I remember crying the first time i heard this song. Just the sound of heaven. An absolute masterpiece.
I have never heard the 'Something' reference in 'The Rain Song' and now I'll never unhear it. Marvelous.
That descending line is also in "Stairway..." (and a ton of other songs)
When I first tried playing the rain song, the first few chord strums reminded me of the Beetles song Something. I learnt it in standard tuning which is a little more difficult to grasp. I recall the first chord being a G type chord which is the same chord used in Something by the Beetles. The rest of the Rain Song is musical brilliance by Page matched by awesome lyrics and vocals by Plant. I like Something as a song as well
Cool story but really not true, Zeppelin had ballads before they did the rain song
@@youtoo2233 The way I heard the story, and it's a few times, is that George Harrison said to Jimmy Page "you should write MORE ballads". I mean, Ten Years Gone is a sleeper "best Zeppelin song ever", but that came later. Ballads are a pretty low slice of their total output.
@@cincox3919 Stairway is a chromatic descent, The Rain Song is down G-Major.
It matters. A chromatic descent is a bit of a flex in songwriting -- it's why Jazz musicians do it a lot -- but going 4 notes down a major scale is... not.
Rhett, imho, this is THE FINEST video you've ever produced. 🎉 I grew up with Zep, always LOVED this song, knew it was in a different tuning. That ended my desire to learn the tune. Seeing THIS, learning that the opening sequence is a troll, all this background, it's eye opening! Thanks! 🎉
Many years ago when Houses Of The Holy was first released, I fell in love with The Rain Song and I had to learn it. Problem was, I had no idea it was in an altered tuning and I nearly crippled myself trying to find the notes I was hearing. Naturally, there is no way to play this song properly in standard tuning, but I managed to find a reasonable approximation for most of the sections. Years later when I found the tuning Rhett shows here, I was shocked at how much easier it was to play and it finally sounded right.
Great video, Rhett!
Lol, yeah... I've been playing it in standard tuning for decades... it can feel difficult sometimes... maybe it's time I tried it in this tuning...😉
The rain song is the best zeppelin song ever. It's everything in one shot, almost too much. The soft, lifting melody. The crunch and screams of Plant and Jimmy's Gibson, right at the end. It's just.....perfect
Definitely Page was at the top of his game at the time! Production, Song writing, etc., So magical. Even just as good live, but different in its own way!
There's no question that this is one of the most beautiful, uplifting acoustic pieces. But add in the message of the lyrics and melody and it rockets to the very top of my list of best songs EVER in any style.
I e heard you “noodle” around with “10 years gone” a few time (one of my favorite Zep songs) but this dive into “the Rain Song” has inspired me to learn it completely. One of the few Zep songs I have not learned yet. I always wanted a catalog of only Jimmys acoustic songs. He’s a master! The depth of his imagination and creativity is second to none. Great vid! Thanks Rhett! Happy new year!
Brilliant my friend!! I enjoyed this immensely, please continue with other songs with this format applied. Nice work Rhett!!!
I've always thought Page was a greater acoustic player than electric. A genius. I rarely learn songs but I love playing Bron Y Aur. Might get the acoustic out for this! Thanks!
Black Mountain Side is alot of fun too, Bron Y Aur Stomp into That's the Way is great fun in open G tuning too.
I’m all for more Led Zeppelin/Page videos. Tens Years Gone would be another great one to break down.
He already did it!
Along with Achilles Last Stand.
Rhett playing this song is the most beautiful thing I’ve heard in months.
KILLER breakdown! More JP overview. I taught myself this one in standard tuning. Amazed at how close I got to the real/correct version. Thank you!
Your tones and recording methods never cease to amaze me Rhett! All that gear is worth it!
At first I wondered if you were wrong about the song being recorded in 1972 since I think of Houses of the Holy as being one of their "later" albums, but I totally forgot that Zeppelin I through IV all came out between 1969 and 1971. It's honestly hard to comprehend so much great stuff in such a short time.
I always remind myself all 4 of those were written by kids.
No band today could possibly be that prolific. 4 albums in two years?! Unbelievable!!
They really just came up at the perfect time where they could get away with stealing all "their" best songs. Don't get me wrong led zeppelin is legendary and deserves their iconic status, but they wouldn't be known as much more than a cover band had they came out today
@@SlyRyFry - with few exceptions almost everything in that era was accused of being borrowed by other (offended) artists.
@@sboy1955 Buddy Rich even said, "A great musician is just a thief who doesn't get caught." Problem is they very much got caught because they didn't just borrow a few phrases or licks, they just did covers lol Doesn't take away from the amazing ways they transformed the songs tho. Even today everyone just copies everyone for the most part, it just is what it is
Thanks, George and Page. I was in high school around 90' when I discovered this song. I was 16-17 and had a beautiful mistress that I adored very much, and is still close to my heart. This song has always defined our romance, whether in the back seat of my car, or now, in the back seat of my soul, and always, in the springtime of my love.
I for one would absolutely love a deeper dive into this song. I totally agree with pretty much everything you said in this vid.
I enjoyed your deep dive into the Rain Song Rhett. Such a brilliant song and great job playing it!
Cool video. I liked hearing about the history of the song as well as the heavy focus on the theory you included.
Thank you Rhett, that was perfect. Thank you for answering the request I made on your previous video 😺
I was just watching this curious about the tuning( I’d forgotten) and wanted to see how you do it. I’ve dabbled with this song over the years and I had it kinda close. Thanks for the lesson but you didn’t do the end and it’s gonna drive me nuts until I go learn it. Thanks for the motivation lol
One of your best vids Rhett. Well explained and concise analysis. Please do more like this. Informative and inspiring!
Thanks! This tuning sounds amazing. I'll be playing this song the coming weeks!
Tony Iommi is another one that never gets credit for some of the amazing acoustic passages he's come up with. Great stuff!
So true, the acoustic section in Heaven and He'll is one such passage.
@@rayross997Agreed. I'll add the outro section of "Symptom of the Universe."
I remember back in the late sixties when I got criticized for liking hard rock from friends who preferred CSNY and James Taylor. Then my other friends wondered why I liked Zeppelin III so much with the acoustic numbers. Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, and Neil Young always drew me in with their acoustic and hard driving songs. I play 12-string acoustic most of the time, but I end up playing hard rock with it most of the time.
Led Z did some incredible acoustic work. Very original . BTW the way you are mic-ing and recording your Martin sounds amazing!
Lovely song! Where we were you 20 years ago when I spent an entire summer trying to figure it out 🤣 I always play this song to check out the sound of a new guitar 😊
Hey thank you for this !! Watching you play it, the chord progression has a smooth flow. As a kid trying to figure out this song, it seemed unnecessarily complicated !! It made me delve deeper into it until suddenly the door swung open to alternate tunings !! What a revelation to a young guitarist. Sounds funny now, but imagine trying to play this in standard tuning. To this day, I have so much fun messing around with different tunings , or simply just blissfully chugging away in drop d. Thank You Jimmy !!
My favorite song from my favorite band! Every time I listen to this song it puts me in a relaxed mood. Nice job explaining the theory and history of this wonderful piece of music.
Great vid, this is def my favourite Zep song. JP is a genius of the guitar, such beautiful chords.
So been watching your videos recently and you put a few snippets of this in. Got me wanting a song lesson and voila here it is. You're amazing! Thank you. And more Zep would be fantastic!
Hey bud, good video, thanks for showing us that awesome tune. And also your acoustic sounds fantastic. Very rich and full, absolutely perfect. ✌👍🎸
Great job breaking this down, Rhett. One of the best videos you have made.
Love this! Would be great if you could do more of these with other of your fav songs
Very well made video. Thanks for offering it up.
1/My take would be that Harrison's famous quote was said half tongue in cheek with the intent to be provocative. Zeppelin were thought of at the time as a "Hard Rock" band, maybe even a "boogie" band by their detractors. His little quip worked far better, and got way farther under their skin, than he could've ever imagined.
2/This song is loaded with generic bags of tricks-like the various chromatic climbs and descents, the bouncing in with major and minor chords, traditional turnarounds, etc.-are all well worn ideas going back ages from the classic songbook of pop music. The brilliance of this song was how in those tricks were disguised within the tune so that it's the melody catches you. You aren't even aware that devices are how he does it, you just get carried away by the sound.
1) Awesome sound!
2) Your Martin shootout got me intrigued so I had to learn this.Thanks for putting this video together to give me a much deeper theory lesson on an amazing track.
3) Learning to play in OpenPage tuning blows my mind every time I pick up my Martin. Thanks for the nudge!
you just inspired me to learn this song, printed out the tab, now to get with it, thanks
Lord, this new Martin of yours already rings like a bell. Great purchase, my man.
GREAT video. Loved the back stories!
Amazing video learnt so much!🎉 love how u mix story and gitarr lesson
Great video! One of my favourite songs beautifully broken down, sounds incredible on the D18 too
It's great to find yourself getting all fired up by a tune that you've heard for decades and kind of taken for granted; then suddenly, for whatever reason, a 'Page' turns and you get to see it in a different light, and it opens up a 'new world' in your perception of the piece, the writer/player, the tuning; even the period in time which it came out. Glad one this is inspiring you going into the New Year!
The song remains a gorgeous tune, and Page one of my favorite and most inspiring players/writers of that time.
Bro.. the tone of that guitar. It's amazing. Your execution is impeccable.
Went and learned this song after you posted your acoustic video, and now you post a tutorial just my luck haha!
Another great insightful video! Thanks Rhett
Wow! Thanks Rhett, this has always been one of my favorite songs. I've heard of a lot of different tunings for it, but yours sounds right, so I'll give it a try.
Great vid and breakdown. I’m a high beginner/low intermediate player and have been trying to learn this song as something new beyond E standard tuning. So fun and fairly simple once you start to really break it down. Now trying to add JP’s feel is a different story.😎. Additionally just noodling around in this tuning is a blast. You can really get awesome chord progression out of it with very simple fingering and shapes. 🤘
Very much enjoyed this post, Rhett!!
Rhett your touch on this masterpiece is very inspiring. Your so right Jimmy is a absolute top 5 for me. If not top 3.
Nobody, I repeat.. NOBODY, will ever touch Jimmy when it comes to acoustic composition. I mean everytime he touch an acoustic, it always become gold : The Rain Song, Tangerine, Bron Y Aur, That's The Way, Going to California, to name a few.
Absolutely LOVE Rain Song, always have, the first time I heard it I was blown away. Zep were an absolute machine, unrivaled to this day. I recently learned how to play it, it's not HARD but it's not easy to pull off and make it sound good, either, it takes a bit of work to get it smooth. What is key, though, is what there is to learn in the structure of it, all those little passing notes and transitional bits. You really get a feel for the way Jimmy approached the guitar with songs like this.
This guitar part has always gave me chills even when it's new that's playing it... I just have a physical reaction to how beautiful it is.
Until this moment, that walk up section has never quite clicked. Thank you, Rhett!
Nice job Rhett, you did the song justice, beautiful.
All the he said she said stuff aside, I really enjoyed your breakdown of the song!! Would love more breakdowns like this!!
Fabulous Rhett! Thank you! Outstanding video!
Thoroughly enjoyed watching the video! You asked for our comments and here is mine. Can you do a deep dive on Travis Meeks and days of the new? I always found their way of playing invoking and skillful. They are a lesser known band of the 90s but in all honesty. My favorite.
Rhett, really glad you kept the D18. Fantastic song. Awesome playing. Yes, it would be great if you did an acoustic series on Zep. Thank you! 🎸🎶
There is a great video on UA-cam of the rain song live from the unledded session and the challenge is to try and play alongside jimmy. And yes you are right probably one of the best acoustic track ever written in modern music by . Thank you for reminding me of that.
Great one Rhett and great playing.
Page does this brilliance throughout many songs. In that, he uses several different open tunings throughout his entire body of work but Rain Song is the pinnacle of his brilliance, I must agree. Page has always been my most favorite guitarist and Zeppelin my most favorite band since I first heard them 1972. Nothing like them existed before and the smooth combination of acoustic and electric guitars with such fluidity,.. that after a while you didn't notice when simply jamming to the tune! I remember thinking Kashmir sound like a symphony orchestra with an entire string section to me. Brilliant!
Just a little tip for this song: it’s mostly up-strums. That’s what gives it such a unique sound. If you watch him play it in TSRTS you can really see how he strums everything. Page really was a genius
I just tried it with the up-strums, and it really made the difference!
I have never seen you try a guitar synthesizer. This song is one of the reasons I have a Fishman midi guitar on my acoustic guitar. Having the string section and the guitar together is awesome. You should check out the tripleplay midi pickup system.
What an incredible way to teach! I absolutely love this episode.
Rhett, I hope you go through with that deep-dive into Jimmy's acoustic playing. That'd be such a cool video!
Inspired me to take up playing The Rain Song. Well played.
Lovely sounding Martin, so rich and resonant...
Some of my most favorite guitar work, by anyone, is in that song. Beautiful song.
I learned this song, decades ago, as a teenager, in standard tuning. We didn't have tab books, nor the internet, back then. Had no idea it was an open tuning, or even that there was such a thing as a non-standard tuning.
Rain Song is the MOST beautiful and perfect combo of "tears in my eyes" ballad (the same way opera brings tears) and ROCK!! The music stands on it's own BUT...Robert Plant. The difference in GREAT music and timeless classic that moves people as much today as day one. Familiarity is most often important in enjoying music. This is an exception. First listen, hooked 4ever. Thank you Mr Page. Thank You to the whole of Zep ❤
Jimmy Page, the guitarist of Led Zeppelin, confirmed in an interview that the first two chords of “The Rain Song” are a nod to The Beatles’ song “Something,” written by Harrison.
I learned how to play this back around 1974 when I was 15 by looking at chord charts in the Zeppelin Song Book and filled in things that were missing by listening to the record. That was all in standard tuning. I must say, it sounds much better in the original tuning hearing the open strings ringing out. Back then there was no way for me to know - and I wasn't smart enough to figure out - that the song wasn't written in standard tuning.
I remember the day I finally learned the correct tuning for this song, I played it over and over and absolutely fell in love with the entire piece. Then I tried to play along to the live version from TSRTS(my fav version) and discovered I yet again had no idea what tuning he was using! Why Jimmy, WHY?? lol
so lovely and so simply presented. Thanks
thanks for introducing me to this track - you have an ear for a great tune!
That's one of my favorite songs to play. I intended to play it on my Martin D-28, discovered how nice a Telecaster handles it. I had a 26 year break from guitar and piano. It was basically a start from scratch. I was supposed to learn conventional tuning so I could relearn music reading, instead I was using Dsus tuning. Must admit this song is addictive.
I still argue that Page is the best in his class. No slight to Clapton or Beck or Townshend, Lee, etc. but the run of Zeppelin albums in a little over a decade is so rich, powerful, stylistically varied, brilliantly arranged, recorded and produced that I feel it's unmatched by his peers. And it is SO guitar-y, so much guitar fire and color and emotional and communicative majesty. Everything from riffs, leads, textures, moods and colors and vistas. Acoustics, electrics, 12s, alternate tunings, slide, etc. And then there's his band-- that singer, that drummer and the Swiss Army knife that is John Paul Jones. Sure, the thievery, debauchery, addictions etc. But dude, that catalog is so masterful, GUTSY and beautiful. Much as I love the others, that catalog, that body of work is just... dude, you can't do it, no one can, no one has, maybe no one ever will. I vote Page.
The only way in which I disagree with you is that he is in a class of his own 🙃 The other Jimi was probably a more transcendent guitar player, but in terms of, as you point out, depth and breadth of musical variety, as well as songwriting excellence, whilst STILL being a top-notch guitarist (maybe #2 ever? and I think he himself put Hendrix at the top), no-one else compares. His taste is unparalleled.
It obvious that when we talk about creativity and diversity as a musician/guitarist/producer, Jimmy will always be above the rest of names you said.
Well, I was thinking of the classic debate on the British guitar kings, so even though Jimi got known in the UK he wasn't British, excluding him from the classic debate. Page would, probably like the others, vote Beck or McLaughlin probably king of guitar mountain amongst his fellow UK group, at least in terms of electric wizardry, but I think Page's decade far exceeds the others, which is no small feat.
Strong agree! People are critical about his live material these days but his breadth and diversity are unmatched.
You're absolutely right! THE Future Will Tell: Page IS the greatest guirar composer/writer of all times
Somehow this channel always has something I would have wished for in a video if I had the choice. Analysis of the Rain Song? Hell yeah. The corrections that start at 7:08 make me wonder if Rhett sent this to Rick Beato before uploading to get his own musical analysis, or if he's just correcting himself. Brilliant stuff.
Nice demonstration! I remember learning that song a few years ago. I had to sing it as well as a special request for a private gig. Quite an adventure, but very rewarding. B/t/w, that ascending line on the 1 chord is called a "line cliche."
Brilliant. Love it Rett! Thanks🙏
Is that Adam Neely helping with naming the chords @ 7:15 ? Nice job with the video, Rhett! Your guitar sounds amazing. The Rain Song is such a great track and you call out the elements that have always been ear candy for me when listening to it.
Beautiful work here! 👏👏👏
Learned a lot from your channel this year!
Happy new year!
Such a fun song to play, that open tuning just sounds amazing on any guitar
I learned this in standard tuning - 5yrs before I learned it was an alt tuning. Honestly, its way more fun and *cooler* in standard tuning. Way *way* harder but a lot of fun and hands down my fave acoustic rock song, ever.
Same here! Can also nail those fun licks he does in TSRTS movie.
Yea me too. I still find it easier to play the outro in standard.
That’s kind of analogous to how Lenny Breau became a virtuoso..
This was an incredible video !
Been watching your vids for a while now Rhett........today , I am a subscriber...!!!
Man, that guitar sounds amazing! The tone could also be getting enhanced by the beautiful alternate tuning. Nice!
Beautiful song by one of the greatest to do it. Thank you for the history and theory behind it. Have a great 2025, Rhett!
Great video Rhett!
How it really was, Harrison went to one of their concerts, afterwards he went backstage & told Bonham they need some ballads. Bonham of course told Jimmy, Jimmy & Robert both wrote this beautiful masterpiece. Though Led Zeppelin did have the beautiful song Thank You, that Plant wrote for his wife. Harrison & Bonham were friends, even vacationing together. I thank Harrison for saying that, because we got one of if not the most beautiful song ever.
thank you .. i had tab for the acoustic guitar but had forgotten about the overlay of the electric in the one section. not sure I can do all that and actually try and sing the song at the same time but thanks.