Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin II (2LP, deluxe) [WARNER]

Why you'll love it

This deluxe 2LP set pairs Jimmy Page's 2014 remaster with a second disc of studio outtakes, including the unheard instrumental "La La." The album was the band's first No. 1 in both the UK and the US, and it has been certified 12 times platinum in America.

This edition

• 2LP set
• Deluxe edition with studio outtakes
• Remastered by Jimmy Page
• 180g vinyl
• Tri-fold jacket
• Pressed in Germany
• Stereo mix

About the album

Most bands make their second album in one studio over a few calm months. Led Zeppelin made theirs in 1969 between four European and three American tours, booking a studio for a couple of hours whenever the schedule allowed, from London to Los Angeles to New York. You can hear the rush in it: this is the band at full volume, riffs first and questions later, and it's often called their heaviest record.

"Whole Lotta Love" opens with one of the most famous riffs ever put to tape and went top ten in more than a dozen countries. "Heartbreaker" gives Page a solo spot that guitarists still study, "Ramble On" swings from hush to roar, and "Thank You" shows Robert Plant's tender side. Eddie Kramer engineered for the first time, and the band reworked Willie Dixon and Howlin' Wolf on "The Lemon Song" and "Bring It On Home." The second disc lets you hear the songs taking shape, with rough mixes of "Whole Lotta Love" and "Ramble On" and a backing track of "Thank You."

David Juniper's cover earned a Grammy nomination for Best Recording Package, and the record has turned up on greatest-albums lists ever since. Recording a classic in the gaps between gigs is impressive enough; most of us can't finish a crossword between bus stops.

Also at Kops: more Led Zeppelin on vinyl · browse Rock

Tracklist

Listen

On Atlantic (cat# 8122796438), a reissue of the 1969 album.