Maps of Music

Presence (1976)

Where the lyrics of Presence take you, and where it was really made.

The album was written and recorded in a few weeks while singer Robert Plant was recovering from a car accident, and the band's first choice of title was Thanksgiving.

Key places

Where the album was recorded (1976)

Recording site Musicland Studios — Page favoured Musicland Studios in Munich, which he felt had state-of-the-art recording facilities. The studio was in the basement of the Arabella Hochhaus hotel, and the singer felt claustrophobic there. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Boat Show marina behind the cover (1976)

Album cover Wild Bunch Studios (London) — The cover background is an artificial marina installed in London's Earl's Court arena for the annual Boat Show in winter 1974–75. The band played a series of concerts at this venue in May 1975. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Presence: seventh studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin
• Released 31 March 1976 in the United States by the band's own label Swan Song Records, and 2 April 1976 in the United Kingdom
• Reached the top of the British and American album charts
• Triple-platinum certification in the United States from the RIAA
• The lowest-selling album by the band
• Dominated by compositions by Page and Plant; only one track credited to the whole group
• No keyboards and little acoustic guitar, unlike other Zeppelin albums
• Only two tracks were ever performed live

Background

• Led Zeppelin took a break from touring in summer 1975, before a planned major US tour from 23 August
• 4 August 1975: Plant sustained serious injuries in a car accident on the Greek island of Rhodes
• The accident forced the band to cancel the tour and reschedule its activities
• Because of tax exile status, Plant recuperated abroad, first in Jersey, then in Malibu, California
• Page joined Plant in Malibu in September and the pair began planning an album
• Bonham and Jones joined them at Hollywood's SIR Studio, where the material was rehearsed throughout October 1975

Recording

• Written and recorded in the last months of 1975
• Recorded and mixed with longtime associate and engineer Keith Harwood
• Completed in 18 days, with the final mixes finished on 27 November
• Fastest recording turnaround by the band since their debut album
• Plant sang his vocals in a wheelchair, so Page took on most responsibilities at the sessions
• Page negotiated borrowing two days of the Rolling Stones' session time to finish the guitar overdubs

Cover

• Cover and inside sleeve created by Hipgnosis with George Hardie
• Photographs show people interacting with a black obelisk-shaped object, called 'The Object' inside the sleeve
• The background of the cover photograph is an artificial marina installed for the annual Boat Show in winter 1974–75

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in London in 1968 from the remnants of the Yardbirds, originally as the New Yardbirds.
• Jimmy Page recruited Robert Plant, John Bonham and John Paul Jones; the first full performance was in Denmark in September 1968.
• The name was changed to Led Zeppelin after a cease and desist letter from Chris Dreja, with the 'a' dropped from 'lead' at Peter Grant's suggestion.
• Atlantic Records signed them with a large advance and gave the band artistic and publishing autonomy.

Members

• Robert Plant on vocals and harmonica; Jimmy Page on guitar; John Paul Jones on bass and keyboards; John Bonham on drums.
• Page wrote most of the music and Plant most of the lyrics; Jones often originated keyboard-based songs.

Career

• Released eight studio albums in ten years, achieving eight consecutive UK number-one albums and six US Billboard 200 number ones.
• Led Zeppelin IV, with 37 million copies sold, is among the best-selling albums in history.
• Set attendance records on tours in the 1970s, including 56,800 fans at Tampa Stadium in 1973.
• Disbanded in December 1980 after John Bonham's death; surviving members reunited only sporadically, including the 2007 Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert.
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995; estimated to have sold 200 to 300 million records.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Rolling Stone: Stephen Davis said the album established Led Zeppelin as the premier heavy metal act and praised its clean and purifying guitar riffs
• Rolling Stone: Davis called it another monster in a continuing tradition of battles won by the band
• The Village Voice: Robert Christgau was less enthusiastic and cited 'Hots on for Nowhere' as a commanding cut
• The Daily Telegraph: Neil McCormick called it Zeppelin at their most blunted and gave it two stars out of five

Reappraisal

• Q (retrospective review): gave the album three stars out of five
• Dave Lewis said the direct, hard-hitting recordings failed to connect with a fan base used to the band's diversity, but believed the album was underrated
• Mick Wall said it pulled Led Zeppelin back from the brink of crisis
• 2015 reissue: Metacritic average score of 77 from eight reviews
• Pitchfork: called it possibly their weakest album but among the most special
• Uncut: praised the bonus disc track '10 Ribs & All/Carrot Pod Pod (Pod)' as a moment of sheer anomaly
• PopMatters: said the bonus material leaves too much to be desired but called the album too good to dismiss

Records

• Shipped gold on the day of release in Britain, one of the highest advance orders ever in the country
• Entered the US chart at No. 2 and peaked at No. 1 on Billboard Pop Albums the following week
• Candy Store Rock was released as a US single but failed to chart

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The band had first considered titling the album Thanksgiving, because the album was finished one day before the American holiday.
• The album was the lowest-selling in the band's career, overshadowed by the release of the movie and soundtrack The Song Remains the Same.
• The girl on the back cover photo was Samantha Gates, who had also appeared with her brother Stefan on the cover of Houses of the Holy.
• Hipgnosis and George Hardie were nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Album Package in 1977.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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