Is Led Zeppelin IV The Band’s Best Album?

This week on the WPDH Album of the Week, we'll feature the fourth studio album from Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin IV.

Led Zeppelin IV was released on November 8, 1971. It was recorded between December 1970 and February 1971 and was mixed down in July 1971. Jimmy Page produced the album. The album features Stairway to Heaven, which is considered the be the band's signature song.

The album is the band's best-selling album, shipping over 37 million copies worldwide. The album has normally placed among the greatest albums of all time. Obviously, the album was a commercial and critical success.

The song Black Dog was actually named after a dog that hung around the recording studio during the recording of the album. Jimmy Page decided that the album would not have a title, but would rather feature four hand-drawn symbols on the inner sleeve and record label, each of which would be chosen by each band member. The record company did not agree with the decision but the band stood its ground and refused to release its master tapes until things went their way.

The tracklisting for Led Zeppelin IV:

Side One:

1. Black Dog
2. Rock and Roll
3. The Battle of Evermore
4. Stairway to Heaven

Side Two:

1. Misty Mountain Hop
2. Four Sticks
3. Going to California
4. When the Levee Breaks

In 2003, the album was ranked number 66 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

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