Presence

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Presence album cover
Album Information
ALBUM ONLY

Total Tracks: 7   Total Length: 44:24

eMusic Review 0

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Lenny Kaye

eMusic Contributor

As musician, writer, and producer, Lenny Kaye is intimately involved with the creative impulse. He has been a guitarist for poet-rocker Patti Smith since her ba...more »

04.14.10
Back-to-basics immediacy under 11th-hour deadline pressure
2007 | Label: Atlantic Records

Because of his stature as guitarist/songwriter for Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page's considerable duties as a producer are sometimes underplayed; but the truth is, aside from being in the band, coming up with riffs, playing and layering, he had to oversee recording, mixage and completion. He had quite a task ahead of him with three days remaining before the Rolling Stones were booked to take over Munich's Musicland Studio. Mick Jagger stopped in to see Jimmy at that point, and said he'd be lucky to sketch out the overdubbed guitar parts, let alone mix the thing. But 18 days after Led Zeppelin had begun the album, Presence was finished, all the more remarkable for the bleak mood the band had been in following Robert's devastating car accident on Rhodes with his family, where he'd severely injured his leg. Perhaps that makes the Olympian gallop and Hellenic allusions of "Achilles Last Stand" all too real, but Page — with the 11th hour pressure of deadline upon him — piled on the guitars, sticking closely to blues and rock and forgoing the acoustics, giving the album a back-to-basics immediacy. "Nobody's Fault But Mine," might be the New Yardbirds for its unvarnished, roughshod rave-up,… read more »

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I Agree, shamefully overlooked.

MEEVAN

I love Zeppelin and this is my favorite.

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Of Course It's Underrated!

Nyabinghi

How can this record be slagged when it includes Nobody's Fault But Mine (one of their best tunes),Candy Store Rock, Archilles and their best blues since Since I've Been Loving You, Tea For One. Page still cranks out the riffs on this one. I remember staying up late listening to FM Prog Rock shows and the thrill of hearing the wail of Robert and the Phase shifted guitar of Jimmy and of course the Bonham Drop on Nobody's Fault.

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The True Zeppelin Fan Fave!!!

xj32

I have never met a real devotee of Zep, myself included, who did not rate this album highly. Most people who slag it...never really listened to it, and many folks saw it in cutout bins back in the day, thinking it was crap, but the label caused that situation by pressing way too many copies and forced advanced orders.

user avatar

good, but.....

dondejuan

I agree not as strong as other albums. 1 & 4 are my favorite. The rest are good filler.

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Zep's Most underrrated

LeeRocker

Presence has always gotten a bad rap, often when compared to Zep IV or Physical Graffiti. But many Zepheads really treasure this album, which delivers rock n' roll bullseyes, blues-jam grooves, and a series of dark grace notes and undertones that make Zeppelin...Zeppelin. Subtley showcased here is Jimmy Page's genius as a record producer, as despite the varied nature of the compositions, the album feels seamless and cohesive. Presence covers a lot of ground, its feel is indeed looser and more late-night, but the work is no less disciplined than Zep's earlier efforts. I'd put Presence right up there with any of Zep's best records. (And the album art is cool and in retrospect quite innovative in its juxtaposition of Americana kitsch and an out-of-place 2001-like monolith to create a visual effect both unsettling and creepy. David Lynch, anyone?)

user avatar

I say,,,

MarshpitRich

Achilles Last Stand is a Masterpiece! Worth 12 credits alone!

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Candy

Flotasum

Ear candy to me is this record. Each track has profound licks. Out of all Candy Store Rock is the best. Must be heard the way it was intended, loud so you can feel the buzz in the legs.

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the most interesting thing...

spatoon

...about this album is the artwork. after the masterpiece that was physical graffiti zeppelin really flopped on their last two. presence is worth listening to, maybe, but just not really comparable to everything that came before it.

user avatar

same great zeppelin but...

WVMMRH

i have to admit that i only really care for about three tracks here.while i love zeppelin,i feel like maybe some filler was added into this LP in order to create a 'finished' piece of work after inserting three good songs.there's such a thing as deviating from one's normal style if that style as long as that style is listenable.they could've sold this LP as an EP and tossed a few tracks.i realise however that this is only my opinion and that others might not agree.take my review with a grain of salt and listen to the tracks here before coming to any conclusion.i wish that emusic would alot 60 second sample times as opposed to 30 seconds.that would help a great deal in some cases.btw,"nobody's fault but mine" reminds me of something that the group"detective" might record.detective is another swan song band that i highly rate.they're stuff isn't so easy to find however./

user avatar

Nobodys Fault But Mine...

SteverinoGA

...is the greatest rock song ever recorded.

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They Say All Music Guide

Presence scales back the size of Physical Graffiti to a single album, but it retains the grandiose scope of that double record. If anything, Presence has more majestic epics than its predecessor, opening with the surging, ten-minute “Achilles Last Stand” and closing with the meandering, nearly ten-minute “Tea for One.” In between, Led Zeppelin add the lumbering blues workout “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” and the terse, menacing “For Your Life,” which is the best song on the album. These four tracks take up the bulk of the album, leaving three lighthearted throwaways to alleviate the foreboding atmosphere — and pretensions — of the epics. If all of the throwaways were as focused and funny as those on Physical Graffiti or Houses of the Holy, Zeppelin would have had another classic on their hands. – Stephen Thomas Erlewine

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