Led Zeppelin "Over The Hills And Far Away"

If you were to ever hear stories about the biggest Rock song of the 90s, "Smells Like Teen Spirit," invariably, the name of The Pixies is invoked.

Kurt Cobain said it himself:

"I was basically trying to rip off the Pixies. I have to admit it."

The Pixies cool trick of quiet chorus, loud verse became a popular motif for Nirvana, in songs like "Come As You Are" and "Heart Shaped Box." And the connection reinvigorated an interest in The Pixies, who'd long since broken up.

But I always wondered, What about Led Zeppelin?

The quiet/loud dynamic wasn't exclusive to The Pixies (though it was deployed quite expertly by them). There had been other bands who used it.

What about Led Zeppelin?

Kurt Cobain? A suburban West Coast teen growing up in the 80s? He HAD to be a Zeppelin fan.

Maybe at that time it wasn't cool to admit you liked classic rockers Led Zeppelin if you were in the 90s Punk Rock/Seattle scene.

But when I hear "Over The Hills And Far Away" I think, Kurt Cobain had to have had this song in him, at least in his subconscious, when he wrote his songs, right?



I got my answer, in part, with the Nirvana Boxed Set "With The Lights Out" which contains these Zeppelin covers.