Single Stories: Led Zeppelin, “Rock and Roll”

Today we celebrate a single that’s arguably one of the greatest rock songs to emerge during the 1970s, which is only appropriate for a song that dares to use the name of its genre as its title.

There may be better songs to define the concept of rock ‘n’ roll than Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll,” but you’d be hard pressed to find many people who’d be willing to climb out on a limb and argue that “Rock and Roll” isn’t a great example of rock ‘n’ roll. Credited to all four members of the band, the song evolved in the midst of a jam session while they were attempting to complete the song “Four Sticks.” While they failed in that particular effort, they nonetheless succeeded in composing a classic track, one which would subsequently find its way onto LED ZEPPELIN IV and, as a result, onto album rock radio station playlists, where the song still remains to this day.

While you may think you know “Rock and Roll” backwards and forwards, we do have a little something to offer you that you might not have heard: the Sunset Sound Mix of the song, which made its digital debut late last week. This mix originally appeared on the limited-edition 7-inch vinyl single that Led Zeppelin released for this year’s Record Store Day, but now that it’s sold out and become the best-selling release in Record Store Day history, it’s time everyone had a chance to hear it.

Additionally, Led Zeppelin has debuted two new digital collections: LED ZEPPELIN X LED ZEPPELIN, a 30-track compilation featuring tracks from all eight of their studio albums, and AN INTRODUCTION TO LED ZEPPELIN, a 10-track compilation which consists of the first 10 songs from LED ZEPPELIN X LED ZEPPELIN.

Here’s the track listing:

LED ZEPPELIN X LED ZEPPELIN:

Track Listing

1.    "Immigrant Song"
2.    "Rock And Roll" (Sunset Sound Mix)
3.    "Whole Lotta Love"
4.    "Black Dog"
5.    "Stairway To Heaven"
6.    "Good Times Bad Times"
7.    "Going To California"
8.    "Ramble On"
9.    "Kashmir"
10.  "Over The Hills And Far Away"
11.  "Hey Hey What Can I Do"
12.  "D'yer Mak'er"
13.  "When The Levee Breaks"
14.  "All My Love"
15.  "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You"
16.  "Heartbreaker"
17.  "Dazed And Confused"
18.  "The Song Remains The Same"
19.  "Fool In The Rain"
20.  "The Ocean"
21.  "What Is And What Should Never Be"
22.  "Houses Of The Holy"
23.  "Since I've Been Loving You"
24.  "Misty Mountain Hop"
25.  "Communication Breakdown"
26.  "Thank You"
27.  "No Quarter"
28.  "Trampled Under Foot"
29.  "I Can't Quit You Babe"
30.  "In The Evening"