Ten Years Gone
Encyclopedia
"Ten Years Gone" is a song by English
rock
band Led Zeppelin
from their 1975 album Physical Graffiti
.
used some 14 guitar tracks to overdub the harmony section. Robert Plant
later added lyrics, which are dedicated to an old girlfriend who, ten years earlier, had made him choose either her or his music. Plant explained this in an interview he gave in 1975:
In another interview, Plant credited Page with the song's intricate construction:
Some have speculated that this song was a variation of the never-released Led Zeppelin track "Swan Song", the name they chose for their own record label.
This is one of the few Led Zeppelin songs in which it is possible to hear the squeak of John Bonham's bass drum pedal in the recording studio
, the others being "Since I've Been Loving You
" from 1970's Led Zeppelin III
, "The Ocean" from 1973's Houses of the Holy
, "Houses of the Holy
" from 1975's Physical Graffiti
, and "Bonzo's Montreux
" from 1982's Coda
.
Live versions of this song were performed on Led Zeppelin's 1977 concert tour of the United States
. John Paul Jones
originally played the melody on an acoustic guitar
but then introduced an unusual triple-necked guitar that included a six-string, twelve string, mandolin, and bass pedals. Jimmy Page used his brown-painted 1960s Fender Telecaster
featuring a Parsons and White B-string bender
. The band again played the song on the first date of the concerts at Knebworth
on 4 August, 1979 which was also their last time playing it in concert. They cut it from their set on their second and final Knebworth appearance on 11 August, due to problems with the sound system.
Page and Plant
performed this song once on their Japan
ese tour at Osaka
on February 15, 1996. Page also performed this song on his tour with The Black Crowes
in 1999. In an interview he later gave to National Public Radio, Page commented on this collaboration with the Black Crowes:
A version of "Ten Years Gone" performed by Page and The Black Crowes can be found on the album Live at the Greek
. Record producer Rick Rubin
has remarked on the song's structure, "A deep, reflective piece with hypnotic, interweaving riffs. Light and dark, shadow and glare. It sounds like nature coming through the speakers."
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
rock
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
band Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
from their 1975 album Physical Graffiti
Physical Graffiti
Physical Graffiti is the sixth studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 24 February 1975 as a double album. Recording sessions for the album were initially disrupted when bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones considered leaving the band...
.
Overview
Originally intended to be an instrumental piece, Jimmy PageJimmy Page
James Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
used some 14 guitar tracks to overdub the harmony section. Robert Plant
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant, CBE is an English singer and songwriter best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. He has also had a successful solo career...
later added lyrics, which are dedicated to an old girlfriend who, ten years earlier, had made him choose either her or his music. Plant explained this in an interview he gave in 1975:
In another interview, Plant credited Page with the song's intricate construction:
Some have speculated that this song was a variation of the never-released Led Zeppelin track "Swan Song", the name they chose for their own record label.
This is one of the few Led Zeppelin songs in which it is possible to hear the squeak of John Bonham's bass drum pedal in the recording studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
, the others being "Since I've Been Loving You
Since I've Been Loving You
"Since I've Been Loving You" is a blues-rock song in C minor by English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on the 1970 album Led Zeppelin III.-Overview:...
" from 1970's Led Zeppelin III
Led Zeppelin III
Led Zeppelin III is the third studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was recorded between January and July 1970 and released on 5 October 1970 by Atlantic Records. Composed largely at a remote cottage in Wales known as Bron-Yr-Aur, this work represented a maturing of the band's...
, "The Ocean" from 1973's Houses of the Holy
Houses of the Holy
Houses of the Holy is the fifth studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released by Atlantic Records on 28 March 1973. The album title is a dedication by the band to their fans who appeared at venues they dubbed "Houses of the Holy". It was the second Led Zeppelin album to not...
, "Houses of the Holy
Houses of the Holy (song)
"Houses of the Holy" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin from their 1975 album, Physical Graffiti. The track is a mid-tempo rock song, heavy on bass and featuring a distinctive Jimmy Page guitar riff. In order to create the layered guitar introduction and fade-out, Page used a Delta T...
" from 1975's Physical Graffiti
Physical Graffiti
Physical Graffiti is the sixth studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 24 February 1975 as a double album. Recording sessions for the album were initially disrupted when bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones considered leaving the band...
, and "Bonzo's Montreux
Bonzo's Montreux
"Bonzo's Montreux" is a song by English rock group Led Zeppelin. The song is a solo by drummer John Bonham, recorded in September 1976 at Mountain Studios in Montreux, Switzerland...
" from 1982's Coda
Coda (album)
-Sales chart performance:AlbumSinglesNo commercial or promotional singles were issued, although three tracks received independent radio airplay...
.
Live versions of this song were performed on Led Zeppelin's 1977 concert tour of the United States
Led Zeppelin North American Tour 1977
Led Zeppelin's 1977 North American Tour was the eleventh and final concert tour of North America by the English rock band. The tour was divided into three legs, with performances commencing on 1 April and concluding on 24 July 1977...
. John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones (musician)
John Paul Jones is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. Best known as the bassist, mandolinist, and keyboardist for English rock band Led Zeppelin, Jones has since developed a solo career and has gained even more respect as both a musician and a...
originally played the melody on an acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
but then introduced an unusual triple-necked guitar that included a six-string, twelve string, mandolin, and bass pedals. Jimmy Page used his brown-painted 1960s Fender Telecaster
Fender Telecaster
The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele , is typically a dual-pickup, solid-body electric guitar made by Fender.Its simple yet effective design and revolutionary sound broke ground and set trends in electric guitar manufacturing and popular music...
featuring a Parsons and White B-string bender
B-Bender
B-Bender is a guitar accessory that enables a player to mechanically bend the B-string up a whole tone to C-sharp. There are several different designs, but all use levers or pulleys inside or outside the guitar body that are activated by a pull or push of the guitar neck, body, or bridge...
. The band again played the song on the first date of the concerts at Knebworth
Knebworth Festival 1979
The Knebworth Festival 1979 consisted of two concerts performed by the English rock band Led Zeppelin and other artists at Knebworth House, Hertfordshire, England, in August 1979.-History:...
on 4 August, 1979 which was also their last time playing it in concert. They cut it from their set on their second and final Knebworth appearance on 11 August, due to problems with the sound system.
Page and Plant
Page and Plant
Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, both formerly of English hard rock band Led Zeppelin, recorded and toured in the mid-1990s under the title Page and Plant. The pair re-united in 1994 and, after recording a highly successful first album, they embarked on a world tour. They then recorded a second album,...
performed this song once on their Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese tour at Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
on February 15, 1996. Page also performed this song on his tour with The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in 1989. Their discography includes nine studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the...
in 1999. In an interview he later gave to National Public Radio, Page commented on this collaboration with the Black Crowes:
We did "Ten Years Gone" and all of a sudden I heard all of the guitar parts that I had never heard apart from on record. We could never do all those guitar parts with just the one guitar with Led Zeppelin. It was fantastic.
A version of "Ten Years Gone" performed by Page and The Black Crowes can be found on the album Live at the Greek
Live at the Greek
Live at the Greek: Excess All Areas is a double live album by Jimmy Page and The Black Crowes, released by musicmaker.com on 29 February 2000 and later by TVT Records on 4 July 2000. In October 1999, Page teamed up with The Black Crowes for a two-night performance of material from the Led Zeppelin...
. Record producer Rick Rubin
Rick Rubin
Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and the co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records and also established American Recordings...
has remarked on the song's structure, "A deep, reflective piece with hypnotic, interweaving riffs. Light and dark, shadow and glare. It sounds like nature coming through the speakers."
Personnel
- Robert PlantRobert PlantRobert Anthony Plant, CBE is an English singer and songwriter best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. He has also had a successful solo career...
- vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Jimmy PageJimmy PageJames Patrick "Jimmy" Page, OBE is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and record producer. He began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and was subsequently a member of The Yardbirds from 1966 to 1968, after which he founded the English rock band Led Zeppelin.Jimmy Page...
- guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s - John Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones (musician)John Paul Jones is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. Best known as the bassist, mandolinist, and keyboardist for English rock band Led Zeppelin, Jones has since developed a solo career and has gained even more respect as both a musician and a...
- bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - John BonhamJohn BonhamJohn Henry Bonham was an English musician and songwriter, best known as the drummer of Led Zeppelin. Bonham was esteemed for his speed, power, fast right foot, distinctive sound, and "feel" for the groove...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Cover versions
- 1997: Jason BonhamJason BonhamJason John Bonham is an English drummer. Jason's parents are Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham and his wife Pat Phillips. After his father's death in 1980, he has played with Led Zeppelin on different occasions, including the Ahmet Ertegün Tribute Concert at The O2 Arena in London in...
Band (In the Name of My Father - The ZepsetIn the Name of My Father - The ZepsetIn the Name of My Father: The Zepset is a recorded album by Jason Bonham, released in 1997 under than name The Jason Bonham Band. The album consists entirely of cover versions of various songs by English rock group Led Zeppelin, as a tribute to the band's drummer, and Bonham's late father, John...
) - 2000: Jimmy Page & The Black CrowesThe Black CrowesThe Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in 1989. Their discography includes nine studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the...
(Live at the GreekLive at the GreekLive at the Greek: Excess All Areas is a double live album by Jimmy Page and The Black Crowes, released by musicmaker.com on 29 February 2000 and later by TVT Records on 4 July 2000. In October 1999, Page teamed up with The Black Crowes for a two-night performance of material from the Led Zeppelin...
) - 2000: Dread ZeppelinDread ZeppelinDread Zeppelin is an American band best known for performing the songs of Led Zeppelin in a reggae style as sung by a 300 pound Vegas Elvis impersonator. Over the years they would also perform songs originally by Elvis Presley, Bob Marley and The Yardbirds. The group toured extensively around the...
(De-jah Voodoo) - 2002: The Section (The String Quartet Tribute to Led Zeppelin, Vol. 2)
- 2002: Michael Bluestein (Wild World)
- 2004: Kevin RussellKevin RussellKevin Richard Russell is one of the three founding members of the German rock band Böhse Onkelz...
(My Generation) - 2005: Led Zepagain (A Tribute to Led Zeppelin)
- 2006: Michael Armstrong (Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of Led Zeppelin)
Jimmy Page and The Black Crowes Single
| Chart (2000) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart | 33 |