The Lemon Song
Encyclopedia
"The Lemon Song" is a song by English
rock
band Led Zeppelin
, featured on their 1969
album Led Zeppelin II
. It was recorded at Mystic Studios in Hollywood when the band was on their second concert tour of the United States
.
"The Lemon Song" is laced with sexual innuendo
, and features some of Led Zeppelin's most blues
-influenced playing. It was recorded virtually live in the studio, and no electronic devices were used to create the echo on Robert Plant
's vocal. It was made solely by Plant's voice and the acoustics in Mystic Studios, which was a 16 x 16 foot room with wooden walls.
Another notable aspect of this song is John Paul Jones
' complex bass performance, which is heavily funk influenced. During interviews afterwards, he said that he had improvised during the entire song.
"The Lemon Song" was performed live on Led Zeppelin's first three concert tours of the United States
(on the first tour as "Killing Floor"), before being dropped from their live set in late 1969. However, the 'squeeze my lemon' sequence continued to be inserted into the "Whole Lotta Love
" medley and ad-libbed elsewhere.
The song borrows from Howlin' Wolf
's "Killing Floor", which was a song Led Zeppelin often incorporated into their live setlist during their first concert tour of the United States. For the second
and third
North American tours the song evolved into "The Lemon Song", with Plant often improvising
lyrics onstage.
Other lyrics, notably "squeeze (my lemon
) 'til the juice runs down my leg," can be traced to Robert Johnson's "Travelling Riverside Blues". It is likely that Johnson borrowed this himself, from a song recorded in the same year (1937) called "She Squeezed My Lemon" (by Arthur McKay). The song also borrowed from Albert King
's "Cross-Cut Saw
".
In December 1972, Arc Music, owner of the publishing rights to Howlin' Wolf
's songs, sued Led Zeppelin for copyright infringement on "The Lemon Song." The parties settled out of court. Though the amount was not disclosed, Wolf received a check for $45,123 from Arc Music immediately following the suit, and subsequent releases included a co-songwriter credit for him.
Jimmy Page
performed this song on his tour with The Black Crowes
in 1999. A version of "The Lemon Song" performed by Page and The Black Crowes can be found on the album Live at the Greek
.
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 music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country 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...
, featured on their 1969
1969 in music
-Events:Perhaps the two most famous musical events of 1969 were concerts. At a Rolling Stones concert in Altamont, California, a fan was stabbed to death by Hells Angels, a biker gang that had been hired to provide security for the event...
album Led Zeppelin II
Led Zeppelin II
The finished tracks reflect the raw, evolving sound of the band and their ability as live performers. The album has been noted for featuring a further development of the lyrical themes established by Robert Plant on Led Zeppelin's debut album, creating a work which would become more widely...
. It was recorded at Mystic Studios in Hollywood when the band was on their second concert tour of the United States
Led Zeppelin North American Tour Spring 1969
Led Zeppelin's Spring 1969 North American Tour was the second concert tour of North America by the English rock band. The tour commenced on April 18 and concluded on May 31, 1969....
.
"The Lemon Song" is laced with sexual innuendo
Innuendo
An innuendo is a baseless invention of thoughts or ideas. It can also be a remark or question, typically disparaging , that works obliquely by allusion...
, and features some of Led Zeppelin's most blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
-influenced playing. It was recorded virtually live in the studio, and no electronic devices were used to create the echo on 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...
's vocal. It was made solely by Plant's voice and the acoustics in Mystic Studios, which was a 16 x 16 foot room with wooden walls.
Another notable aspect of this song is 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...
' complex bass performance, which is heavily funk influenced. During interviews afterwards, he said that he had improvised during the entire song.
"The Lemon Song" was performed live on Led Zeppelin's first three concert tours of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(on the first tour as "Killing Floor"), before being dropped from their live set in late 1969. However, the 'squeeze my lemon' sequence continued to be inserted into the "Whole Lotta Love
Whole Lotta Love
"Whole Lotta Love" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is featured as the opening track on the band's second album, Led Zeppelin II, and was released in the United States and Japan as a single. The US release became their first hit single, it was certified Gold on 13 April 1970, when it...
" medley and ad-libbed elsewhere.
The song borrows from Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
's "Killing Floor", which was a song Led Zeppelin often incorporated into their live setlist during their first concert tour of the United States. For the second
Led Zeppelin North American Tour 1968/1969
Led Zeppelin's 1968/1969 tour of North America was the first concert tour of North America by the English rock band. The tour commenced on December 26, 1968 and concluded on February 15, 1969.-Overview:...
and third
Led Zeppelin North American Tour Spring 1969
Led Zeppelin's Spring 1969 North American Tour was the second concert tour of North America by the English rock band. The tour commenced on April 18 and concluded on May 31, 1969....
North American tours the song evolved into "The Lemon Song", with Plant often improvising
Improvisation
Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...
lyrics onstage.
Other lyrics, notably "squeeze (my lemon
Lemon
The lemon is both a small evergreen tree native to Asia, and the tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and non-culinary purposes throughout the world – primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind are also used, mainly in cooking and baking...
) 'til the juice runs down my leg," can be traced to Robert Johnson's "Travelling Riverside Blues". It is likely that Johnson borrowed this himself, from a song recorded in the same year (1937) called "She Squeezed My Lemon" (by Arthur McKay). The song also borrowed from Albert King
Albert King
Albert King was an American blues guitarist and singer, and a major influence in the world of blues guitar playing.-Career:...
's "Cross-Cut Saw
Crosscut Saw (song)
"Crosscut Saw", or "Cross Cut Saw Blues" as it was first called, is a bawdy blues song "that must have belonged to the general repertoire of the Delta blues". The song was first released in 1941 by Mississippi bluesman Tommy McClennan and has since been interpreted by many blues artists...
".
In December 1972, Arc Music, owner of the publishing rights to Howlin' Wolf
Howlin' Wolf
Chester Arthur Burnett , known as Howlin' Wolf, was an influential American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player....
's songs, sued Led Zeppelin for copyright infringement on "The Lemon Song." The parties settled out of court. Though the amount was not disclosed, Wolf received a check for $45,123 from Arc Music immediately following the suit, and subsequent releases included a co-songwriter credit for him.
Jimmy Page
Jimmy 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...
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. A version of "The Lemon Song" 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...
.
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
- 1993: DMZ (Feel the Power! [recorded live 1984])
- 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) - 2006: Zepparella (Girls Got Rhythm!Girls Got Rhythm!Girls Got Rhythm! is a compilation album featuring various all-female tribute bands. The album is named after the song of the same title by AC/DC.-Track listing:# "Thunderstruck" –...
) - 2006: Bill Roberts (Raw Material)
- 2006: Studio 99 (Led Zeppelin: A Tribute)
- 2007: Dread Zeppelin (Many Faces of Led Zeppelin)
Sources
- Lewis, Dave (2004) The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9
- Welch, Chris (1998) Led Zeppelin: Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song, ISBN 1-56025-818-7