• • ' Stairway to Heaven' is a song by the English band, released in late 1971. It was composed by guitarist and vocalist for the band's (often called Led Zeppelin IV). It is often referred to as one of the greatest rock songs of all time. The song has three sections, each one progressively increasing in and. The song begins in a slow tempo with acoustic instruments (guitar and ) before introducing electric instruments.

The final section is an uptempo arrangement highlighted by Page's intricate guitar solo accompanying Plant's vocals that end with the plaintive line: 'And she's buying a stairway to heaven.' 'Stairway to Heaven' was voted number three in 2000 by on its list of the 100 Greatest Rock Songs, and was placed at number 31 on ' '. It was the most requested song on stations in the United States in the 1970s, despite never having been commercially released as a single there. In November 2007, through download sales promoting Led Zeppelin's release, 'Stairway to Heaven' hit number 37 on the UK Singles Chart. Contents • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Writing and recording [ ] The recording of 'Stairway to Heaven' commenced in December 1970 at ' new in London. The song was completed by the addition of lyrics by Plant during the sessions for at,, in 1971. Page then returned to Island Studios to record his.

The song originated in 1970 when Jimmy Page and Robert Plant were spending time at, a remote cottage in Wales, following Led Zeppelin's. According to Page, he wrote the music 'over a long period, the first part coming at Bron-Yr-Aur one night'. Page always kept a around, and the idea for 'Stairway' came together from bits of taped music: I had these pieces, these guitar pieces, that I wanted to put together. I had a whole idea of a piece of music that I really wanted to try and present to everybody and try and come to terms with. Bit difficult really, because it started on acoustic, and as you know it goes through to the electric parts.

But we had various run-throughs [at Headley Grange] where I was playing the acoustic guitar and jumping up and picking up the electric guitar. Robert was sitting in the corner, or rather leaning against the wall, and as I was routining the rest of the band with this idea and this piece, he was just writing. And all of a sudden he got up and started singing, along with another run-through, and he must have had 80% of the words there. I had these sections, and I knew what order they were going to go in, but it was just a matter of getting everybody to feel comfortable with each gear shift that was going to be coming.

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Led Zeppelin bassist recalled this presentation of the song to him following its genesis at Bron-Yr-Aur: Page and Plant would come back from the Welsh mountains with the guitar intro and verse. I literally heard it in front of a roaring fire in a country manor house! I picked up a bass recorder and played a run-down riff which gave us an intro, then I moved into a piano for the next section, dubbing on the guitars. In an interview he gave in 1977, Page elaborated: I do have the original tape that was running at the time we ran down 'Stairway To Heaven' completely with the band.

I'd worked it all out already the night before with John Paul Jones, written down the changes and things. All this time we were all living in a house and keeping pretty regular hours together, so the next day we started running it down. There was only one place where there was a slight rerun.

For some unknown reason couldn't get the timing right on the twelve-string part before the solo. Other than that it flowed very quickly. The first attempts at lyrics, written by Robert Plant next to an evening log fire at Headley Grange, were partly spontaneously improvised and Page claimed, 'a huge percentage of the lyrics were written there and then'. Jimmy Page was strumming the chords and Robert Plant had a pencil and paper. Plant later said that suddenly, My hand was writing out the words, 'There's a lady is sure [ ], all that glitters is gold, and she's buying a stairway to heaven'. I just sat there and looked at them and almost leapt out of my seat.' Plant's own explanation of the lyrics was that it 'was some cynical aside about a woman getting everything she wanted all the time without giving back any thought or consideration.

The first line begins with that cynical sweep of the hand. And it softened up after that. The lyrics of the song reflected Plant's current reading. The singer had been poring over the works of the British antiquarian, and later cited Spence's Magic Arts in Celtic Britain as one of the sources for the lyrics to the song. In November 1970, Page dropped a hint of the new song's existence to a music journalist in London: It's an idea for a really long track.

You know how ' and songs like that were broken into sections? Well, we want to try something new with the organ and acoustic guitar building up and building up, and then the electric part starts. It might be a fifteen-minute track. Page stated that the song 'speeds up like an adrenaline flow'.

He explained: Going back to those studio days for me and John Paul Jones, the one thing you didn't do was speed up, because if you sped up you wouldn't be seen again. Everything had to be right on the meter all the way through. And I really wanted to write something which did speed up, and took the emotion and the adrenaline with it, and would reach a sort of crescendo. And that was the idea of it. That's why it was a bit tricky to get together in stages.

The complete studio recording was released on in November 1971. The band's record label, was keen to issue this track as a single, but the band's manager refused requests to do so in both 1972 and 1973. This led many people to buy the fourth album as if it were the single. In the US, Atlantic issued 'Stairway to Heaven' as a 7' promotional single in 1972. Composition [ ] 'Stairway to Heaven' is described as, and. The song consists of several distinct sections, beginning with a quiet introduction on a finger-picked six-string guitar and four in a style (ending at 2:15) and gradually moving into a slow electric middle section (2:16–5:33), then a long guitar solo (5:34–6:44), before the faster final section (6:45 to 7:45), ending with a short vocals-only epilogue.

Plant sings the opening, middle and epilogue sections in his mid vocal range, but sings the hard rock section in his higher range which borders on. Written in the key of, the song opens with an, guitar chord progression with a descending bassline A-G♯-G-F♯-F. John Paul Jones contributed overdubbed wooden bass recorders in the opening section (he used a and, later, a Yamaha CP70B Grand Piano and to synthesise this arrangement in live performances) and a Electra-Piano in the middle section. The sections build with more guitar layers, each complementary to the intro, with the drums entering at 4:18. The extended Jimmy Page guitar solo in the song's final section was played for the recording on a given to him by (an instrument he used extensively with the Yardbirds) plugged into a, although in an interview he gave to magazine, Page also claimed, 'It could have been a, but I can't remember'. Three different improvised solos were recorded, with Page agonising about deciding which to keep. Page later revealed, 'I did have the first phrase worked out, and then there was the link phrase.

I did check them out beforehand before the tape ran.' The other guitar parts were played using a Sovereign H1260 acoustic guitar and a guitar (a 12-string guitar that was plugged directly to the soundboard); these can be heard on the left and right recording channels respectively. For live versions, Page switched to a Heritage Cherry 6/12 guitar. The final progression is a i-VII-VI (natural minor) progression (Am-G-F), a mainstay of rock music.

Another interesting aspect of the song is the timing of the lead-up to the famous guitar solo. While staying in 4/4 throughout this section, most of the accents shift to the eighth notes. This makes the rhythm figure challenging for some musicians, but adds a feeling of anticipation to the approaching guitar solo. Sound engineer recalls the circumstances surrounding the recording of Page's famous solo: I remember Jimmy had a little bit of trouble with the solo on 'Stairway to Heaven'. [H]e hadn't completely figured it out.

Nowadays you sometimes spend a whole day doing one thing. Back then, we never did that.

We never spent a very long time recording anything. I remember sitting in the control room with Jimmy, he's standing there next to me and he'd done quite a few passes and it wasn't going anywhere. I could see he was getting a bit paranoid and so I was getting paranoid. I turned around and said 'You're making me paranoid!' And he said, 'No, you're making me paranoid!'

It was a silly circle of paranoia. On the next take or two he ripped it out. According to Page, 'Stairway to Heaven'.crystallized the essence of the band. It had everything there and showed the band at its best. As a band, as a unit. Not talking about solos or anything, it had everything there. We were careful never to release it as a single.

It was a milestone for us. Every musician wants to do something of lasting quality, something which will hold up for a long time and I guess we did it with 'Stairway'.

Probably thought that he got it with. I don't know whether I have the ability to come up with more. I have to do a lot of hard work before I can get anywhere near those stages of consistent, total brilliance. Jimmy Page has often likened the song to a sonic orgasm. Spirit copyright infringement lawsuit [ ] Over the years, some people have considered that the song's opening guitar bear a close resemblance to the 1968 instrumental ' by the Los Angeles-based rock band, written by Spirit guitarist. In the liner notes to the 1996 reissue of, California wrote: 'People always ask me why 'Stairway to Heaven' sounds exactly like 'Taurus', which was released two years earlier. I know Led Zeppelin also played 'Fresh Garbage' in their live set.

They opened up for us on their.' In May 2014, Spirit bassist and a trust acting on behalf of California filed a suit against Led Zeppelin and injunction against the 'release of the album containing the song' in an attempt to obtain a writing credit for California, who died in 1997. A lack of resources was cited as one of the reasons that Spirit did not file the suit earlier; according to a friend of California's mother, 'Nobody had any money, and they thought the was done. It will be nice if Randy got the credit.' If the Spirit lawsuit had been successful, past earnings due to the song—estimated at more than US$550 million—would not have been part of the settlement, but the publisher and composers may have been entitled to a share of future profits. On 11 April 2016, district judge ruled that there were enough similarities between the song and the instrumental for a jury to decide the claim, and a trial was scheduled for 10 May. The copyright infringement action was brought by Michael Skidmore, a trustee for the late guitarist, whose legal name was Randy Wolfe.

On 23 June, the jury ruled that the similarities between the songs did not amount to copyright infringement. In July, Skidmore's attorney filed a notice of appeal against the court's decision.

In March 2017, the verdict was appealed, with a main argument being that the jury should have been able to hear a recorded version of 'Taurus'. Live performances [ ] The inaugural public performance of the song took place at 's on 5 March 1971. Bassist recalls that the crowd was unimpressed: 'They were all bored to tears waiting to hear something they knew.' However, Page stated about an early performance at the, before the record had even come out, that: I'm not saying the whole audience gave us a standing ovation, but there was this sizable standing ovation there. And I thought: 'This is incredible, because no one's heard this number yet.

This is the first time they're hearing it!' It obviously touched them, you know. And that was at the L.A. Forum, so I knew we were onto something with that one. The world radio premiere of 'Stairway to Heaven' was recorded at the on 1 April 1971, in front of a live studio audience, and broadcast three days later on the.

The song was performed at almost every subsequent, only being omitted on rare occasions when shows were cut short for curfews or technical issues. The band's final performance of the song was in Berlin on 7 July 1980, which was also their last concert until 10 December 2007 at London's O2 Arena; the version was the longest, lasting almost fifteen minutes, including a seven minute guitar solo. Jimmy Page used a double-necked guitar to perform 'Stairway to Heaven' live. When playing the song live, the band would often extend it to over ten minutes, with Page playing an extended guitar solo and Plant adding a number of lyrical ad-libs, such as 'Does anybody remember laughter?'

, 'And I think you can see that' (as seen in the film ), 'Does anybody remember forests?' (As seen on the live performance in Seattle 1977), 'wait a minute!' And 'I hope so'.

For performing this song live, Page used a so he would not have to pause when switching from a six to a. By 1975, the song had a regular place as the finale of every Led Zeppelin concert. However, after their in 1977, Plant began to tire of 'Stairway to Heaven': 'There's only so many times you can sing it and mean it.

It just became sanctimonious.' The song was played again by the surviving members of Led Zeppelin at the concert in 1985; at the concert in 1988, with on drums; and by Jimmy Page as an instrumental version on his solo tours.

By the late 1980s, Plant made his negative impression of the song clear in interviews. In 1988, he stated: I'd break out in hives if I had to sing ('Stairway to Heaven') in every show. I wrote those lyrics and found that song to be of some importance and consequence in 1971, but 17 years later, I don't know. It's just not for me. I sang it at the Atlantic Records show because I'm an old softie and it was my way of saying thank you to Atlantic because I've been with them for 20 years. But no more of 'Stairway to Heaven' for me. However, by the mid-1990s Plant's views had apparently softened.

The first few bars were played alone during tours in lieu of the final notes of ', and in November 1994 Page and Plant performed an acoustic version of the song at a Tokyo news station for Japanese television. 'Stairway to Heaven' was also performed at at, London on 10 December 2007. Plant cites the most unusual performance of the song ever as being that performed at Live Aid: 'with two drummers ( and ) while cried at the side of the stage – there was something quite surreal about that.' Footage of the song being played live is preserved on the band's concert film, featuring a performance from in 1973, and on the, featuring a performance from in 1975. Official audio versions are also available on The Song Remains the Same's, on (a performance from London's in 1971) and on (a performance from the in 1972). There are also hundreds of audio versions which can be found on unofficial.

Success and legacy [ ] 'Stairway to Heaven' is often rated among the greatest rock songs of all time. According to music journalist, although the song was released in 1971, it took until 1973 before the song's popularity ascended to truly ' status. As Page himself recalled, 'I knew it was good, but I didn't know it was going to be almost like an anthem.

But I knew it was the gem of the album, sure.' 'Stairway to Heaven' continues to top radio lists of the greatest rock songs, including a 2006 readers poll of greatest guitar solos. On the 20th anniversary of the original release of the song, it was announced via U.S. Radio sources that the song had logged up an estimated 2,874,000 radio plays – back to back, that would run for 44 years solid.

As of 2000, the song had been broadcast on radio over three million times. In 1990 a station kicked off its all-Led Zeppelin format by playing 'Stairway to Heaven' for 24 hours straight. It is also the biggest-selling single piece of in rock history, clocking up an average of 15,000 copies yearly. In total, over one million copies have been sold. Jimmy Page told Rolling Stone in 1975, 'We were careful to never release it as a.'

So, Led Zeppelin refused to release the song as a single, which forced buyers to buy the entire album. Despite pressure from, the band would not authorise the editing of the song for single release, making 'Stairway to Heaven' one of the most well-known and popular rock songs never to have been released as a single. It did, however, appear on two promotional discs in the United States, one of them featuring the 7:55 track on each side, and the other as a 7' 33​ 1⁄ 3 record produced for jukebox operators with 'Stairway to Heaven' on one side and both 'Black Dog' and 'Rock and Roll' on the other. Other 'single' appearances were on an Australian EP, and in 1991 as an added bonus with a 20th anniversary promo book. The group's recording of this song also appeared as the sole Led Zeppelin track in the 1977 Atlantic Records 2-LP promotional sampler album, We've Got Your Music, marking the first time that Led Zeppelin's 'Stairway to Heaven' made its official debut appearance in an American-released various artists compilation collection. On the 20th anniversary of the song's release, magazine featured an article on the song's success and lasting influence. Wrote: It's doubtful that anyone knew it would become the most popular rock song of all time.

After all, it's eight minutes long and was never released as a single. Even ' was shorter, was a 45, and enjoyed the benefits of comprehensible words and a sing-along chorus.

But 'Hey Jude' isn't the most requested song of all time on FM rock stations. Nobody ever had a 'Hey Jude' theme prom or played the song at weddings and funerals like 'Stairway'. 'Stairway' couldn't succeed today.

Back in 1971, FM deejays prided themselves on digging deep into albums to come up with oddball, cultish favorites. With its near-oppressive length, erratic changes, and woo-woo lyrics, the quasi-medieval anthem was a perfect choice.

It continues to be a favorite among music listeners who are younger than the song itself, listeners who, in some cases, were no doubt conceived while the tune blasted from car speakers. In 2004, magazine put it at number 31 on their list of '.

An article from 29 January 2009 magazine rated Jimmy Page's guitar solo at number one in the publication's 100 Greatest Guitar Solos in Rock and Roll History. Since 2001, the -based radio station has ranked 'Stairway to Heaven' no. 1 on their annual 'Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time'., a and, commented on the song's massive success, subsequent backlash and enduring legendary status: 'Stairway to Heaven' isn't the greatest rock song of the 1970s; it is the greatest spell of the 1970s. Think about it: we are all sick of the thing, but in some primordial way it is still number one.

Everyone knows it. Even our dislike and mockery is ritualistic.

The dumb parodies; the -inspired folklore about guitar shops demanding customers not play it; even Robert Plant's public disavowal of the song—all of these just prove the rule. 'Stairway to Heaven' is not just number one. It is the One, the quintessence, the closest will ever get you to the absolute. Page has himself commented on the song's legacy: The wonderful thing about 'Stairway' is the fact that just about everybody has got their own individual interpretation to it, and actually what it meant to them at their point of life. And that's what's so great about it. Over the passage of years, you know, people come to me with all manner of stories about, you know, what it meant to them at certain points of their lives. About how it's got them through some really tragic circumstances.

Because it's an extremely positive song, it's such a positive energy, and, you know, people have got married to [the song]. Robert Plant once gave $1,000 to listener-supported radio station in during a pledge drive after the disc jockey solicited donations by promising the station would never play 'Stairway to Heaven'. Plant was station-surfing in a rental car he was driving to the after a solo performance in Portland and was impressed with the non-mainstream music the station presented. Asked later 'why?' Plant replied that it wasn't that he didn't like the song, but he'd heard it before. Claims of backmasking [ ]. The same section reversed Problems playing these files?

In a January 1982 television program on the hosted by, it was claimed that hidden messages were contained in many popular rock songs through a technique called. One example of such hidden messages that was prominently cited was in 'Stairway to Heaven'. The alleged message, which occurs during the middle section of the song ('If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, don't be alarmed now.' ) when played backward, was purported to contain the Satanic references 'Here's to my sweet ' and 'I sing because I live with Satan.' Following the claims made in the television program, assemblyman proposed a state law that would require warning labels on records containing backward masking. In April 1982, the Consumer Protection and Toxic Materials Committee of the held a hearing on backward masking in popular music, during which 'Stairway to Heaven' was played backward.

During the hearing, William Yarroll, a self-described 'neuroscientific researcher', claimed that backward messages could be deciphered by the human brain. The band itself has for the most part ignored such claims. In response to the allegations, issued the statement: 'Our turntables only play in one direction—forwards.' Led Zeppelin audio engineer called the allegations 'totally and utterly ridiculous. Why would they want to spend so much studio time doing something so dumb?' Expressed frustration with the accusations in a 1983 interview in Musician magazine: 'To me it's very sad, because 'Stairway to Heaven' was written with every best intention, and as far as reversing tapes and putting messages on the end, that's not my idea of making music.' Accolades [ ] Publication Country Accolade Year Rank United States ' 1994 * United Kingdom 'Ten of the Best Songs Ever!'

1999 1 United States 'The 100 Greatest Rock Songs of All Time' 2000 3 United States ' 2001 53 United States ' 2003 * United States ' 2003 31 United Kingdom '100 Songs That Changed the World' 2003 47 Australia '1001 Songs: the Great Songs of All Time' 2005 * Q United Kingdom '100 Greatest Songs of All Time' 2006 8 United States '100 Greatest Guitar Solos' 2006 1 Rolling Stone United States '100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time' 2008 8 Australia 'Hottest 100 of All Time' 2009 10 (*) designates unordered lists. Formats and track listings [ ] 1972 7' single (Philippines: Atlantic 45-3747) • A. 'Stairway to Heaven' [part 1] (Page, Plant) 4:01 • B. 'Stairway to Heaven' [part 2] (Page, Plant) 4:01 1972 7' promo (US: Atlantic PR 175 [picture sleeve]) • A. 'Stairway to Heaven' [stereo] (Page, Plant) 8:02 • B.

'Stairway to Heaven' [mono] (Page, Plant) 8:02 1972 7' promo (US: Atlantic PR-269) • A. 'Stairway to Heaven' [stereo] (Page, Plant) 7:55 • B.

'Stairway to Heaven' [mono] (Page, Plant) 7:55 1972 7' promo (South Africa: Atlantic Teal) • A. 'Stairway to Heaven' (Page, Plant) 8:02 • B. ' (Page, Plant) 3:31 1978 12' single (Brazil: WEA 6WP.2003) • A. 'Stairway to Heaven' [stereo] (Page, Plant) 8:02 • B. 'Stairway to Heaven' [mono] (Page, Plant) 8:02 1990 7' promo (UK: Atlantic LZ3) • A.

'Stairway to Heaven' (Page, Plant) 8:02 • B. Main article: The song has been covered a number of times. 's -and- interpretation reached number seven in the in 1993.

His performance on BBC's involved swapping instruments mid-song, with the help of an aide introduced as 'Miss Given'. His version was one of 26 different versions of the song that were performed live by guest stars on the early 1990s Australian chat show – each being a unique version of the song in the usually idiosyncratic style of performance of each guest star. A video and CD album were released featuring 25 and 22 of the performances, respectively.

Released a stripped down acoustic cover of the song in; Plant spoke highly of Parton's version, noting that he was pleasantly surprised with how her version turned out. In 2004 a truncated cover version was released by, on their album, lasting just over two minutes.

In 1977, recorded a parody of the song in which the words to the theme song of the television show were sung in place of the original lyrics. Within five weeks, Led Zeppelin's lawyers threatened to sue them and demanded that any remaining copies of the recording be destroyed. The group won the damages in the suit, and Little Roger and the Goosebumps had to pay thousands of dollars in damages. However, during a 2005 interview on, Plant referred to the tune as his favourite cover of 'Stairway to Heaven'. A version by was released in 1985 and reached number 8 in the UK singles chart. It also hit 89 in the US, making it the only version of the song to hit the chart. Created an of the song as one of the centrepieces of his 1988 tour.

The arrangement, as heard on the album, features the horn section of Zappa's band playing Jimmy Page's guitar solo. In 1991, included their version of the song in their album (*Tortelvis Fans Can't Be Wrong). In 1992, recorded a version of the song played entirely on for their album. Australian and Joe Wolfe composed a set of on 'Stairway to Heaven'. This work, The Stairway Suite, is composed for,,, and. Download Driver Webcam Notebook Cce Info on this page.

Each variation is in the of a famous:,,,,, and. For example, the Schubert inspired variation is based on the, and the Beethoven inspired variation includes vocal soloists and chorus and resembles Beethoven's.

Wolfe posted the full score of this piece on the Internet. A performance of the song is featured in the, a two-disc album recorded live in on 12 June 1993 by the and the. It was not included in the 1994 and concert. Less official concert footage that includes this song can easily be found.

Performed a cover of the song at least once in 1976; the 2004 reissue of the band's album includes a recording as a bonus track. In 2012, Heart performed the song in tribute to Led Zeppelin at the, during which Plant was visibly moved to tears. This performance was so well-received and popular that a limited edition single was released on the. In 2010, released a version on her album featuring on drums, and on guitar, on bass and Geffen Records chair Ron Fair on piano.

Blige performed the song on with Barker, Vai, Orianthi, and Jackson; the recording was released via download for charity. Pat Boone's 1997 album included 'Stairway' as a jazz waltz. References [ ].