Today, Led Zeppelin released a never-before-heard version of the 70s hit, “Rock and Roll.” This comes as a nice surprise to the many fans who are still enjoying the alternate “Rain Song” the band released a little over two weeks ago. The rare take is one of many to be put out by Led Zeppelin as they continue to reissue their classic records. You can listen to it here.
“‘Rock and Roll’ has just got that cheeky energy about it,” said guitarist Jimmy Page. “It’s a party. ‘It’s been a long time since I rock and rolled.’ It says it all, really. It’s great lyrics and it’s a great performance.”
“As a song, it was actually kind of punky; pre-punk,” said bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones. “It was really fast too, onstage anyway. It just got really quick, a lot of energy. It’s a lot of fun to play. The crowd loved it. We loved it.”
The hit is the second track on their 1971 album, Led Zeppelin IV, which will be rereleased on October 27th. A remastered version of their 1973 album Houses of the Holy will also hit the shelves that day. The new editions will sit nicely aside the other reissues they granted us this past summer, including Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II, and Led Zeppelin III.
Both Led Zeppelin IV and Houses of the Holy will include a companion disc of unreleased music related to the albums. The many formats available for purchase include single and deluxe double vinyl LPs, single and deluxe double edition CDs, a digital download, and a Super Deluxe box set. The Super Deluxe set is super in that it will include CD and vinyl copies of the works, an exclusive coffee table book, and a numbered print of the cover art.
In addition to the surprise “Rock and Roll” dropped today, a recent trailer for the October 27th release revealed an unheard version of the song, “Black Dog.” The unique track can be found on the Led Zeppelin IV companion disc with the title, “Black Dog (Basic Track With Guitar Overdubs).” You can check it out here.