Communication Breakdown
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article is about the Led Zeppelin song. For the film by Richard O'Sullivan, see Communication Breakdown (film).
| "Communication Breakdown" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Song by Led Zeppelin | ||
| from the album 'Led Zeppelin' | ||
| Released | January 12, 1969 | |
| Recorded | October 1968 | |
| Genre | Hard Rock | |
| Length | 2:28 | |
| Label | Atlantic Records | |
| Writer(s) | Bonham/Jones/Page | |
| Producer(s) | Jimmy Page | |
| 'Led Zeppelin' track listing | ||
| "Black Mountain Side" (6) |
"Communication Breakdown" (7) |
"I Can't Quit You Baby" (8) |
"Communication Breakdown" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin, from their 1969 debut album Led Zeppelin. It was one of the first songs that Jimmy Page and Robert Plant worked on together.
The pounding guitar riff was one that Page has stated is difficult to play because of the constant, quick downstroke with the pick. He used a small miked amplifier to create the "guitar in a shoebox" sound. "Communication Breakdown" is also one of the few songs that Page sang a backing vocal on.
The song was a popular live number at Led Zeppelin concerts, and, along with "Heartbreaker" was the only song to be played during every year that the band toured. It usually either opened shows or was played as an encore.
In the US, the track was released as a single, but it did not chart.
On the Led Zeppelin BBC Sessions, released in 1997, this song was featured three times, each with a slightly different improvisation by the musicians.
Iron Maiden later covered the track on the b-side to the "Bring Your Daughter to the Slaughter" single, as well as being featured in their Eddie's Archive box set. The Flaming Lips also covered the song on their Finally the Punk Rockers Are Taking Acid compilation.
[edit] Sources
- Led Zeppelin: Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song, by Chris Welch, ISBN 1-56025-818-7
- The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin, by Dave Lewis, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9
| Led Zeppelin |
|---|
| Jimmy Page · Robert Plant · John Paul Jones · John Bonham |
| Discography - (Category) |
Studio albums: Led Zeppelin · Led Zeppelin II · Led Zeppelin III ·  (Led Zeppelin IV) · Houses of the Holy · Physical Graffiti · Presence · In Through the Out DoorLive albums: The Song Remains the Same · BBC Sessions · How the West Was Won |
| Films |
| The Song Remains the Same · Led Zeppelin DVD |
| Other |
| Peter Grant · Richard Cole · Swan Song Records · The Yardbirds · XYZ · The Firm · Page and Plant · Strange Sensation · Bootlegs ∙ Concerts ∙ Songs |
