Whether or not the official calendar day has come, it certainly feels like fall out there more and more. The days are starting to get shorter, the leaves are starting to turn, and the rain is starting to pitter-patter more frequently on the roofs of houses. Indeed, the seasons are changing. Summer is gone.
Videos by American Songwriter
That’s why here below we wanted to mark the passing of time with three songs that highlight fall’s most common weather pattern: liquid precipitation. And to do so with a genre of music that hits all year-round. Indeed, these are three classic rock songs about the rain.
[RELATED: No Skips: 4 Classic Rock Albums You’ll Never Have to Fast-Forward]
“The Rain Song” by Led Zeppelin from Houses of the Holy (1973)
While Led Zeppelin is one of the greatest classic rock bands of all time, some, including The Beatles’ George Harrison, claimed they couldn’t write ballads. Well, in response to that idea, Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page composed this seven-minute offering on which Robert Plant sings some of his best vocals. It’s a song about the seasons, about the changes in life and love, and the track ends with realization that in each life some rain must fall. Sings Plant in the concluding stanza,
These are the seasons of emotion
And like the wind, they rise and fall
This is the wonder of devotion
I see the torch
We all must hold
This is the mystery of the quotient, quotient
Upon us all, upon us all, a little rain must fall
Just a little rain, oh, yeah
Oh, ooh, yeah-yeah-yeah
“No Rain” by Blind Melon from Blind Melon (1993)
Twenty years after Led Zeppelin released “The Rain Song,” the Los Angeles-born band Blind Melon released their song “No Rain.” Despite the title, the song is one that expresses a joy for rain and the puddles that gather because of it. The song remains the biggest hit from the group, which dissolved after the death of its frontman Shannon Hoon. It’s a bit of a sad song—grey like its subject matter—despite its catchy guitar hook and lyrics. Sings Hoon,
All I can say is that my life is pretty plain
I like watching the puddles gather rain
And all I can do
Is just pour some tea for two
And speak my point of view
But it’s not sane
It’s not sane
I just want someone to say to me
Oh, oh, oh, oh
I’ll always be there when you wake, yeah, yeah
You know I’d like to keep my cheeks dry today, hey
So stay with me and I’ll have it made
“November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses from Use Your Illusion I (1991)
An unlikely hit from the rock band Guns N’ Roses, this piano-driven track came on the heals of songs like “Welcome to the Jungle,” which is an amp-busting, buzzy rock offering. Since its release, the song has gone on to earn billions of plays, including over 2 billion streams on YouTube alone. The song is about a breakup and how sad that can be—lead singer Axl Rose compares it to holding a candle in the cold November rain. Indeed, on the lengthy song, he sings,
When I look into your eyes
I can see a love restrained
But darlin’ when I hold you
Don’t you know I feel the same?
Nothin’ lasts forever
And we both know hearts can change
And it’s hard to hold a candle
In the cold November rain
We’ve been through this such a long long time
Just tryin’ to kill the pain, ooh yeah
Love is always coming, love is always going
No one’s really sure who’s lettin’ go today
Walking away
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Photo by John D Shearer/BEI/Shutterstock
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