They stood tall as hard rock’s ultimate band, filled with extraordinarily talented players and a restless ambition that kept them pushing forward. Yet by their nature and their refusal to play the game, they refused to be a singles act. We’re talking about Led Zeppelin, of course. At the very end of their time together, they came through with a surprising hit single, “Fool In The Rain”. Soon after, fate caused them to close up shop for good.
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Albums, Not Singles
Before he became the musical leader of Led Zeppelin, guitarist Jimmy Page made his living as a highly in-demand session guitarist in Great Britain. Seeing how every element of a pop song was tailored for mass-market acceptance soured him on the idea of trying to churn out hits.
As a result, Led Zeppelin often outright refused to release any singles. They purposely avoided recording anything that wasn’t specifically earmarked for an LP. And they also generally denied any of their album cuts to be released onto the singles’ market.
They clamped down pretty tight in Great Britain with this insistence. In America, where the band exerted a little less control over their output, Atlantic Records often churned out 45s of the band’s more radio-friendly songs. Led Zeppelin earned some Top 40 hits in that capacity. But, for the most part, they let the singles’ chart wars that pulled the attention of so many of their peers pass them by.
Another “Rain” Song
In 1979, Led Zeppelin released the album In Through The Out Door, their first album in three years. Robert Plant and bassist/multi-instrumentalist John Paul Jones created most of the material. Neither Page nor drummer John Bonham contributed anywhere near as much as on past albums. Both were debilitated by substance abuse issues at the time.
Meanwhile, Plant himself was struggling to gin up enthusiasm for the project in the wake of the sudden death of his son Karac in 1977. If they were going to do something new, Page and Jones decided it should tread new ground. Hence, the more melodic, streamlined nature of several of the songs on the album.
In the case of “Fool In The Rain”, Plant’s lovelorn lament comes amidst a sauntering rhythm that’s interrupted by out-of-nowhere samba sections. The band came up with this idea after hearing those sounds coming out of the stands at the 1978 World Cup soccer tournament in Argentina.
The original version of “Fool In The Rain” clocked in at over six minutes long. It carries through three verses, the samba portions, and a brooding guitar solo by Page. But the band, for once, relented to a radio edit and gave the song a single release in the US.
Led Zep Goes Pop
The effort they put into making “Fool In The Rain” palatable for the masses paid off. It landed at No. 21 in 1979, their first US pop Top 40 hit in four years and just their seventh ever. They chose not to release any other singles from In Through The Out Door, even though the ballad “All My Love” feels like it could have been a hit as well.
We’ll never know if Led Zeppelin might have turned in more of a pop direction after that. John Bonham’s death in 1980 convinced the other three members to disband. “Fool On The Rain”, a surprising single, proved to be one of the last hurrahs for this legendary band.
Photo by Pete Still/Redferns
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