Moby Dick (instrumental)

"Moby Dick" is an instrumental tune and drum solo by English rock band Led
"Moby Dick"
Zeppelin, featured on their 1969 album Led Zeppelin II. Named after the whale in
the novel Moby-Dick by Herman Melville, it was also known by the alternate titles
"Pat's Delight" (early 1968–1969 version with completely different guitar riff) and
"Over the Top" (with "Out on the Tiles" intro section and original closing reprise)
during various points of the band's career.

Contents
Overview
Formats and track listings Italian single label
Personnel
Instrumental by Led Zeppelin
Cover versions
from the album Led Zeppelin II
References
Released 22 October 1969
External links
Recorded 1969
Studio Mirror Sound, Los
Overview Angeles

The tune emerged after Led Zeppelin guitarist and producer Jimmy Page would Genre Blues rock[1] · hard
often catch drummer John Bonham jamming in the studio, recorded parts of it and rock[2][3]
then pieced it all together. Only Page and bassist John Paul Jones play the tune's Length 4:25
Drop-D blues-based riff with Bonham's drums—as a power trio—at the very Label Atlantic
beginning and the very end of the tune, leaving the remainder open for Bonham
Composer(s) John Bonham · John
alone. The structure of the main riff is that of the twelve-bar blues. Singer Robert
Paul Jones · Jimmy
Plant did not sing at all and in concert would simply introduce Bonham to the
Page
audience before the tune started. Studio outtakes from the Led Zeppelin II sessions
[4]
reveal that the drum solo recorded was edited down from a much longer version. Producer(s) Jimmy Page

The guitar riff can be traced back to the BBC unused session track "The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair" which was
recorded in the summer of 1969.[4] The riff is also similar to that of Bobby Parker's 1961 single, "Watch Your Step", although the
progression is in a different key and tempo.[5] John Lennon also admitted the same Parker riff had been a big influence on the
Beatles' 1964 single "I Feel Fine".[6][7] It was also used as the basis for the opening/chorus riff of Deep Purple's "Rat Bat Blue", from
Who Do We Think We Are in 1973 and The Allman Brothers cover of "One Way Out" in 1972.[5] Page's riff was used as the theme to
BBC Two's Disco 2 rock show.[4]

Bonham's drum solo was often played atLed Zeppelin concertsfrom the first North American tourin November 1968, being his solo
performance showcase on concert tours through 1977. Over this period it went through three different name changes. During their
early 1968–1969 tours it was known as "Pat's Delight" (a reference to Bonham's wife), from 1969–1975 it was "Moby Dick" and
during Led Zeppelin's 1977 North American Tour it was "Over the Top" as the solo began with the opening riff to "Out on the Tiles"
before segueing into a lengthy drum solo (in the same time ending with a "Moby Dick" riff).[4] The last time "Moby Dick" was
played by Led Zeppelin was on 17 July 1977 at the Seattle Kingdome and can be found on various audio and video bootleg
recordings.
When played live, Bonham's drum solo would last as little as 6 minutes or, more frequently, as long as 30 minutes, while the rest of
the band would leave the stage after having played the introduction.[4] During the performance Bonham would often set aside or
throw his drumsticks into the audience and then continue the solo with his hands (sometimes drawing blood as a result).

Live versions of "Moby Dick" are included on the live album How the West Was Won (lasting 19:20, performed at Long Beach Arena
in 1972) and on Led Zeppelin's 1976 concert film, The Song Remains the Same as part of Bonham's fantasy sequence. It was also
included on the film's accompanying soundtrack. Both of them were cut to a shorter version. The Led Zeppelin DVD also has a 15-
minute-long version that was performed and recorded at theRoyal Albert Hall in 1970.

Formats and track listings

1970 7-inch single edition(Italy: Atlantic ATL NP 03183, Singapore: Stereophonic 03183)

A. "Moby Dick" (Bonham, Jones, Page) – 2:39

B. "Gallows Pole" (trad. arr. Page, Plant) – 4:56

Personnel
John Bonham – drums, cowbell[8]
Jimmy Page – guitars
John Paul Jones – bass guitar

Cover versions

References
1. Eiding, Joachim (2012).Der Ochse in der Roggensemmel und andere Musikanekdoten(https://books.google.com/bo
oks?id=yX67ccNn_u4C&pg=PT54)(in German). ISBN 978-3-9560-0998-3.
2. Popoff, Martin (2014). The Big Book of Hair Metal: The Illustrated Oral History of Heavy Metal's Debauched Decade.
Voyageur Press. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-76034-546-7. "...plus other influential hard rock tracks "Heartbreaker
," "Living
Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)," "Moby Dick," and "Ramble On.""
3. Tucker, Dan (28 February 2014)."13 Classic Hard Rock Songs That Will Make Y
ou Scream "More Cowbell!" " (http://
www.vh1.com/news/52657/13-hard-rock-songs-that-make-you-say-more-cowbell/). VH1. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
4. Lewis, Dave (1994). The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin
. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.
5. Newman, Martin (November 2010)."One Step from the Blues"(http://recordcollectormag.com/articles/one-step-from-
the-blues). Record Collector (381). ISSN 0261-250X (https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0261-250X).
6. Roylance, Brian (2000).The Beatles Anthology. p. 160. ISBN 0-8118-2684-8.
7. Rybaczewski, Dave. " "I Feel Fine" History" (http://www.beatlesebooks.com/i-feel-fine). Beatlesebooks.com. DKR
Products Toledo. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
8. Case, George (2011). Led Zeppelin FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Greatest Hard Rock Band of All Time (htt
ps://books.google.com/?id=whiYj4MxeA0C&pg=PT179&lpg=PT179&dq=%22cowbell%22) . Backbeat Books.
ISBN 978-1-61713-025-0.

External links
"Moby Dick" at ledzeppelin.com

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This page was last edited on 5 January 2018, at 07:18(UTC).

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