Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

"Bron-Y-Aur Stomp" is a song recorded by English rock band Led Zeppelin for their third album, Led Zeppelin III, released in 1970.

"Bron-Y-Aur Stomp"
Netherlands single picture sleeve, 1970
Song by Led Zeppelin
from the album Led Zeppelin III
Released5 October 1970 (1970-10-05)
Recorded1970
StudioHeadley Grange, England
Genre
Length4:17
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Jimmy Page

Background

The song is named after Bron-Yr-Aur, a house in Gwynedd, Wales, where the members of Led Zeppelin retreated in 1970 to write much of Led Zeppelin III after having completed a concert tour of North America.[4][5] Bron-Yr-Aur means "golden breast" or "breast of gold" in Welsh, as in a hillside of gold. Its pronunciation is [ˈbrɔn ər ˈaɪr]. The cottage had no electricity or running water, but the change of scenery provided inspiration for many of the songs on the album, including "Bron-Y-Aur Stomp".

Composition and recording

Jimmy Page and Robert Plant wrote "Bron-Y-Aur Stomp" in 1970. The song was heavily influenced by a number called "Waggoner's Lad" by Bert Jansch, a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. It is a country music-inflected hoedown,[6] with lyrics about walking in the woods with Plant's blue-eyed Merle dog named Strider.[4] Plant reportedly named his dog after Aragorn (often called Strider) from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.[7] However, there are no explicit references to Tolkien works in "Bron-Y-Aur Stomp".

The group recorded the song at Headley Grange in 1970, using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio.[8] They completed it at Island Studios in London, and Ardent Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.[8] Reflecting the rustic nature of their retreat, the song is largely acoustic. Guitarist Jimmy Page used a Martin D-28 guitar,[9] drummer John Bonham played spoons and castanets,[4] and bassist John Paul Jones played a double bass.[10]

Jennings Farm Blues

Led Zeppelin also recorded the song as an electric blues rock instrumental, "Jennings Farm Blues", a rough mix of which later surfaced as a studio out-take on a number of Led Zeppelin bootleg recordings.[4] Jennings Farm is the name of the property at Blakeshall on which the Plant family stayed in the early 1970s.[11] "Jennings Farm Blues" was released on 2 June 2014, as part of the remastering process of all nine albums.

See also

References
  1. Shadwick, Keith (2005). Led Zeppelin: The Story of a Band and Their Music 1968–1980 (1st ed.). San Francisco: Backbeat Books. p. 138. ISBN 0-87930-871-0.
  2. Andrew Grant Jackson (20 July 2012). Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of The Beatles' Solo Careers. Scarecrow Press. pp. 42–. ISBN 978-0-8108-8223-2.
  3. Stephen Davis (2005). Hammer of the Gods. Pan Macmillan. p. 119. ISBN 978-0-330-43859-9.
  4. Dave Lewis (1994), The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin, Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.
  5. Phil Sutcliffe, "Back to Nature", Q Magazine Special Led Zeppelin edition, 2003, p. 34.
  6. Led Zeppelin (25 April 2013). Led Zeppelin - III Platinum Bass Guitar: Authentic Bass TAB. Alfred Music. pp. 3–. ISBN 978-1-4706-2493-4.
  7. Michael D. C. Drout (2007). J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia: Scholarship and Critical Assessment. Taylor & Francis. pp. 540–. ISBN 978-0-415-96942-0.
  8. Dave Lewis (2012). Led Zeppelin: From a Whisper to a Scream; The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin. Omnibus Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-78038-547-1.
  9. Tolinski, Brad (2012). Light and Shade: Conversations with Jimmy Page. New York City: Crown Publishers. eBook. ISBN 978-0307985736.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  10. Akkerman, Gregg (2014). Experiencing Led Zeppelin: A Listener's Companion. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 37. ISBN 978-0-8108-8916-3.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  11. Dave Thompson (2014). Robert Plant: The Voice That Sailed the Zeppelin. Backbeat Books. pp. 94–. ISBN 978-1-61713-614-6.
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