LZ invented the genre; they didn't perfect it. With a solid foundation of talent and hard work, combined with either some amazing luck and timing, or Aleister Crowley majick and some soul-selling, they struck a chord (ahem :) ) with what seems like an entire planet full of people; true superstars, but let's keep things in perspective, please. Homegrown and 3.2 beer used to be the shit! George Carlin used to be funny. Jane Fonda used to be as cute as hell. Michael Jackson used to be black,....and cute,....and male. Gas used to be leaded, and 35 cents a gallon, about the same price as a pack of cigarettes, which used to be cool. Americans used to be able to get a good job right out high school, and if they were willing to work hard, make a good enough living to raise a family, buy a house, and look forward to a decent retirement.
Holy shit, I guess I'm old now. Any way, someone posted earlier that it was all about the memories, and there is a lot of truth to that, but LZ's music was much more about the feelings than the cognitive thought anyway. After all, those were the good times that we had that we can't quite fully remember anyway and don't need to be analyzed. 'Stairway' is, and always will be, a good song, practically an anthem to my generation, but it's no surprise that the lyrics don't stand up to critical review. They were never meant to and don't need to.
I hope they sing the song, and I hope they don't fuck it up for those of us who kinda, sorta, remember what it was like back in the day, that is back in the day before 'back in the day' had even been invented.
To most of the posters, and columnists, here, before you pick apart a true work of art; smoke a fat, handrolled, homegrown doobie, split a six of 3.2 beer with a friend who will love you no matter what, then crank up the volume on that 8-track until the 6x9's under the rear deck of that Maverick, Camaro, or Mustang crackle and hum between tracks, listen to the whole album, and if tears don't come unbidden to your eyes on the opening notes of "Stairway to Heaven" then you're not qualified to criticize.
