When the Levee Breaks

  "When the Levee Breaks" is the eighth and last song on Led Zeppelin IV. "When the Levee Breaks" was originally written and recorded by Delta blues musician and songwriter Kansas Joe McCoy and his wife, American blues guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, Memphis Minnie in 1929. This song is in reaction to the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, that ravaged  the state of Mississippi and surrounding areas. Many of the homes and the agricultural economy in the Mississippi Basin were destroyed and devastated. As a result, many people fled to the cities in the Midwest, which contributed to the "Great Migration" of African-Americans in the first half of the 20th century. "When the Levee Breaks" main focus is of Greenville, Mississippi when more than 13,00 residents in and around the area evacuated to a nearby, unaffected levee for its shelter at high ground. The commotion that would have been caused if this and other levees had broken is the underlying theme of the song.

The original lyrics to "When the Levee Breaks" by Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie:

 WHEN the LEVEE BREAKS 

If it keeps on rainin', the levees goin' to break 

If it keeps on rainin', the levees goin' to break

 And the water gonna come in, and have no place to stay.

Well all last night I sat on the levee and moan

 Well all last night I sat on the levee and moan

Thinkin' 'bout my baby and my happy home

 If it keeps on rainin', the levees goin' to break

 If it keeps on rainin', the levees goin' to break

 And all these people have no place to stay

 Now look here mama what am I to do?

 Now look here mama what am I to do?

 I ain't got nobody to tell my troubles to

I works on the levee mama both night and day

I works on the levee mama both night and day

 I ain't got nobody, keep the water away

 Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do no good

Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin won't do no good

When the levee breaks, mama, got you to lose

 I works on the levee, mama both night and day

 I works on the levee, mama both night and day

 I works so hard, to keep the water away

I had a woman, she wouldn't do for me

 I had a woman, she wouldn't do for me

 I'm goin' back to my used to be

I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan

 I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan

 Gonna leave my baby, and my happy home

Now for the Led Zeppelin version of "When the Levee Breaks". It was recorded at Headley Grange in December of 1970 to  March of 1971 with the use of the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio. As with the other songs on ''Led Zeppelin IV'' the song was tried unsuccessfully to be recorded at Island Studios at the start of the recording sessions.

  According to Jimmy Page,  the song's structure "was a riff that I'd been working on, but Bonzo's drum sound really makes a difference on that point." Engineer Andy Jones recorded the famous drum performance by putting John Bonham and a new Ludwig drum kit at the bottom of a stairwell and recording the drum performance using two Beyerdynamic M160 microphones, at the top of the stairwell, giving the distinctive resonant but slightly muffled sound.

  Back aat the Rolling Stones' mobile studio, Bonzo compressed the drum sound through two channels and added an echo through Pages Binson echorec 2 unit.

  Page recorded Robert Plant's harmonica part using the backward echo technique, putting the echo ahead of the sound when mixing, creating a distinct effect.

Binson Echorec 2

 "When the Levee Breaks" was recorded at a different tempo, then slowed down, which explains the 'sludgy' sound particularly on the guitar and harmonica solos.  Because of the heavy studio production of the song, "When the Levee Breaks"  was difficult to recreate live.Led Zeppelin only performed the song in the early stages of their 1975 U.S. Tour.

  This is also the only song not to be re-mixed after a supposedly disastrous mixing job in the U.S. ( the rest of the tracks were mixed again in England). The original mixing of the song was kept in its original form.

WHEN the LEVEE BREAKS 

(Led Zeppelin version)

If it keeps on rainin', the levee's goin to break,

 If it keeps on rainin', the levee's goinin' to break.

When the Levee Breaks I'll have no place to stay.

Mean old levee taught me to weep and moan, 

Lord, the mean old levee taught me to weep and moan.

Got what it takes to make a mountain man leave his home,

Oh, well, oh, well,oh, well. 

Don't it make you fell bad, 

When you're tryin' to find your way home,

 You don't know which way to go?

If you go South,

They go no work to do,

If you don't know about Chicago.

Cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do you no good,

Now,  cryin won't help you, prayin' won't do you know good.

When the levee breaks, mama, you got to move.

All last night sat on the levee and moaned

All last night sat on the levee and moaned,

Thinkin'  'bout my baby and my happy home

Goin', go'n' to Chicago,

Go'n' to Chicago, 

Sorry but I can't take you.

Going down, going down now, goin down.

So with that, this is the end of my Led Zeppelin IV series. I have a good feeling that y'all have enjoyed it and I thank you for it. For a bio of Robert Plant that has a bit of a mini biography of Led Zeppelin, I give you the same post, but on 2 different places to go, one is this blog and the second is my other blog : http://mishasblue.blogspot.com/2011/08/robert-plant.html and http://mishasbelles.blogspot.com/2011/08/robert-plant.html . 

While you're at the second blog you may find other things that may perk your interest.