Originally named the New Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin signed a deal with Atlantic Records that gave them considerable artistic freedom. Initially unpopular with critics, they achieved significant commercial success with eight studio albums over ten years. Their 1969 debut, Led Zeppelin, was a top-ten album in several countries and featured such tracks as "Good Times Bad Times", "Dazed and Confused" and "Communication Breakdown". Led Zeppelin II (1969) was their first number-one album, and yielded "Ramble On" and "Whole Lotta Love". In 1970, they released Led Zeppelin III which featured "Immigrant Song". Their untitled fourth album, commonly known as Led Zeppelin IV (1971), is one of the best-selling albums in history with 37 million copies sold. The album includes "Black Dog", "Rock and Roll" and "Stairway to Heaven", with the latter being among the most popular and influential works in rock history. Houses of the Holy (1973) yielded "The Ocean", "Over the Hills and Far Away" and "The Rain Song". Physical Graffiti (1975), a double album, featured "Trampled Under Foot" and "Kashmir".
Page wrote most of Led Zeppelin's music, particularly early in their career, while Plant wrote most of the lyrics. Jones's keyboard-based compositions later became central to their music, which featured increasing experimentation. The latter half of their career saw a series of record-breaking tours that earned the group a reputation for excess and debauchery. Although they remained commercially and critically successful, their touring and output, which included Presence (1976) and In Through the Out Door (1979), grew limited, and the group disbanded following Bonham's death in 1980. Since then, the surviving former members have sporadically collaborated and participated in one-off reunions. The most successful of these was the 2007 Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert in London, with Bonham's son Jason Bonham on drums.
Led Zeppelin are one of the best-selling music artists of all time; their total record sales are estimated to be between 200 and 300 million units worldwide. They achieved eight consecutive UK number-one albums and six number-one albums on the US Billboard 200, with five of their albums certified Diamond in the US. Rolling Stone magazine described them as "the heaviest band of all time", "the biggest band of the Seventies", and "unquestionably one of the most enduring bands in rock history". They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995; the museum's biography of the band states that they were "as influential" during the 1970s as the Beatles were during the 1960s.
Albums
Led Zeppelin (1969)
Led Zeppelin II (1969)
Led Zeppelin III (1970)
Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
Houses of the Holy (1973)
Physical Graffiti (1975)
Presence (1976)
In Through the Out Door (1979)
Coda (1982)
What Is And Never Should Be
Led Zeppelin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take my hand, child come with me
It's to a castle I will take you
Where what's to be, they say will be
Catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away leave today
Way up high in the sky, hey, whoa
You really shouldn't go
It only goes to show
That you will be mine
By takin' our time, ooh
And if you say to me tomorrow
Oh what fun it all would be
Then what's to stop us, pretty baby
But what is and what should never be
Catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away, leave today
Way up high in the sky, hey whoa
But the wind won't blow
You really shouldn't go
Only goes to show
That you will be mine
By takin' our time, ooh
So if you wake up with the sunrise
And all your dreams are still as new
And happiness is what you need so bad
Girl, the answer lies with you, yeah
Catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away, leave today
Way up high in the sky, hey whoa
But the wind won't blow
You really shouldn't go
Only goes to show
That you will be mine
By takin' our time, ooh
Hey, oh
Oh the wind won't blow and we really shouldn't go
And it only goes to show-ow-ow
Catch the wind, we're gonna see it spin
We're gonna sail, little girl
Do do do, bop bop a do-oh
My my my my my my my yeah
Everybody I know seems to know me well
But does anybody know I'm gonna move like hell
Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, oh, Lord
Baby, baby, baby, oh, right now, yeah
No, no, no, no, no, come on, now
In this song, "What Is and Should Never Be," Led Zeppelin tells the story of a romantic relationship that is both exciting and uncertain. The singer (presumably lead singer Robert Plant) urges his lover to take a leap of faith with him, promising to take her to a castle where their destiny awaits. They envision sailing away together, catching the wind and leaving their worries behind. However, their happiness is somewhat tempered by the realization that the wind won't always blow in their favor, and they ultimately acknowledge that their love might be impossible ("what is and what should never be"). The final lines of the song seem to express the singer's restlessness and desire for change, despite the fact that he is well-known and established ("Everybody I know seems to know me well / But does anybody know I'm gonna move like hell").
Line by Line Meaning
And if I say to you tomorrow
If I tell you that we should go somewhere tomorrow
Take my hand, child come with me
Come with me as I take you on this journey
It's to a castle I will take you
I'll take you to a special place
Where what's to be, they say will be
Where destiny lies and fate takes its course
Catch the wind, see us spin
Join me in enjoying the ride of life
Sail away leave today
Start fresh and leave the past behind
Way up high in the sky, hey, whoa
As we embark on this journey, we'll become deeply immersed
But the wind won't blow
However, we may come across setbacks
You really shouldn't go
Perhaps we should reconsider this decision
It only goes to show
This situation proves something important
That you will be mine
You'll become mine as we spend more time together
By takin' our time, ooh
If we take things slow and steady
And if you say to me tomorrow
If you agree and say you'd like to embark on this journey
Oh what fun it all would be
If we think this journey will be enjoyable
Then what's to stop us, pretty baby
Then nothing should hold us back
But what is and what should never be
However, we have to be aware of what's realistic and what shouldn't happen
So if you wake up with the sunrise
If you start the day feeling refreshed and optimistic
And all your dreams are still as new
And if your dreams are still fresh and exciting
And happiness is what you need so bad
If you're longing for happiness in your life
Girl, the answer lies with you, yeah
You hold the keys to your own happiness
Hey, oh
An exclamation used to get attention
Oh the wind won't blow and we really shouldn't go
We may encounter obstacles and this journey may not be a good idea
And it only goes to show-ow-ow
This only confirms what we were thinking
Catch the wind, we're gonna see it spin
But let's try anyways and enjoy the unknown
We're gonna sail, little girl
We'll embark on this adventure together
Do do do, bop bop a do-oh
Silly sounds or a meaningless phrase
My my my my my my my yeah
An expression of excitement or happiness
Everybody I know seems to know me well
Everyone in my life thinks they understand me
But does anybody know I'm gonna move like hell
However, no one knows I'm about to make a drastic change in my life
Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, oh, Lord
An exclamation of surprise or amazement
Baby, baby, baby, oh, right now, yeah
An expression of excitement or eagerness
No, no, no, no, no, come on, now
An expression of disagreement or refusal
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JIMMY PAGE, ROBERT PLANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@user-ip9yu7lp1q
What Is and What Should Never Be
And if I say to you tomorrow
"Take my hand, child, come with me"
It's to a castle I will take you
Where what's to be, they say will be
A-catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away, leave today
Way up high in the sky
It won't, but the wind won't blow, we really shouldn't go
It only goes to show that you will be mine by takin' our time
Oooh, ho-whoa
And if you say to me tomorrow
"Oh, what fun it all would be"
then what's to stop us, pretty baby-ay
but what is and what should never be
So if you wake up with the sunrise
and all your dreams are still as new
and happiness is what you need so bad
Well, girl, the answer lies with you, yeah
Hey, ho, ma
A-well, the wind won't blow, and we really shouldn't go
and it only goes to show-whoa-whoa-whoa
Grab the wind, we're gonna see us spin
We're gonna sail, leave today-a
A-do-do-do, ba-ba-n-do, oh
Ma, ma, ma, ma, ma, ma, yeah
Everybody I know seems to know me well
but does anybody know I'm gonna move like hell
A-baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, ho, I love ya
Baby, baby, babe, huh, oh, I love ya
Do, no, no, no, no, no, no, come on, now
I want you to
-------------------------
@brunolanasantos5604
And if I say to you tomorrow
Take my hand, child come with me
It's to a castle I will take you
Where what's to be, they say will be
Catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away leave today
Way up high in the sky, hey, whoa
But the wind won't blow
You really shouldn't go
It only goes to show
That you will be mine
By takin' our time, ooh
And if you say to me tomorrow
Oh what fun it all would be
Then what's to stop us, pretty baby
But what is and what should never be
Catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away, leave today
Way up high in the sky, hey whoa
But the wind won't blow
You really shouldn't go
Only goes to show
That you will be mine
By takin' our time, ooh
So if you wake up with the sunrise
And all your dreams are still as new
And happiness is what you need so bad
Girl, the answer lies with you, yeah
Catch the wind, see us spin
Sail away, leave today
Way up high in the sky, hey whoa
But the wind won't blow
You really shouldn't go
Only goes to show
That you will be mine
By takin' our time, ooh
Hey, oh
Oh the wind won't blow and we really shouldn't go
And it only goes to show-ow-ow
Catch the wind, we're gonna see it spin
We're gonna sail, little girl
Do do do, bop bop a do-oh
My my my my my my my yeah
Everybody I know seems to know me well
But does anybody know I'm gonna move like hell
Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, oh, Lord
Baby, baby, baby, oh, right now, yeah
No, no, no, no, no, come on, now
@glumphyStoned
The band that can go from a whisper to a roar.
@zackzallie8735
Try Pixies. They're the masters of slowness to sudden roar burst. Not sure if you like 'em.
@roameryang
exactly.
@davidp.1767
So well said!!
@carlneoh5843
Bonzo really knew what he was doing
@craigday1759
Hense….Led ( heavy ) Zeppelin ( light ) Come on now folks
@tbates4159
Incredible song. John Paul Jones on bass killed it.
@victornegrin7692
Yeshhhhh
@tangchang7406
Jimmy and John Paul are friggan string wizards. Even plant in some occasions.
@lawrenceofarabia5299
Zep has always been the truth!!!
The classic ' what is and what should never be' defines total music resonance. The work of talented musicianship whom not only put in the hard work but left us all music lessons to learn. I learn from the giraffe holder John paul Jones every time I listen. Zep is ongoing music curriculum with 500 level master courses for everyone whom chooses to learn weather you play with knives, forks, spoons, brooms or anything!!!