Friends (Led Zeppelin song) 4339247 223724054 2008-07-05T13:27:35Z Edelmand 1563396 {{Song infobox | | Name = Friends | Cover = | Artist = [[Led Zeppelin]] | Album = [[Led Zeppelin III]] | Released = [[October 5]], [[1970]] | track_no = 2 | Recorded = May - August 1970 | Genre = [[Hard rock]] | Length = 3:54 | Label = [[Atlantic Records]] | Writer = [[Jimmy Page]], [[Robert Plant]] | Producer = [[Jimmy Page]] | prev = "[[Immigrant Song]]" | prev_no = 1 | next = "[[Celebration Day]]" | next_no = 3 }} "'''Friends'''" is the second track from the [[1970 in music|1970]] album ''[[Led Zeppelin III]]'', the third studio album of [[England|English]] [[rock music|rock]] band [[Led Zeppelin]]. [[Jimmy Page]] and [[Robert Plant]] wrote the song in 1970 at [[Bron-Yr-Aur]], a small cottage in [[Wales]] where they stayed after completing a gruelling [[concert tour]] of the [[United States]].<ref name="Sutcliffe_Q">Phil Sutcliffe, "Back to Nature", ''Q Magazine'' Special Led Zeppelin edition, 2003, p. 34.</ref> The song starts out with a little noodling and studio chatter before the guitars of Jimmy Page kick in. The guitar tuning for the song is an open-C6 chord (C-A-C-G-C-E). The same tuning was used by Page on the track "[[Bron-Yr-Aur (song)|Bron-Yr-Aur]]" (which was recorded during these same sessions), as well as the song "[[Poor Tom]]".<ref name=Complete>Dave Lewis (1994), ''The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin'', Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.</ref> Page used an Altair Tube Limiter to enhance the acoustic quality of his Harmony guitar, a device recommended to him by an acoustic guitarist named [[Dick Rosemenie]].<ref name=Complete>Dave Lewis (1994), ''The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin'', Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.</ref> This same device was later used by Page on "[[All My Love (song)|All My Love]]", which was included on Led Zeppelin's ''[[In Through the Out Door]]'' album.<ref name=Complete>Dave Lewis (1994), ''The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin'', Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.</ref> "Friends" is one of a few Led Zeppelin songs that included strings. Bass player [[John Paul Jones (musician)|John Paul Jones]] did the string arrangement, which exhibits some distinctive [[Eastern world|Eastern]] influences. Some commentators have expressed surprise at the fact that Jones received no writing credit for this song, given that he was entirely responsible for its compelling string arrangement.<ref name=Complete>Dave Lewis (1994), ''The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin'', Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.</ref> The outro to the song includes a [[Moog synthesizer]], which provides a link to the next track on the album, "[[Celebration Day]]". The lyrics say that when someone is lonely or sad, that you should "Give them a smile." Or in other words, make them feel better. The only known live performance of the song by Led Zeppelin was on [[29 September]] [[1971]] in [[Osaka]], during the band's [[Led Zeppelin Japanese Tour 1971|Japanese concert tour]], as is exhibited on a number of [[Led Zeppelin bootleg recordings]] of the show. If listened to closely, Page can be heard asking Plant if he wanted to perform the song when [[John Bonham]] had returned from unknown activities backstage. Influenced by [[Neil Young]], similarities have been noticed between "Friends" and [[Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young]]'s "[[Carry On (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young song)|Carry On]]", with the first part of the songs being almost identical.{{who|date=November 2007}}. The song was re-recorded by [[Jimmy Page]] and [[Robert Plant]] with the [[Bombay Symphony Orchestra]] in [[1972]], during their trip to [[India]], along with another track, "[[Four Sticks]]" from ''[[Led Zeppelin IV]]''.<ref>Liner notes to ''[[Led Zeppelin Box Set, Vol. 2]]'' by David Fricke</ref> This version featured tabla drums and sitars. The recordings have never been released officially and are only available on bootleg recordings. The project is said to have run into problems because Page complained that the orchestra didn't keep time in the Western style and some of them drank rather a lot.<ref name=tripleJ>[http://www.abc.net.au/triplej/music_specials/s1402502.htm Australian Broadcasting Corporation] - Triple J Music Specials - Led Zeppelin (first broadcast [[2000-07-12]])</ref> "Friends" was also recorded by [[Page and Plant]] on their [[1994]] release ''[[No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded]]'', accompanied by a Middle-Eastern orchestra. ==References== <div class="references-small"><references/> </div> ==Sources== *''Led Zeppelin: Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song'', by Chris Welch, ISBN 1-56025-818-7 *''The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin'', by Dave Lewis, ISBN 0-7119-3528-9 {{Led Zeppelin III}} {{Led Zeppelin}} [[Category:1970 songs]] [[Category:Led Zeppelin songs]] [[ja:フレンズ (レッド・ツェッペリンの楽曲)]]