Thank You (song)

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'Thank You' is a song written by Robert Plant and Jimmy Page that was released by English rock music|rock band Led Zeppelin on their 1969 album Led Zeppelin II. 'Thank You', was recorded in 1969 at Morgan Studios in London.

Overview[edit]

This song signalled a deeper involvement in songwriting by singer Robert Plant, being the first Led Zeppelin song that he wrote all the lyrics for. According to various Led Zeppelin biographies, this is also the song that made Jimmy Page realize that Plant could now handle writing the majority of the lyrics for the band's songs.

The song features some delicate Hammond C-3 organ (music)|organ playing by John Paul Jones, and ends with the organ fading into near-silence before coming back about 10 seconds later. This has created a problem for radio stations wishing to play the track, which must decide whether to accept the 'air silence' or cut it off. Some stations typically run edited versions with the silence eliminated, while others play 'Thank You' together with 'The Lemon Song', because there's no pause between them on the album.

Jones often recorded with a Hammond C3, and it was a common instrument on many of their early tours. Led Zeppelin's most memorable organ track, Jones' beautiful organ parts are the main support during the verses. His style here reflects his many years playing organ in church as a boy. The organ is restrained, with no vibrato or distortion, and avoids sounding like a blues or jazz instrument. A tape delay, which echoes the organ track in the opposing speaker, creates an echo effect that enhances the 'church' mood.

For the recording of this track, Page played on a Vox 12-string guitar.^[1]

Live history[edit]

'Thank You' was a popular song when played live at Led Zeppelin concerts, and became something of a showcase for Jones' keyboard work, as he often played an extended keyboard solo (either on the Hammond organ or on some 1972-73 versions, the Mellotron) as an introduction to the song. The piece was eventually dropped from the band's standard live set list following the Led Zeppelin North American Tour 1973|1973 tour of the United States, when it was only occasionally used as an encore (concert)|encore, for example, at the tour's final concert in Madison Square Garden.

In 1992 Plant sang part of 'Thank You' at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert. Jimmy Page and Robert Plant revived the song in 1994 on their No Quarter: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant Unledded|Unledded tour. They played a somewhat mellower arrangement for most of their shows from 1995 through 1998 as either an opening number or an encore.

Credits[edit]

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