“All My Love” is the sixth song on Led Zeppelin‘s eighth studio album, In Through the Out Door (1979).
Credited to Robert Plant and John Paul Jones,[1] it is a ballad[2] that features a synthesizer solo by Jones.[3] “All My Love” was written in honour of Plant’s son Karac,[4] who died at age five in 1977.[5]
“All My Love” is one of only two Led Zeppelin songs that Jimmy Page had no part in writing.[2]
Recording and releases
“All My Love” is a mid-tempo rock-style ballad[6] that biographer Nigel Williamson describes as “underpinned by a semi-classical arrangement of the kind popular at the time with the likes of Genesis and ELO“.[7] The original working title was “The Hook”. The song was recorded between November and December 1978 at Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden. A studio outtake of an extended version of the song exists timed around 7:55 (the song itself would be timed around 6:57). It has a complete ending, with Plant extending the last chorus with much ad-libbing and a twangy B-Bender guitar solo by Page.[8]
Led Zeppelin performed the song during their concert tour of Europe in 1980.[8] “All My Love” is also included in the Led Zeppelin compilations Early Days and Latter Days, Remasters and Mothership.
A mono mix of the song was re-released in 2015 on In Through the Out Door (Deluxe Edition), under the title “The Hook”.[9]
Plant has described the song as a tribute to his son Karac for the “‘joy he gave us as a family … And in a crazy way still does occasionally. Every now and again he turns up in songs … for no other reason than I miss him a lot'”.[5]
Critical reception
In a review for In Through the Out Door (Deluxe Edition), Andrew Doscas of PopMatters described “All My Love” as “the saddest and most heartfelt Zeppelin song.”[10] Doscas described the song as “a fitting ode to Plant’s son, which hauntingly enough sounds like a foreshadowing of a band on the path to an impending and unforeseeable dissolution”.[10]
In its 1999 list of “Top 500 Tracks”, Radio Caroline ranked the song at number 239.[11]
In an interview he later gave to rock journalist Cameron Crowe, Plant stated that this song was one of Led Zeppelin’s “finest moments”.[12] However, guitarist Jimmy Page and drummer John Bonham had reservations about the song’s soft rock sound.[13]
Personnel
According to Jean-Michel Guesdon and Philippe Margotin:[14]
- Robert Plant – vocals
- Jimmy Page – electric guitars, acoustic guitars
- John Paul Jones – bass, synthesiser
- John Bonham – drums
See also
- List of cover versions of Led Zeppelin songs – ”All My Love” entries
References
- ^ Uitti, Jacob (5 December 2023). “2 Songs You Didn’t Know Robert Plant and John Paul Jones Wrote Together for Led Zeppelin”. American Songwriter.
- ^ a b “No. 43: ‘All My Love’ – Top 50 Led Zeppelin Songs”. Ultimate Classic Rock. 19 August 2013.
- ^ Beviglia, Jim (21 November 2016). “Led Zeppelin, “All My Love”“.
- ^ Donovan, Thom (6 January 2025). “The Tragic Led Zeppelin Song, Written by Robert Plant, That Jimmy Page Felt Uncomfortable Playing”. American Songwriter.
- ^ a b Amelinckx, Andrew (19 February 2026). “If You’re A True Classic Rock Fan, You Want These Songs Played At Your Funeral”. Grunge.
- ^ Shadwick 2005, p. 296.
- ^ Williamson 2007, p. 188.
- ^ a b Lewis 2004.
- ^ Grow, Kory (3 June 2015). “Led Zeppelin Announces Final Three Deluxe Reissues”. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
- ^ a b Doscas, Andrew (22 September 2015). “Led Zeppelin: In Through the Out Door (Deluxe Edition)”. PopMatters. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
- ^ “Top 500 Tracks – 1999”. Radio Caroline. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
- ^ Liner notes by Cameron Crowe for The Complete Studio Recordings.
- ^ Tolinski 2012, eBook.
- ^ Guesdon & Margotin 2018, p. 530.
Sources
- Lewis, Dave (2004). The Complete Guide to the Music of Led Zeppelin. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-3528-9.
- Shadwick, Keith (2005). Led Zeppelin: The Story of a Band and Their Music 1968–1980 (1st ed.). San Francisco: Backbeat Books. ISBN 0-87930-871-0.
- Tolinski, Brad (2012). Light and Shade: Conversations with Jimmy Page. Crown Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-98573-6.
- Welch, Chris (1998). Led Zeppelin: Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song. New York City: Thunder’s Mouth Press. ISBN 1-56025-818-7.
- Williamson, Nigel (2007). The Rough Guide to Led Zeppelin. New York City: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-1405384216.
Bibliography
- Guesdon, Jean-Michel; Margotin, Philippe (2018). Led Zeppelin All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track. Running Press. ISBN 978-0-316-448-67-3.
