"When the Levee Breaks" is a blues song written and first recorded by husband and wife Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie in 1929. The song is in reaction to the upheaval caused by the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. A rand is a relatively short musical composition. ... Joe McCoy (born May 11, 1905 – died January 28, 1950) was an African American blues musician. ... Memphis Minnie McCoy (born June 3, 1897 - died August 6, 1973) was an American Blues musician. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... June 18 is the 169th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (170th in leap years), with 196 days remaining. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Delta blues are named for the Mississippi Delta. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Columbia Records is the oldest brand name in recorded sound, dating back to 1888, and was the first record company to produce pre-recorded records as opposed to blank cylinders. ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... Blues is a vocal and instrumental form of music based on the use of the blue notes and a repetitive pattern that typically follows a twelve-bar structure. ... Joe McCoy (born May 11, 1905 – died January 28, 1950) was an African American blues musician. ... Memphis Minnie McCoy (born June 3, 1897 - died August 6, 1973) was an American Blues musician. ... 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was the most destructive river flood in United States history. ...

It was famously re-worked by English rock group Led Zeppelin as the last song on their fourth album, released in 1971. The lyrics in Led Zeppelin's version were based on the original recording, as was the version performed by A Perfect Circle on their final album eMOTIVe released in 2004. Motto (French) God and my right Anthem God Save the King (Queen) England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification  -  by Athelstan 967  Area... Rock band (or rock group) is a generic name to describe a group of musicians specializing in a particular form of electronically amplified music. ... Led Zeppelin were an English rock band who formed in 1968. ... is the fourth album by English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on November 8 1971. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ... A Perfect Circle (often referred to as APC) was an alternative rock band, formed by guitarist Billy Howerdel. ... eMOTIVe is the third album by the American rock band A Perfect Circle. ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Origin

The original work for "When the Levee Breaks" was produced by the blues musical duo known as "Kansas Joe McCoy" and "Memphis Minnie." The lines at the end of the song, "Going to Chicago; sorry but I can't take you", quote "Going to Chicago Blues" by Jimmy Rushing and the Count Basie Orchestra. In the first half of 1927, the Great Mississippi Flood ravaged the state of Mississippi and surrounding areas. It destroyed many homes and ravaged the agricultural economy of the Mississippi Basin. Many people were forced to flee to the cities of the Midwest in search of work, contributing to the "Great Migration" of African Americans in the first half of the 20th century. During the flood and the years after it subsided, it became the subject of numerous Delta blues songs, including "When the Levee Breaks". The song focused mainly on when more than 13,000 residents in and near Greenville, Mississippi evacuated to a nearby, unaffected levee for its shelter at high ground. The tumult that would have been caused if this and other levees had broken was the song's underlying theme.^[1][2] Blues is a vocal and instrumental form of music based on the use of the blue notes and a repetitive pattern that typically follows a twelve-bar structure. ... James Andrew (Jimmy) Rushing (August 26, 1901/02/03 - June 8, 1972) was an American blues singer from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. ... William Count Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was a jazz pianist, organist, and bandleader. ... The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was the most destructive river flood in United States history. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Mississippi River, derived from the old Ojibwe word misi-ziibi meaning great river (gichi-ziibi big river at its headwaters), is the second-longest river in the United States; the longest is the Missouri River, which flows into the Mississippi. ... The Midwest is a common name for a region of the United States of America. ... The states in blue had the ten largest net gains of African-Americans during the Great Migration, while the states in red had the ten largest net losses[1]. The Great Migration was the movement of over 1 million[1] African Americans out of the rural Southern United States from... Delta blues are named for the Mississippi Delta. ... Greenville is a city located in Washington County, Mississippi. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Dike (construction). ...

Led Zeppelin's version

"When the Levee Breaks"
Song by Led Zeppelin
from the album (Led Zeppelin IV)
Released	November 8, 1971
Recorded	December 1970 – March 1971
Genre	Blues-rock
Length	7:08
Label	Atlantic
Writer(s)	Page/Plant/Jones/Bonham/Memphis Minnie
Producer(s)	Jimmy Page
(Led Zeppelin IV) track listing
Going to California (7)	"When the Levee Breaks" (8)

Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin had the original McCoy and Minnie recording in his personal collection. Deleting and rearranging lines and line parts from the original song and adding new lyrical parts, combined with a revamped melody, Led Zeppelin made the song their own. Recording for the song took place in December of 1970. Led Zeppelin - Four Symbols album cover. ... A rand is a relatively short musical composition. ... Led Zeppelin were an English rock band who formed in 1968. ... Image File history File links Zoso. ... is the fourth album by English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on November 8 1971. ... November 8 is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 53 days remaining. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Blues Rock or Blues-rock is a fusion genre of music which combines elements of the blues with rock and roll. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Atlantic Records (Atlantic Recording Corporation) is an American record label, and operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of Warner Music Group. ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... James Patrick Jimmy Page, OBE (born 9th January 1944) is an English guitarist and record producer. ... Image File history File links Zoso. ... is the fourth album by English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on November 8 1971. ... Going to California is a popular song by Led Zeppelin, involving acoustic guitar by Jimmy Page and mandolin by John Paul Jones. ... Robert Anthony Plant (born August 20, 1948, West Bromwich, West Midlands, England) is the greatest English rock singer and songwriter, most famous for his membership in the rock band Led Zeppelin, but also for his successful solo career. ... Look up melody in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The Led Zeppelin version features a distinctive and often-sampled pounding drum beat by John Bonham recorded in a three-story stairwell, driving guitars and a wailing harmonica, all presumably meant to symbolize the relentless storm that threatens to break the levee, backing a powerful vocal performance by Robert Plant. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A shelf cloud associated with a heavy or severe thunderstorm over Enschede, Netherlands A storm is any disturbed state of an astronomical bodys atmosphere, especially affecting its surface, and strongly implying severe weather. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Dike (construction). ...

The famous drum performance was actually recorded by Andy Johns by placing Bonham and a new drumkit at the bottom of a stairwell at Headley Grange, and recording it using two Beyerdynamic M160 microphones at the top, giving the distinctive resonant but slightly muffled sound.^[3][4] The break has long been popular in hip hop and dance music circles for its "heavy" sound and has been used for many tracks,^[5] notably including Enigma's Return to Innocence, Tomoyasu Hotei's Battle Without Honour Or Humanity from the Kill Bill soundtrack, "Army of Me" by Björk, "Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover" by Sophie B Hawkins, "Lyrical Gangbang" by Dr. Dre off his record-breaking debut recording, The Chronic,One X by Three Days Grace from their alblum One X, the demo version of "Where Will You Go" by Evanescence, the second theme song of the Pokémon anime series, the Beastie Boys' "Rhymin & Stealin" from their 1986 album Licensed to Ill and The Sisters of Mercy's "Never Land" from their album Floodland. The song has been referred to by many music authorities as "The Rock and Rollin'est song ever known to mankind."^{[citation needed]} Andy Johns, younger brother of famous Olympic Studios engineer Glyn Johns and uncle of Kings of Leon and Ryan Adams producer Ethan Johns (son of Glyn Johns) is a prolific engineer and producer. ... A house in Headley, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom, which is perhaps most known for the music that was recorded there by bands such as Led Zeppelin and Genesis. ... The beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO headphones beyerdymanic (spelled with a lower-case b) is a German audio equipment manufacturer. ... A microphone, sometimes referred to as a mike or mic (both IPA pronunciation: ), is an acoustic to electric transducer or sensor that converts sound into an electrical signal. ... In popular music a break is an instrumental or percussion section or interlude during a song derived from or related to stop-time – being a break from the main parts of the song or piece. ... Hip hop music is a style of music which came into existence in the United States during the mid-1970s, and became a large part of modern pop culture during the 1980s. ... Look up enigma in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Tomoyasu Hotei (布袋寅泰 Hotei Tomoyasu, born on February 1, 1962 in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture) is a Korean Japanese musician, guitarist and actor. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into articles entitled Kill Bill: Vol. ... Army of Me was released in 1995 and was the first single to be taken from the album Post. ... Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( ) (born November 21, 1965 in Reykjavík, Iceland) is an Icelandic singer/songwriter and composer, as well as an occasional actress. ... Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover was a hit song (#5) composed and performed by Sophie B. Hawkins in 1992. ... Sophie B. Hawkins on the cover of the original Timbre album Sophie Ballantine Hawkins is an American singer and songwriter, born 1 November 1967, New York City, USA. Her two biggest hits are Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover and As I Lay Me Down. Hawkins began performing professionally... The Chronic is the highly influential debut album from American rap producer Dr. Dre. ... The Chronic is the highly influential debut album from American rap producer Dr. Dre. ... Evanescence is an American Alternative rock band founded in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1998 by singer Amy Lee and former guitarist Ben Moody. ... The official Pokémon logo. ... The Beastie Boys are a group from the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Licensed to Ill is the debut rap album by the Beastie Boys, released in 1986 (see 1986 in music). ... The Sisters of Mercy are a rock band that emerged out of the English post-punk scene in 1980-1981. ... Floodland is the album released by The Sisters of Mercy in 1987, complete with heavy production, layers of synthesizer, choral singing, and the drum machine Doktor Avalanche. ...

Jimmy Page recorded Plant's harmonica part using the backward echo technique, putting the echo ahead of the sound when mixing, creating a unique effect. James Patrick Jimmy Page, OBE (born 9th January 1944) is an English guitarist and record producer. ... Backward echo is an analog recording technique made famous by Jimmy Page as producer of Led Zeppelin. ... ECHO is a German music award granted every year by the Deutsche Phono-Akademie (an association of recording companies). ...

Because this song was heavily produced in the studio, it was difficult to recreate live. The band only played this song a few times on their 1975 U.S. Tour. Page and Plant had performed it on their MTV Unplugged appearance and their 1995-96 world tour.^[4][3] John Paul Jones worked the song into the tour for his two solo albums.^[4] Page and Plant is the name that Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, both formerly of Led Zeppelin, recorded and toured under in the mid-1990s. ... MTV Unplugged is a series showcasing popular musical artists playing acoustic instruments. ... John Baldwin (born January 3, 1946 in Sidcup, London), better known by his stage name John Paul Jones, is an English musician and was the bassist and the keyboardist for Led Zeppelin from its inception until the bands breakup following the death of John Bonham in 1980. ...

In 2004 another version leaked to the bootleg community with essentially the same instrumentation but a different vocal from Robert Plant, different lyrics and some verses out of order.^{[citation needed]}

Other cover versions

• by Dread Zeppelin on 5,000,000
• by Judge on the CD edition of their EP There Will Be Quiet... in 1990
• by W.A.S.P. on the bonus disk of The Crimson Idol in 1991
• by John Campbell on his Howlin' Mercy album in 1993
• by Kristin Hersh, formerly of the Throwing Muses, on the Strings EP in 1994
• by Leftover Salmon on the Ask the Fish live album in 1995. According to Jimmy Page, he is the one who set up and recorded the drum sound from this song.
• by Tori Amos on her 2005 world tour.
• by A Perfect Circle on their cover album eMOTIVe in 2004. There were few changes in lyrics but the melody was very different from Led Zeppelin's version.
• by Albert Kuvezin and Yat-Kha on in their cover album Re-Covers in 2005
• At the beginning of Tempation by The Tea Party, there is a sped-up drum solo at the beginning. When slowed down, it is not unlike the beginning of When the Levee Breaks.
• by Stream of Passion as b-side on their single Out in the Real World and on their live album/DVD Live in the Real World, both in 2006.
• by film score composer John Powell on the soundtrack to the 2006 film Ice Age: The Meltdown.
• Bob Dylan's song "The Levee's Gonna Break" on the 2006 album Modern Times is loosely based on the song.
• by New Orleans drummer Stanton Moore's 2006 solo effort entitled III, as the song's subject has been compared to the effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans; it is also the main theme for the event.
• By New Orleans native jam band Galactic. Their version contains no words and became a regular rotation in their sets post-Katrina.

Dread Zeppelin is an American band best known for covering the songs of Led Zeppelin in a reggae style sung by an Elvis Presley impersonator, though their act now encompasses many other songs and other styles of music. ... 5,000,000 (aka 5,000,000 Tortelvis Fans Cant Be Wrong) is the second album by Dread Zeppelin, released in 1991. ... Judge was a New York City hardcore punk band, formed in 1987 by Youth Of Today guitarist John Porcell Porcelly and former Death Before Dishonor/Youth Of Today drummer Mike Judge Ferraro. ... MCMXC redirects here; for the Enigma album, see MCMXC a. ... W.A.S.P. is an American heavy metal band formed in 1982 and had continued success in the 1980s. ... The Crimson Idol was the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band W.A.S.P., originally released by Capitol Records in 1992 (1993 in the United States). ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... John Campbell may refer to many different people: British political figures John Campbell, 1st Earl of Loudoun (died 1633) John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll (1680–1743) John Campbell of Cawdor, minor British politician (1695–1777) John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun (1705–1782) John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Kristin Hersh (born August 7, 1966) is a prolific American singer/songwriter who performs solo acoustic concerts; she also has performed as lead singer and guitarist for alternative rock group Throwing Muses and currently leads the hardcore punk-influenced power trio 50 Foot Wave. ... An early band formation (left to right): Narcizo, Hersh, Donelly, and Langston. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... Leftover Salmon is a genre-bending band from Boulder, Colorado. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A Perfect Circle (often referred to as APC) was an alternative rock band, formed by guitarist Billy Howerdel. ... eMOTIVe is the third album by the American rock band A Perfect Circle. ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Albert Kuvezin is a Tuvan guitarist and singer. ... Yat-Kha is a rock band from Tuva, led by vocalist/guitarist Albert Kuvezin. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Temptation is a song by Canadian rock band The Tea Party. ... The Tea Party was a Canadian rock band with blues, progressive rock and Middle Eastern influences. ... Stream of Passion are a rock opera band founded by Arjen Lucassen to showcase the vocals of Marcela Bovio. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... For the geologist and U.S. explorer, see John Wesley Powell, for the Mayor of Toronto see John Powell (politician). ... // Please note that following the tradition of the English language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the United States and Canada in 2006; because they may have made most of their income in a later year, they may not be the top-grossing... Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is a Grammy, Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, author, musician, and poet who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Modern Times is Bob Dylans 32nd studio album, released on August 29, 2006 by Sony BMG. The album was Dylans third straight (following Time out of Mind and Love and Theft) to be met with nearly universal praise from fans and critics. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... The effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans was catastrophic and long-lasting. ... Galactic is a funk and jazz group from New Orleans. ...

Trivia

• The lyrics to this song (written by Memphis Minnie in 1927) are based on The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. African-American plantation workers were forced to work on the levee at gunpoint, piling sandbags to save the neighboring towns. Hence the lyrics, "I works on the levee, mama both night and day, I works so hard, to keep the water away." After the levee breached, blacks were not allowed to leave the area, and were forced to work in the relief and cleanup effort, living in camps with limited access to the supplies which were coming in. Many left at the first chance since there was no work in the Delta after the destruction of all of the plantations; hence the lyrics, "Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do no good" and "I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan, gonna leave my baby, and my happy home"
• Memphis Minnie McCoy (born Lizzie Douglas), was a Blues artist who recorded this in 1929. Robert Plant had the record in his collection.
• Heavily produced in the studio, this was difficult to perform live, which Led Zeppelin did only twice: once in a "warm up" gig in Denmark before their 1975 US tour, and again on their second night in Chicago.
• The vocals were processed differently on each verse, sometimes with phasing added.
• Jimmy Page's backward echo technique, where he would put the echo ahead of the sound, was used on the harmonica.
• Many rap songs have sampled the drums on this. This is because of the clean, uninterrupted drum break at the beginning. The Beastie Boys used it on "Rhymin' and Stealin'" which opened their first album Licensed To Ill. Other songs to use it include "Midnight" by Ice-T, "Lyrical Gangbang" by Dr. Dre, "Kim" by Eminem and "Beats and Pieces" by Coldcut.
• The song was recorded at a different tempo, then slowed it down. Plant then sang in the sort of in between key the song was now in, which explains its sort of flat and sludgy sound, particularly on the harmonica and guitar solos. This also made it very difficult to accurately reproduce live.
• This song was the only one on the album that was not remixed after a supposedly disastrous mixing job in the US (the rest of the tracks were mixed again in England). The original mixing done on this song seemed to suit it very well, so it was kept in its original form.
• John Bonham's drums were recorded in a stairwell at Headley Grange with the microphones planted 3 stories up. The drum sound echoed skyward and was captured on the mics, creating a very innovative and distinctive sound.
• A Perfect Circle covered this on their third album Emotive. The album is a collection of anti violence cover songs preformed by A Perfect Circle in a more political and current style.
• Since 78 years have passed since Memphis Minnie's version was recorded in 1929, the song is now in the public domain, meaning anyone can record it without paying royalties.
• Page and Plant played an acoustic version on their 1995 No Quarter tour, swapping it with "Nobody's Fault But Mine" at times.
• When the Levees Broke, a documentary on Hurricane Katrina, is a play on the title of the song.

The Beastie Boys are a group from the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan. ... Licensed to Ill is the debut rap album by the Beastie Boys, released in 1986 (see 1986 in music). ... Tracy Marrow (born February 16, 1958)[1], better known by stage name Ice-T, is an American rapper, rock musician, author, and actor. ... This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling. ... Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), better known as Eminem or Slim Shady, is a Grammy and Academy Award-winning American rapper, record producer and actor from the Detroit, Michigan area. ... Coldcut: Jonathan More (left) & Matt Black Coldcut is a duo comprising English DJs Matt Black and Jonathan More. ... The logo for When the Levees Broke shows the title on a depiction of a damaged New Orleans street sign When the Levees Broke, subtitled A Requiem in Four Acts is a 2006 documentary film directed by Spike Lee, about the devastation of New Orleans, Louisiana due to the failure... Lowest pressure 902 mbar (hPa; 26. ...

See also

• List of sampled songs
• List of songs about disasters

This list is of songs that have been sampled by other songs; songs that are parodied or remade without using a recording of the original song do not count as “samples”. It is organized under the name of the artist whose song is sampled followed by the name of the... This is a list of songs about disasters, if the song is about a real life disaster the disaster aforementioned will follow. ...

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

References