Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” has been ranked among the greatest songs in rock history, nearly 50 years after its release. Music publication Collider placed the track at number 19 on its list of the 25 best classic rock songs spanning the 1960s through the 1980s, according to Parade magazine.
Reviewers described the song as a truly epic track that could well be the finest example of Led Zeppelin at their peak. David Bowie’s 1977 song “Heroes” took the top spot on the list, which spanned soft rock, psychedelic rock, and hard rock.
“Kashmir” appeared on the album Physical Graffiti and runs just under nine minutes, slightly longer than “Stairway to Heaven.” It features heavy instrumentation, eastern influences, and orchestral arrangements.
Jimmy Page said in the 2008 documentary It Might Get Loud, speaking with Edge from U2 and Jack White, that the song’s guitar riff grew out of a piece called “Swan Song” that had complex passages at its end.
Robert Plant wrote the lyrics two years before the track was released, during a journey across the Sahara Desert on the way to a national folk festival. Plant told Rolling Stone the song was about the spirit of searching and travelling off the beaten path, which he described as the essence of Led Zeppelin.
“Kashmir” was never released as a single in the UK or the US, but remains one of the band’s top earners from royalties, digital sales, and streaming.
