Weird OR Not: 7 Rock Songs That Reference ‘Lord Of The Rings’
Recently, on the Buzz Adams Morning Show, I heard a Led Zeppelin song that I couldn't believe included a lyric referencing "nerdy" 'Lord of The Rings!'
For the longest time, I have been convinced that rock and heavy metal were all about being cool, anti-authority, and definitely anti-nerd.
Lord of The Rings, to me, seems exactly the opposite of cool and anti-nerd, which is exactly the reason I freaked out over this revelation until Joanna and Buzz pointed out that several other bands had also referenced L.O.T.R.
Ultimateclassicrock.com did all the hard work and found the lyrics for their own version of a Top 10 list, but here are my OWN thoughts on the top seven.
#7 THE GNOME - Pink Floyd
"He wore a scarlet tunic, a blue-green hood,"
"He had a big adventure.'
The story about a little man who has a big adventure is a direct reference to Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, who also shows up in Lord of The Rings. Nerd alert.
#6 RAMBLE ON - Led Zeppelin
"Twas in the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair,"
"But Gollum and the evil one crept up and slipped away with her."
I'm not sure how up-to-date Led Zeppelin was on their Lord of The Rings mythology, but Gollum didn't pair up with the evil one/Sauron to take away any girl.
If anything Gollum found the ring somewhere else, not steal it.
Shame on you Robert Plant.
Just because you're named after a plant doesn't mean you have to think like one.
#5 RIVENDELL - Rush
"enchanted place"
"eleven songs and endless nights / sweet wine and soft relaxing lights."
I mean the name alone is so obvious. It's the Elven city where the fellowship of the Ring gathers, for the first time, at lord Elrond's behest.
#4 NIMRODEL/ THE PROCESSION/ THE WHITE RIDER - Camel
"Once he wore grey (...)"
"The wizard of them all came back from his fall / This time wearing white."
A direct reference to Gandalf's death as Gandalf the Gray and subsequent resurrection as Gandalf the White. I have a bigger question, was there really a band named Camel?!
#3 STAGNATION - Genesis
"And I will wait forever, beside the silent mirror,"
"And fish for bitter minnows amongst the weeds and slimy water.'
These lyrics reference Gollum, who lived next to an underground lake in the Misty Mountains where he fished in the dark for his dinner.
#2 THE WIZARD - Black Sabbath
"Casting his shadow, weaving his spell,"
"Just keeps walking, spreading his magic."
Okay, I know these lyrics might be a stretch because they could reference any magician/drug dealer. But I think it counts.
#1 THE BATTLE OF EVERMORE - Led Zeppelin
"Queen of Light,"
"Prince of Peace,"
"Dark Lord,"
"ringwraiths who ride in black"
I mean, the entire song is about Middle Earth.
The "queen of light" obviously refers to Galadriel the elf, "Prince of Peace" could be a reference to Aragorn who is a prince until he takes the mantle of King in the last book, and the "dark lord" is an obvious reference to Sauron.
So here's my theory:
Rockers are all about being rebellious and going against what most people consider cool which is why they included Lord of the Rings references.
Because nobody else thought it was cool at that time and only people on the edge of society like rockers would shove it in people's ears like that.
And I base this on... absolutely nothing.