PART A
0:00-0:32   Intro (15)
0:32-0:56   (A) Verse A 1 (12)
0:56-1:44   (A') Verse A 2 + Refrain (24)

PART B
1:44-1:54   Unison 2-bar riff x2 (4)
1:54-2:04   Harmonized 2-bar riff x2 (4)

2:04-2:18   (B) Verse B 1 + 2-Bar Refrain (6)
2:18-2:37   (B') Verse B 2 + 4-Bar Refrain (8)

2:37-2:47   Unison 2-bar riff x2 (4)
2:47-2:57   Harmonized 2-bar riff x2 (4)

2:57-3:11   (B) Verse B 3 + 2-Bar Refrain (6)
3:11-3:30   (B') Verse B 4 + 4-Bar Refrain (8)

3:30-3:40   Unison 2-bar riff x2 (4)
3:40-3:52   Harmonized 2-bar riff x2 (4)

PART A
3:52-4:19   (A'') Refrain (8)

There's the raw analysis. I'll post commentary on that analysis soon.

Having completed the overview, we now turn to the individual sections for a more detailed look.
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At their most fundamental, introductions set up what comes next. This almost always means the music heard in the intro will be heard again later in the song. And 'Stairway to Heaven' is no exception.

The instrumental introduction of 'Stairway' consists of four phrases, the first two of which are essentially identical and the second two of which are comparable.

0:00-0:54  (A) Introduction (16 measures)
   0:00   (a)   |a E/g# |C/g D/f# | FM7 |a |   [instrumental]
   0:14   (a)   |a E/g# |C/g D/f# | FM7 |a |    [instrumental]
   0:27   (b)   |C D |FM7 a |C G |D |    [instrumental]
   0:40   (b')   |C D |FM7 a |C D |FM7 |    [instrumental]

The (a) phrases are heard a total of six times: twice each in the introduction, first verse, and second verse.
   0:00   (a)   Intro   [instrumental]
   0:14   (a)   Intro   [instrumental]
   0:54   (a)   Verse 1   “There's a lady...”
   1:07   (a)   Verse 1   “When she gets there...”
   1:48   (a)   Verse 2   “In the tree...”
   2:01   (a)   Verse 2   [instrumental]

The (b) and (b') phrases are heard a total of four times: twice each in the intro and first verse.
   0:27   (b)   Intro    [instrumental]
   0:40   (b')   Intro    [instrumental]
   1:21   (b)   Verse 1    “Ooo...”
   1:34   (b')   Verse 1   “There's a sign...”

It's worth noting how both the (a) and (b) phrase are only used in pairs – they never once appear as a single phrase.

It's also worth noting how the (a) and (b) phrases are used together in the intro and first verse, but the second verse uses only the (a) phrases. We'll address why that is in a subsequent blog.

I started the analytical (as opposed to the introductory) part of the blog yesterday with a structural analysis of “Whole Lotta Love”. In it, I implied that early Zeppelin songs illustrate how they grew out of their predecessors like The Beatles.

That is true to a certain extent, but that's not entirely true. I oversimplified a bit. Of course there are exceptions. And as evidence to the contrary, I present a structural analysis of “Good Times Bad Times”, the opening number of Zeppelin's 1968 self-titled debut album, which has a unique (to my knowledge, anyway) formal design. Get a load of this oddity!:

Okay, so, the first thing to notice is that there are two distinct verses, here labeled Verse A and Verse B. While The Beatles occasionally employed multiple different verses within the same song (check out “Glass Onion” or “Lovely Rita”), it's rare. I don't know other bands' oeuvres well enough to cite a non-Beatles example off the top of my head, but I'm sure there are examples to be found. Some scholars have debated with me over the justification for using multiple verses instead of other labels. “Rita”, for example, is often analyzed as using verses and bridges instead of multiple verses. I certainly see the point, but I maintain these are all verses for reason I won't get into here. In any case, “Good Times” definitely uses multiple verses because each section in question is paired with a chorus – exactly what would be expected of verses.

The second thing that stands out is that the chorus also has two different iterations. The distinction here is harmonic: The first and third choruses are in A major, while the second is in B major. This middle chorus grows organically out of what was heard in the first chorus as it adds an E chord (IV) on the third beats of the second and fourth measures, circled red in the example below. This addition results in a double plagal cadence (A-E-B, bVII-IV-I, underlined below) from the second to third measures.

This ties in to the harmony of the initial verse (shown in the example below), which also employs double plagals but in E major (D-A-E) and twice as long (four measures where the same pattern in the chorus lasts only two).

Also, the middle chorus elucidates the tonality of the outer choruses. The first and third choruses are harmonically ambiguous on their own – are they really in A major? We don't necessarily have enough information to make that claim - there are no cadences to confirm such a conclusion. But the addition of those double plagals in the middle chorus implies that the harmony of the first and third can be interpreted as “incomplete double plagal cadences” which are missing the IV chord. With that in mind, we can indeed infer that the outer choruses are in A major.

One last thing about the choruses: The middle iteration is abbreviated. While the first and third choruses both feature a two-bar bass transition, the second chorus omits it. This further differentiates the choruses, which strengthens the eventual conclusion (see below) that "Good Times" is a compound ternary structure.

Finally, the solo replaces a verse. It employs identical harmonies, but rhythmically halved. This, too, grows organically out of what preceded it. The solo also uses double plagal cadences, just like the first verse and second chorus. It uses the tonality of the verse's double plagals (D-A-E) but with the chorus's rhythms (two measures instead of four). So the solo is related to both the first verse (through tonality) and to the second chorus (through rhythm).

The overall structure of “Good Times Bad Times”, then, is a hybrid AB|CB'|A'B – it's part compound simple (an AB x3 in which the middle AB is actually a CB') and part compound ternary (ABA'). If I had to pick one of those designations, I think the latter more accurately and precisely articulates the form.

Even though this song is from Zep's first album, it shows a spectacularly advanced hybrid formal structure and organic development that breaks with their predecessors' work (to the extent of my knowledge). It certainly would not be the last time they would use such a sophisticated musical design.

“Whole Lotta Love”, the opening track from Led Zeppelin II, employs a rather conventional compound AABA structure. The verses and choruses combine to constitute the compound A sections, while the break and solo combine to create the compound B section.

While The Beatles employed AABA structures frequently (121 of their 211 songs use some type of AABA design), they used relatively few compound AABA structures. The most famous of that handful is “Magical Mystery Tour”, which, though not identical to “Whole Lotta Love”, is strikingly similar in form.

So what does this mean? It's an example of how Led Zeppelin grew out of what came before them. Of course this doesn't necessarily mean that Jimmy Page and Robert Plant were deliberately mimicking John Lennon and Paul McCartney – I highly doubt they were – but here we have an early Zeppelin recording that employs a similar structure to a late Beatles track. Just a few years later, Zeppelin would record “Black Dog” and “Stairway To Heaven” and “Kashmir”, all of which use much more experimental and innovative formal designs which depart from and build off of structures employed by The Beatles. And I'll look in detail at those songs soon.