As far as I know, Pink Floyd has never recorded "Stairway to Heaven,"
but several other artists have covered the song.
I have heard that there are "remix" versions of "Stairway to Heaven"
and "Whole Lotta Love" circulating on the 'Net in which snippets from
Pink Floyd have been edited into some original Led Zeppelin
recordings, but the remixes were not done with the authorization of
the artists. If you want to obtain these, your best source may be a
P2P service such as Kazaa or Grokster.
If you are interested in "Stairway" covers, have I got an album for
you! "Stairways to Heaven" is a CD that consists of nothing but
"Stairway to Heaven," in many different versions.
Here's a mini-review, from Amazon.com:
"The contents of this album are easily reduced to a single declarative
sentence. One dozen versions of Led Zeppelin's classic 'Stairway to
Heaven' done in the (mostly) notable styles of different musical
groups... If you prefer early Beatles there is a 'I Want to Hold Your
Hand' style version by The Beatnix as well as a 'Lucy in the Sky with
Diamonds' version done by Robyne Dunn for those who prefer the later
work of the Liverpool lads. There is Elvis in a 'Blue Hawaii' mood
courtesy of Neil Pepper and a dignified Moody Blues poetry reading
from Leonard Teale that appropriately closes out the album. The Rock
Lobsters do a B-52's take on the song while the Australian Doors Show
do, well, you should be able to figure it out. John Paul Young does a
disco version, the Vegimite Reggae a reggae version, Kate Ceberano and
The Ministry of Fun a sulty soul version. Sandra Hahn and Michael
Turkic tackle an operatic duet, Pardon Me Boys a Be-Bop duet, and Rolf
Harris is just out in the outback doing whatever comes into his
fertile little mind ('All together now!'). Jimmy Page might have
played his guitar with a violin bow, but you must admit he never tried
playing a saw."
Amazon: Stairways to Heaven
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000005J65/002-4334606-5001637?v=glance#product-details
Not on the "Stairways" album, but worth a listen for its very oddness,
is Dolly Parton's cover of "Stairway to Heaven." You can listen to it
here:
Kickinsite: Stairway to Heaven
http://www.kickinsite.nl/kick/dolly%20parton%20-%20Stairway%20To%20Heaven.mp3
Rather amazingly, Robert Plant approved of Dolly's version:
"Among the stranger cover versions released this year is Dolly
Parton's rendition of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway To Heaven," from her
latest album Halos & Horns. Parton's version of the song, which
includes some new lyrics that she wrote for it, was OK'd by Zeppelin
principals Robert Plant and Jimmy Page. Plant tells LAUNCH that he's
genuinely pleased with the way she treated the song."
Launch: Robert Plant Praises Dolly Parton's Cover Of 'Stairway To Heaven'
http://launch.yahoo.com/read/news.asp?contentID=209636
Wikipedia has a good article on "Stairway." A brief excerpt:
"In the early 1990s, each episode of the Australian chat show The
Money or the Gun ended with a different group performing an
idiosyncratic cover version of 'Stairway to Heaven'. From a diverse
range that included an Elvis impersonator, Kate Ceberano, and the Doug
Anthony Allstars, the best remembered is Rolf Harris's version
(complete with didgeridoo and wobble board), which reached the Top 10
on the UK singles charts. Harris is said to have received death
threats from fans of the song for his massacre of this iconic rock
anthem. A complation album, Stairways to Heaven, was put out on the
Atlantic label, featuring versions of the song by The Australian Doors
Show, The Beatnix), John Paul Young, Kate Ceberano, Leonard Teale,
Michael Turkic, The Ministry Of Fun, Neil Pepper, Pardon Me Boys,
Robyne Dunn, The Rock Lobsters, Rolf Harris, Sandra Hahn, Vegimite
Reggae and others.
Other notable cover versions include a widely-panned version by Far
Corporation, and Dread Zeppelin's reggae/Elvis-inspired(?) version.
A novelty song featuring the music and arrangement of the song
combined with the lyrics to the Theme from Gilligan's Island (which
has a similar chord progression) was recorded by the San Francisco
band Little Roger and the Goosebumps and often featured on the Dr.
Demento radio program."
Wikipedia: Stairway to Heaven
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stairway_to_Heaven
You may be interested in these pages, devoted to tributes, samplers,
and remakes of Led Zeppelin tunes:
Led-Zeppelin.org: Multimedia/Audio Archive
http://led-zeppelin.org/multimedia/assorted.html
Stryder: Led Zeppelin Related Sampler
http://www.stryder.de/tributes.html
Redrival: Arquivo de Audio
http://www.redrival.com/ledzeppelin/audio.html
Can you believe Frank Zappa doing "Stairway to Heaven?" Believe it:
Led-Zeppelin.org: Stairway To Heaven - Frank Zappa
http://www.led-zeppelin.org/multimedia/mp3/ALS57.mp3
Thanks for a fun question! If anything is unclear, please request
clarification; I'll be glad to offer further assistance before you
rate my answer.
Best regards,
pinkfreud |
