Album of the Day

On HOUSES OF THE HOLY, Led Zeppelin continued the progression of their classic fourth album to create one of their most diverse sets to date. Though there's no shortage of dynamic Jimmy Page riffs, the Atlantic collection ventures far afield from the blues-inspired heavy metal of the quartet's debut to touch upon funk (“The Crunge”), folk (“Over the Hills and Far Away”) and reggae (“D'Yer Mak'er”). Both guitarist-producer Page and multi-instrumentalist John Paul Jones had built home studios, allowing them to perfect tracks like “The Rain Song” and “No Quarter” in advance of recording sessions. Housed in a Grammy-nominated Hipgnosis sleeve, the Diamond-certified HOUSES OF THE HOLY was #1 on the Billboard chart on this day in 1973, and it's still tops with hard rock fans.