I thought LZ got a lot of bad reviews back in the day which have since largely eroded. So I don’t know if he was necessarily in the minority, was he?

I also think I read that for a while LZ was considered uncool before becoming cool again. Maybe I am too young to remember that, even…

I just put on a Led Zepp II shirt 2 minutes before I saw this story. Didn’t you guys give this album 3 & 1/2 stars in the 1992 album guide?

Wow, 40 years later you embrace them…40 years ago you couldn’t say a good word about them…. righting your wrongs by emracing your mistakes?!?!

wankers.

As if Zeppelin, or it’s fans, give a crap what RS thinks. As if anyone would for that matter. You lost all credibility many moons ago, and this ass kissing is just embarrassing at this point. You should have just stuck to your guns and called it crap.

Zep sucks.

This is Zeppelin’s finest hour, great song after great song. I’d probably put this in my personal top 10.

And, yeah, RS sux for not giving credit where credit is due.

I love the term ‘Tongue in cheekily’.
Really, do you think people are stupid?

Obviously great band–obviously great album. Mendelsohn needed his head examined.

I totally agree w/ Tom Graham’s comment. RS’s revisionist history of their love for Zeppelin is further proof of your overall hypocrisy.

The reason why you’re the best American rock magazine is because you’re the ONLY American rock magazine.

Rolling Stone mag was and still is the pits. There were way better rock mags back in the day and they all appreciated Zep way more than Rolling Stone ever did.

Led Zeppelin is the best rock band ever, period. While II is not my favorite album by them, it is still a rock masterpiece. Rolling Stone gave poor reviews to every Zeppelin album ever made, which is why this magazine sucks ass!

What it SHOULD say is: Produced by guitarist Jimmy Page, II laid the groundwork for other rock bands who would, like Led Zeppelin, rape the hell out of American blues, not give any credit, and pass s*** off as their own. (:

I used to love Led Zeppelin.. before I got into Robert Johnson.

Though I will admit the irony of this celebration by Rolling Stone is striking!

Rolling Stone magazine is LAME!! Not only did they get it WRONG the first time, now they’re going to try and revise history by changeing their opinion 40 years later (probaly to cover their asses and save face). Not having it, sorry. You still suck, and nobody will ever respect your opinion.

@coachmaddog- Yeah, as your name implies, you’re mentally.

Zep= No. 1… Always.

illlllllllll.

best band ever dude!

II is a classic, Thank you, Heartbreaker and Lemon song are great too, its not just about Whole lotta love.

Rolling stone is a useless magazine! I did subscribe to them once but now that you can read all about things on the internet and not cut down half a forest to do so !!! Anyway Led zeppelin is a great band because they put thought and effort into thier music! Yes the borroed form other artists but name someone who has not!! Im sure if you looked hard enough even blues artists stole ideas from each other. Happy anniversary Led Zeppelin II !! May you inspire bands for years to come! To reach such grounds instead of playing rock band or simon on a stick! And we wonder why music on a whole was no credibiity today!

Mendelsohn like many other rock writers at the time had they’re heads so far up their own ass they wouldn’t know a good album if it lept up and bit them there.They wanted their favorite band to remain on page 28 and once they made the front cover they took pleasure in shooting them down. Assoles the lot of them, Led Zeppelin 2 officially ended the 60’s and was the forerunner to every good rock record that followed, this was Zep at their best, established, melodic and heavy! It’s an awesome album, Mendelsohn mentions ‘formula’ what fucking formula? it’s their second album FFS! you see, these idiots had no idea what they were dealing with and were in no way qualified to make the call on Zeppelin or anyone else for that matter. Zeppelin were the quintessential 70’s rock band, the swingin 60’s were a memory and the rockin 70’s had begun.

a masterpiece

As mentioned by a number of people here, Led Zeppelin did nick a lot of ideas. Not just blues, either. (Traffic’s Dear Mr Fantasy riff on Your Time Is Gonna Come, for example). However, many blues artists got a lot more recognition as a result of say, The Stones covering their material. It wasn’t just Zeppelin at it. Although a little more credit would have been appropriate.

Led Zeppelin is by far one of my favorite rock bands of all time. They were brilliant and innovative. Happy 40th!!!

I never read RS unless I was at the dentist office. Had the same effect as the bloody needle. I read Creem 40 years ago when I wasn’t fingering the LZ II album cover.

Their are a lo of people claiming RS “is the pits” or that they “never read RS” yet their comments managed to find their way right onto the RS website…curious, no?

well II is LZ’s best album, so the critics as usual were wrong, but you have to remember, music was rich and changing fast back in the day, so the moderators of pop culture of the time can be forgiven if they perform a minor amount of oral sex onto those to whom they transgressed