IN LATE APRIL 1972, Led Zeppelin decamped to Stargroves, Mick Jagger’s mansion in the county of Hampshire, England, to start work on their fifth album. According to Robert Plant, it was a chance for Zeppelin to show another side to their personality. “It’s time that people heard something about us other than that we were eating women and throwing the bones out of the window,” the singer said at the time.
The man they initially brought in to help them achieve their goal was renowned producer/engineer Eddie Kramer. Known for his work with many legendary acts, including his groundbreaking engineering efforts with Jimi Hendrix, Kramer had worked with Zeppelin on III, on which he was credited as director of engineering, although his most recent encounter with the band had ended badly during sessions the previous year at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. “Everything was going fine until they ordered in some Indian food,” Kramer says today. “A whole bunch ended up on the floor. I was pretty possessive about the place and I asked them to clean it up. And they all walked out!”
All that had been forgotten, and he arrived at Stargroves to find the band in a buoyant mood. “The weather was good, the atmosphere among the band was very jolly,” he says. “Jimmy had Jagger’s bedroom. Everyone was happy.” Kramer saw his role as “helping them achieve whatever sounds Jimmy wanted. He was the boss, very clearly.”
