Now Playing: Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin LED ZEPPELIN II

There are material things that exist to remind us of the people that we loved. Much like anyone else who has lost someone, there are those totems reminding me of who we have lost. I could go on about MSU or Lions football, Motown, the movie The Replacements, or any other host of things, but today the thing that reminds me most about my father, Roy Diaz, is Led Zeppelin.

There were many bands that my dad enjoyed in his lifetime, but one of his all-time favorites was Led Zeppelin. His love of them was passed onto me (much as my mother’s love of ELO, disco, etc., is ingrained within me as well).

I remember quite distinctly starting to discover Zeppelin in my teens. My lifelong friend, Sean, came over to the house with freshly purchased copies of their eponymous first album and Led Zeppelin II. I liked the first, I mean, who wouldn’t, with its shocking and engrossing album cover of the Hindenburg exploding?

But I loved II.

Sean and I listened, absorbing the artistry that came out of the speakers, but what was the most fun about it for me, in retrospect, was my dad coming downstairs as we were playing the CDs and him telling us how much he loved Zeppelin. I already knew he did, I had looked over his records many times, so I knew his love of Zeppelin, The Doors, The Doobie Brothers, Supertramp, and the seminal KISS live album, Alive, but standing out amongst them was his deep love of Plant, Page, Jones, and Bonham.

So it’s odd to me that I never actually owned this album.

First off, I didn’t have a record player as a teen, but also I had gone from cassettes (very portable and playable in cars) to CDs very quickly (also portable, and eventually, playable in cars). With limited funds as a teen and discovering Depeche Mode, well, most of my money went to buying their back catalog, again, on CD. Plus, Sean owned the Zeppelin CDs, and I could just make a taped copy of his if I wanted.

And then for Christmas, that year or the next, I received the Led Zeppelin CD boxed set, which was basically selectiona from all of their albums spread over four discs. I had the hits from Led Zeppelin II that I wanted.

College went on, life happened, and well, I just never bought it.

But then Shalee and the girls got me that record play last October.

Seeing Led Zeppelin II for sale meant that I had to have it, not just because I personally love it, but also because it’s a connection to my father, now nearly 10 and a half years gone.

Sometimes we buy art/music/whatever not just because we like it, and maybe just not for nostalgic reasons, but sometimes it feels like it is a tangible memory connecting us to someone we love.

When I play this album it feeds my soul. I’m that dumbshit teenager again spending time with my father listening to music that we both love.

You can’t really put a price on that, but in this case it was less than $20.

I happily paid it.

Miss you, dad!