Plant struggles with lyrics of Zeppelin songs

Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant admits he does not understand the lyrics of his band’s most famous song, Stairway to Heaven.

The track is one of rock’s most recognisable songs and regularly covered by budding guitarists.

Speaking at a press conference in central London today, Plant said: “I struggle with some of the lyrics from particular periods of time. The musicality and construction of it is peerless.

“Maybe I didn’t quite feel the same about the lyrics a little bit later on in life, further on down the road.

“Maybe I’m still trying to work out what I was talking about. Every other f***** is.”

The three surviving members – Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones – were reunited to promote their new DVD.

Drummer John Bonham died in 1980.

The band, who emerged from the ruins of 1960s’ R’n’B band The Yardbirds, are one of the biggest outfits in the history of rock.They played to packed stadiums and sold millions of albums in their heyday in the 1970’s and became legendary for rock ’n’ roll excess.

Their new DVD, Celebration Day, is based on their 2007 tribute concert to Atlantic Records supremo Ahmet Ertegun.

The band dodged a question about whether they would reform again and refused to be drawn about their future plans.

Bonham’s son Jason took over his father’s role on drums for the comeback gig and Page praised his encyclopaedic knowledge“ of the band and said ”no one else could have done it“.

Plant said Jason had been “struggling” with the loss of his father since he was a young boy and it was “appropriate and wonderful” for him to join them.

He said: “It was just an easing of all those years of discussion and debate with Jason and us.”

The singer, who has recently recorded a string of critically acclaimed folk-tinged albums, said he had a soft spot for Mumford and Sons and saw something of Led Zeppelin in the The Cave hitmakers.

He said: “They do have drama and they do have optimism and they have an ability to turn the crowd upside down.”