Led Zeppelin was the definitive heavy metal band. It wasn't just their crushingly loud interpretation of the blues - it was how they incorporated mythology, mysticism, and a variety of other genres (most notably world music and British folk) - into their sound. Led Zeppelin had mystique. They rarely gave interviews, since the music press detested the band. Consequently, the only connection the audience had with the band was through the records and the concerts. More than any other band, Led Zeppelin established the concept of album-oriented rock, refusing to release popular songs from their albums as singles. In doing so, they established the dominant format for heavy metal, as well as the genre's actual sound.

"Moby Dick" is an instrumental tune and drum solo of the band, featured on their 1969 album Led Zeppelin II. It was also known by the titles "Pat's Delight" and "Over the Top" during various points during the band's career.

According to Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham's wife, Pat, the tune is named "Moby Dick" because his son, Jason, asked him to play "the long song". When John asked why, the boy replied, "It's big like Moby."

This was Zeppelin drummer John Bonham's showcase song on early tours. His solo would last up to 20 minutes, while the rest of the band would leave the stage and grab a smoke. Bonham sometimes drew blood performing this from beating his hands on his snare and tom toms. The name of Bonham's drum solo was later changed to "Over The Top" for the 1977 US tour. It used the "Out On The Tiles" riff as an intro instead.

This evolved out of a drum solo Bonham would play called "Pat's Delight," which was named after his wife. Jimmy Page would often catch Bonham jamming in the studio, and recorded parts of it, then pieced it all together.

Page added a guitar riff to the mix, which came from "The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair," a song Led Zeppelin recorded live for the BBC in the Spring of 1969. It appears on the BBC Sessions album. Jimmy Page remixed this to flow seamlessly into "Bonzo's Montreux" on the Led Zeppelin boxed set.

Led Zeppelin often borrowed from American Blues recordings, and the guitar riff in this song bears a strong resemblance to the 1961 Bobby Parker song "Watch Your Step." Led Zeppelin has faced criticism for using parts of obscure Folk and Blues songs and passing them off as their own, but it should be noted that riffs cannot be copyrighted, and many famous musicians have borrowed in a similar fashion. A notable example is The Beatles "I Feel Fine," which was also influenced by Parker's "Watch Your Step."

In 1980, on 25 September - John "Bonzo" Bonham, of Led Zeppelin, died of asphyxiation on his own vomit. Although many had said that he died because alcohol abuse that day, it is well known the fact that he was the "reasonable" member of the band; according to the other members, he never took drugs and rearely drunk. Anyhow, the group decided to disband when they determined that their drummer cannot be replaced. Looking at this performance from the "Royal Albert Hall" concert in 1970, you can surrely agry.

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