Black Dog (track)
by Led Zeppelin
Year: 1971
From the album Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (track #1)
Listen on Spotify
Black Dog appears on the following album(s) by Led Zeppelin:
- Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (track #1) (this album) (1971)
- Early Days: The Best Of Led Zeppelin Volume One (track #9) (compilation) (1999)
- BBC Sessions (track #18) (1997)
- How The West Was Won (track #4) (2003)
- Mothership (track #11) (compilation) (2007)
- Remasters (track #11) (compilation) (1990)
- The Complete Studio Recordings (track #29) (compilation) (1993)
- Celebration Day (track #3) (2012)
- Led Zeppelin (Box Set) (track #16) (compilation) (1990)
- Early Days & Latter Days (track #9) (compilation) (2002)
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Black Dog ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Track ratings | Avg. track rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 12/08/2025 13:54 |  Tamthebam | 44,307 | 79/100 |
| ! | 12/04/2025 16:54 | Exist-en-ciel | 34,551 | 70/100 |
| ! | 11/25/2025 12:52 | acematt51090 | 3,931 | 76/100 |
| ! | 11/24/2025 12:11 | bloosy | 1,084 | 80/100 |
| ! | 11/10/2025 12:02 | dukeboxkool | 6,566 | 75/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some tracks can have several thousand ratings)
This track is rated in the top 1% of all tracks on BestEverAlbums.com. This track has a Bayesian average rating of 90.7/100, a mean average of 90.3/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 90.8/100. The standard deviation for this track is 10.2.
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Black Dog comments
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As the first track on the untitled fourth album, the song sets the tone for the whole album and pretty much epitomises the Zeppelin sound
It’s defiantly one of the most instantly recognisable Zeppelin tracks.
Like with other Zeppelin tracks like Immigrant song, Black Dog starts off with a few seconds of “doodling” before Robert Plants outstanding a cappella vocals kick the song off. This, I believe are some of Plants greatest vocals.
As pretty much a given, the rhythm section is as solidly outstanding as ever here.
Overall, a fabulous track.
Awesome opening, this song goes hard as hell.
Definitely my favorite Zeppelin guitar track. Both the solo and the riff are just amazing.
Awesome opening track! Love the "synthy" guitar riff and the shifting time signature :)
AAL2014 06/25/2016 04:28 | #169733
One of my favorite riffs of all time. JPJ and Jimmy Page were such a good writing duo. A very primal energy from the production as well.
John paul Jones had a big hand in the writing of this song. An amazing, Original rocker.
Classic song
9999 03/30/2015 20:52 | #138263
This must be one of the best openers of all time.
Anti 04/20/2014 21:48 | #109618
An iconic rock song!
What did I tell you in my Immigrant Song review? Zep starts their albums with a legend song. The guitar is way too good to change the radio station. Black Dog is one of the most unique songs you can find.
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