What Is and What Should Never Be

When you dive into *What Is and What Should Never Be*, you encounter a sound that immediately grabs you. The way the guitars move from side to side in the stereo mix gives it a sense of space and depth that envelops you. And Robert Plant's voice, treated with an effect that makes it sound like it's in two places at once, adds an extra layer of psychedelia to the song. The main riff, which descends hypnotically, is like a tension that builds up and then releases, and the vocal rhythm almost sounds like rap, something quite unusual for the time. It's one of those pieces that make you think about the sonic experimentation they were exploring.

This song, written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, was one of the first on which Page used his Gibson Les Paul for recording, an instrument that would become his hallmark. Interestingly, Plant received credit for the lyric composition on this occasion, and it is said that he was inspired by a personal romance. The recording took place in April and June 1969 in studios such as Olympic in London and Groove Studios in New York. The album, *Led Zeppelin II*, which was released in October 1969, was recorded in various locations between January and August of that same year. Live, *What Is and What Should Never Be* was part of the band's concerts between 1969 and 1973, and versions of these performances can be found in material recorded at the Royal Albert Hall and on the live album *How The West Was Won*. An interesting detail is the appearance of John Bonham's Chinese gong in the central part of the song, between the guitar riffs.