"Either / Or"

This week's installment of "Either / Or" pits two of the greatest rock 'n roll bands to ever dawn leather pants against one another: Led Zeppelin vs. The Who - two bands from across the pond, that left their imprint on music for eternity. Coincidentally enough, neither band would recover from each respective drummer's death.

Led Zeppelin was great. Plant, Paige, Jones, and Bonham were synonymous with rock and roll. Zeppelin had a unique sound all their own, driven by Bonham's aggressive and heavy drums. Plant's voice would soon be linked with Paige's guitar riffs and solos for countless years. Album after album Zeppelin churned out mind-altering and innovative music, until Bonham's death in 1980. Zeppelin's B-sides blow my hair back and are light years ahead of anything that's been considered rock since. "Fool in the Rain" is my favorite song of all time (and that must not be overlooked). Do yourself a favor and take a little vacation next weekend, if you haven't been introduced to Led Zeppelin yet. Acquire (legally or illegally) Led Zeppelin I-IV, House of the Holy, Physical Graffiti, Presence, and In Through the Out Door (omit Coda), buy copious amounts of wine, LSD, and an O, lock yourself in your room and blast each of these albums. As an encore, watch Led Zeppelin the dvd. [Author's note: every single middle school dance of mine ended with "Stairway to Heaven" & both my braces and I loved every second of it.]

The Who - Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle, and Keith Moon. This group was rock 'n roll's equivalent of the 1992 USA Men's Olympic Basketball Team, dubbed "The Dream Team." "Quadrophenia" is probably one of the finest albums from cover to cover that has ever been made, regardless of any genre. Much like Zeppelin, The Who would never be the same after the death of Moon. Why are The Who the decisive winners here? They made destroying their instruments at live shows "the tits." The Who was also unique because their albums were intended to be unified stories, not just a collection of tracks. In the mood for another vacation? Fresh off of a Zeppelin weekend, procure My Generation, A Quick One, The Who Sell Out, Tommy, Who's Next, Quadrophenia, The Who by Numbers, and Who Are You (omit Face Dances, It's Hard, Endless Wire, and Then and Now). Plan to assemble and arrange the aforementioned menagerie of substances and paraphernalia and allow your eardrums to make passionate love to the music that is emitted from your utterly unworthy sound system.

It was neck and neck, and in many instances too close to call, but The Who emerges victorious. For Chrissake, they wrote a f*cking rock opera. Keep in mind there are no losers when you combine mass quantities of drugs and either/or both of these bands.