Jack Black’s teary tribute to Led Zeppelin: “Best band ever”

Jack Black and Led Zeppelin go together hand in hand. So many of us saw Black start his career as a rock-centric flamboyant comedian in the film School of Rock, and Black would likely tell you that Led Zeppelin played a part in ensuring that film was a success. In a bid to get the band to let them use their song in the film, Black recorded a video pleading to their human side.

“Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, the Gods of rock. The greatest rock band of all time. We need your song, man. We need the ‘Immigrant Song’,” said Black, “This is a movie about rock, and without that song, this movie will crumble into smithereens. Oh no, the movie’s kickass, but dude, your song would be a hard-rocking cherry on the top of the mountain!”

Led Zeppelin seemed to find Black’s appeal somewhat endearing, as they let Black use the track, and it became a pivotal moment in the film. When asked about the decision to let the band use the song, though, Plant admitted that it wasn’t Jack Black’s video, but was instead something much deeper that convinced them. He admitted he felt as though the myth surrounding Led Zeppelin was too great, and by letting the movie use the song, he was dispelling that myth somewhat.

“Everyone gets it, young and old. It’s a great song. Not only slightly ridiculous but ridiculous,” said Plant, “Considering that we wrote it in midair, leaving Iceland – a fantastically inspiring gig and an adventure beyond which there will be no books written. To give it to the kids is important. Send it up, send it down, and just keep sending it. Just dig it because there’s no hierarchy.”

He is right that the song is a bit of fun, and it’s interesting that people read into the band so much. Why did Led Zeppelin manage to get so much myth surrounding them? Well, one of the reasons was because of how good they were. Given their music overlapped with the satanic panic and some of their songs had themes surrounding the afterlife, there were a lot of people who genuinely believed that the band had sold their souls to the devil.

Because of Jack Black’s close ties to the band, when they were honoured at the Kennedy Center, Black was asked to give a speech. He started by mirroring the sentiment he said during his speech when asking for the rights to ‘Immigrant Song’. He called them the greatest band of all time, which was certainly high praise when you hear who he compared them to.

“Led Zeppelin, the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band of all time,” he said when beginning his speech, “Better than the Beatles, better than the Stones, even better than Tenacious D.”

He proceeded to talk about the myth that they had sold their souls to the devil, joking that that must be the case given how talented they are, and that the sacrifice was worth it. “They say that Led Zeppelin sold their souls to Satan. Come on guys, you know you did! There’s no other way to explain your ungodly talent,” he said, “I just wanna say thank you because while you’re in hell, the human race will cherish your heavenly jams until the end of time.”

The tribute was very fitting for Black, as it was laced with humour and clearly saw him convey his love for his favourite band. There was nobody better to deliver a speech for such a prestigious occasion. With that, you can watch the entire video below.