12 January, 1969.

Yes, it’s all very nice and gentle and soothing for a Sunday morning…until the song really kicks in and you are well and truly awake. Sneaky. Still, this has to be one of then better song choices the inner jukebox has ever made.

Originally written by folk singer Anne Bredon in the 1950s, it was picked up by fellow folk singer Janet Smith who developed the song further, playing it live at college folk festivals. It was at one of these events that the song was heard by Joan Baez. Baez asked Smith to send her some recordings, particularly this song, which she then began performing herself. It would later become the opening track on the 1962 album Joan Baez in Concert, Part 1. Originally the track had no writing credits but after Bredon confirmed to Baez that she had written it, later pressings of the album would include Bredon in the writing credits.

Both Jimmy Page and Robert Plant were fans of Baez and Led Zeppelin recorded their version of the song, but as there had been no writing credits on the original Baez album, the band credited the song as ‘Trad. arr. Page’. It wasn’t until the 1980s that Bredon learnt of this version and since 1990 the song has been credited to Anne Bredon, Jimmy Page & Robert Plant (with Bredon receiving a hefty back payment of royalties).

The song appeared on Led Zeppelin’s 1969 self-titled debut album but was never released as a single in the UK although there was a promo EP released in the US. The album itself reached number ten in the US and number six in the UK.