Kashmir

Bonham/Page/Plant
Вариант исполнения в 1994 году на альбоме Пейджа/Планта "No Quarter"
Записана 24 августа 1994 в Studio 2, London TV Studios.
Оригинальный вариант песни и её перевод смотри здесь.

Заимствование
The way the string section echoes around Page's guitar in this song harks back to the earliest Page and Jones collaborations, such as on the Yardbird's song "Little Games" where Jones's arrangement for the strings seeks to achieve a similar effect.

Название
As the geographically aware would have noticed, Kashmir, the place, is not in, or even anywhere near, Morocco, which was the inspiration for Plant's lyrics. The lyrics describe a car trip Page and Plant took across the Moroccan desert, yet Kashmir, not really a specific city, more of a region, is comprised mostly of fertile farmlands. Furthermore, it is situated at the foothills of the Himalayas, the tallest mountain range in the world, and has been the subject of fighting between muslims for years, fighting which contines to this day. About the only thing that Kashmir might have in common with the song is it's history of religious mysticism, which would attract Plant, although there is no record of any band member ever having visited there. The lyrics describe sand, heat, and endless desert, so the choice of song title is hard to explain. It may be Plant trying to evoke the imagery of some sort of metaphorical "paradise", in the same way people talk about places like Hawaii. However, he has the terrain and geography completely wrong. Most likely, he just though that the title just sounds great, which it does. The song was originally titled "Driving To Kashmir".

Текст

Whoa let the sun beat down upon my face, 
Stars to fill my dream.
I am a traveller of both time and space, 
To be where I have been.
Sit with elders of a gentle race 
This world has seldom seen,
Talk of days for which they sit and wait, 
All will be revealed.

Talk an' song from tongues of lilting grace, 
Sounds caressed my ears,
And not a word I heard could I relate, 
The story was quite clear.
Whoah-ohh-oh
Whoah-ohh-oh-oh.

Ooh, oh, baby I been blind.
No-yeah.  Ah mama, there ain't no denying.
Oh, oooh yes, I've been blind.
Ma-ma-ma, ain't no denying, no denying, yeah.

Oh!  All I see turns to brown, 
As the sun burns the ground,
And my eye fill with sand, 
As I scan this wasted land.
Tryin'a  find, tryin'a find 
Where I been - ooh-ooh-ooh.

Oh pilot of the storm who leaves no trace, 
Like thoughts inside a dream.
You've the map that led me to that place, 
Yellow desert screen.
My Shangrila beneath the summer moon, 
I will return again.
As the dust that blows high in June 
When moving through Kashmir.

Oh Father of the four winds fill my sails, 
'Cross the sea of years,
With no provision but an open face 
Along the straits of fear.  
Whoa-oh, whoa-oh, whoa-oh, oh, oh.

Oh!  When I'm on, when I'm on my way, yeah!
When I see, when I see the way you stay -yeah!
Ooh yeah-yeah, ooh yeah-yeah.  When I'm down, yes.
Ooh yeah-yeah, ooh yeah-yeah.  When I'm down, so down.
Ooh my baby, ooh my baby let me take you there.
Oh, come on, come on, oh let me take you there
Let me take you there
Ooh yeah yeah, ooh yeah yeah … (fades out)