It’s a bit arrogant to compare yourself to Led Zeppelin’s hard rock skill; that honor goes to the most innovative rock and roll bands. Led Zeppelin did “borrow” a lot of ideas from blues artists who are now forgotten. The band acted superior, and any criticism sparked fierce defense from their loyal dad rock fan base. Bauhaus, ahead with goth rock, compared their famous song to a hit by Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin.
Bauhaus got its name from the famous German art school of the same name. It started in Northampton in the late 1970s, which might not seem like a typical place for an art school. David Bowie’s glam rock and T. Rex’s new punk rock style influenced Bauhaus, leading to their initial praise as a post-punk band. As their career went on, the band, led by Peter Murphy’s singing, became known for creating “goth rock.”
It’s hard to avoid Bauhaus and their first song “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” when looking for the roots of goth rock, which has a long and varied history that is also dark and mysterious. People often credit the Bauhaus single as the first goth record ever. It incorporates ideas from the Hungarian-American actor Bela Lugosi, who played Count Dracula in the 1931 movie of the same name. I believe Nico’s 1968 song “Facing the Wind” deserves more recognition as the first goth record.
‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead‘ didn’t do well when it came out in 1979. Even though it was almost ten minutes long and had a theme about a little-known character from the 1930s. Still, it had a big effect on alternative music and goth rock.
What made the song so original was kind of an accident. Drummer Kevin Haskins said, “Now that I think about it, I’m amazed at what we did.” We were four kids who wanted to make something different but didn’t know what we were doing.
Peter Murphy, the singer, went even further, saying, “‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’ is just a truly important song.” In the 1980s, that song achieved a similar level of fame as “Stairway to Heaven.” ‘Stairway to Heaven‘ might be a bit overdone, but calling ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’ the 1980s version of the song is still a huge claim. The release of the album did not occur in the 1980s.
It’s easy to see how the two songs are similar once you get over how crazy Murphy’s claims were. ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’ would be the first dark, gloomy goth rock song. ‘Stairway to Heaven’ would be the first power ballad and rock and roll epic. Both of them are great songs that have had a huge effect on the history of rock music. However, “Stairway to Heaven” has a more famous reputation because it is more popular and Led Zeppelin’s reputation is much bigger than Bauhaus’s.
