A chronicle of heavy rock in 11 songs, from AC/DC to Led Zeppelin

More from this Series

• Inspired by a near tragedy, ‘Smoke on the Water’ gave Deep Purple their biggest hit

  Over the years the track has yielded covers ranging from the decent to the inexplicable

  
• Gimme All Your Lovin’ was a perfectly calibrated rock song — and admired and covered by electronic acts

  
• ‘Every Rose Has Its Thorn’ — a break-up led to Poison’s biggest hit

  Written following singer Bret Michaels’ discovery of his girlfriend’s infidelity, the power ballad has had a fruitful afterlife

  
• When the Levee Breaks — Led Zeppelin’s song is powered by John Bonham’s drums

  One of the heaviest — and most heavily sampled — tracks ever recorded, the track had its origins in the American blues

  
• Metallica’s ‘Enter Sandman’ — night terrors made manifest in music

  One of the most famous songs in heavy metal, this dark juggernaut of a song has been covered repeatedly