The song was inspired by Howlin ' Wolf 's " Killing Floor " , which was a song Led Zeppelin briefly incorporated into their live setlist during their first concert tour of the United States . For the second and third North American tours the song evolved into " The Lemon Song " , with Plant often improvising lyrics onstage ( the opening lyrics to both songs are , in fact , identical ) . Other lyrics , notably " squeeze ( my lemon ) till the juice runs down my leg , " can be traced to Robert Johnson 's " Travelling Riverside Blues " . It is likely that Johnson borrowed this himself , from a song recorded earlier in the same year ( 1937 ) called " She Squeezed My Lemon " ( by Arthur McKay ) . The song also references Albert King 's " Cross-Cut Saw "
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Led Zeppelin North American Tour Spring 1969
The Lemon Song