The song started out as a song about Californian earthquakes and when Jimmy Page , audio engineer Andy Johns and band manager Peter Grant travelled to Los Angeles to mix '' Led Zeppelin IV '' , they coincidentally experienced a minor earthquake . At this point it was known as " Guide to California " . In an interview he gave to '' Spin '' magazine in 2002 , Plant stated that the song " might be a bit embarrassing at times lyrically , but it did sum up a period of my life when I was 22 . " At Led Zeppelin concerts the band performed this song during their acoustic sets , first playing it on their Spring 1971 tour of the United Kingdom . One live version , from Led Zeppelin 's performance at Earls Court in 1975 , is featured on disc 2 of the '' Led Zeppelin DVD '' and again on the '' Mothership '' DVD . The song was also performed at all shows on Led Zeppelin 's mammoth 1977 US tour . It was performed on Plant 's solo tours during 1988/1989 and at the Knebworth Silver Clef show in 1990 . He played it again on his '' Mighty ReArranger '' tour , with additions of a double bass and a synthesizer
Spring 1971 tour of the United Kingdom
Led Zeppelin United Kingdom Tour Spring 1971
Going to California