D'yer Mak'er

"D'yer Mak'er" (/dʒ//ə/'/m//eɪ//k//ə/ "Jamaica") is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, from their 1973 album Houses of the Holy. The title is a play on the words "did you make her?" being pronounced as "Jamaica" when spoken in an English accent. The distinctive drum sound was created by placing three microphones a good distance away from Bonham's drums. This track, as well as another song entitled "The Crunge", was initially not taken seriously by many listeners, and some critics reserved their harshest criticism for these two arrangements. Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones has expressed his distaste for the song, suggesting that it started off as a studio joke and was not thought through carefully enough. He explained that the title is derived from an old joke, where two friends have the following exchange: "My wife's gone to the West Indies." "Jamaica?" (which in an English accent sounds like "Did you make her?") "No, she wanted to go". The title, which does not appear in the lyrics, was chosen because it reflects the reggae feel of the song, and as an example of the Led Zeppelin band members' senses of humour. Because of the unfamiliarity of listeners to this back story, as well as ignoring the apostrophes intentionally placed in the title, American DJs and fans often mispronounce the title as "dire maker".

Cash Box described the song as being "unique for the group, but a real charmer." Record World called it "a rocker with a '50s flavor to it" and said that the "reggae style beat fills the hit prescription." In a contemporary review for Houses of the Holy, Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone gave "D'yer Mak'er" a negative review, calling it a "naked imitation", along with "The Crunge", as well as "easily" one of the worst things the band has ever attempted. Fletcher further wrote the track is a "pathetic stab at reggae that would probably get the Zep laughed off the island if they bothered playing it in Jamaica." It is included on the Radio Caroline "Top 500 Tracks" of 1999 at number 453. In 2019, Rolling Stone ranked the song number 20 on its list of the 40 greatest Led Zeppelin songs.