According to biographer Keith Shadwick, it is based on an old Irish folk song, "specifically derived from 'She Moved Through the Fair' in the 1963 version by [Davey] Graham, which he in turn credited to Padraic Colum".
Jimmy Page was the only band member to perform on the recording and was accompanied by Chris Karan on tabla[3] and an unidentified oboe player doubling the melody line.
A live performance during the band's U.K. Tour of Summer 1969[7] was recorded by the BBC at the Playhouse Theatre in London on 27 June 1969 for the pilot of Radio One's In Concert series.
This recording was produced by Jeff Griffin and released in 1990 on the Led Zeppelin Boxed Set with the combined title "White Summer/Black Mountain Side".
Page also played it when he was with the Firm and again during his Outrider tour, segueing into "White Summer/Black Mountain Side" as part of the solo section of "Midnight Moonlight".