Sexual Innuendo Dropped From Led Zeppelin Song at Olympic Closing Ceremony

The Beijing Games concluded with the closing ceremony today, and the Summer Olympic torch was passed off to London. A performance by Jimmy Page of the British band Led Zeppelin was part of that hand-off from Beijing to London, but it turns out that some folks think Zeppelin lyrics aren't appropriate for all ears.

Page and Leona Lewis performed a version of the Zeppelin classic "Whole Lotta Love" that had some of the lyrics changed and others excised so as not to offend. Lewis didn't want to sing the line, "I'm gonna give you every inch of my love" in the second verse, because she said she didn't think that particular "sexual innuendo" made sense from a female singer. So "inch" was changed to "bit."

And the third verse, which includes the line, "Shake for me, girl, I wanna be your backdoor man" was deemed inappropriate and was cut from the ceremony.

My question: If the song was considered inappropriate, why didn't they just pick another song, instead of saddling the closing ceremony with a bastardized version?

Controversies at Beijing Games

The Beijing Games' closing ceremony includes a performance of the classic Led Zeppelin song "Whole Lotta Love" by Jimmy Page and singer Leona Lewis. But the song wasn't quite the same because some of the "sexual innuendo" was pulled from the lyrics.

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Ukrainian heptathlete Lyudmila Blonska was stripped of her Olympic silver medal after a positive doping test. Blonska, who is facing lifetime banishment from the Olympics, already served a three-year suspension for doping from 2003-05.

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Sweden's Ara Abrahamian was stripped of his bronze medal and booted from the Beijing Olympics after he protested the result of a disputed Greco-Roman wrestling match. Abrahamian berated officials and dropped his bronze on the ground during the medal ceremony because of a controversial penalty call in his match against eventual gold medalist Andrea Minguzzi of Italy.

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Spain's men's basketball team caused a stir when a photograph of the team using their index fingers to slant their eyes surfaced in a publication in their native country. While some have denounced the photo as racist, several Spanish players have said it has been misinterpreted.

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The Chinese women's gymnastics team took home gold, but questions remain about the age of team members. According to Olympic regulations, gymnasts must turn 16 during the year of the Games to be eligible to compete. Though all of the team members are of age on their passports, local reports have speculated that several of the members are underage.

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Michael Phelps' record-tying seventh gold medal of the Games didn't come without controversy. Phelps, top, edged Serbian Milorad Cavic by 1/100th of second in 100-meter butterfly, but it was impossible to distinguish who won the race on TV replays. Cavic protested the result, but was overruled by FINA, swimming's international governing body.

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Even the Opening Ceremonies had their fair share of controversy. Following reports that some of the fireworks during the ceremony were digitally enhanced, it was revealed that 9-year-old Lin Miaoke, pictured, lip-synced "Ode to the Motherland" in place of 7-year-old Yang Peiyi, who was deemed not good-looking enough by Chinese officials.

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Concerned about pollution in Beijing, members of the U.S. cycling team arrived in the host city wearing masks that covered the mouth and nose. They later sent a written apology to the organizing committee.

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Olympic speed skating gold medalist Joey Cheek was at the center of controversy when China pulled his visa right before the Beijing Games. Cheek, the founder of Team Darfur, a philanthropic group devoted to raising awareness about the crisis there, has been critical of the host country's support of Sudan's ruling regime.

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Vietnamese gymnast Thi Ngan Thuong was also expelled from the Games after she tested positive for a banned substance.

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