My love is exceedingly human,

This song is great. It’s wonderful. It stands on its own. Robert Plant may have been a bit strident with his “Led what?” bullshit of his early solo career, but that’s because he had an honest solo career for years before he gave in and starting squeezing lemons again (lighten up, baby. I’m in love with you) and growing out the old mane.

Not much of Plant’s 80′s stuff has aged well, but that’s the fault of the times, really. Not much from the 80′s sounds good today. Try listening to the Eurythmics on headphones. Go ahead. Pretty awful, right? Sounds like a goddamn singing Hallmark card. Yep.

Not so with Big Log. The melancholy guitar and excellent lyrics win out over the synth and the drum machine. Give it a listen. It’s a great fucking song, and the video is the coolest thing ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZQL22xOmUM

This is hailed as Led Zep's Best Concert Ever

The Legendary Bath Festival

6/28/70 Led Zeppelin’s “Best” Performance

Anyone who ever went through any sort of Led Zeppelin phase, is familiar with the pictures of Jimmy Page wearing an overcoat and a “yokel” hat onstage.  The Bath Festival has been held in quite reverence ever since they got offstage, back in 1970.  The sun went down behind them, as they took the stage, and tens of thousands of stoners went,”whoa……..”.

Although the show was professionally filmed, and taped, it hasn’t seen the light of day. If memory serves, Jimmy Page looked into purchasing this footage, for the Led Zeppelin DVD release, but the price was too high. There are only a couple of bootlegs of this show, and they all sound like shit. The one used in the video (which as synced by ssellers, who is amazing) below is a newly found source. It’s much less distorted than other sources, and one can now hear the show (although the quality is still pretty rough).

Anyway, I’m rambling. At this show, Led Zeppelin debuted songs from the as yet unreleased Led Zeppelin 3 album. It’s cool. A good rule of thumb is that if Jimmy Page is wearing a sweater vest, or a fishing hat onstage, then it’s going to be a great show. It wasn’t until he started being “cool” that his chops suffered (prolly from all them drugs what he took). Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xh4FfeXqvTQ

He got the mojo all the way back

His Best Playing Since 1973

So Of Course Robert Quits

1998 was a banner year for Jimmy Page.  He was again touring with Led Zeppelin chum, Robert Plant, and his guitar playing was crazy good. The Bizarre Festival was held in Germany, in August, and Page / Plant were there. And they killed it. As Robert says, in his introduction to How Many More Times, the rain and wind had turned the outdoor space into a “miserable, wet, field”, but it mattered not. For Page and Plant kicked the shit out of those Germans.

Awhile back I posted their insanely awesome performance of Babe I’m Gonna Leave You, because I’m cool, and you need things like this to remind you of the Matrix, and the dreariness therein. Even though the rhythm section is no Jones/Bonham (even though the bassist is also named Jones), Jimmy uses them for all they’re worth.  He started at great on this tour, and only got better. There are still four more months of shows after this one, and by the time we get to December of 1998, Jimmy sounds like 1972 again… just on fire.  He is once again full master of the instrument, and the inspiration flows. Enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDcSYjGK8W4

Mission Accomplished

6/21/2011

Winnipeg Jazz Fest

Here’s another video I owe to FBO. Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin) has chosen Nashville over Vegas for this rendition of Charlie Rich’s Life Has It’s Little Ups And Downs. It’s beautiful. Patti Griffin and Buddy Miller really add depth, and soul to the Band of Joy.

My dear friend, who owns Television Sux, has gained a new appreciation of latter day Robert Plant. He’s watched a couple of  Strange Sensations, and Band of Joy shows on Palladia, and his enthusiasm cause me to take another look. I am not a big fan of 21st Century Robert Plant. Not because I think he isn’t good, in fact his voice is better, and more controlled than in decades. The discipline of working with Alison Kraus did wonders. Look at this gorgeous version of In The Mood. It just isn’t the music that elevates my soul.

However, this song caught me.  Kudos to the man who can reinvent himself almost as often, and as well, as Bob Dylan. Robert Plant and the Band Of Joy are the Coolest Thing Ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFsm6E9X89A

This Show Is Truly Excellent. Listen While You Work

Hello there, hominids. Yesterday in one of my Led Zeppelin forums, someone posted a link to an entire Led Zeppelin (audio) concert, on YouTube. The show is 8/31/71, Orlando, FL. It’s an excellent soundboard recording, that also captures the energy of the crowd. Jimmy Page (pbuh) is at top form, Robert Plant is still wailing, and the performance is stellar.

You can listen to the whole thing (which was released as a high-res DVD-A bootleg) on YouTube ( Listen in headphones while you work). This is thanks to YouTube user Conneyfogle. He has tons of complete shows. Take a look.

You can also download this show from NickZepp’s (so awesome it renders me obsolete) Zeppelin Bootleg Blog.  You can get the show in mp3 or lossless FLAC (that’s the way to go to preserve the HQ DVD-Audio). Life is good. Love is sweet. Led Zeppelin is awesome, and Jimmy Page hasn’t done shit in ten years. # out of 4 is still passing. Enjoy! It’s the Coolest Show Ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SU0hkLRxJXc

Hallelujah, Youdopia! I just heard, through the grapevine, that Led Zeppelin is going to release their super awesome 2007 reunion concert, on Blu-Ray. I am not terribly surprised, as any of the ten trillion fan dvds show hd pro cameras all over the place. I’m proud of the boys for only fucking around for three years on this, rather than 30 (like the Zeppelin DVD, or How the West Was Won).

After the show, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and Jason Bonham rehearsed and wrote new music, with which to tour. They tried out new singers, ridiculous ones (Steven Tyler, Myles Kennedy) because Robert wasn’t interested (good for him, but fuck him anyway).   The actual reunion show was brilliant. It worked on all levels.  Soon I can hang up my myriad fan-made dvds and own the real thing. Then I will bitch about all the things left out, overdubs made, etc.  All fans have an inner comic book guy.

Here is one of the highlights from the reunion, what may very well be the definitive version of Kashmir. Listen to Robert’s wail. There’s still juice in those lemons. Eww. Sorry. It’s still the Coolest Thing Ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huifS_z_lGQ

This is a treat, Youdopia! A lovely person posted this complete, one hour, documentary about Robert Plant, “My Time”. It’s amazingly rich and well made. It’s not just Led Zeppelin, but all about Robert’s solo work as well. Robert is intimately involved, as there are tons of fresh interviews, as well as a ton of rare footage in this.

The insights about the end of Zep, and the tragic death of Robert’s son are really interesting. It’s the Coolest Thing Ever. There’s a lot of good music.

Unless your IP address originates from the UK (hint hint), you cannot watch this embedded vid. Instead, watch these:

Robert Plant onYou Tube- By Myself
Part 1  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWQk0XHvFW4
Part 2  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiDh7kkY6v8
part 3   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3390NncF11c
part 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jArRxtvI7bc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxqi2oVv8p8

Page and Plant were amazing in 1998. Jimmy Page was playing with virtuosity and fire, and the band was tighter than I’ve ever heard. So, of course Robert Plant bails and leaves. In December of 1998 P/P performed in Paris for an Amnesty International benefit, and their performance was amazing. I love Babe I’m Gonna Leave You from this tour (here’s another one), because it’s one of the songs that is actually better played live by Page and Plant, than by Led Zeppelin. The reason is mainly because Zep didn’t really play it much, only in 1969 I believe. There’s a nice discussion about it here, if you’d care to read/participate.

Nonetheless Jimmy Page always played an amazing solo with Page/Plant, and this version is no different. What I love about this one are the little thing. The pinky flourishes, the sustained notes. Moving from minor to mode, and swtich pickups on the fly. It’s great music, and the Coolest Shit Ever.

Happy Free Download Friday! Sorry I’m late, Youdopia.

Today’s show is an amazing, fantastic, perfect show by Page/Plant from their excellent 1996 tour of Japan. All of the shows on this tour are spectacular, and well worth owning.  Jimmy Page and Robert Plant allowed soundboard recordings, and top notch amateur videos to be recorded, so this tour is well documented. The exchange was that Third Eye (the recorder) had to share his footage with the band.  You can find Third Eye DVDs by googling, and you will not be disappointed.

This is 2/15/96 in Osaka, and it’s noteworthy for three reasons.

1. This is the first, and only time Page/Plant played Ten Years Gone. It’s the first time since 8/4/79.
2. They played Tea For One on this tour, for the first time as well. It’s beautiful and lush with the orchestra behind them.
3. They played Wonderful One, another rarity that is truly beautiful

Ok. This recording sounds professional, it’s that good. It’s a matrix of the insane soundboard, and an equally insanely good audience tape. The stereo separation sounds multitrack, and the show itself is amazing. Jimmy is on fire this tour, and I mean it’s Jimmy Page on fire, like days of old, but with a maturity and a depth to his playing that is heartwrenching at times. His soloing on Babe I’m Gonna Leave You is sublime.

I would rather listen to this show, or almost any show from this tour, than listen to almost any Led Zeppelin show from 1975 to 1977.  And this isn’t even my favorite show from this tour. Get it. Enjoy the music.

The set list is after the pagebreak.

Disc One: http://www.mediafire.com/?4rz6mnbzw316ic6

Disc Two: http://www.mediafire.com/?nklivw1nm2caa61

1. Egyptian Intro
2. Custard Pie
3. Bring It On Home
4. Heartbreaker
5. What Is And What Should Never Be
6. Hurdy Gurdy Solo (that’s right)
7. Gallows Pole
8. Wonderful One
9. Going To California
10. Ten Years Gone
11. Babe I’m Gonna Leave You
12. Whole Lotta Love
13. Tea For One
14. Friends
15. Yallah
16. Four Sticks
17. Kashmir (may be some digital noise. My bad)
18. Black Dog
19. Rock And Roll

Ripped by EAC to LAME mp3 320k

Thirty one years, Youdopia. On August 11, 1979 Led Zeppelin played their last concert in England. Well, they reunited with Jason Bonham in 2007, but you know what I mean. This show, which is available in its entirety below, is the second Knebworth gig. The first was one week earlier on 8/4/79.  The first night was much better. Jimmy Page is in rough shape tonight. I don’t believe anything from this show was used in the official Led Zeppelin DVD. I think everything came from the first gig.

That said, there are precious few complete Led Zeppelin concerts you can watch in their entirety (this show is from a Russian tube site) so beggars can’t be choosers. There are some good things in this show, such as a very cool version of No Quarter. We also get to see Jimmy play a Gibson Explorer after he breaks a string on Over the Hills And Far Away (that’s what happens. You’ll know it when you hear it).

200,000 people watched this show, and 200,000 watched the one on 8/4. It was supposed to be Led Zep’s triumphant return, after taking two years off for the death of Robert Plant’s son. Unfortunately, it was their Swan Song (I know).

If you want to hear a killer show from just a couple weeks before this one, download the Copenhagen show I posted last week. If you want to see this show, but in awesome quality, with a much tighter Jimmy Page, watch the second half of Disc 2 of the Zep DVD.

Led Zeppelin – Knebworth Festival Stevenage,1979(1)
This is the second half of the concert.

Led Zeppelin – Knebworth Festival Stevenage,1979(2)