Led Zeppelin Appreciation Thread

[Sir GuitarCozmo]

Paloma Faith, whoever that is.

[Mladen]

I can't wait to see this on youtube. 

[WebRaider]

Have enjoyed Letterman in the past and I'll always love LZ but I was very disappointed in this interview. I mean I know Letterman isn't exactly the environment for journalistic breakthroughs but when you have those three guys together for any interview you best have your shit together.

The "best" question to me went nowhere fast and that was did Zeppelin and the other bands of that era The Beatles, The Who, etc. etc. know each other, spend time together or did they ever get a chance to work together. Answered by JPJ with "How many no's do you want?". Then they just said they were all too busy or into their own things.

Outside of that the only other thing we got to hear was they met Elvis and he had a lot of chicks. lol

Hope I didn't spoil it for anyone but this interview was quite awkward and really didn't go anywhere near where it could have considering all three of them were there together. Still cool to see the three of them together.

[Orbert]

That's disappointing.  Even though I read twice about how they were going to be on Letterman, I still forgot to record it, and now I don't feel so bad.  I like Led Zeppelin a lot, but I'd rather not even bother with a lame talk show appearance than watch it and be disappointed by how lame it is.

[black_biff_stadler]

Here's the interview for anyone who wants to see it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0hbtVIfMgs

[Mladen]

That was enjoyable, there were a few funny bits in there, which is what I want a talk show interview to be like. JPJ especially surprised him with his jokes, given that he's quite a shy and quiet guy. I fairly like Letterman, but I kinda wish Conan O'Brien had the chance to interview them.

[Orbert]

Okay that was more entertaining than I thought it would be.  Not a waste of time at all.

[TioJorge]

I mainly just wanted to see my name five times in a row on the recent posts but I really love this band and No Quarter is still probably my most beloved piece of music by these guys.

P.S. Fuck the Tool version.

P.P.S. DAMN IT, SOMEONELIKEHIM!!

[black_biff_stadler]

P.S. Fuck the Tool version.

Yeah. Tool/APC are vomitingly horrible at cover songs. All they ever do is take a few ideas from the original and shoehorn it into sounding like any old song by Tool/APC. Imagine was an audio abortion as well. It's weird too because I like Tool a good bit and don't mind APC at all but it almost comes off as a sign of Maynard being so full of himself/his writing that he thought the originals would sound better as Tool/APC songs.

[TioJorge]

Couldn't have said it better. I love Tool myself, but rarely have I enjoyed a cover song of theirs.

[Dream Team]

Led Zep will be featured on The Kennedy Center honors on Dec 26th (was taped earlier this week). A bunch of artists covering their songs, with Ann & Nancy Wilson closing the evening with STH with Jason Bonham on drums  .

[Orbert]

They should've had Ann & Nancy doing one of the more rocking songs.  Heart always did great Led Zeppelin covers.  Their version of "Rock and Roll" smokes.  "Stairway to Heaven" doesn't let loose until the end.  I'm sure they did a great job (we'll see).

[Sir GuitarCozmo]

I saw Heart do "Going to California" live, when they were on tour with Cheap Trick and Journey.  WOW.  So good.

[WebRaider]

Sorry I didn't find the Letterman interview with LZ more interesting like you guys. I never though it was a waste of time, I just expected a lot more considering you have all freaking 3 members on the show at once and very little was covered and the funny bits were just awkward (look at the facial expressions particularly from Page and JPJ). I usually really enjoy Letterman but he didn't really seem to have much prepared to talk to them about because the topics were very random.

Anyway it was cool to see them together on the show and I do recommend people to watch it if they like LZ.

[Jaq]

The release of Celebration Day has re-ignited my love of live Zeppelin. I finally got my hands on some of the 1973 German tour bootlegs, which Zep fans have typically considered to be one of their best runs of shows ever, and my god, they're RIGHT. Page in particular is on fire throughout those dates, probably the last time he had the same fire in his playing as he did in 1969-70, when he was damn near untouchable. I completed my collection of 1975 soundboards at last-I don't know what it is, but I love the 1975 North American tour a lot more than most Zep fans seem to. Except maybe the 40 plus minute  versions of Dazed and Confused that popped up on that tour. Oddly I have zero problem with the 30 minute versions of No Quarter. 

And all this listening to Zep has firmly cemented In My Time Of Dying as my favorite Zep song. Lord that kicks ass up one side and down the other.

[Zydar]

I have to confess my newfound love for this band. Since I grew up on classic rock it's very strange that Led Zeppelin hasn't been a part of my upbringing. Aside from a few tracks on their compilations, they haven't really interested me that much. So I finally decided to check out their discography last week. Wow, they finally clicked for me. And hard. Their music is so varied, and it shows from album to album. The bluesy stuff of their debut, the more rocking 2nd album, the folky acoustic stuff on III etc. It's hard for me to decide on a favourite album yet though, some days it's Physical Graffiti and some days it's III or II. I've always thought that IV was their most classic album, but I would rank it somewhere in the middle right now.

[jingle.boy]

Not a bad album in the bunch. Presence took some time to grow on me, but that too is a good one - an amazingly, the only album to reach Billboard #1 position in the day.

[jjrock88]

It seems like Celebration Day has ignited a lot of people's interest in the band. I was blown away by this release.

[bobs23]

My only complaint about Celebration Day is the mastering on the CD's. For me, it's unlistenable due to the overbearing bass. While the 5.1 mix on the bluray sounds fine. Just need to find the time to be able to re-eq so I can listen on the go.

[WebRaider]

I have to confess my newfound love for this band. Since I grew up on classic rock it's very strange that Led Zeppelin hasn't been a part of my upbringing. Aside from a few tracks on their compilations, they haven't really interested me that much. So I finally decided to check out their discography last week. Wow, they finally clicked for me. And hard. Their music is so varied, and it shows from album to album. The bluesy stuff of their debut, the more rocking 2nd album, the folky acoustic stuff on III etc. It's hard for me to decide on a favourite album yet though, some days it's Physical Graffiti and some days it's III or II. I've always thought that IV was their most classic album, but I would rank it somewhere in the middle right now.

Very glad to hear this Zydar! Awesome to hear you point out right away one of my favorite things about the band. Their varied approach and how they excel at each different aspect always amazed me. They brought so many things to the table and managed to arrange them and perform them superbly. 

[Rattlehead]

Probably my favorite band of all time... don't listen to them nearly as much any more but pretty much every song of theirs makes me feel nostalgic because I was obsessed with them during my classic rock phase in high school, good memories. 

No Quarter has always been a personal favorite 

[jammindude]

I *JUST* picked up Celebration Day yesterday.   I haven't watched the BluRay yet, but I'm really impressed at the performance on CD.   The band was just on fire.    Plant's performance had me a bit  at times.   There were moments when I was like  and then there were other moments when I was all like  .

All in all, I'm really floored...especially since it had been over 25 years since they had played a FULL set together.   And the setlist was *PERFECT*!!!  (well, almost.  I would have traded TSRTS for The Rain Song, or maybe (if you wanted to have all the albums represented) In the Light)

[Orbert]

I think it was Jimmy Page who once said that, even though he loves "In the Light", they could never play it live.  There's just too much going on in the song for them to do justice to it.  And sadly, I think he's right.  It's one of my favorite Led Zeppelin songs, but they would just butcher it live, so it's probably better this way.

[masterthes]

Kind of like The Beatles playing A Day in the Life or Tomorrow Never Knows live

[KevShmev]

I know some people don't like it when newer bands use backing tracks on some songs that have too much going on, making it impossible to do it all live with the guys they have on stage, but it's important to remember that when this was the case back in the day, the songs simply didn't get played, with In the Light being a good example.  Thinking of it that way, backing tracks on occasion don't seem so bad now, do they?

[Orbert]

No, backing tracks in a live setting are still a horrible idea.  There is no requirement to be able to reproduce onstage everything you've created in the studio.  Studio and live are two different media.

A lot of songs can be played live and sound just like they did on the album, or "close enough" because the arrangements allow for that.  That's fine, and I'd guess that it's true for most songs by most bands.  But there are those studio masterpieces where the whole idea was to create something amazing and complex, and being able to perform it in real time was not a consideration.  "In the Light" is such a song.

[Podaar]

I really enjoyed reading this thread.

Led Zeppelin's music has been the sound track of my life. The music was great and their larger-than-life persona was really fun to grow up with. Mid-night showings of 'The Song Remains the Same' while my girlfriend sat transfixed to Robert Plant and rubbed her knees together. Summers playing Frisbee an Hackey-Sack in the park while Houses of the Holy blared from our open car doors. Man, nothing was better. Even today, I can relive the feeling when 'Black Country Woman' starts to play and the temperature outside is above 70 degrees.

Anyway, for all the posters who mention having trouble getting into Led Zeppelin III, I have just the formula. Build a sound proof, ventilated, carpet lined, pot smoking room under the stairs of your parents house. Install a black light. Get toasted with your mates and put on Led III while your Cockatoo dances on top of your bong.

Works every time.

[Mladen]

All in all, I'm really floored...especially since it had been over 25 years since they had played a FULL set together.   And the setlist was *PERFECT*!!!  (well, almost.  I would have traded TSRTS for The Rain Song, or maybe (if you wanted to have all the albums represented) In the Light)

Physical graffiti was represented on that live album with three songs, actually. The only album that wasn't represented is In through the out door, which is one of my favorites.

[jingle.boy]

I really enjoyed reading this thread.

Led Zeppelin's music has been the sound track of my life. The music was great and their larger-than-life persona was really fun to grow up with. Mid-night showings of 'The Song Remains the Same' while my girlfriend sat transfixed to Robert Plant and rubbed her knees together. Summers playing Frisbee an Hackey-Sack in the park while Houses of the Holy blared from our open car doors. Man, nothing was better. Even today, I can relive the feeling when 'Black Country Woman' starts to play and the temperature outside is above 70 degrees.

Anyway, for all the posters who mention having trouble getting into Led Zeppelin III, I have just the formula. Build a sound proof, ventilated, carpet lined, pot smoking room under the stairs of your parents house. Install a black light. Get toasted with your mates and put on Led III while your Cockatoo dances on top of your bong.

Works every time.

And replace Hats off to (Roy) Harper with Hey Hey What Can I Do. 

Seriously, if that was the case, I think this would be my second favorite album of all time.

[jammindude]

All in all, I'm really floored...especially since it had been over 25 years since they had played a FULL set together.   And the setlist was *PERFECT*!!!  (well, almost.  I would have traded TSRTS for The Rain Song, or maybe (if you wanted to have all the albums represented) In the Light)

Physical graffiti was represented on that live album with three songs, actually. The only album that wasn't represented is In through the out door, which is one of my favorites.

Brain farted....I meant In the Evening...

I was just wondering which one would be the best to represent that album.   It's my least favorite, but still good.   At this point, it's really splitting hairs because it's a fantastic setlist.

[DebraKadabra]

Easy - Fool in the Rain.

[Mladen]

Brain farted....I meant In the Evening...

I was just wondering which one would be the best to represent that album.   It's my least favorite, but still good.   At this point, it's really splitting hairs because it's a fantastic setlist.

Oh, OK then. I think In the evening would have been a great choice, since it's the most rockin' one on the album and would most likely fit with the rest of the set.

[Jaq]

If they'd chosen to represent In Through The Out Door, they probably would've played In The Evening. They played it at Knebworth and on the 80 European tour dates, and the only other songs off the album they played, if memory serves, were Hot Dog and All My Love. And since Page reportedly hates All My Love, and Hot Dog is kind of silly, In The Evening would likely have won out. But I had no problem with the 02 set list...well, okay, I've never really been a fan of Black Dog, but I get why they played it. 

[masterthes]

Have they ever done Carouselambra live?

[Jaq]

No. Rumor has it that Page, Jones, and Jason Bonham, when they were playing together just after the O2 show, rehearsed it, but since Plant wasn't interested in touring and nothing else happened, that was it. I believe they might have rehearsed in back in the old days as well, but it was never played live back then either.