LED ZEPPELIN - KASHMIR

"Oh let the sun beat down upon my face"

The Pride of Led Zeppelin. That's how Robert once described Kashmir. It is indeed one of the landmark achievements, and an absolute favourite of many including all four members of Led Zeppelin. The ultimate widescreen epic that clocks in at 8.37 yet has absolutely no fat on the bone whatsoever.

Since his youth Jimmy has been a musical conduit, open to all that excited and fascinated, unhindered by labels and fads and what was 'hip' at the time. From the time he first began session work he was always exploring. Using a variety of tunings from open blues tunings for slide work to nodal tunings such as the DADGAD 'drone' tuning also referred to as Dsus4. He was one of the first guitarists in England to import and play a Sitar, exploring alternative tones and Worldwide influences along the way. Years later Jimmy would refer to it as his 'CIA' influences - Celtic, Indian, Arabic. 

Jimmy played Sitar on Chris Farlowe sessions, added bowed guitar to Brian Jones 'A Degree of Murder' soundtrack, played his pear-shaped Vox 12 string to underpin and hold together 'Becks Bolero', he wielded the bow with the Yardbirds. He created a storm on The Mickey Finn's 'Garden Of My Mind'. Always exploring. Texture, mood, dissonance. Nothing was beyond possible.

On April 28th 1967 The Yardbirds were recording the Little Games album in De Lane Lea Studios, London with Mickie Most impatiently producing. Jimmy laid down an instrumental on acoustic called 'White Summer', with tabla drums and oboe added over the next 2 days. It was in that nodal DADGAD tuning. A hypnotic interlude, it's a derivation of centuries old Folk themes including 'She Moved Through The Fair' which was a standard among Folk guitarists from Davy Graham to Padraic Colum. A bare guitar only outtake from the sessions shows the hypnotic quality, the returning of themes with a twist each time. Building with recognition not repetition. This musical idiom was to become very important and relevant to Jimmy Page.

Led Zeppelin's debut included Black Mountainside, again featuring both the DADGAD tuning and tabla drums. Live, it would spring to life amid White Summer as Jimmy's first onstage showcase, bow episodes not withstanding. Obviously a tuning Jimmy was exploring both on and offstage, by the 5th North American Tour he was adding clues to future songs and ideas. A slower, haunting passage quoting Bron-Yr-Aur crops up a handful of times, and on April 17th in Memphis there's the first aural evidence of (just one!) descending scale of Kashmir.

After the tour Jimmy would perform his showcase acoustically on the Julie Felix Show on BBC TV on April 26th. Although dropped from the Zeppelin set by then, on the next US Tour Jimmy would playfully insert White Summer licks into the post bow section of Dazed And Confused. 

By 1972 Led Zeppelin had created an incredibly wide musical palette, and the Bombay sessions beautifully underline their constant search for new moods, textures and dissonance. Exactly a year later they reconvened at Headley Grange to begin work on their 6th studio album. Only a few ideas were explored before the sessions were put on hold while Jonesy took some time to decide his future, but one of them was that hypnotic descending scale we'd heard back in Memphis 3 and a half years earlier and had obviously been explored and expanded over the intervening years.

At first it was just Jimmy and Bonzo, in the stairwell at Headley Grange where the explosive When The Levee Breaks came to life. they obsessively played the riff and bridge over and over, achieving a monumental groove and mood. Already they knew. Already Jimmy had the arrangement, the orchestration, the grandeur in his mind. They recorded a take and began to work on it. Robert had the task of adding to it all lyrically, and he's talked often of the challenge and wanting to create images of the drive from Goulimine to Tantan in the South Sahara Desert.

Apart from pinpoint bass work, Jonesy added mellotron to widen things even more. Jimmy used one of his Danelectro Guitars to provide a chiming yet insistent and dissonant edge, even overdubbing electric 12 string to the descending riffs as the song grew and grew. The decision was made to bring in session musicians to add orchestration and also brass parts, mixing with the mellotron to complete the aural landscape. And to add that touch  of mystery and space Bonzo's drums were fed through an Eventide Phaser.

All this was done before Led Zeppelin paused the LP sessions, the companion disc titled 'Driving Through Kashmir' (various bootlegs of the instrumental outtake call it Driving TO) 'Rough Orchestra Mix' is dated October 25th 1973. The remarkable 5 track studio sessions that surfaced in the mid 1990's includes a long guitar/bass/drum run through without orchestration. In the pauses you can just about hear Robert's vocals leaking through!

Sequenced to end side 2 of the double LP set, it became an instant favourite. Everyone excels, no one takes over and because of that it has a perfect balance and is certainly a moment of high drama. And, as with Stairway, it needed an arrangement to be performed live. Kashmir slotted into a set full of longer numbers than ever before. From the warm up in Brussels on January 12th through to the final Earls' Court show on May 25th it sat 7th song in, rounding off the first hour.

The live arrangement was tricky at first. In 1975 Jimmy played it on one of his Les Paul guitars and Jonesy had to ride the tricky Mellotron journey. Bonzo became an immediate star live, adding increasingly thunderous and powerful fills to the extended coda. the early live versions suffered initially from Robert's flu ridden voice, and the fact the LP wasn't out and it became the 3rd new song audiences would hear every night - apart from the Brussels and first Chicago shows where In My Time Of Dying was replaced with When The Levee Breaks. 

For the first part of the tour some nights the mellotron was out of tune and Robert was hoarse, others it knitted together and was fantastic. It was also played at a faster martial tempo than the studio version and indeed later live arrangements. The subsonic heavy PA systems didn't help either, but as the band performances grew in confidence and quality Kashmir grew and grew. 

In 1977 Kashmir became the show stopping centrepiece of the set. Perfectly placed to take the show onto a new level, Jimmy revived his White Summer/Black Mountain Side showcase, teasing the audience and adding drama and anticipation coming after the long acoustic set. The moment Kashmir kicks in is indeed one of high drama. The arrangement this time is more confident and expansive, Jonesy's mellotron less troublesome and Jimmy now using the Danelectro holding the riff and mood together, almost conducting the piece. Bonzo once again shines and Robert's vocals are immense, augmented with echo and harmonizer to great effect. 

This arrangement would stay for the final tours, Jonesy's new keyboard set up enhancing the huge sound the 4 of them managed to always conjure with consummate ease. Bonzo sounded better than ever in Kashmir now, free from the energy sapping burden of his solo. Listening to or watching any live version, it truly IS the Pride of Led Zeppelin. 

Of course, some nights it almost fell apart. The For Badgeholders Only LA 23rd June show and Zurich 29th June 1980 gig are two such examples. But, as I've said many times, there's still magic in the air.

Aside from the myriad of bootleg versions on audio, we have the basic pre-orchestra and vocal demo. And the 1980 Tour Rehearsal from the Victoria Apollo. Aside from the two studio versions on the deluxe edition of Physical Graffiti, there are no released audio versions of Kashmir. The O2 show is the closest. On film we have some cine clips from 1975 - Dallas March 4th and the 3 LA March 24/25/27 shows plus the final two Earls' Court shows pro shot.

In 1977 there are cine clips from Chicago April 10th, Birmingham May 18th, LSU May 19th, Maryland May 30th, Madison Square June 11th, LA June 26th & 27th plus the pro shot Seattle show on July 17th. From then on we have both Knebworth shows pro shot (the first night features on 'DVD') plus some cine film too. The 1980 shows where it's captured are Cologne, Rotterdam and Munich.

Of course it opened the set at the Atlantic Records 40th Anniversary show, but that's hampered by a mixture of no keyboards coming through the PA, some missed and repeated lyrics and Robert's shirt...

After Led Zeppelin Jimmy teased a few riffs during his Danelectro solo in Midnight Moonlight with the Firm and on the Outrider tour. The low point came with some Coverdale/Page versions that shows at the very least there is only one Robert Plant! The ultimate versions by way of both a tribute and culmination of Jimmy and Robert's fusion dreams came with the Unledded Project. I was lucky enough to be at both recordings at LWT Studios and they were indeed magical. The second night - the performance featured on the resultant LP and DVD - was particularly stunning, one I'll never forget. 

Opening up the song with lighter floating instrumental passages for the Moroccan musicians to shine and add even more drama was a touch of genius, making the return to the main themes even more overwhelming. From that point on it became the obvious highlight of the Unledded World Tour. And of course, we have the final version from the O2 which exceeds just about any expectation  any of us could have. Jason gave the ultimate tribute to his dad with a sterling, emotive performance right down to the final gong crash as Kashmir once again took us there.

In February 1975 Jimmy was interviewed with William Burroughs for Crawdaddy magazine, during which they spoke about the Zeppelin New York show Burroughs witnessed from the middle of the front block. They spoke of Moroccan Tribes using repetitive riffs and drums to not only frighten their enemies but to induce a trance like state and move to a higher level of consciousness. Burroughs said he recognized the repetition and power in Led Zeppelin's  music and the higher state the audience 'as one' were elevated to. 

Along with the obsessive riffing and percussion on In My Time Of Dying, Kashmir represents that hypnotic glory, the pinnacle of power and celebration where all the elements and parts came together to create one irresistible, relentless whole. It not only transcends Led Zeppelin's music but popular music as a whole to become something unique and magnificent. Timeless and without peer.  

LED ZEPPELIN - SINCE I'VE BEEN LOVING YOU

"I've been working from seven, baby - to eleven every night"

Led Zeppelin's 4th North American Tour concluded after 3 shows at San Francisco's Winterland ballroom on November 6th to 8th 1969. They knew that things were on the rise and had momentum. There was no chance to let up, to relax. A January UK Tour was already on the horizon, with further dates across Europe before the return to their own land of milk and honey in March.

Their own internal musical evolution had been swift and startling, managing to offer complete focus on both their wild and improvisational live performances and powerful, studios recorded work. II had managed to both add a heavier crunch to their sound and material in between more visceral and widescreen aural arrangements on What Is And What Should Never Be and Ramble On. 

Aside from the lift off boogie of Bring It On Home and the sexually charged groinal grind of The Lemon Song, there was little in the way of open, sweet blues on II. The live set included their Lemon Song pastiche at the end of the usually frantic How Many More Times medley, but the weight of blues in the set usually fell on their Willie Dixon cover I Can't Quit You Baby. It was played after the opening bluster, and remained their and in the set through to early 1970 where it survived the European dates and even the opening North American shows in Vancouver and Denver (possibly Seattle, Portland and Salt Lake City too) but was gone when Zeppelin hit the LA Forum. 

So they needed their own blues, something distinct and as original as a real blues song could be. Probably conceived and rehearsed in November and December, Since I've Been Loving You was unveiled on the January 1970 UK Tour. Bristol on January 8th is the first recorded version we have, although it was almost certainly played the previous night at the Birmingham Town Hall, the opening show of the tour. 

A lovely, gentle blues in C, it featured Jonesy on Hammond organ and the next step of the Page-Plant call and response passion play that would evolve so much over the years. Behind it all Bonzo stood true and firm, adding a deft and incredibly potent structure with a perfect mixture of light snare riffs and that insistent and more than occasionally squeaky depth charge bass drum.  

The Bristol performance is really a tentative framework with working lyrics and riffs, a newborn taking those first steps and learning those first words. Sadly absent from the recordings of the next much celebrated show at the Royal Albert Hall, we have 14 more live recordings before Led Zeppelin laid down the definitive studio take. You can hear the song evolve in that time, and by the time it was placed half a dozen songs into the set during the 5th North American Tour it was dramatic and becoming a highpoint. 

The wonderful 'first recording' on June 5th in Olympic No.1 may be very different from the take on III, but the version we all now and love is certainly the definitive one. Taking the live dynamics of I Can't Quit You Baby alongside one off live performances like Buddy Guy's Sitting And Thinking (Fillmore West 27-4-69), the addition of John Paul Jones on Hammond Organ and bass pedals is a revelation. 

The fact Jonesy gets a songwriting credit is testament to his input and influence here. We also have a couple of remarkable bootleg anomalies. The released version with a much rawer vocal eq and a few extra ad lib screams behind Jimmy's iconic solo that were edited from the final mix, and an isolated vocal only track of the first half of the song.

The two live versions we have immediately after the studio session - Bath June 28th and especially Berlin July 19th - are the most similar to that take, and from then on it became a pivotal part of the set, evolving and growing night after night. Already considered a live showcase, it was placed after the restful acoustic set for the 6th North American Tour. 

From the spring of 1971 it had obviously become more dramatic as the sound of the band grew, and from Belfast on March 5th right up until the Tuscon show on June 28th 1972 it remained in the opening part of the show. There are so many fantastic versions from this time, not least because Robert is in his highest and most dramatic voice, duelling against Jimmy's ever changing and chameleon like guitar licks and phrases. The famous bootlegs and official releases - BBC, Berkeley 14-9-71, How The West Was Won - are all stunning and unique, and how about Montreux 7-8-71, Orlando 31-8-71, Tokyo 24-9-71, Brisbane 29-2-72 or the two Nassau shows? All different, all unique, all Led Zeppelin.

In Japan Misty Mountain Hop was added to the show, and linked with SIBLY by way of a frenetic, breathless guitar interlude, the one we all know and love from the movie. By now Jonesy was using electric piano to add a more open sound, lighter and more tactile than the sometimes dated hammond organ undercurrent. This back to back segue remained a highlight of the set right up until the end of the '73 shows, becoming a highly dramatic set highpoint featuring Robert's best Janis Joplin pleading against Jimmy's ridiculously frenetic and charged guitar blasts and nuances. The final tour version from July 29th is the pinnacle of this arrangement and intent, and even the edited and tweaked movie/soundtrack version is one of the finest Led Zeppelin moments to these ears, let alone the drama of the visuals in the movie!

In 1975 the aural landscape had changed for Zeppelin, and a more muscular driving approach was preferred. But every now and again,  when the swagger and belief returned to the set (and band) it made 3 sudden appearances. Nassau on St Valentine's Day was the first (recorded) performance of the tour, then the Seattle 21-3 and final LA marathon. 1977 saw a dramatic return, and a full night after night recall. By now a drama of almost Shakesperean proportions, Jimmy's less fluent playing gave it a more open feel, the call and response now so dramatic and unique each line became a drama in itself. Jonesy and Bonzo punctuated and juxtaposed mood and intensity at will. Proof positive of the unique animal Led Zeppelin had become, total empathy and an 'esp' level of musical connection and understanding.

For the final Led Zeppelin shows in 1979 and 1980 SIBLY had muh more relaxed and almost serene feel. The call and response was by now three and even four way, an extension of the perfect harmony that had instrumentally blossomed in No Quarter (and obviously before then in Dazed And Confused) onstage. 

Jimmy's solo was extended to double length too, with a hushed Tea For One segment adding to the pathos and drama before Bonzo brought it all back up for the finale. Sometimes it felt they were playing a stadium, others a sleazy bar or a Jazz club. No matter. The evolution of such a song, such an arrangement, is pure Led Zeppelin. Those last versions have a sad melancholic feel, sometimes tired too. 

Post Zeppelin Robert would throw lines in during the 83/4 Tour, but no former Zep member would attempt it until the Unledded reunion. Then, with a great Ed Shearer string arrangement that owed a lot to Jonesy's various embellishments and crescendo's, the Unledded Tour brought it back. One of the highlights of the sessions for me, with a different feel again. More reflective, less histrionic.

A beautiful song, a pretty blues as I've heard it described. One of the many paths and avenues explored to great effect by Led Zeppelin, and certainly a cornerstone of their greatness. 

Obviously never a single, it does appear on a Brasilian EP included with the magazine 'Rock Espetacular'...

LED ZEPPELIN - BLACK COUNTRY WOMAN

'But that's alright, I know your sister too'

Home from Australia, the final leg of their first true 'World Tour', Led Zeppelin reflected on their achievements and used the experiences for inspiration for their next recordings.

No Quarter (original tentative arrangements had been run through during the solstical sessions for 'Untitled' at Headley Grange in late 1970) was the one new track laid down the previous December, the day after their astonishing Starkers Ballroom Bournemouth show to be exact.

Come April, several tracks were recorded at Olympic Studios No.1  (No Quarter also stands out as being the only 'Houses Of The Holy' track laid down at Island Studios). Apart from the 8 songs to be released on 'Houses Of The Holy', the incredibly fruitful sessions yielded at least 4 more songs.

In May, after these formal recordings the band esconsed themselves at Stargroves, a manor house situated in East Woodhay, Hampshire, owned by one Mick Jagger at the time. There they continued to work using the Rolling Stones Mobile recording truck.

In this relaxed atmosphere, the supremely confident Led Zeppelin sat in the garden and recorded 'Black Country Woman'. A laidback country blues, Robert dusted down his harmonica and weaved his tale of the never ending, doubting, nagging Black Country woman while the rest of the band swung simply and convincingly behind. Bonzo in particular laid down an irresistible groove, most likely from inside Stargroves with the mics fed in from the mobile truck.  

The start is notable for the aircraft flying overhead and Eddie Kramer's 'Shall we roll in Jimmy?' question to which Robert interjected 'Nah, leave it on'. At the coda Robert adds the (sadly edited) refrain 'never ending, nagging, doubting woman blues'. Simple yet fantastic blues. From the deep south via West Bromwich and Stargroves.

Never a set staple, it did make a shock, unique appearance at the chaotically brilliant Seattle Coliseum second night on June 19th. After that, although it's possible to have been played another night on the 8th US Tour, it was not seen again until the resurrected acoustic set in 1977 on the Magick trek.

This time it was a short edited version, used as a prelude to acoustic set closer Bron-y-Aur Stomp. It did give Robert the chance to wheelout his best Ral Donner impersonation, often teasing the crowd with hints of Dancing Days, Surrender, Cincinnati Fireball, Rawhide, That's Alright Mama, Goin' Down South and Mystery Train. Amazing how relaxed they were amid 20,000+ and some firecrackers!

Performed at every complete show on the tour, 33 versions (at least) survive on bootleg. Plus we have the pro-shot Seattle Kingdome footage from July 17th, giving us the chance to see Jonesy and his upright bass.

It was never performed live again. Post-Zeppelin, Robert dusted it down during his Now & Zen renaissance, and it stayed a part of his live set until the Unledded reunion with Jimmy. Robert also continued to perform it with Alison Krauss and his various other projects too.

Not a single it was however the b-side to the lead single from Physical Graffiti, 'Trampled Underfoot' and as such there are affair few 7" variations, including the (at least) 5 differing pressings of the limited UK single from the DC1 'standard' single - there are 3 variations of that to the very rare (discovered in the 90's) SSK 19403 pressing where (so far) there are at least 2 variations.

LED ZEPPELIN - BLACK DOG

 "Watch your honey drip, can't keep away"

John Paul Jones has always been the quiet one, the studious one. Never one to push himself into the spotlight, he did however have a knack of producing great riffs and ideas. From 'Good Times, Bad Times', to his sterling keyboard work on 'Your Time Is Gonna Come' and 'Baby Come On Home', his brilliantly lyrical (but uncredited) bass licks on 'Ramble On', through the 'III' sessions with 'Celebration Day', 'Since I've Been Loving You' and more. And that pales to his pivotal and unsurpassed onstage musicality.

When the band reconvened at Headley Grange he had ideas. The (too) fast embryonic motif of  'No Quarter' aside, 'twas the riff of  'Black Dog' that stood out. Long, rambling, cutting through time signatures as it ploughed on through. Jonesy recalled listening to Muddy Waters' 'Electric Mud' experimental blues/psychedelic fusion elpee from 1968 as an inspiration. He wanted to do a blues with an impossible riff that turned back on itself. He recalled 'playing a riff so impossible we got to the end and fell about laughing for ten minutes then recorded it'.

The remarkable Headley Grange rehearsal tapes we can now date from November 1970 reveal a relaxed but intense Led Zeppelin learning Jonesy's fantastic riff as they try 3 takes to get locked in. There's some chatter as they get to grips with it and within minutes Bonzo has it down. No wonder Jonesy described playing with Bonzo as 'a dream'. 3 takes and John not only has it but effortlessly elevates it to another level with that ridiculously powerful syncopation.  

Robert adds some tentative guide vocals and with extra count-ins from Bonzo to keep the whole thing afloat, it's more than half way there. It was laid down in Island Studios 2 on December 5th 1970 and the companion disc work in progress mix gives us a fascinating insight to how Jimmy was building the song, layer by layer. 

Opening 'Untitled', 'Black Dog' begins with some handling noise, a scrape of strings. As Jimmy would opine 'the Guitar Army. Wakey wakey, rise and shine!' Call and response in structure, vocals then band, it's a half bred cousin to Fleetwood Mac's 'Oh Well' but lifts way beyond that with the larger than life 5/4 riff that kicks in after 3 vocal lines, twisting and turning while Bonzo powers a 4/4 beat and they all meet together, perfectly, at the end.

With the 'ah oh ah ah, ah oh ah ah' motif before another riff variation it cements its' own power, and for the second half of the song the guitar army adds wave upon wave of harmony guitar building the power and tension all the while. At the coda, Jimmy's solo (not to mention the perfect tight but loose fluidity of the Jones-Bonham groove growling underneath) is startling. Edgy yet melodic, dissonant yet perfectly tuneful and harmonic, it weaves across and above the strutting undercurrent while Robert struts his stuff and they head off into the sunset. Genius.

Auditioned at rehearsal for the 'Back To The Clubs' tour, 'Black Dog' was an obvious live number. Premiered at Belfast Ulster Hall on Match 5th 1971, it came in at 4th in the set. It stayed there, occasionally swapping places with 'Dazed And Confused' until the late 1971 British Tour where it was pushed up to 3rd, more heavy metal adrenalin to follow the 'Immigrant Song'/'Heartbreaker' double shot openers.

Again, when 'Rock And Roll' took over as opener for the second Japanese Tour it followed, pushing the opening salvo crunch. By the time the UK tour was underway 'Over The Hills And Far Away' was slipped in between to give a bit of restbite and colour. By the 9th US Tour it was the final part of the 3 song power start, using a few bars of 'Bring It On Home' as a fanfare introduction. Almost all live performances before or since used a blast of 'Out On The Tiles'. 

1975 was different. Lauded as the official encore, it was preceeded by a token fanfare riff and loose jam of 'Whole Lotta Love'. By the time Led Zeppelin had warmed up and shrugged off their ailments in February '75 the opening verses of 'Whole Lotta Love' were fixed as the introduction. There it stayed - except being dropped for 'Heartbreaker' on March 20th - until the final night at Earls' Court 

1977 saw it disappear from the set, too straightforward Rock to fit with the more fluid songs favoured for the tour. It was to appear twice (as far as we know so far), at the penultimate Madison Square Garden show once again teamed with 'Whole Lotta Love', and as a stand alone encore at the first Oakland Day On The Green gig. With the renewal in 1979 it reverted to 3rd in the set, a reliable crowd pleaser with full call and response muscular power. There it remained in 1980, even having Jimmy introduce it in various languages (chein noir, schwartz hund....) as per their location.

There are countless live performances, various official live releases (the movie, BBC,How The West Was Won) and a fair few filmed ones too. Apart from the truncate then full movie versions, there are the pro-shot Earls' Court and Knebworth bootleg dvd's and much cine film from San Bernardino '72 all the way up to Cologne (possibly Zurich and Munich too) on the Over Europe 1980 tour.

Post Zeppelin Jimmy dropped in an insert in Custard Pie during the Outrider shows, and also was played alongside David Coverdale. The Page Plant project saw a fabulous Australian TV version complete with didgeridoos and a full band run through recorded for the American Music awards. It became a tour staple in 1995 and more of an occasional thrill in 1998. Robert has also teased various arrangements, from straight out rock to bluegrass and banjo semi acoustic versions. Jonesy has performed it too (it is after all his riff) instrumentally to great effect.

Whatever solo performances, the original and subsequent live Led Zeppelin performances show their power and instrumental majesty, the ability to weave in and out of the breath taking power and heaviness with ease, using it as another dimension and not be weighed down by it.

The second US single from 'Untitled', it was backed with 'Misty Mountain Hop'. 

There's a rare edited mono/stereo US promo single, and it's also part of the very scarce 'little LP's' 3 track juke box 7" that also features 'Rock And Roll' and 'Stairway To Heaven'. The Japanese 7" has a gatefold insert featuring facsimile's of their autographs. That aside there are numerous foreign picture sleeve singles too.

LED ZEPPELIN - SAN FRANCISCO NIGHTS:AVOCADO'S, MOCKINGBIRDS AND MORE!

Richard Cole:"The second US Tour, that was the one. They were on the way up, and no one was looking too closely. 

ANYTHING was possible"

Richard may have been referring to offstage life and antics, but Led Zeppelin's return to the US was certainly a massive turning point. And the opening shows of the tour certainly did prove that anything WAS indeed possible. 

After a frantic 6 weeks across the UK, Scandinavia and various media commitments they returned to their adopted home - California. Although the prestigious Carnegie Hall shows mooted for April 18th didn't happen until two tours and 6 months later, the second North American dates kicked off in style with 4 nights in San Francisco. 

Work had begun on 'II' when Led Zeppelin touched down in California, and the upcoming shows would begin to show glimmers and tasters of new material. Jimmy was using a mixture of guitars, and his Les Paul would take over a major part of his onstage set up and sound, adding more thickness and body as Zeppelin went for the kill wit the already appreciative American audiences. 4 nights were set in collaboration with Bill Graham, two nights at the Fillmore West sitting either side of  brace of nights at the Winterland Ballroom. Brian Auger and the Trinity with Julie Driscoll would open along with the Coldwell-Winfred Blues Band. The stage was set for double sets of Zeppelin, eager to prove themselves and take their fans and music to the next level.

Thursday April 24th - Fillmore West

Sadly, we only have 59 or so minutes of this set, and it's the last of the four nights to appear. Scorpio's 'Fillmore West 69' dated this as January 9th but no matter, the content is all important. From the 2nd set, the opening half is simply stunning. A great recording too, very close to the stage but not a mixing desk ('soundboard') recording by any means. The balance has Robert slightly in the background and Jimmy to the fore and a great sound for the rhythm section, at least until overload blow Jonesy's amps a few minutes in!

The set runs - 

As Long As I Have You 

(Medley inc - Fresh Garbage/Shake/Mockingbird/Bags' Groove/Cat's Squirrel/You Can't Judge A Book/Suzie Q etc)

Killing Floor

(Medley inc - That's Evil/The Lemon Song/Smokestack Lightning)

White Summer/Black Mountainside

Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You

Pat's Delight

An extended and powerful As Long As I Have You kicked things off - this is more likely the second set judging by the tracks we have here. It's difficult to pick the 'star' tonight, all four of them are not only at the top of their game but in complete harmony - the definitive early 'tight but loose'. Jimmy conducts the Led Zeppelin orchestra with that light stun riff intro, punctuated with wah wah figures and dense almost flamenco like dense, dissonant clouds clouds of sound while Robert ad libs and bonzo drops powerful bombs in punctuation. Magnificent!

Jonesy is forceful too, the recording really lets you get 'inside' the rhythm section! Not even half way through you can hear those familiar (those players amongst you!) squeaks, buzzes and surges before his bass sound overloads and the amp gives up. But this only distracts not destroys the piece. After the usual suspects Fresh Garbage and in particular Mockingbird push Led Zeppelin into the stratosphere the unique ad lib sees Bo Diddley joining Garnet Mimms, Spirit, Sam Cooke and a pinch of Dr Ross when then run through a spirited You Can't Judge A Book and blues standard Suzie Q while they forge on through the equipment problems.

Once Jonesy gets some kind of sound back - a bit shakey at first! - Jimmy challenges his mates to some scintillating call and response, one at a time no less as the 20 minute opus reaches a fantastic climax. Killing Floor has that snaking unison Page/Jones/Plant scat introduction unique to this residency of 'Frisco shows. Again a great bit of detective work by Luis Rey to spot the origin as Willie Dixon's (That's) Evil sung by Howlin' Wolf, played obsessively with a key change too before Jimmy powers in the usual Killing Floor riff. The riffs flow, including a nod to the original Lemon Song and even the sliding snaking riff of Smokestack Lightning, another Chester Burnett (Wolf) song that the Yardbirds used to get all blueswailing over. It's in truth a way of bringing the set down in pace and intensity, but is a wonderful blues dirge all the same. Jonesy and Bonzo shine with their near telepathic syncopation as the frontmen bring the volume down.

The rest is fine but not up to the drama of that first 30 minutes. White Summer is as virtuoso as ever, and Bonzo really shines in his solo spot too. It would (will!?) be fantastic to hear the encores and indeed first set....

Friday April 25th - Winterland Ballroom

Well, how do you follow that. No first night of tour nerves at the Fillmore, just some equipment issues. Sadly, what we have - and it was the first recording from this group of shows to circulate - is a far too brief 25 minutes. Sprinkled around the edges of the 'rubber dubber' source tape of the 'Blueberry Hill' show on Wizardo's 2LP bootleg 'Caution;Explosive!' (also called '329D' after the catalogue number on reissues....) it's another truly amazing performance. We get - 

Train Kept A-Rollin'
You Shook Me
As Long As I Have You (cut)
(medley inc. Fresh Garbage/Shake/Bag's Groove)
Communication Breakdown

A mixture from the performance which would lead to confident speculation much more was recorded. A source tape with slightly more audience noise turned up in the late 70's but thus far no more music. Even the emphatic edit in As Long As I Have You remains. It may well be out there, but like the Going To California masters could have been thrown into the ocean.......allegedly.

There has also always been much speculation on the date of this recording. I've seen it traded and indeed been sent it as Seattle, Chicago, New York and the 24th April too! Robert doesn't help, he says 'the last time we played here it was the first err the second thing we ever did in America'. We know the legendary 'plantations' aren't always 100%...!! Anyway, I'm with Luis on this, the sound is so similar to the next night it's probably this show. Big shame we (as yet) have very little from this tour on tape to compare or confirm. 

As for the performance, You Shook Me is the outstanding performance. Slow, heavy and erotic in the extreme, Jimmy is almost certainly using his newly acquired Les Paul (from Joe Walsh) with some brilliant slide figures and Robert soars higher than any guitar can with some incredible, lustful howls and moans. 10 minutes of Led Zeppelin like this can be too much! Communication Breakdown is a delight too, the hysterical crowd adding to the frenzy as Jonesy accompanies Jimmy's stun gun attack with some high flying bass figures before Led Zeppelin drop the bomb! 

Saturday April 26th - Winterland Ballroom

At last, a complete recording! And what a show. 2 great sets -

Bill Graham Introduction

Communication Breakdown/I Can't Quit You Baby

Dazed And Confused

You Shook Me

How Many More Times

(medley inc. Smokestack Lightning/Roll Over Beethoven/The Hunter/Girl Of The North Country etc)

White Summer/Black Mountain Side

Killing Floor

(inc. Evil/Lemon Song/That's Alright Mama etc)

Babe I'm Gonna Leave You

As Long As I Have You

(medley inc. Fresh Garbage/Shake/Bag's Groove/Mockingbird /Cat's Squirrel etc

Whole Lotta Love  

Both sets, and an almost complete recording. Again, it's been around a long long time. It pre dates the circulation of the soundboard recordings of the 27th and was used for a variety of compilation and erroneously dated bootleg elpees. And the original tapes and therefore bootlegs run slow. Thankfully that's been arrested over the decades and we now have a fantastic audience recording to enjoy. And what a show. Nothing is even average, and it's clear how much they're all enjoying being back in California, feeding off the receptive and familiar crowd.

Dazed and Confused is already becoming experimental, Jimmy extending passages and riffs as Led Zeppelin take their time and cast their spell. There's a hush of expectancy and awe as he weaves those now familiar bow figures and drones, and as the song reaches its climax we get the debut recorded outing of the Theremin, for the only time in Dazed! With the huge echoing sound tonight it adds an amazing dramatic coda, an other worldly atmosphere. You Shook Me once again stomps over everything, gyrating blues as nasty and dirty as can be, wonderful all the same. The first set climaxes with a driving How Many More Times that mutates through various blues and folk Plant ad libs and Howlin' Wolf licks and references.

You need a break after that! The return for the second set starts slowly and deliberately. Jimmy's showcase is perfect and certainly placed to draw the audience into yet another side of the band both on record and onstage. Killing Floor is once again groinal and powerful with Robert shrieking some Arthur Crudup in the calm mid section. Babe is dynamic, and although I've never been really convinced by the 1969 live versions this one is as tough and dramatic as could be, while letting the subtle moments shine too.

But, the finale is the best. As Long As I Have You is even better than the previous 2 nights, and the arrangement is now seemingly perfected. Jimmy duels with each member in turn and the roar ebbs and flows as the tension remains high and finally bursts through. a really progressive and daring arrangement, and only Led Zeppelin could even attempt this, let alone pull it off with such astonishing results! And after that the audience has been wrung dry, two ours of one of THE great shows for me. And almost as a treat, we get the encore of Whole Lotta Love. Almost certainly the first performance, just a week after recording it in Barnes. And you can tell it's not finished yet, not 'there' so to speak, but does show their confidence and ability. Great guitar white noise and they hit that groove for the climax that leaves everyone exhausted and satisfied as it should. 

Sunday April 27th - Fillmore West

The last night, and the most 'familiar' atmosphere between the band (mainly Robert of course) and a happy, excited crowd. Two sets again and two recordings. A soundboard, unbalanced and at times unnerving with a few edits and a more 'normal' audience recording that is more complete and adds a few in between moments and details too. 

Train Kept A-Rollin'/I Can't Quit You Baby

As Long As I Have You

(medley inc. Fresh Garbage/Shake/Bag's Groove/Cat's Squirrel/Cadillac/No Money Down/I'm A Man etc)

You Shook Me

How Many More Times

(medley inc. Feel So Bad/The Hunter/Mulberry Bush etc)

Communication Breakdown

Babe I'm Gonna Leave You

White Summer/Black Mountain Side

Sitting And Thinking

Pat's Delight

Dazed And Confused

Killing Floor

(inc. Evil/Lemon Song/Sweet Jelly Roll etc)

The weight of the performance falls on the first set, doubtless the crowd were buzzing with the previous performances, and the two big medley's are the highlights here. In fact, these are undoubtedly the best 4 As Long As I Have You improvisations I've ever heard. Tonight is the loosest for sure, but every time they seem to almost run into a cul de sac a new riff, nuance or lick powers through while Robert adds Chuck Berry to his list of San Francisco ad libs. How Many More times is even looser, and Jimmy experiments with slow heavy echoed riffs as Bonzo hammers his newly acquired Paiste Gong and Robert runs around the Mulberry Bush!

The encore is a bit out of tune but a fine way to round off an amazing set. the second set, not complete here, is too much of a come down. Still, there are moments to savour including the unique version of Sitting And Thinking, a Buddy Guy blues played as a stand alone track and not as part of a medley. Consequently it has been plucked out of the show to be included on many a bootleg compilation. Again, the running order is varied so Bonzo's solo comes before Dazed And Confused and both recordings end with the heavy sludge of Killing Floor. 

It sounds odd to say and think it, but there's nothing over inspiring about some of the second set but that's a relative thing. April 1969 vintage Led Zeppelin is hardly 'average' in terms of anyone else or indeed much of their own career! 

Four days, 8 sets and some of the most inspired playing of the Rock era and genre. Massively important and potent shows. And at the start of a tour we only have 2 other shows and an encore from another on tape out of 22 nights. In fact there are nearly as many tapes of studio work on 'II' - 3 and counting.... - from this tour as there are live shows. I'm always hopeful, however feint that hope can be at times, of more discoveries, more tapes, even cine film, and more memorabilia from these shows. As I quoted Richard Cole at the start of this piece, no one was watching too closely. I just hope someone was courageous enough to record something from this era and we'll get to enjoy it one day.