Led Zeppelin Atlantic LP Reissues - Wow!!

I just bought a bunch of mint Led Zeppelin vinyl from a local record store. All of them are the reissues from (I'm guessing) the early 80's or thereabouts (except Physical Graffiti & In Through The Out Door, which I believe are originals). I can say without reservation that some of these are, bar none, the finest sounding Zeppelin releases out there. Physical Graffiti is just plain amazing, and isn't EQd at all like the Classic. It sounds wonderful! Trampled Under Foot kicks so much ass on this pressing. I definitely will guard this one closely.

My favorite Classic is Houses Of The Holy, and the Atlantic is nearly every bit as nice for 1/8 the cost ($4). If you spot any of these for $8 or less, and they're mint, don't hesitate!!! I also bought Zep 4 with the bunch, and will spin that one soon. That's one of my fave Classics too, so it will be fun to compare them.

Only caveat here is they have a higher noise floor than the Classics, but nothing distracting.

Come to think of it, I've heard a few of this vintage Atlantic reissues, and they often trounce the originals and maybe even the current offerings on CD. Take this with a grain of salt (since I have nothing to compare to but the original US LP), but Yes Fragile is just fantastic on the reissue Atlantic. That one set me back $0.99. CSNY's Deja Vu reissue is fantastic, as we discussed here. The list goes on and on. As for non-reissues, I find the records from that era are more spotty. Robert Plant Pictures At Eleven is just terribly bright, as an example.

 

Mike,

How do we identify these reissues? Do they have a barcode on the back, etc.?

Todd

 

Look for the ones that are made by Specialty. Looks like a big "S" on the runoff, sideways with "RC" inside the "S". If you look in the center of the label, you MAY find the letters EAST or WEST hovering around the spindle in raised letters. Many pressings, you can only see one or two letters.

Yes, barcode on the back is a big tell-tale.

 

"Specialty" won't necessarily help. They've pressed a lot for Atlantic, the good, the bad and the downright ugly.

 

Hi Todd,

None of the ones I bought have a barcode. The covers are all card stock (as opposed to covered brown cardboard like some of the originals). Check also for reissue catalog numbers. For instance, the original catalog number on Houses of the Holy would have been SD-7255. The reissue is SD-19130. I believe catalog numbers were changed for the LPs up through Houses Of The Holy. Then, the later albums (I think) retained their catalog numbers through reissues, so they might be harder to distinguish from originals (unless they have a barcode). I'll check out my various issues of In Through The Out Door & look for differences there, because I'm really not sure on this last point.

As for the vinyl itself, it's relatively flimsy and thin (especially compared with original pressings). This is most obvious on the issues (again) up through Houses. The catalog number would be your first clue though. Generally, most of the Atlantic reissues I've seen are a 5 digit number, 19xxx.

If you need more specifics, I can check later.

Mike

 

Thanks Sckott. It's strange, I have a mid-70's pressing (at least I think it is) of IV. It has the RSC (our old friend) in in the dead-wax. I don't think it's an 80's pressing though. The jacket doesn't have a bar-code but you can never usually go by that because people sometimes swapped jackets. I'll keep my eyes out for these. I still need 2 more Zeps to complete the Classic collection (Holy & Presence), actually 3 with Song coming out (or is it out already?)...

Todd

 

Agreed. But some of the ones I have are Specialty, and they are very good. The Physical Graffiti is not a Specialty pressing, if I recall correctly. I'll get back to you on this.

 

Thanks for the info Mike! As always, it's always great to know which pressing is tops (and in some cases thankfully in less demand by the collectors)...

Todd

 

No problem. I know you're spending some time and $$ on some tubed Beatles, so you know the drill full well!!

It surely is a joy to find such sonic pleasure for just a few bucks. That's very rare these days.

 

Completely agree, there are so many great recordings out there for so little!! For example, last night I was spinning an old Fleetwood Mac album I brought in the past for $1. You know what, sounded pretty damn amazing to me...

Todd

 

Another nice pressing of LED ZEPPELIN IV has "PORKY" in the deadwax. I have a copy of Yes' "FRAGILE" with this in the deadwax and it sounds great too.

 

A porky prime cut? Might be... although I've never seen one. His scrawl is unmistakably unique. Seen many Island UK cuts from him. Good stuff.

 

Fellas,

I bet it would be easiest to narrow these later Atlantic pressings down by the label. From 1975 until well into the 1980s, Atlantic labels had a Warner Communications notation along the bottom right perimeter of the label. This won't guarantee a hot pressing, but for a few bucks a pop, no big deal. Just to note, there are many nice Atlantic originals out there. While these later pressings can be better, don't give up on your original Atlantic pressings...you may have a hot stamper original or two that would be difficult to beat.

 

Not to be a killjoy, but I don't think that will help very much either. The catalog numbers were changed a long time ago, and there have been all kinds of pressings under the new numbers as well.

 

After consulting Tim Neely's Goldmine price guide, I've discovered the five digit catalog number for Atlantic reissues was introduced in 1977. So, the catalog number is better than the label for identifying these pressings as it eliminates 1975 and 1976 from consideration. However, as Steve Graham says, they still pressed a lot of these reissues, so you've gotta buy 'em and try 'em to be sure. Bear in mind also that only selected titles were reissued with a new five digit catalog number, so in most cases the original pressing is your only option (all Led Zeppelin Atlantic label titles were reissued).

 

I agree. My favorite Led Zeppelin II is a US '80s Atlantic pressing. The CSN&Y Deja Vu is also, indeed, amazing. Both of these definitely kick the behinds of the much earlier "1841 Broadway" pressings I have of each. (The first CSN album is more of a toss-up; I have four or five US Atlantic pressings from different eras, and none are very good. My favorite is the Classic.)

I never pass up a minty later Atlantic pressing. I've recently been very pleased with such copies of The Best of Sam & Dave and Aretha Franklin's Lady Soul I've found ...

 

Really? My "RSC" (Specialty) sounds great. Very close to the Classic Records issue.

 

This thread prompted me to dig out my Zep albums and look closely. I have a batch of mint-unplayed Zep albums that I received in the early 80's. Some are still sealed but a few have were delivered with no shrink wrap. I haven't seen anything that matches some of the indicators of an early 80's reissue. For example: in the dead wax of LZ II, it says:
SLM (pyramid symbol) 1977-X ST-A-6916-72-Z B-14605. Does this mean that this pressing is from 1977? I would play it to check the quality but my turntable has been out of commision for a while. When the original batch of CDs came out, I got them and just decided to keep these LPs as pristine as possible. Is there anything else I can look for to find out if I have some of these "good sounding" Atlantic reissues?

 

As far as the five-digit identification number for Zep LP's go, I think Mr. Neely is wrong, as I remember distinctly seeing them in 1976, when I first got into Led Zeppelin.

I don't know what it is, but I have an original Zeppelin I and a later reissue, and the reissue blows the original away sonically. Maybe Mr. Page did some remixing later?

 

Of all the LPs I originally mentioned, I've been playing Fragile the most (every day for a couple weeks now). I haven't heard this LP ever sound so good. Unbelievable really, probably the best on vinyl (or anything else) to date. It's one of the "Specialty" issues Sckott mentioned. For $1 I can say with certainty it's the best audiophile value I've ever come across. No "Porky" in the dead wax on this copy, just the sideways "S" with "R" and "C" inside the S-curves. I also have a copy of "The Yes Album" which curiously has the "S" on one side and not the other. And it makes a big difference!! The "S" side (can't recall which at the moment) is not bright and sounds every bit as clean & full & wonderful as Fragile. The other side is very bright and annoying. I'd think there were copies out there with both sides "S". Can anyone out there confirm this? I'd like to make that one of my next efforts!

The Zep issues are all "Specialty" as well, with the exception of "Physical Graffiti" which looks like it was a 2nd or 3rd press using the original stampers or mothers. Again, none have the UPC bar coding on the covers, but they are card stock (not brown cardboard) covers except for Fragile (brown cardboard). Great sound on Physical Graffiti, but a little noisy on some tracks (vinyl/pressing quality was often the limiting factor on these, unfortunately - this set was hardly played & still has some issues).

 

Mike,

I don't think the Swan Song Led Zeppelin titles were ever issued with new catalog numbers, so I doubt there was any dramatic difference in sound quality with later pressings. I bought a sealed "Physical Graffiti" new in a record store around 1987 and it sounds very nice. I suspect the same would be true for the other later Swan Song titles.

As for "Porky" pressings, those are only UK pressings to the best of my knowledge. He was a mastering engineer in the UK. I doubt any lacquers cut by Porky would've been sent to the US...pretty fragile stuff to be shipping overseas.

 

Yes' "FRAGILE" LP

I've got both the "RSC": and the "PORKY" versions and while both sound VERY good, I think 'PORKY' might just be more dynamic. Same holds true for the "LED ZEPPELIN IV" LP. I have not been able to find anymore 'PORKIES', but I keep looking. Anyone aware of anything issued with this mastering?

 

Go to this thread for some Porky info http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=89864&highlight=porky#post89864

 

"Porky" remasters

Thanks for the info. The only two LPs I have with "PORKY" in the runoff are both AMERICAN issues on Atlantic and sound great.

 

Re: "Porky" remasters

I thought all his work was done in the UK...which could be wrong. Wonder what the story is on those pressings you have? At any rate, Peckham was quite a mastering engineer. Anything he did is likely very good.