Tony’s “Amazing Led Zeppelin Experiment”

for the record, his or bo diddley's assessment of the stones, I never said it was insignificant, just that it didn't matter to ME, it doesn't affect if *I* like it or not.

 

But which one? The real one or the imposter?

 

The impostor!

The first time I heard the live record of The Yardbirds with SBW I couldn't believe how much Plant had taken from him... Listen to that album and then the start of Bring It On Home, and it's right there!

 

I guess I was just quick on the trigger! LZ really was one of those bands that caused me to change the radio station quickly.

Also, I have/had a few friends who are/were big music nuts but none of them owned any LZ albums. It seems impossible, but it is true. None of us owned any Bruce Springsteen either.

I'm looking forward to LZ2 as well!

 

I will definitely listen in chronological order! I can only do this once, and I want to do it right.

Your description of hearing the LZ albums reminded me of the scene in "Almost Famous" where the kid is flipping through the LPs that his sister left behind.

 

When I was thinking about doing the LZ experiment I realized that I had only heard the random songs that "classic rock radio" deemed to be the important ones. I am a big fan of Jethro Tull, but I would not be a fan if all I ever heard was the five or six Tull songs that get played to death on the radio.

So I decided that I wanted to start at the beginning of LZ and work my way through the albums to see how they progressed throughout the years. I had heard lots of their songs but other than the songs on IV, I never knew which ones were from the early days, and which ones were from the later days.

Please feel free to comment in any way as I go through the pile o discs...

 

I think it is kind of crazy that I have heard literally thousands of albums, but never heard the LZ albums. These are things I think about when I can't sleep at night. I turned 40 in February, so I am trying to think of things that I want to do before I am too old to remember that I wanted to do them.

 

Sonny Boy II did some crazy things, didn't he?

 

I agree!

 

I may be missing your point, but this song pre-dates both those bands.

 

I am not a guitar player, although I own an acoustic guitar that I wish I could play... Maybe that will be another of my turning 40 resolutions!

I'm not a huge Page fan at this point, but I have honestly not listened closely to his solos. He definitely came up with some great riffs, but the wild solos get kind of boring after a while. I remember not liking The Firm when they were all over MTV. Jimmy seemed very smug to me in those videos. Maybe I misjudged him. I am trying after all!

Robert Plant's voice is a bit grating to me at times. But then again, I like Geddy Lee's singing for the most part. I did like some of Robert's smoother more laid back solo singles that I heard over the years. Maybe I should try his solo stuff later.

Well, that is the whole reason that I wanted to do this. One of the cool things about Jethro Tull and Rush is the way they progress from album to album. Jethro Tull especially never made two albums that sounded the same (even in production style) in my opinion.

I'm more likely to warm up to Page's playing than Robert's singing, I am afraid.

It really is very cool to get to hear these albums in order for the first time. I honestly can't wait to hear more. I am trying to listen to the songs and not listen to the "Mighty Zep"!

Some of my favorites are: Jethro Tull, Hawkwind, Elvis Presley, Kate Bush, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, CCR, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Nat King Cole, Merle Haggard, Lyle Lovett, Nanci Griffith, Iris Dement, Iron Maiden, The Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, ELO, Bee Gees (pre-disco), Metallica, Queensryche (with Degarmo), AC/DC, Motorhead, Rush, John Prine, Randy Newman, early to mid REM, Spirit, King Crimson with Belew, Frank Zappa, Dwight Yoakam, Maria McKee, Stephen Curtis Chapman, Mahalia Jackson, and lots of other stuff.

Some recent bands that I am listening to are: The Black Keys, Iron & Wine, Dave Matthews Band, Calexico, and M Ward

Not at all! I am glad you like the idea for the thread.

 

I turned 40 in February, so I am not old enough to have been there when it happened. It is still going to be fun to hear it all in order.

 

Thank you.

 

where's your review of Led Zep II?

By the way, why doesn't somebody transfer the awesomeness of the RL Led Zep II LP onto CD so I can hear it!? I've been wanting to hear this for years but I don't have a turntable rig.

 

Tony, hope you stick with it through Physical Grafitti. Plant's voice meant he wasnt singing super high, and it's a bit raaspy which works on a lot of it. Plus there's a ton of variety and the band is at top form.

 

I got sick of the local yokels "Time to roll some stones" "Time to get the Led out" crap years ago. I could barely stand to listen to radio. Decades of rock music and these dolts play the same ten tracks from the same ten bands over and over and over and over. Then I got XM. Damn I love it. No babbling DJ, no commercials, no hearing the same songs over and over again.

 

This is an interesting experiment Tony I'm curious to know how it will turn out.

 

Me too, only more so. I was born in 1969, so I was a teen from about 1982 to 1993 -- and to this very day, I do not own any Zep studio material (and haven't since probably 1990) -- and I only picked up the Live BBC double-CD for the first time less than a year ago.

I've been toying the the idea of picking up some other Zep CD's (maybe since about a year ago), but it's only just now (now that I'm nearly 40), that I'm even considering it. It's been roughly 15 years since I've heard practically any of this material, save for maybe one or maybe two tunes per year (at most) since the mid-90's.

FM "classic rock" radio killed Zeppelin for me (in my formative years), and I'm only just now even thinking about catching up with them.

 

Didn't have time to listen tonight. Maybe tomorrow. I have to be able to focus on it. I had a lot going on tonight.

 

Tony, take your time and make sure it's at a time that you WANT to listen to Zep. It will help. Plus it's so good it deserves to be listened to with rapt focus...add a libation and you might even start liking Plant's voice.

I applaud you for undertaking this adventures. There are some artists I should do this with but...I'm afraid.

 

Plant's voice changes a lot from the early (pre-HOTH) stuff to the later stuff.

Keep that in mind. It's like he went through puberty or something (not really but you know).

If Page's guitars don't get you listen intently to Jones and Bonham.
Talk about locked on from the first bar.....

People can sometimes over look how GOOD they were as musicians because of the hype and "mighty" label.

It GROOVES!

 

I was in a guitar-playing neighborhood in the San Gabriel Valley. I remember when Zep 1 came out. Some pals were really into it for the music, but it seemed to make some school mates wanna act like thugs! Eventually there were band "factions" the Led/Purple groups, some of them, seemed to try to emulate the "Zep life-style" (California kids with Brit accents even!) and it was a bit of a put-off. Van Halen used to play the backyard Van Addicts (customized vans) parties..we did sound for them on our PA at a gig one night (they were still using low-watt Sears stuff) and even they had some bad attitude!! I'd had plenty of the boots (following them from the wings) but didn't see them until '77, and thought they were powerful, but a bit "stiff". ..Saw the ARMS benefit with Page/Clapton/Beck/Wyman/Watts (and Cocker that night) and thought Page was the least impressive former Yardbird that night.

But ya know what??...
Over the years I've really come to appreciate big chunks of the Zep body of work (still think they're arrogant). Of the three former Yardbirds, I've really got to hand it to Page and Page for creating an often original and unique musical landscape. Sometimes even beautiful: there's nothing quite like the "Houses Of The Holy" album, for instance.

Hat's off to your experiment...Just don't start stompin' people!

 

Yeah, Sonny Boy Willamson "II" (Rice Miller) was a real piece of work.
He was an original performer who did early radio shows (King Biscuit
Flour Hour) playing blues harmonica in a very distinct style.
He went to London were he was treated like a celebrity by the English
blues followers (Page, Clapton etc..) did lots of shows there for mostly
white audiences. In this country he played mostly "road houses" and
was heard only on "colored" radio stations. A great influence on those
who would carry blues into the future. He had a firey personality,
and on some "out-takes" on recently available Chess releases, can be
heard having angry exchanges with the Chess brothers (and his band)
while recording in the studio. Nobody can play like this guy could.

 

Be careful not to take a detour into the Zep bootleg world. You might get lost there forever . . . .

 

There are threads here where the 'RL' Zep II has been discussed thoroughly.
The consensus is that it is indeed worth finding, and in good condition on a
decent turntable setup is really something special. Copying that album to
C.D. presents a challenge because some of the dynamics and reverb trail
are lost in the tranfer from vinyl to digital. I have made a few "needle-drops"
of the 'RL' (was lucky to find a decent copy) and while it sounds better (imo)
than the catalog c.d. issue, it does not have the same impact as the record
played on a turntable.