Day 248: 7/24/1977 Oakland, CA

7/24/1977 Oakland, CA  A Fighting Finish

The Song Remains the Same, Sick Again, Nobody's Fault But Mine, Over the Hills and Far Away, Since I've Been Loving You, No Quarter, Ten Years Gone, The Battle of Evermore, Going to California, Mystery Train, Black Country Woman, Bron-Y-Aur Stomp, Trampled Underfoot, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Kashmir, Achilles Last Stand, Stairway to Heaven, Rock and Roll

Another beautiful summer afternoon greets the band as they return for their second show at Oakland Coliseum. Page and Plant are still a bit rusty as The Song Remains the Same gets underway. There is a slight cut during the initial verses. The band completely loses track of one another at the end of Sick Again. As the song ends, Plant thanks Bill Graham, saying "I think he built the place especially for rock concerts." Page shreds through a blistering guitar solo during Nobody's Fault But Mine. The tape is cut between songs, missing the first few notes of the intro to Over the Hills and Far Away. Since I've Been Loving You is violently emotional. There is a slight cut in the middle of Jones's piano solo during No Quarter. The band skips the upbeat interlude, instead heading directly into Page's erratic guitar solo. Things become a bit disjointed during the outro. Ten Years Gone is introduced as "a song about the first love, the one that you left behind that you can never quite reach back to." 

Black Country Woman is preceded by a fantastic impromptu rendition of Mystery Train. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp features a short bass solo before the guitar breakdown. The band hammers through an aggressive Trampled Underfoot, which Plant introduces as a song that "refers to the careful looking after of an automobile." Page shreds wildly through the guitar solo. Kashmir is a bit dull and uninspired, despite Plant's enthusiastic delivery. The beginning of Page's experimental guitar solo is missing from the tape, picking up just before the bow section. Achilles Last Stand is a frantic explosion of energy. Bonzo misses his cue for the big fill near the end of the song, causing a moment of confused hesitation. Page blazes through an outstanding guitar solo during Stairway to Heaven. As the band leaves the stage following a quick and nasty Rock and Roll, Plant announces "thanks a lot folks, see ya again!" Unfortunately, the rest of the tour would be cancelled when Plant's son Karac died suddenly two days later, making this the band's final performance in America. The end of an era.

The tape is fairly clear and well-balanced, if a bit noisy and overloaded at times. It seems to run a bit fast as well.

Click here for an audio sample courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 238: 6/19/1977 San Diego, CA

6/19/1977 San Diego, CA  Jimmypy

The Song Remains the Same, Sick Again, Nobody's Fault But Mine, In My Time of Dying, Since I've Been Loving You, No Quarter, Ten Years Gone, The Battle of Evermore, Going to California, Mystery Train, Black Country Woman, Bron-Y-Aur Stomp, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Kashmir, Achilles Last Stand, Stairway to Heaven, Rock and Roll

The show gets off to an uneven start with a sluggish The Song Remains the Same. Bonzo struggles to keep the beat as Page tries in vain to speed things up. By the beginning of Sick Again, it's obvious Bonzo's having an off night. Completely missing his cues during the intro, he crawls through the rest of the song at a snail's pace. As the song ends, Plant tells the crowd "we're not gonna do too much spieling, cause I heard the live album, so we'll just play a lotta music instead." Bonzo continues to struggle during Nobody's Fault But Mine. Page shreds through a sticky-fingered guitar solo. Plant exclaims "oh my Audrey!" near the end of In My Time of Dying. As the song ends, he mentions that Jones is having trouble with his back, joking "it's about time that somebody noted it down in the press that John Paul Jones doesn't just play backgammon." 

Page is on fire during Since I've Been Loving You, which features mournful organ accompaniment from Jones. Unfortunately, Bonzo's erratic drumming frequently disrupts the somber mood, preventing the piece from ever really coming together. Jones's piano solo develops into an excellent hard rock jam as Page and Bonzo join in during No Quarter. Page's guitar solo gets off to an excellent start, but is quickly derailed by Bonzo's disjointed overplaying. Plant introduces the acoustic set as "our version of a sort of a Californian Crosby, Stills, Nash and Bonham" before The Battle of Evermore. He forgets some lyrics during an otherwise beautiful Going to California.

Page and Plant get into a fantastic impromptu rendition of Mystery Train before Black Country Woman. Bonzo is absent for the remainder of the acoustic set. Page plays a bit of Dancing Days during Bron-Y-Aur Stomp. Plant is in top form during Kashmir, belting out each line with power and bravado. Bonzo is constantly on the brink of falling apart while still managing to deliver some very lively passages at times. The crowd erupts as the band launches into Achilles Last Stand. Page blazes through an outstanding guitar solo during Stairway to Heaven. As the band leaves the stage, Plant tells the crowd "it's good to be back San Diego, it really is good to be back, goodnight."

The tape is another excellent Mike Millard recording.