Day 54: 4/18/1970 Phoenix, AZ

4/18/1970 Phoenix, AZ  Desert Storm

We're Gonna Groove, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Bring it on Home, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Thank You, Moby Dick, Whole Lotta Love

Bonzo is out of control during We're Gonna Groove, thrashing and pounding everything within reach. The band are locked into each other during Dazed and Confused. The fast guitar solo section is especially riotous. Page shreds through the solos in Heartbreaker. Bonzo's pounding is relentless, he attacks the drums with incredible force.

Plant seems to be holding back during Bring it on Home, avoiding the strain of the higher notes. He sounds mournful during Thank You, which features an excellent solo from Page. A couple loud firecracker blasts interrupt the quieter moments. A thunderous Moby Dick is immediately followed by Whole Lotta Love, skipping How Many More Times. Plant talks his way through the lyrics, it's obvious he's in bad shape. He attempts a signature wail during the theramin freakout, but gives up singing/saying "I can't take it." During the "way down inside..." section, he quips "sometimes I don't feel so good" before pushing himself to belt out the final "love!" After the band leaves the stage, Page returns with an announcement that due to Plant's illness, the show will not continue.

The tape is clear with occasional brief disturbances throughout.

Click here for an audio sample courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 53: 4/17/1970 Memphis, TN

4/17/1970 Memphis, TN  (2nd gen>cdr)

We're Gonna Groove, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Bring it on Home, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

The tape begins with a brief introduction by the taper stating the date and location of the show to follow. There is a stage announcement about an autographed Led Zeppelin album being given away by a local radio personality before the band is introduced. They do a brief soundcheck, after which Plant quips "thank you, goodnight" before properly greeting the crowd. We're Gonna Groove includes the same funky jam during the guitar solo as heard nine days earlier in Raleigh. The tape is cut between songs.

The atmosphere is very subdued during Dazed and Confused. Since I've Been Loving You is moody and dynamic, especially Plant's performance. An excellent rendition. The sound quality deteriorates a bit at the beginning of Thank You. Plant changes a line to "I think you better shut your mouth" during the final verse. The first few moments of What is and What Should Never Be are missing from the tape.

How Many More Times begins with a funky jam. Plant's introduction of Page is punctuated by a theramin burst. The apparently tense atmosphere in the crowd causes Plant to attempt to diffuse the situation by telling the police to put their hands together. Page improvises angrily as Plant tries in vain to get the house light turned off. The marathon medley features an excellent rendition of Memphis, Tennessee. Plant recites the first verse of Ramble On over the For What it's Worth theme before the band joins in for the chorus. A short version of Tobacco Road is cut in the middle. The tempo slows down for the Muddy Waters favorites Honey Bee and Long Distance Call. 

Plant pauses during the "got you in the sights..." section to address the crowd in regards to the police presence. Unfortunately, his comments are cut slightly before he makes mention of saving Peter Grant and asks that the crowd not stand on the chairs. After mentioning a hockey player he had seen on television, the band jumps into a raucous rendition of That's All Right. Plant stops the show again to beg the crowd to get off of the chairs and rails before the police arrest Grant. He is obviously feeling helpless as the police continue to hassle the band over the unruly crowd. The song ends in an explosion of echo-heavy wails. One of the best performances thus far, despite the trouble with the authorities.

As the band returns to the stage for Whole Lotta Love, Plant attempts to get the crowd under control, saying "when everything happens, don't stand up for god's sake." The recording ends with the taper describing the show as "the greatest concert I've ever heard."

The tape is a bit muffled and hissy with Bonzo buried in the mix, but the performance more than makes up for the less than perfect sound quality. A must hear for How Many More Times alone.

Day 50: 4/8/1970 Raleigh, NC

4/8/1970 Raleigh, NC  (1st gen)

We're Gonna Groove, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Bring it on Home, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick

The tape begins during the first verse of We're Gonna Groove. Page gets the band into an excellent funky jam after the guitar solo. The bass intro to Dazed and Confused causes someone near the taper to respond "oh wow." Page seems to have some trouble with his equipment during the bow solo and he completely disappears during the final verse, but it doesn't detract from the epic nature of the song. The band is on fire.

Plant does a bit about American accents before Heartbreaker. Page shreds through the extended solo. Plant occasionally has a strange echo effect on his vocals. An extended Bring it on Home features some fine harmonica playing as well as an excellent duel between Page and Bonzo. Another excellent White Summer/Black Mountain Side is introduced as "the white summer of pale Jimmy Page" by Plant. One of the most interesting renditions thus far, Page experiments with many new licks and themes.

Page improvises a new opening to Since I've Been Loving You. Plant delivers a dynamic, emotionally charged performance. Jones's organ solo is based around a great driving groove. Thank You features backing vocals from Page, as well as some great bluesy licks. Bonzo is out of control. One of the best renditions thus far. The recording ends during another thunderous Moby Dick.

The tape is excellent, clear and well-balanced. It's a shame we don't have the rest of this great show.

There is about a minute and a half of silent 8mm color footage from the show in Charlotte, NC on 4/7/1970. The footage is quite dark and shaky, featuring only brief fragments of the performance. Since there is no audio from this show, I didn't think it necessary to make a separate post.

Day 49: 4/5/1970 Baltimore, MD

4/5/1970 Baltimore, MD  Sorry 'Bout the Delay

We're Gonna Groove, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Bring it on Home, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, What is and What Should Never Be, Thank You, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

Plant misses the final verse in We're Gonna Groove, causing some confusion which results in a disjointed ending. Plant apologizes for the sound as they're working with a new PA system. He makes mention of the problem again during the first verses of Dazed and Confused before the PA briefly fails completely, much to the amusement of those near the taper. Bring it on Home is cut just as the rock section is getting underway.* An abbreviated White Summer/Black Mountain Side is followed by another cut in the tape, which leads directly into What is and What Should Never Be. 

There are a few dropouts/cuts during Thank You. Moby Dick is cut about seven minutes in, losing a large chunk of the solo and leaving us in the middle of the finale.* How Many More Times begins with a drum intro to a funky jam. Bonzo thrashes his way through the first verse. Plant once again struggles to maintain a cool atmosphere over the crowd. The medley includes a riotous That's All Right as well as a bit of Muddy Waters's Honey Bee. The return to the main riff is devastating with Bonzo destroying everything within reach. Plant tells the crowd to "be careful of those policemen on the way out" as they leave the stage. 

The tape is fairly clear, if a bit distant, with some hiss and scattered dropouts throughout.

*- a more complete alternate source exists, but is not currently in our collection.

Day 48: 3/28/1970 Dallas, TX

3/28/1970 Dallas, TX  Texas Two Steps

We're Gonna Groove, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Bring it on Home, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick

Page goes into the lead-in to the bow solo too early during Dazed and Confused, causing a bit of confusion until he rights himself for the next verse. Heartbreaker retains its new echo-heavy intro, it sounds like the launch sequence of some sort of alien spacecraft. There are a couple cuts near the end of White Summer/Black Mountain Side. Jones's bass pedals cause some distortion during Thank You. There is quite a bit of talking going on around the taper throughout the show. The recording ends about twenty minutes into a marathon Moby Dick.

The tape is muffled, hissy, and distant with some distortion at times.

Click here for audio samples courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 47: 3/27/1970 Los Angeles, CA

3/27/1970 Los Angeles, CA  The Four Survivors

We're Gonna Groove, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Bring it on Home, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love, Communication Breakdown

The tape begins with Plant telling the crowd that the band intends to get them looser than cod liver oil. There are some tape disturbances during We're Gonna Groove, but nothing compared to the previous tape. Tonight brings a change in the setlist as the end of the song leads right into Dazed and Confused without pause, dropping I Can't Quit You Baby. There is a good amount of crowd noise near the taper during the bow solo. Plant requests that the people standing in the aisles sit down so those around them can see before Heartbreaker, which includes an echo-heavy intro from Page.

Bring it on Home features some great blues picking from Page during the slow intro. At the end of another excellent White Summer/Black Mountain Side, the taper says "I'm really stoned" directly into the microphone, then asks his nearby friend Cathy is she's stoned too, to which she replies "oh god" between giggles. The tape is a bit warbly during Thank You and Jones's preceding organ solo. Plant assures the crowd that all of their requests will be answered before What is and What Should Never Be. Bonzo is like a well-oiled machine during Moby Dick. 

Plant introduces the band as "the four survivors of the Graf Zeppelin" at the beginning of How Many More Times. He goes on to introduce the crowd as the fifth member of the band. The raucous medley includes I'm a Man as well as Plant's attempts to get the house lights turned off and keep the crowd from getting out of control/attacked by the police. He tells the crowd to clap for themselves before the band launches into a frenzied Whole Lotta Love. The show ends with Plant declaring "together we stand!" during Communication Breakdown, but the tape continues with a stage announcement about an upcoming Jimi Hendrix show, as well as comments about the show from the taper and his friends.

The tape is a combination of two sources. Both are fairly clear but hissy and a bit distant with occasional tape disturbances. Overall, a very enjoyable show which gives the complete experience of being there. A must hear.

Day 46: 3/25/1970 Denver, CO

3/25/1970 Denver, CO  (master>cassette)

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

Page solos frantically during I Can't Quit You Baby. Plant mentions between songs that the band played their first American show in Denver eighteen months prior, almost to the day. Dazed and Confused is an explosion of energy. The band is definitely in full swing, especially Page, who shreds his way through the frenzied solos during Heartbreaker. There's a slight dropout near the end of Since I've Been Loving You.

There's some strange bleedthrough in the left channel during Thank You and more noticeably at the beginning of Moby Dick. It's as if you can hear what the band is about to play before they play it. The effect is especially distracting during How Many More Times, it's as if two shows are playing over top of one another, creating a muddy cacophony. The medley features a new heavy arrangement of Boogie Chillen. Plant belts out a series of echo-heavy primal screams during the finale.

The tape is distant, muffled, distorted, and plagued by volume fluctuations. This, along with the aforementioned tape anomaly during the latter half of the show makes for one of the worst listening experiences thus far. Not recommended.

Day 45: 3/21/1970 Vancouver, British Columbia

3/21/1970 Vancouver, British Columbia  (5th gen>cdr)

We're Gonna Groove, Heartbreaker, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Whole Lotta Love, Communication Breakdown

Plant wails like a banshee during We're Gonna Groove, pushing his voice to the limit. Bonzo attacks his drums full force. Page's fingers fly wildly across the fretboard during the solos in Heartbreaker. The North American premiere of Since I've Been Loving You is bluesy and soulful. Plant's voice is a bit rough at times. Whole Lotta Love is missing the theramin freakout. A quick and dirty Communication Breakdown includes Plant wailing a few lines from Ramble On and People during the breakdown.

The tape is an excellent radio broadcast.

*UPDATE 3/24/08*

3/21/1970 Vancouver, British Columbia  (master cassette)

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker

The newly-discovered audience recording of the famous Mudslide show begins with a brief band introduction. Plant asks the crowd if they feel alright before the band jumps into We're Gonna Groove. There tape is cut after the second verse as well as during the guitar solo, which leads us to Plant's wailing intro to I Can't Quit You Baby. Page blazes through an excellent guitar solo. Someone near the taper shouts "turn off those bloody lights!" during a quiet passage. During the final verse, someone says "wanna get stoned?" directly into the taper's microphone. There is a slight cut during the outro.

There are some speed fluctuations during the eerie intro to Dazed and Confused. Another slight cut leaves us in the first verse. Plant chants "do what you wanna do" during the lead-in to the bow solo (which sees more speed fluctuations throughout) only to shout "why don't you sit down... let the people see!" during his call and response with Page. There is another slight cut near the end of the bow solo. During the guitar solo, there is a brief clip of an acoustic guitar recorded over the show. The song is cut during the outro. An excellent, high energy performance. Plant again asks the crowd to consider those behind them and sit down before Heartbreaker, which is preceded by a C'mon Everybody-esque intro from Page. The solos are absolutely electric. The recording ends just as the final verse begins.

The tape is muffled with a fair amount of hiss, but enjoyable as a historical document.

Click here for audio samples courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 43: 3/11/1970 Hamburg, Germany

3/11/1970 Hamburg, Germany  Lili Marleen

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

The tape begins with a brief introduction of the band and a simple "bon soir" from Plant. He sings the "one of these days..." verse twice during We're Gonna Groove. Page, Jones, and Bonzo play a tongue-in-cheek interlude after I Can't Quit You Baby while Plant tries in vain to get the house lights turned off. A group of people near the taper giggle uncontrollably every time Plant opens his mouth, even during the first verses of Dazed and Confused. Page makes his guitar squeal in pain and ecstasy during the epic journey of a solo.

There is a slight cut at the beginning of the guitar solo in Heartbreaker. One of the gigglers near the taper mimics Page's playing during White Summer/Black Mountain Side. Since I've Been Loving You is powerful. The gigglers sing along with Plant during Thank You. The medley during How Many More Times is very mellow, thanks mostly to Plant's extended blues mumblings, and includes Muddy Waters's Long Distance Call.  The recording ends just after Plant's final "love!" in Whole Lotta Love.

The tape is a bit distant and distorted due to Jones's bass.

Click here for an audio sample courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 42: 3/10/1970 Hamburg, Germany

3/10/1970 Hamburg, Germany  Lili Marleen

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

Bonzo unleashes a barrage of machine gun fire at the end of I Can't Quit You Baby. Page makes the theramin chirp just before the bow solo in Dazed and Confused. There is a slight cut/tape disturbance during the frantic guitar solo. Page plays a muted intro to Heartbreaker ends. Page retunes his guitar just as Bonzo enters during White Summer/Black Mountain Side. There's another odd cut just as Thank You is ending which leaves us at the beginning of What is and What Should Never Be. 

Moby Dick is as thunderous as ever, especially the finale. Page, Jones, and Bonzo get into a jazz improvisation at the beginning of How Many More Times. Plant has some trouble introducing the band, eventually managing to present "Johnny John Paul Jones, Jumping John Bonham, Jiving Jimmy Page, and Rocking Robert Plant." The crowd is amused by Plant's whispered boogie talk at the beginning of an excellent medley, including a very traditional run-through of Travelling Riverside Blues. The show ends with a wild Whole Lotta Love.

The tape is a bit distant, but clear.

Click here for an audio sample courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 41: 3/9/1970 Vienna, Austria

3/9/1970 Vienna, Austria  Vienna 1970

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, Moby Dick, How Many More Times

Bonzo plods his way through I Can't Quit You Baby. Plant sounds almost bored as he introduces Dazed and Confused. Page has some problems with his equipment during the bow solo, even stopping at one point to offer the crowd an explanation. The guitar solo section is a wild cacophony. Heartbreaker is again preceded by a jam on the riff from Jeff Beck's Rice Pudding. Jones's organ is explosive during Since I've Been Loving You. Thank You is quite epic. The tape ends with a very laid back How Many More Times which picks up during the medley. A fairly low-key performance.

The tape is distant and a bit distorted at times.

Click here for an audio sample courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 40: 3/7/1970 Montreux, Switzerland

3/7/1970 Montreux, Switzerland  Divinity

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

We're Gonna Groove seems a bit sluggish, especially Page. He seems to be moving in slow motion during the intro to I Can't Quit You Baby. Quite the opposite can be said of Plant, who is full of energy and bravado. Page re-tunes his guitar during the third verse of Dazed and Confused. His playing is almost drunk, very bluesy. As an intro to Heartbreaker, Page leads the band in a jam on the riff from Jeff Beck's Rice Pudding. Since I've Been Loving You is like a funeral march, mournful and longing.

Jones plays a haunting organ solo before Thank You. Bonzo is an out of control locomotive during Moby Dick. Page plays a riff similar to that of Psychotic Reaction at the beginning of How Many More Times. There is a source change to the inferior soundboard tape just as the song is getting underway. The Bolero section features some excellent improvisation. The band are locked into each other during the medley, which features excellent renditions of Bottle Up and Go and Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels' Jenny Take a Ride! Plant has everyone playing his call and response game during the "got you in the sights..." section. The tape ends during the theramin freakout in Whole Lotta Love (which features Jones on organ), leaving us without the end of this great show.

The audience tape is excellent and atmospheric. Clear and well-balanced. The soundboard tape is a bit hissy and lacks the feeling of being there that the audience tape has.

Click here for audio samples courtesy of Black Beauty.

Day 38: 2/23/1970 Helsinki, Finland

2/23/1970 Helsinki, Finland  (master>eq>1st gen>cdr)

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love

Page's soloing is bluesy and soulful during I Can't Quit You Baby. Plant is in top form, shaking his mic violently as he wails. Page disappears during the second verse of Dazed and Confused, leaving Plant, Jones, and Bonzo sounding a bit lost. He returns in time for the lead-in to the bow solo. The guitar solo is a bit hurried and disjointed, Page's fingers seem to get in his way. Plant introduces White Summer/Black Mountain Side as "white cock." 

The second appearance of Since I've Been Loving You is introduced as a minor key blues featuring Jones on Hammond organ. This rendition is much closer to the version on Led Zeppelin III than the previous performance. A very short organ intro by Jones precedes the second appearance of Thank You, which features a soulful guitar solo from Page. There is a strange tape disturbance at the beginning of Moby Dick, it sounds like someone recorded over a few seconds of the tape with a man speaking in a foreign language. Page is still in his own world of chaotic inspiration at the beginning of How Many More Times, always slightly ahead or behind the rest of the band. The ever-extending medley includes frantic renditions of Boogie Chillen, Move on Down the Line, and a surprise Be-Bop-A-Lula, among others. The announcer has the entire crowd chanting "come back!" before the band returns to close the show with Whole Lotta Love.

The tape is a bit muffled, but fairly clear with Page in front and Plant buried under the rest of the band.

Day 37: 1/9/1970 London, England

1/9/1970 London England  Royal Albert Hall Multitrack

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, What is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick, How Many More Times*, Bring it on Home, Whole Lotta Love, Communication Breakdown, C'mon Everybody, Something Else, Long Tall Sally^

*-The Lost Mixes EP Vol. 7

^-Royal Albert Hall 1970 Master Edition

The famous Royal Albert Hall show begins with a brief introduction of the band before they launch into We're Gonna Groove followed by I Can't Quit You Baby, both of which saw official release (misattributed and in altered form) on Coda. Page is in excellent form. The bow solo in Dazed and Confused is eerie and dynamic. He shreds through an excellent extended guitar solo. Bonzo and Jones are like an out of control locomotive. Plant is locked onto Page, echoing his licks at every turn until the thunderous finale. An epic indeed.

Heartbreaker is unfortunately cut short just as the guitar solo is beginning. Page delivers another impressive White Summer/Black Mountain Side, followed by an excellent What is and What Should Never Be. Plant is enthusiastically engaging the crowd at the beginning of How Many More Times, trying to make the vibes reach all the way to the back of the room. The extended Bolero section includes wild soloing from Page as well as an impromptu jam, complete with lyrics. Plant is full of bravado as he declares himself during The Hunter section. The medley includes a great Bottle Up and Go jam as well as an excellent fast-paced That's All Right. Plant quips "I couldn't make it that time" after his voice breaks during the final "gun!"

The first appearance of Bring it on Home has all the power and intensity of the album version and then some. Whole Lotta Love is ferocious, the crowd can't get enough. A quick and dirty Communication Breakdown is followed by quicker and dirtier renditions of C'mon Everybody and Something Else. Bonzo attacks the latter at full force. The show ends with an explosive Long Tall Sally medley including Move on Down the Line and Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin On.

The tape is a copy of Kevin Shirley's multitrack working mix that was being prepared for Led Zeppelin DVD. The two supplementary sources are of lesser quality, but they are more complete in the songs they are used for. The film on Led Zeppelin DVD is simply amazing. To be able to see the band interacting with one another on stage at one of their peaks. And with a superb 5.1 surround sound mix. Must see.

Day 36: 1/8/1970 Bristol, England

1/8/1970 Bristol, England  The Bristol Stomp

We're Gonna Groove, I Can't Quit You Baby, Dazed and Confused, Heartbreaker, White Summer/Black Mountain Side, Since I've Been Loving You, Thank You, Moby Dick, How Many More Times, Whole Lotta Love, Communication Breakdown

The tape begins during the first appearance of We're Gonna Groove, but you wouldn't know it by listening. The tape is very muffled and noisy, making it difficult to tell what's going on. The sound clears up a bit as I Can't Quit You Baby gets underway. There are some tape dropouts during the guitar solo in another epic Dazed and Confused, but nothing too distracting.

The crowd goes wild when Plant introduces Heartbreaker. The band is in full swing, playing every note with intensity. White Summer/Black Mountain Side is followed by the first appearance of Since I've Been Loving You, nine months before the release of Led Zeppelin III (although Plant says it will be out in three). The arrangement is much looser than the album version, with Plant singing alternate lyrics, but the dynamic tension remains intact. The first appearance of Thank You is preceded by an organ solo from Jones and features an excellent guitar solo by Page.

Only the first two minutes of Moby Dick survive before the tape cuts to Plant's introduction of How Many More Times. Page is introduced as "Jimmy 'Hoochie Coochie' Page." He solos frantically during the Bolero section. The crowd goes wild as Plant squeezes his lemon during the medley. The first appearance of Whole Lotta Love since Led Zeppelin II was released (now with the theramin freakout intact) is met with a loud cheer from the crowd. Plant has them echoing his wails of "woman!" repeatedly. In a twist on their former show opener, Communication Breakdown closes the show and features a bit of Good Times Bad Times during the breakdown. Welcome to 1970.

The tape is muffled, noisy, and distant with some hiss. Luckily, the next night will provide quite a different listening experience.

Click here for an audio sample courtesy of Black Beauty.