Jump to content

ThreeSticks

Members
  • Posts

    113
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Profile Information

  • Location
    United States

Recent Profile Visitors

The recent visitors block is disabled and is not being shown to other users.

  1. There is also the issue of the vandalism of Page's tape vaults that occurred in the 1980's. What was taken could be the stuff that Page may have wanted to put out at some point. If he doesn't have the original master tapes, he's screwed. Because then you are dealing with sources where the audio gets worse and worse. Suppose all soundboards from the 1977 tour were vandalized. Well, that's trouble, because as we all know, the band was often off and on during that tour. But if Page had all the tapes, he could've assembled a "best of the 1977 tour" so that only the best recorded version of "Achilles" was released, for instance. Same thing with the 1980 Tour of Europe. It appears that most of those tapes were lifted from Page's house as well. I mean, isn't almost every concert from that tour available on soundboard unofficially?? Again, another chance for Page to do a best of 1980 package instead of relying on just one gig. Most of the live records that you hear by rock bands are not from a single show. They are from multiple shows. And with the advent of digital recording, it has allowed bands to record, say, 50 concerts during a tour so they have 50 versions of a particular tune to choose from. I totally understand the argument of LZ wanting to retain its musical legacy, and to not put out crappy shows. But the best way to avoid this and yet to give LZ fans what they want has apparently been taken away from Pagey. It's to take a number of shows from a concert tour that were professionally recorded, and then assemble a best of live package. As up and down as the 1977 tour was, if Page had everything, he could probably assemble a live album that would live up to the band's legacy. It really comes down to what he does and doesn't have. My sense is that the lack of LZ live releases speaks to what may have been taken from him as much as the quality of the shows.
  2. Bonzo just wasn't the same to me on the 1980 European Tour and much of the 1977 tour (although he clearly had his moments). He was overweight and out of shape, and you cannot be that as a drummer playing the kind of music LZ played. It's going to show at times. I don't wish to insinuate that I feel John became a bad drummer. He just wasn't the same guy he used to be. He wasn't as consistent. The saddest thing about Bonzo for me is that by the time LZ was ready to hit America before he died, Richard Cole and many of the band's bad influences were gone. Starting in the 80's, it started becoming normal for established rock bands like the Rolling Stones to bring their families on the road. The groupie circus was over. The band's kids were getting older. Even with some lingering issues, It just seemed like LZ was changing. I sometimes wonder if anyone ever sat Bonzo down and said, "Man, you can start bringing your kids and wife along. You don't have to do this to yourself." I don't know. I can only speculate because I only know so much about the band because they kept things so secret (not saying this is wrong), and the sources of information on the band I just don't trust that much. Which is why I am hoping this 50 anniversary book provides a bit more insight than just random commentary on the photos, but it probably won't. The mystique is part of what makes this band. But the one thing that Bonzo CLEARLY seemed to be unhappy about while touring or recording was being separated from his loved ones. I just wonder if something could've been arranged to better that situation. Again, especially considering that it was 1980 and it wasn't 1970 anymore.
  3. As much as I respect Ross Halfin as a photographer, he is the kind of guy who would ask Page about off-stage activities of the band (and its crew) that LZ clearly don't wish to talk about, which I understand. I mean, if you read Nikki Sixx's book "The Heroin Diaries," it talks about an orgy that Ross participated in. Whenever sex, drugs, and sleaze are brought up in various Behind The Musics, there's old Ross telling us about everything he witnessed. I don't read his website, but whenever he is on TV, he comes off as a guy who is the least bit concerned about the music. I think LZ can do a great, great book that isn't a "tell-all." I realize it's been a long time since the recording of "Led Zeppelin III," but the band's recollections of that time period are probably way more vivid than what happened at 4am at some night club in San Antonio after an exhausting 1969 show. Most musicians really enjoy discussing the creative process, how they work, what inspires them, etc. It's one of the reasons why Jimmy's interviews in the documentary "It Might Get Loud" were so magical. In that film you could almost see tears in his eyes when he walked into Headley Grange. If you keep it to the music, he's very open and has a wealth of information to share.
  4. Of course, but can't I be an idealist?? . I realize the Springsteen style download site won't likely occur, but it's still a great idea, presuming the artist wants their concerts to be released, which is the reason why the guys in LZ would nix the idea. They would only want the very best stuff to be publicly released. I understand that's the way they operate. So be it. But when it comes to the book, that's a different matter. It makes no sense for them to do the book in any other way than I described it. For the amount of griping that Page and Plant have done in interviews over the years about the books that have been written about them, you would think they would want to set the record straight with their own book. While I understand that money is the biggest factor behind the publication of most of the rock musician autobiographies over the past 5-7 years, they have also been done because the authors know that when they write their own book, it generally puts end to the unauthorized books which they hate. I am not aware of another book that's been written about Keith Richards, Aerosmith (except their individual autobiographies), Clapton, etc., since they published their own autobiography. Yes, having NY Times bestseller is nice, but being able to put an end to the unauthorized books is also nice. And as I said, there have been a million and a half books related to LZ photography. Jimmy's book capped it off. I am just hoping for a greater emphasis on "text" as opposed to photos in this new book, but the way it looks (like a coffee table book), I am probably not going to get what many people would like. But this is their chance to write their own story.....they can't complain in interviews anymore when someone brings up Davis' book, Cole's book, etc. I was just reading a 1988 interview with Plant last night where he went on for a whole page about the misinformation that's contained in books about the band. Moreover, universities do not consider Wikipedia to be a "reputable" reference, so almost every thing I read on there, I read with a grain of salt - even if the information is credited to a magazine article from 1971 that no one owns. LZ have their chance now to set the record straight. It's now or never, because they're aren't getting any younger. I am only mentioning this because of the amount of times I have seen Jimmy and Robert pissed off when interviewers ask questions that were clearly based on info they attained through unauthorized books. Jimmy and Robert ask with irritation, "How do you know?" Well, if you don't say anything yourself or give any references to reputable sources, fans are going to look to bad or inadequate sources. I am not talking about the mud shark business, but information and true stories that are related to the band's music and performances.
  5. You're completely and totally missing my point. I already know those details. Most serious Zep fans do as well. I don't care what wikipedia says. I don't care what some wikipedia writer picked out of Stephen Davis' book. And frankly, I don't even care what Jimmy Page had to say about Presence back in 1976 or even ten years ago. I want the surviving band members and the surviving band members only to be writing the text from their contemporary perspective in this new book. They have never told it from their perspective and their perspective only. All three guys. It is really important, as Jimmy implied in his presser, that the guys tell it from their perspective because they've been misrepresented so many times in unauthorized bios and even in interviews. My worry is that this is just going to be another book of photographs with text along the lines of John Paul Jones saying: "Gees, I couldn't believe my hair style back then." This band is too important for that. Remembrances of every song and every album should be covered in detail, etc. Same with key concerts. Again, from their perspective now. Artists often do not have a good take on their work until they have decades of time to look back on it. I don't care what Plant thought about the Led Zep post-Live Aid rehearsals when he was promoting his late 80's "Now And Zen" solo album. Been there, done that. Not that it's a part of the band's history I wish to hear a great deal about.
  6. Regarding the Led Zeppelin book that is going to be released in September or October (or whenever it is).......it is my sincere hope that the book contains more TEXT than photos. There have been a million and a half LZ photo books, including Page's book. What has been untold is the Led Zeppelin story in their own words. All we have been given over the years are mainly unauthorized bios with disgruntled former employees being used as the main source of info. The books are totally lacking in detail about the kinds of things that a Zeppelin maniac would want to know. How was "The Rain Song" written. Was there a concerted effort to make "Presence" an all-electric guitar album, or did it just turn our that way? Any specific reason why "Dancing Days" was put on "Houses Of The Holy" instead of the title track? Any additional info about the "secret" band rehearsals after Live Aid? I mean, there might be answers to these kind of questions, but I think Zep fans are more interested in Led Zep addressing them. The real fans are more interested in how the music was created. The crazy off stage stuff is so tired. I am also kind of surprised that LZ hasn't put out a "story of" DVD like The Beatles Anthology (with less discs, obviously). Then again, they may feel that this sort of thing might destroy the LZ mystique. As far as live recordings are concerned, I wish LZ would create a site like live.springsteen.net (http://live.brucespringsteen.net/). On this site fans can pay for a download (in a variety of formats) of current and classic soundboard concerts in their entirety. You can also order a Compact Disc if you wish. If Page has got some sort of really good live release like "How The West Was Won" that's fine and I will buy it, but a site like the Springsteen one allows a big time artist to release soundboard concerts in a more casual manner without having to worry about record companies (and their middle men), huge advertising, constant interviews, etc. Obviously, when it comes to the Compact Discs, a site like this gives you another advantage: you only manufacture them according to customer need. I realize that LZ has a ton of bootleg concert recordings, and many hard core LZ fans assume that everyone owns them. However, a lot of people don't, and a lot of people don't want to download them (along with viruses and malware) from storage sites. They would rather pay for them. It just seems to make more sense for LZ to put up a site like this than to release a bunch of stand alone CD's for record stores. I realize that Page had a lot of stuff stolen from his house in the 80's.....maybe he could track down the best source of what was stolen and use a recording studio to freshen up the recordings to make them better for "official" release. If LZ were to put out some official CD's for record stores, I wouldn't mind a "best of" CD for the 1980 tour of Europe, the 1977 tour of the States, the 1975 Earls Court shows, and the 1975 tour of the states. These areas of the band's career need to be addressed first before we see anything from the "Houses Of The Holy" tour or before.
  7. I think that Jimmy was in worse shape in 1977 than he was in 1979 or even 1980. I have listened to every Europe 1980 show, and none of them drop to the low points of some of the 1977 gigs when Jimmy had be carried to the limo. I felt Robert's vocals were much better in 1980 than 1977 as well. Don't get me wrong: I think Jimmy was in bad shape, and he desperately needed to clean up his act, but I think it could've been a better overall tour than the 1977 tour was. But I am just guessing.
  8. Clarksdale was better than some of the LZ albums, IMO. I still listen to it once per week. I went to two or three concerts after that, and I haven't gone to a big time concert since. It absolutely pissed me off when fans would head for the beer stands when they started an unbelievable song like "When The World Was Young." I felt they were disrespectful. I sat there looking at those meatheads and said to myself, "Do you realize what you folks are doing to the real fans. You're going to deprive us of ever seeing Jimmy and Robert playing electric music ever again. Because Robert has zero tolerance for nostalgia." And sure enough, it happened. O2 and that's it. It had NOTHING to do with the quality of the album. It's outstanding. Both Robert and Jimmy still like it. As good as "Physical Graffiti"? Of course not. But worthy of the attention span of people who were only there to hear "Stairway" even though real Zep fans knew it would never be played. I hate to sound negative, but I no longer go see rock concerts with older performers due to the way Robert and Page's new material was treated on the Clarksdale tour. I figured why should I? Just about every quality older artist is going to be treated just the same way. The place is going to be half filled with people talking on smartphones and who just want to be there because they can say they were there,
  9. That may be true live, but Jimi's last album (or what he thought would be his last album) "The First Rays Of the New Rising Sun" represented the most mature songwriting of his career, IMO. I have no idea how it would have translated live. Some of the tunes, of course, were played live, but the dang audience wanted Foxy Lady and for Jimi to hump his amps. I get the sense that Jimi may have gone several years without touring to get rid of any notion of him being an outlandish stage performer ever again. Them days were done as far as he was concerned.
  10. "You" from the Ox as well. Great tune. Vicious bass playing. "Did You Steal My Money" is a silly song but one that many rock stars can relate to. The reference to being in a bear pit in "Cache Cache" is true. I guess Pete got so pissed and drugged one night that he passed out in a zoo. The remixed version of the CD is quite interesting because they cut way more tracks than they needed for the record. "I Like Nightmares" very much captures Pete's frame of mind at the time. Wait a minute, I guess we are on a Led Zeppelin fan forum...sorry Kind of a bad thing to do being that Pete T. hates Led Zeppelin (but likes the guys in the band). But he dislikes everything, so everyone gets the same treatment.
  11. I understand that, but like many people, I hate the sound of bootlegs. I mean, if it's the only thing available, I will take it. But part of the reason why I was slightly disappointed with the LZ reissues is that I wanted to get a version of "Swan Song" on CD in high fidelity. There was enough room on the Graffiti companion disc for its inclusion. By the way, I love "The Quiet One" from The Who. Bless the Ox. That song was one of the greatest live songs ever by The Who. Townshend's solos were among his best ever when that track was played live. Even during the 1980/81 tours when Pete was wasted.
  12. Speaking about the XYZ project, Page has talked over the years about putting some of that material out. But with Squire's passing, I don't know if it will ever occur. Plus, a couple of the XYZ ideas ended up in other places.
  13. I honestly don't know if Plant even likes JPJ, and if Plant's dislike of him could've been the final nail in the coffin regarding his participation in the NO Quarter project. In Uncle Joe's Record Guide on Hard Rock Bands, it is mentioned that JPJ was not even scheduled to perform with Plant and Page at the rock and roll hall of fame ceremony, but some last minute, tense negotiations led to his inclusion in the jam. I think there is a rift between them.
  14. I know, it's easy to get envious about a guy whose getting laid with a snap of his fingers, and so you want to find some way to put the guy down even though you secretly want what he's got. Plant was the definition of a rock star: all the chicks wanted to be with him, and all the guys wanted to be like him. If you've got those 2 things covered, your band is going to be popular. The fact that Plant is a highly intelligent person who is well versed in history, legends and mythology makes him all the more interesting.
  15. Cole was supposedly in L.A. hiding because he was still scared that Peter Grant was on the look out for him for some of the things he had said about Grant's kids after Cole was canned. I still cannot imagine what Cole went through rotting in an Italian prison cell on some crazy terrorism charge and having to cold turkey at the same time. Unless the guards gave him dope in prison, we can only assume he had to kick in the most horrendous conditions, because he wasn't clean when he got arrested. Gees. Of course it took him several years to clean up for good.
×
×
  • Create New...