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How about your favourite acoustic set?


Sue Dounim

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Besides the obvious choices like 1977/06/27 and 1971/09/29, what's (in your opinion) the best acoustic set you've ever heard Zep play? (By the way, the two examples above are my favourite, with 1977/07/17 and 1972/06/25 coming in behind them.)

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I also love 6/25/72 - they sounded so joyous then, especially on Bron Yr Aur Stomp. I always think of summer 72 as the tour with the most positive vibe.

Generally, the 77 acoustic sets are my favorite, and just off the top of my head I'm thinking of 4/28/77 as one that really moved me. 6/21 is great...so many from 77.

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1970/09/04 for the great atmosphere and lengthy spoken introduction to Bron-Yr-Aur.

1971/09/28 for the super long intro to Going to California, and the Beatles teases.

1972/06/14 for the great performance.

1972/06/19 for the debut of Black Country Woman.

All six of the LA 77 acoustic sets for being pretty badass across the board, every single night.

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What I love about many of the acoustic sets is they give off a feel as if you walked in on a cookout and there we're four guys just playing together enjoying each others company.

I'm addressing this to everybody in the discussion: raise yer hands if yer fans of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, since the above comment pretty much describes their shows to a T. I've said before how I'm convinced Zeppelin bringing the acoustic set back into play -starting with the '75 Earls Court gigs, followed by the '77 tour- was a direct result of seeing CSNY play Wembley in '74, and how the '74 CSNY tour showed how a group could pull off an 'intimate' acoustic performance in a large venue...not that it always worked, mind you- Crosby, Stills and Neil Young all individually vented their spleens on the audience at least once over not being to hear themselves playing quiet acoustic material over top of 50000 fans. Yet Zeppelin was able to pull it off with little fuss, it seems.

But enough of the history lesson :lol:

For me it's hard to pick one Zeppelin acoustic set as 'best' -they were never bad, even on perceived 'bad' nights (well, maybe Tempe 20/7/77...)- but 27/6/77 has always been my favourite.

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5/24/75 Very nice indeed! I'm a CSN (and sometimes Y) fan too and I've seen the Wembley CSNY bootleg video too. That's the one with Joni Mitchell, right?

Yes...I like Joni too, but that has to be the worst fuckin' version of "Suite Judy Blue Eyes" I've ever heard :lol: Joni Mitchell -who of course had quite the, um, history with CSNY- opened for them at Wembley; so did The Band. There are many better '74 CSNY shows circulating than that one- Graham Nash in particular hated their performance (too much cocaine, which shouldn't come as a surprise considering it's CSNY we're talking about...), but word on the street is that they are preparing the Wembley gig for official release just the same...assuming Neil gives the go ahead, mind ya, so it'll probably be out around 2030 or so :lol:

Ms Mitchell sat in with CSNY a couple of times during the '74 tour (Roosevelt Raceway 8/9/74 is another one, there's a soundboard recording for that show with a much better CSNY & M "Suite" than the Wembley version.)

If yer a CSNY fan, track down the 9/7/74 Seattle show if you haven't already- fourty songs (!), damn near four hours, including a loooooong acoustic set. Great show.

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Tough to chose just one.

Some of my faves are:

Berkeley Sept 14,1971

Seattle June 19,1972

L.A. June 27, 1977

The Japan 1971 sets for being so unique with numbers like Down By The Riverside and We Shall Overcome.

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I am a major fan of the acoustic sets and after missing them in 1973 and (especially) !975, I welcomed them back with open arms and glee in 1977. I've said for years that it gave a campfire-vibe and intimacy to the shows, and when Roger Waters went on his bitchy tirade in 1977 about how he hated the crowds and feel of big concerts(which lead to his dull and misanthropic "The Wall"), I reflected how Led Zeppelin, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen had no problems making big concerts feel small and intimate. But then, Pink Floyd came off like assholes, and the crowds often picked up and reflected the bad vibes back at the band.

Anyhoo, my favourite Acoustic Sets are:

All the Los Angeles and Long Beach ones from 1970 to 1977...with 9.4.70, 6.25.72, 6.27.72, 6.21.77, 6.23.77, 6.26.77 and 6.27.77 in particular being faves.

All the 1971 Japanese shows, with 9.29.71 Osaka tops. Love the long "Going to California" and of course, "Friends".

9.14.71 Berkeley, CA. Short but perfectly recorded and played renditions of "That's the Way" and "Going to California". Plant's voice is so beautiful and Page and Jones meld their guitar and mandolin perfectly.

2.19.72 Adeliade and 2.27.72 Sydney. The 1972 Australian/New Zealand tour is an often overlooked tour.

5.17.75 and 5.24.75 Earl's Court.

9.4.71 Toronto.

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1971/09/28 for the super long intro to Going to California, and the Beatles teases.

The version of Down by the Riverside is very nice aswell, not a throwaway snippit like some of the Japanese acoustic stuff but a proper cover with JPJ backing up on organ.

Really makes me wish Zep had some kind of acoustic medley showcase like WLL was for blues/rock and roll.

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I listened to the acoustic set from 6/27/77 for the first time on my way to work this morning, and WOW! My favorite from '77, and favorite Bron-Yr-Aur Stomp bar none.

My other favorites would include 9/4/70, 9/14/71, all of Japan '71, 2/27/72 (my favorite from '72), 6/25/72 and I love the Earls Court set, and the added visuals are just a bonus.

Edit: Gonna throw in the acoustic performance of White Summer from the Julie Felix show. Even though it isn't a concert, its a stunning version.

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I absolutely Seattle 1977 (I think the date is 17/7/1977).

That version of Bron-yr-aur Stomp with Jimmy on harmony vocals :')

But I honestly just find Battle of Evermore with JPJ singing Sandy's part more funny than anything else

If you like the Seattle acoustic set, there are many other '77 acoustic sets you'd enjoy...check out 27/6/77 for a really good one.

Page always sang harmony on "Bron Y Aur Stomp" in '77, and some nights (the Landover shows, for example) John Bonham sang Sandy Denny's part on "Battle Of Evermore" with Jonesy.

Hmm. Probably either of the two acoustic sets I've listened to in detail: 25.06.1972 (Forum) or 25.05.1975 (Earls Court).

You mean to say you've never listened to a '77 acoustic set in 'detail', Melcore?

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You mean to say you've never listened to a '77 acoustic set in 'detail', Melcore?

I've heard them; not sure if I've listened to them, though, aside from the L.A. run.

I have to be honest..."The Battle of Evermore" was (more often than not) a drag, at least to me. "Black Country Woman" almost always rocks, though.

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"Black Country Woman" almost always rocks, though.

I'd've liked a full length "Black Country Woman" -harmonica and all- instead of a little two verse snippet...and "Dancing Days" should have gotten a full airing in '77 as well.

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Ironic, I was just listening to the 7/17/77 acoustic set just now. Love that improvisation when Jimmy broke a string. So far, I favor that.

I want to say -broken string or not- that Seattle boasts the longest "Bron Y Aur Stomp"...

I've mentioned this before: consider that, for all the hype the acoustic set got in '77, it only accounted for about twenty minutes of a given show- or, to put it in perspective, it was as long as the drum solo most nights. We talk quite a bit about what songs we'd've liked to have seen in place of all the solo wankery (drums, Noise, "White Summer")...a longer acoustic set would have been nice indeed!

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