One of the more underrated albums of the 70s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqhNH026Wjo&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Today is Lou Reed's birthday. He is 70 years old...yes, that's right, SEVENTY!!! He's older than Jimmy Page, and the jokesters will say he's always looked 70. If you are into any of the arts at all, be it literature, painting, music, whatever, there are certain figures that usually are the ones that open the gates to you, that led you down roads that form your basic esthetic and aesthetic choices. For me, it was reading Bram Stoker's "Dracula" as a boy that began my love of books, Van Gogh and the Impressionists that got me into art, and Alfred Hitchcock and the early Universal Monster movies of the 1930s that released my inner cinema-geek. As for music, the Beatles were the first to catch my ear. But the two most lasting loves and influences on my musical tastes and journeys both pierced my consciousness in 1969. One of course was Led Zeppelin. The other was the Velvet Underground. Buying Led Zeppelin I and the Velvet Underground album shortly after my birthday in 1969 was to impact me in ways I had yet imagined or could even fathom at that age. To this day, Led Zeppelin and the Velvet Underground remain my most beloved and cherished bands of all time. The only difference is that I saw Led Zeppelin in concert. Sadly, I was denied that privilege with the Velvet Underground. I was able to see Lou Reed solo, though...and John Cale, too. But never the VU. With Moe's and Sterling's passing, I never will. So happy birthday Lou Reed. Thanks for all the great noise! The most boss version of "Sister Ray" I've heard yet. Boston Tea Party 1969. The album that started it all... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Px47ke-JEqE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

^^^Aha! That explains it then, as the cds I have for March 12 are Badgeholder's "Taking No Prisoners Tonight", which came out in 2004. It's a mix of the Source 1 and Mike Millard's Source 2 tape. I pray that the soundboard comes out eventually. And to answer your question, yes, this was the Long Beach show I went to in 75. So judging by your ratings, the Philly show must sound like it was recorded from the restroom at the Spectrum...or outside the venue itself.

Major Major nailed it...their names were simply listed in alphabetical order; it doesn't mean Bonham was the main writer of the song. Besides, Jimmy supposedly hates "Living Loving Maid". Last time I checked, his name was still listed on the credits.

If anything happens on this supposed date, I'll eat my shorts. Allow me to clarify...I wasn't trying to be rude, just pragmatic. If Mayan culture is your field of study or you find it interesting to read about the history of pyramids or the possibility of alien life-forms, that's fine. I find a lot of that of interest on some level, too. My remarks were more directed at the "world is ending on 12-12-12" crowd and their enablers in the media that allow them to shout about it, drowning out more relevant news stories in the process.

Tank top? Where do you live? Cause we certainly don't call that a tank top in the U.S. and I never heard a sweater referred to as a tank top in the U.K., either. A tank top is what Bonham wore on the 77 tour...see the Seattle Kingdome video or any photos from LA Forum 77.

Ummm, Page-no; Jones-no; Plant-maybe. But like dazedcat said, who cares anymore? Thanks to Jann Wenner and his Rolling Stone acolytes, the Rock and Roll HOF has become as dreary as the magazine itself. I suppose if there's any good that comes from it it's that some of the more obscure or forgotten musicians of the past get a little attention once in a while...usually under the "influences" or "sidemen" category. The Grammys, the Hall of Fame, mainstream corporate radio, American Idol...these all seem designed for and cater to the non-music fan. The ones who rarely buy a record or go to a club to see a band. The ones who will just listen to whatever's on Top 40 radio and when you ask them what music or band they like, they reply "they don't really have one". Every hardcore music fan already has their own personal Hall of Fame and nothing Jann Wenner and his cronies do makes a bit of difference in the long run. Put it this way...what's more important: Led Zeppelin's music or the fact they're in the HOF?

An friend at Oxford e-mailed me the news...I was STUNNED at the amount. That is a lot of money. Thanks for posting all the articles, Sam. It's nice to see Led Zeppelin coverage in the mainstream media that doesn't reference drugs and mud sharks. Wonder if Oxford will start offering a Led Zeppelin course...a degree in Zeppology?

Considering the Mayan Calendar outlived the Mayans themselves, I'd say it's pretty pointless to worry about some arbitrary date. Didn't anybody learn anything from the 2000 hoax/debacle...let alone every "end of days" huckster that's come down the pike? Nobody gave a rat's ass about the Mayan Calendar since the demise of the Mayans and NOW we're supposed to get all worked up about it? Fuck the Mayans and fuck their stupid calendar.

The Blueberry Hill show took place on Sept. 4, 1970 at the Forum in Inglewood. They only played one concert at the Forum. However, after the show they motored up north to Santa Monica Blvd. and Doheny and jammed with Fairlport Convention at the end of their Troubadour Club show. Now, THAT is something I'd like to see photos of. And people need to stop carping about Jimmy's sweater and Jonesy's pants...they're awesome, haha! What...would you rather have had them dressing like Gary Glitter? I think not.

It was a Martin Scorsese film and you didn't know about it until now? I know you're busy with your radio duties and all, but I would think to someone who sees a lot of films like yourself, news of a new Scorsese movie would cut thru the clutter.

You gave a 7.5 to the March 12 Long Beach? Are you sure you're not confusing 3-12 with 3-11? They did two shows at Long Beach Arena. Mike Millard taped the first night but he was late to the second night due to a car accident. So only Stairway thru the encores has good sound on the March 12, 75 show. The rest of the show is from a source that is way too bass heavy and distorted. Unless you have a source for 3-12 that hasn't circulated, I think you're mistaking 3-12 for Mike Millard's 3-11 recording. By the way, have you posted your ratings somewhere for the public to see? A website or blog perhaps? Did you ever review for the UU site or Collectors Music?

I just posted my response to Davy's death on the Monkees thread, so I won't rehash it here. But I will say that we played the Monkees all day at my friend's bookstore. We were having a book signing last night and a couple regulars showed up that are well-versed in 60s pop culture, having written many books on the era. So I got to chat with them about Davy Jones...as well as the Beach Boys upcoming reunion(well sort of...Dennis and Carl sadly can't make it, except in spirit). Everyone at the event seemed to be sad at the news...but yeah, as Jahfin noted, it's not like Davy lived his life in the tabloids making a freak and spectacle of himself and his family. So accordingly, the media reaction is going to be more restrained and muted than it was for Whitney or Anna Nicole Smith or Angelina(ooops, sorry, she's still alive).

Unlike some recent deaths, THIS was a complete surprise to me, as Davy Jones seemed so perpetually youthful. You never thought of him as "old" or "aging". He was always Davy...that cute, tiny, cheeky, scamp of The Monkees. Michael Nesmith was always my favourite Monkee(something about his wool cap and his bemused nature), but they all were fun to watch. The Monkees was a show I enjoyed with relish and with no compunction about its "manufactured origins" and supposed affront to true rock fans ideals about authenticity. The show was fun and zany and quite groundbreaking and influential in its way. In fact, for all the impact that '60s films like "2001", "Easy Rider", "The Graduate", "Bullitt", and "Bonnie and Clyde" had on the pop-culture landscape, it is "A Hard Day's Night" and "The Monkees" that probably had the strongest and most lasting influence. As much as I loved the TV show, though, the clincher was the Bob Rafelson-Jack Nicholson drug-fueled phantasmagoria on The Monkees, "Head". Made in 1968, I didn't get a chance to see it until the late-70s. What a trip! A surrealistic exploration and explosion of the Monkees myth, it is something you have to see at least once in your life. Whether you see it stoned or not is up to you...I've seen it both stoned and sober and enjoyed it just as much either way. Look for the amazing amount of hip counter-culture cameos in the film. And fans of Michael Mann's "Heat" will recognize the bridge in the opening scene. Anyway, this movie encouraged me to reevaluate the Monkees place and relevance in Sixties pop culture...and they had some pretty good tunes, too. Let me put it this way...nowadays I find myself listening to the Monkees more often than Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Santana and the rest of those deadly earnest San Francisco bands that scoffed at "fake" bands like the Monkees. Anyway...it was a sad shock hearing about Davy's passing. May he rest in peace.

Got up early and took advantage of the beautiful morning by hiking up to Dante's View in Griffith Park. No pictures as I left my phone and all electronic gadgetry behind. Just me and the sights and sounds of the great outdoors.

Are you actually seeing this in the theatre in 3D or watching at home? Most of the recent 3D films have been poppycock, but "Hugo" is one of the few that warrants seeing it in 3D...Wim Wenders' "Pina" is another. Not saying "Hugo" was my favourite film of the year, but it was the best of the 9 nominated films for the Oscars.

The ones I saw, natch! 6.21, 23, 25-27. In my mind's eye they were all FANTASTIC!!! A savage and epic rampage of white light and white heat. This wasn't some prissy shit like Kansas or Styx. Achilles Last Stand was brutal, raw, yet still full of grace and beauty. It was Punk-Prog decades before it was even a genre. It's instructive to note that ALS live was around 9 minutes; almost 2 minutes faster than the album version; it's as if the band was shot out of a cannon following the longueur of the solo section of the concert. ALS was our reward for enduring the drum and guitar/noise solos. In hindsight, as I listen to the bootlegs, you can hear slight differences in performance quality, so I tend to favour the 6.21 or 6.23 for my listening pleasure. But in my memory, every single one of those 5 Achilles Last Stand performances was true Hammer of the Gods AWESOME!!!

Restlessness? Boredom? Being wasted and drunk? You have to remember that there was 2 years pent-up desire and emotion from the fans on the 77 tour. Then, there would be an hour or more wait at some of the shows...the tix stated a 7:30pm starting time but I defy you to find a concert that actually started on time. I don't know...to me, the 77 audience didn't seem any more or less unruly and firecracker-prone than 1975 or even 1973. And though I wasn't there, if you listen to some of those 70-71 shows it seems the crowds were pretty rowdy and out of control then, too. It was just the nature of the beast. Led Zeppelin was aggressive and intense and that's the type of people they attracted. A Zeppelin concert was a 3-hour assault on your mind and body...an all-out warping of your senses. It was no place for wimps or prudes.

Major Major: Just so I know for comparisons sake, a few shows that I consider to be some of the worst-sounding in my collection are March 6, 1973 Stockholm, Sweden March 12, 1975 Long Beach Arena June 22, 1977 LA Forum What would be the numeric rating you would give these shows as far as sound quality? I think it's bizarre how whenever a topic comes up like "what's the best No Quarter or OTHAFA or Kashmir?" or "what are the 10 best concerts?", Philadelphia never comes up. It's almost as if the concerts were held in a vacuum. Even concerts in relatively podunk towns like Oakland and Uniondale(Nassau County), NY get discussed more among the Led Zeppelin community. They even passed up Philadelphia on their landmark 1973 US tour...and they played the Spectrum a lot less than the Capitol Center...and Philadelphia is ten times the city Landover is. Was this a Peter Grant/Jimmy Page grudge against Philly? Maybe something to do with a perceived slight against them from the Yardbirds days?

^^^Enjoy the steak! Ruth's Chris is one of the best steakhouses around.

Don't mention "The Sound of Music" to Christopher Plummer; word is he is not fond of that movie. Ratings were up for this year's telecast over last year, but I'm curious how it all would have played out if hack Brett Ratner HADN'T shot his mouth off on Howard Stern, necessitating his withdrawal as Oscar show director, necessitating Eddie Murphy's withdrawal as Oscar host. Sacha Baron Cohen's "Dictator" gag with Kim Jong Il's ashes being dumped on that idiot Ryan Suckrest was one of the best parts of the night...along with the Christopher Guest bit about the lameness of focus groups. It featured the usual Christopher Guest repertory group...and any chance to see Fred Willard is a blessing. He's comedy gold! I've been a part of some focus groups and yes, they are that lame.

^^^Congrats on 20 years marriage! What'd you get her...china or platinum? You're the second person from back east that has mentioned going to Ruth's Chris steakhouse this past week...I didn't know they had branched out from Beverly Hills/LA. Bon appetite.

^^^He got jacked during the All-Star game. http://www.latimes.com/sports/lakersnow/la-sp-sn-kobe-concussion-20120228,0,3078032.story?track=rss

T Wolves may take the Lakers with Kobe out with concussion...to go along with his broken nose.

Hahaha...don't ask.