^^^ I like that Baltimore show, too. Nice shot of 1975 Jimmy used for a 1972 clip, hehe. Night two of the 1971 Japanese tour... September 24, 1971 Budokan, Tokyo

^^^ Bless your Dutch heart, reswati. Thanks for finally answering my quotes. Yes, that and the other one were from Michael Powell's great "A Matter of Life and Death" aka in the U.S. as "Stairway to Heaven". Now we're all caught up on this thread. That's an easy one..."Once Upon A Time in the West"! "I was tussling with the most dangerous animal in the world - a woman."

^^^ I thought they said the proceeds were going to the Ahmet Ertegun Fund? Sam? Steve?

Yeah, those 1993 ones are from the Coverdale/Page tour as bluecongo mentioned above.

This came to me in a dream last night...here's who I would like to see perform the Led Zeppelin tributes at the Kennedy Center Honors as each artist represents a facet of Led Zeppelin's sound. 1. Prince 2. Jane's Addiction 3. Sigur Rós 4. Tool 5. Espers 6. Alabama Shakes Or how about an all-woman edition to honour the feminine energy Led Zeppelin had along with the macho swagger? 1. Joni Mitchell 2. Heart 3. Tori Amos 4. Bettye LaVette 5. Joan Jett 6. Alison Krause and Patty Griffin.

Me, too. Judging from the palms, somewhere tropical. Seaweed gate, you're gonna have to post a better link than that...it proved useless. Please explain how it is tacky? Black velvet paintings are tacky. What I see is a beautifully crafted wooden door.

Other than with Led Zeppelin, the times I saw Jimmy Page play "White Summer" was with The Firm and on the 1988 Outrider tour. It was linked with "Midnight Moonlight" each time.

Actually I was happy the Jets won yesterday. Not just because I had the Jets in my picks, but also because one of the recent trends I hate the most in the NFL is the head coach of the opposing team waiting until the last second to call time out before a field goal attempt. The Dolphins blocked the Jets field goal in Overtime to stay alive...OH NO! Wait a minute, the Dolphins asshole coach called time out! The block is invalid, the Jets get another chance and this time kick it through for the win. Way to go Dolphins! Fucking losers. Any coach that still does this useless tactic(I counted at least three victories that were turned into defeats last year because the idiot head coach called a time out) should be FIRED ON THE SPOT!!! Wake up coaches...it doesn't work!

Since the original question was '75 or '77 I stuck with those years. Besides, no "Kashmir" can be considered among the greatest without the Almighty Mellotron. Like my pal The Rover, I saw multiple "Kashmir"s. In 1975 I went to the March 12, 24, 25 & 27 shows. In 1977, I saw the June 21, 23, 25-27 shows. Nine total "Kashmir"s. To pick the greatest year is splitting hairs. 1975 it was fresh and new. Not as new as it was to fans on the early leg of the tour, as by the time the tour hit L.A., "Physical Graffiti" had been released and we had heard "Kashmir" on record and were somewhat prepared to hear the song in concert. Although, as The Rover said, nothing could quite prepare you for the WALLOP "Kashmir" had in concert. 1975 also had Jimmy using the Les Paul, which gave it a flavour different from the Danelectro ones later on. But after thinking about it, I gave the nod to 1977. What ultimately tipped the scales in favour of 1977 were these factors: 1. Plant's voice. It was simply STRONGER than in 1975, which gave the song more force and power. Plus his moans and screams and vocal effects were more hypnotic in 1977. MESMERIZING! 2. Keeping on the Plant tip, 1977 was the year he remembered to sing the "Let me take you there" refrain at the end. In 1975 he didn't and the end seemed to drag on without it, especially if Bonzo wasn't feeling it on his fills...some of Bonzo's fills on the '75 "Kashmir" were sluggish. 3. Perfect balance between guitar and mellotron. For me, "Kashmir" works best when both the guitar and mellotron mesh and one doesn't dominate the other. In '75 they were still working out the balance. In '77 it was perfected. A swirling, whirling wall of sound. 4. The segue from "White Summer/BMC". The band had just played an acoustic set and now Jimmy was sitted alone playing his Danelectro with a blue and red spot on him, creating a lavender effect. It was mellow and the crowd was all sitting down in their seats, just kind of spacing out. Then Jimmy bolts upright, kicking the chair away and the light of a thousand suns floods the stage as the band slams into "Kashmir" and the crowd rises as one and goes completely bonkers from beginning to end. Yeah, it was that dramatic, that amazing. So yeah, 1977 slightly gets the nod over 1975 as far as "Kashmir" goes. Not that the other years are slouches...and the 2007 one was stellar, even though Jones didn't use a mellotron. "Kashmir" is a bona fide Led Zeppelin concert classic. A member of the Setlist Hall of Fame. Anybody who witnessed one in concert will never forget it. Even the Page & Plant versions were memorable. FYI, all this talk of 6-23-77 is obscuring the fact that even better than the 6-21 and 6-23 is the 6-25 "Kashmir"...and 6-27 isn't far behind. I prefer a good audience source for '77 "Kashmir"s over soundboards because with soundboards you don't get the sense of the audience going berserk, which adds to the vibe of the performance. 1977 "Kashmir"...the effect was shattering.

Jets haters must be having a bit of schadenfreude right now, as without Revis they are doomed.

Fortunately I have been a music geek from an early age(THANKS DAD!) and taught from the get-go on proper use and storage of records, so none of my records are scratched and many of my records from the 60s and 70s still sound great. My old Velvet Underground records sound better than the CDs...I've never liked the way "White Light White Heat" sounds on CD. Another lesson I learned at a young age: Never loan your records out unless you plan on being there when they are played. Some of my friends had atrocious habits regarding the treatment of records.

Hi Tea for Tanja, The first BBC session was recorded on March 3, 1969, while the Supershow appearance was March 25, 1969. Everything I have seen and read says that Jimmy made his switch from the Telecaster to the Les Paul after Joe offered him the Les Paul at the April San Francisco shows. Which seems to prove that Jimmy definitely used the Tele on the first BBC session. The question I can't answer definitively is what amp he used for that first BBC session. It's not a given he used WEM's, as he also used Rickenbacker amps with his Tele on the early tours. Whatever he used, I love it. I know Jimmy's primary lasting image is him with the Les Paul slung low with the row of Marshall's behind him, but the geek in me has a special place in my heart for the early concerts PRECISELY because of the fuzz and buzz of Jimmy's Dragon Tele and Rickenbacker/WEM amps. He got sounds and tones and sustain out of a Tele that I had never heard anyone else get before. I wish he would have stuck with the combo a little longer. There's something about those early "Dazed and Confused"s that hit me unlike the Les Paul versions. Oh, and I am already on record here about my absolute passion for those "As Long As I Have You" medleys in 1968-69. Here's a bonus question: did Jimmy switch to Marshall's at precisely the same time he started using the Les Paul? Or did he play the Les Paul a few times thru the WEM's before moving to Marshall's?

The reason I, and probably tmtomh, didn't mention the 1-22-73 Southampton show is that while the sound quality is good, the performance isn't up to snuff. Remember the OP is looking for the best in regards to PERFORMANCE as well as sound quality. The Southampton just suffers in comparison to both the 1972 Japan shows before it and the 1973 Euro shows after. Same reason for 6-21-77 and 6-23-77 getting the nod, Sue, over 6-25-77. Although to be fair, I think tmtomh tips the 6-25 and 6-27 shows in his list. If only it was in better quality, I would also put 6-22 on the list, as some of that concert is better performed than 6-21 or 6-23.

^^^ That's why for bootleggers and the people who enjoy them, Led Zeppelin is the gift that keeps on giving.

Glad I slept through it, then. No sense starting my Sunday in frustration.

Just keep winning Angels! You can do it!

^^^ Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I'm still waiting for someone to answer the quotes I posted above, so I'm not posting new ones until then.

Paul, there's a lot of lousy coaching going on in the NFL lately.

Whoa, is that a common side effect, slave? I have a friend and she said taking birth control helped with her heavy cramps and mood swings and that she put her daughter on the pill when she was 12 or 13 because of the same reason. Now I'm wondering if they'll be more susceptible to blood clots?

Jeez, what a bloodbath! At least the Ravens won and saved me from going 0 for the afternoon. Even if the Packers win tomorrow I'll still have a sub-.500 week.

September 23, 1971 Budokan, Tokyo, Japan. Nineteen hundred and seventy-one was the year Led Zeppelin was SLAYING dragons left and right. Jimmy was at the peak of his bearded powers. From the UK 'Return to the Clubs' tour on to Europe and then the amazing Summer US tour, 1971 was a year in which the band was expanding on their reputation for wild, powerful and improvisational shows. To top it off, along with a solid three albums worth of material to cull their setlist from, the band had the added confidence to insert the freshly minted songs that would soon appear on Led Zeppelin IV. By August-September of 71, the Led Zeppelin concerts routinely pile-drive the listener with their force...and Plant's voice leads the way. Some of his vocal performances in 1971 are phenomenal. Just listen to any '71 boot like 8-31 or 9-14. You can tell Jimmy is feeling frisky, too...constantly riffing between songs or trying different approaches to his solos. As for Jones and Bonham...they simply are a well-oiled rhythm juggernaut by this point in the band's touring life. Listen to them pummel you senseless during "Celebration Day". So, on to the first concert of the Japanese tour...41 years to the day. I have just started and so am only a few songs in; after a lengthy introduction the band blasts into "Immigrant Song". Jimmy must have broken a string as instead of immediately going into "Heartbreaker", the band pauses as Jimmy fixes whatever was the problem. "Since I've Been Loving You" is playing now and as per the 1971 norm, it's perfect. To be continued...

An excellent list tmtomh...to which I would only add: 1969 1-5-69 Whisky a Go Go, LA...for historical purposes, the earliest show available in good sound quality. 8-31-69 Texas Pop International Festival. Soundboard. 1970 3-7-70 Montreux Casino...soundboard/audience mix. Killer show and the audience tape is stunning; better than the soundboard. 3-21-70 Vancouver, BC...soundboard. 9-2-70 Oakland, CA...in some ways, en even better performance than the more famous 9-4-70 LA Forum a couple days later. 1971 9-29-71 Osaka, Japan...IMO, any list of essential Led Zeppelin boots MUST include a 1971 Japanese show...and 9-29 is IT! Case closed. 1975 2-12 New York, 2-14 Nassau, 2-28 Baton Rouge, 3-4 Dallas, 3-11 Long Beach, 3-17 Seattle...all of these are available in great sounding soundboards. Plant's voice is rough in the beginning of the shows but by March he gets better. The Long Beach and LA Forum(3-11, 24,25 & 27) shows are also available in great Mike Millard audience tapes. 1979 7-24-79 Copenhagen...always overlooked, but a great audience tape and a better performance; I listen to this more than the Knebworth shows a week later. 1980 6-29-80 Zurich 6-30-80 Frankfurt...the Zeppelin story isn't complete without the 1980 tour, as it hints at the possible direction the band would have taken in the 80s, warts and all. These are the two best performances in soundboard quality.

This has been discussed many times before...a simple search should have sufficed. Try these threads:

The Raiders WON! And I didn't pick 'em. In fact, all my afternoon picks went down in flames.

Surprised nobody has brought this up before...shame on us NFL fans. Steve Sabol died September 18 from brain cancer. He was the son of Ed Sabol and it was their venture NFL Films that helped make the NFL the preeminent sports league in America. He belongs in the Hall of Fame...the NFL should have voted him in long ago, so he could have gone in with his father. Before the era of cable and ESPN and endless sports highlights, the weekly NFL Films show was the only exposure to the game you could watch apart from the Sunday and Monday Night games. Their way with a highlight...the slow-motion photography, the music(the Raiders theme song "Autumn Wind" came from an NFL Films show)...was poetry in motion and it is incalculable how many 60s and 70s kids like me felt their first love for the game from watching the NFL Films highlight shows. The NFL owes both the Sabols, Ed and Steve, a HUGE debt of gratitude. http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-videos/0ap2000000063280/Remembering-Steve-Sabol But his legacy is felt beyond the world of the NFL...his influence spread in all sports and beyond. Read on for more reaction to this sad passing... http://articles.latimes.com/2012/sep/18/local/la-me-steve-sabol-20120919 http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-steve-sabol-20120919,0,5231476.story?track=rss http://mobile.philly.com/sports/eagles/?wss=/philly/sports/eagles&id=170862491&viewAll=y#more http://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/09/19/sports/football/steve-sabol-creative-force-behind-nfl-films-dies-at-69.xml http://articles.boston.com/2012-09-21/sports/33975093_1_nfl-films-blair-motion-pictures-steve-sabol