Jump to content

The Dark Lord

Members
  • Posts

    1,063
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by The Dark Lord

  1. Yes. This is true. Jimmy is wonderful, but even as fans, we should be able to acknowledge that his playing suffered tremendously at times, for whatever reason, and although a great writer, arranger, producer, and technician, it has been many, many years since Jimmy kept company with the truly technically proficient players. He would have been better off not trying to be a show boat, and instead play within his comfort zone. David Gilmour is an example of a "three note player", but he sure makes those three notes count, and his tone and style are amazing. I will say that I think Jimmy played really well, all things considered, at the O2, and in 1998 he was actually quite remarkable. He has the capability, but Jimmy was never really about being a master of his instrument. He was more a rock and roller, lifestyle and all, with a broad skill set. Some might call him a jack of all trades. It's hard to be all things to all people, but Jimmy's body of work is amazing. Is he a virtuoso? Nope, never has been. He was good at times and bad at others, but he still wrote some of the greatest tunes of our times (or took credit for them). I will certainly give Jimmy credit for his studio playing where unlimited takes were at his disposal; he really excelled in that environment. I still love the guy, but despite my best efforts to brainwash myself, I can't deny the issues that Jimmy has had over the years, and which have quite rightly impacted on his reputation as a player.
  2. Nicely said. As as an aside, I would love to see another compare / contrast, but this time between TSRTS Knebworth '79, and TSRTS O2 '07.
  3. What bugs me about some of these tunes, is that they are somewhat disingenuous. The In The Light demo is a perfect example: 2 demo bits stitched together with bridge sections from the official release, to make it sound like a cohesive tune in its formative stages, which it certainly is not. It's a frakentune, plain and simple.
  4. Ya, in case I wasn't clear, I don't agree. As I said, I would like for them to have carried on. Get it?
  5. I have always respected Zeppelin for their loyalty to Bonzo, and their principled stance; however, I have always wished that they carried on. In my opinion, some music is better than no music, and the solo material never really scratched the itch, as it were, apart from Walking into Clarksdale.
  6. I thought Fire was recorded somewhere in England, during some sort of rehearsal. Am I mistaken? And NO! Carouselambra stays.
  7. Awesome. Such a damn good tune. Given Page's propensity for creating Frakentunes out of old left overs, I do believe that this will surface in the future, as a possible RSD release, as he has already alluded to. Nice job!
  8. The companion material ranges from incredible to uninspiring, but overall, most of it is pretty darn good. There was roughly enough new material to make a whole LP, and for that, I am extremely grateful. If I had one criticism, it would be that I am not a big fan of frankensongs, which some of these clearly are (ie: LaLa). Nonetheless, pretty cool stuff overall, and there is no doubt that Jimmy kept a few tracks aside for future release, perhaps for record store day, or to sweeten the pot on some future compilation. The pricing was fair, and I am not disappointed overall, although I will say that I let my imagination run wild in the days prior to the first release, and was a bit let down. Now, that the dust has settled, I'm good with the companion material.
  9. Well, if Bonzo did come up with the vocal melody, why on earth would Robert spend the time to memorize it and deliver it in the exact same way? He wouldn't. He would make it his own. The more I listen to it the more I don't think it sounds like Bonzo at all, except on a cursory level. It's Robert goofing around, not Bonzo.
  10. I'm going to stick to my guns and say this is Robert, despite my internal fence sitting on the discussion. For me, it seems inconceivable that this track would be released and not be credited with great fanfare to John Bonham. The references to customer John Bonham could be as a reminder that this was the take where Robert was doing his best John Bonham impression. Why would Bonham have listened to Robert's vocal over and over so that he could approximate his melody? It makes no sense. This vocal relies heavily on Robert's vocal melody, and I just cannot believe that Bonzo studied the vocal to this degree in order to perform his own take. Sounds like Bonzo, but I say nah. Remember the first time you heard The Crunge and In the Evening and said, "Who's that?". On a simply logical basis, it defies reason that Jimmy would keep this under wraps and hidden from the fans in what amounts to a possible last tribute to Bonzo. I'm definitely 51 / 49 on this, based on the sound of the voice. Does it sound like Bonzo? You bet it does. By the way, now that all of the albums have been released with companion audio, I would expect Jimmy to compile the previously unreleased tracks onto a single album, so that they can be savoured chronologically on one disc. The perfect Christmas gift, as it were. Hi to you to Deborah! ^
  11. I understand why people think Bonzo is singing on RO, because it sounds like him, but I don't think it is. I think it is Robert and I say this because for all intents and purposes, apart from the sound of the voice, the song is delivered with virtually the identical inflection and intonation of the album version. For this to be Bonzo, he would have had to memorize Robert's vocal, and then make efforts to deliver it in the same way, without really making it his own. I don't see that happening, nor do I see the point of him even trying. I certainly stand to be corrected, but it seems rather implausible that Bonzo is singing, and that Page got it wrong. Its also implausible that there wouldnt have been some credit heaped on Bonzo for his inauspicious vocal debut.
  12. It's brilliant, but it lacks diversity and is somewhat monochromatic, with no real hit. ITTOD had way more going for it in terms of diversity and accessibility. I love both albums, but I can clearly see why Presence was not a commercial success, compared to other albums. It is an album of "deep cuts".
  13. I understand. I wasn't fond of it either when it came out. What you say makes perfect sense.
  14. I have to agree with you there. Coverdale can dispicable on stage, playing to the lowest common denominator in human nature. He can be totally nauseating, but sometimes he actually acts reasonably okay.
  15. The key to liking Coverdale Page is learning to be accepting of Coverdale's voice and his sometimes stupid lyrics. Once you can deal with that, the rest nicely falls into place. I'll never be a Coverdale fan, but I now quite like his contribution to the album, apart from that one song, which will suck in perpetuity.
  16. Hey brother. I aspire to your logic, and agree fully with the observation about the voices involved, but I'll still take Coverdale. In this example, Plant is the "Coverversion", and he offers a fairly uninspired rendition. Coverdale, for all his faults, is the real deal here, irrespective of the fact that Page crafted to foundation of the track back in the Zep days.
  17. This has always been a song that I have held in high esteem, and perhaps one of the more artistic, if not interesting, Zeppelin tunes in their catalogue. Side 3 of Physical Graffiti is my favorite album side of all their albums, with a highly thematic and conceptual approach to its construction. The middle section of DBTSS wildly ramps the intensity before slowly bleeding back down to a sublime recovery, and it is nothing short of brilliant. I have always interpreted the message as a commentary by Robert in which he expresses bewilderment at the hustle and bustle of people who had turned away from, and paid no attention, to the beauty of the seaside, and Mother Nature, that he had been completely captivated by. A truly great piece of work.
  18. Hey brother. Well, I really like most of the moments on the album the same, but the worst moment is certainly "Feeling Hot". The music, the lyrics, and everything about the song is detestable (IMHO). I guess the things that make me smile are Jimmy's harmonica on two tracks, both the ballads (although some people don't like them), and Prayer for the Dying. Generally, I really like it all, with the one exception that I described. Singing about testicles and genitals is borderline neanderthal and a cut below what I would like to have heard from Page and Coverdale.
  19. It's important to remember that production values represent and document the era in which they were used. It really is unfair to compare them to other eras. I guarantee that the values that you don't like will be in vogue again in the future. There was a time when the whole psychedelic era fell from vogue, and people scoffed at fuzz guitar and such, but now that era of music lives in perpetual infamy. Every era is what it is, and although you may not be fond of it, you should try to view it as a snapshot in time, and enjoy it for what it is. It really is unfair to compare the styles and values of one musical era against another era. It's a bit like blaming someone for aging and being less effective than a younger counterpart. These are things that are beyond control. Acceptance of era styles and values allows for albums like ITTOD to be loved as a documentary of its time. It was cutting edge when it came out, and as you know, I still love it. Same with Coverdale Page. I get the issues that you refer to, but I accept them, look deeper than the superficial, and move quickly toward appreciation of the prowess behind the music. Okay, whipper snapper?
  20. Well, I'd like help you to understand the flaw of your statement, but I'd hate to waste what little time I have left on this planet trying to develop your taste in music. Oh well.
×
×
  • Create New...