JohnOsbourne
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The D&C is probably also the best ever. The NYC 73 shows are indeed unfairly maligned; as a whole no single night there is among the best of the tour, but individually those shows have some of the best moments of the entire US '73 tour. (Akin to LA in '75.)
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BTW, what explains the mixture of flawless shows like Mobile and Ft Worth sandwiching relatively sloppy shows like NO and Dallas?
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Interesting, definitely plausible. There's a noticeable difference between May 73, and March 73/July 73. Not huge by any means (like say compared with January 75), but definitely there. Do you think perhaps the "hand caught in train door" story is just that, a story, meant to obscure the physical decline that was clearly noticed in Brussels?
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Good point about the possibility of the Brussels show being incomplete, I was wrong to say it was the same setlist as the early US shows, How Many More Times is missing from the Brussels tape (as you say). That would have been a sure give-away that the finger was already broken. (I'm guessing Plant was more loquacious with American audiences because of the common language?) So indeed, the continental shows may have been intended to just get in and out quick, so 1/2 hour of the show was cut (i.e. D&C could have been played if so inclined). Strange, though, that they wouldn't rehearse (essentially) a centerpiece of their act if they intended to play in America in a few days. I'm inclined to believe that the finger was broken pre-Brussels (as noted elsewhere, it takes longer than a few days to heal, unlikely they would risk a potential disaster for a huge US tour if they weren't already confident [based on the warm-ups] that Page could withstand the strain). Definitely a mystery, though.
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Agreed, but do we know the actual date? They flew out to the US on the 15th, I believe, and Brussels was on the 12th. Could the finger have been broken prior to the continental warm-ups? Maybe it was broken on the 13th or 14th, but it seems strange, even allowing for rust (they hadn't played in 18 months), that they'd drop D&C from the warm-up shows (well, I guess we don't know the setlist for Rotterdam, but likely it was the same).
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Are you sure about the timeline? The setlist on the Brussels bootleg is pretty much the same as the January US shows, i.e. no D&C, which I thought was dropped because of the broken finger. If he broke the finger post-Brussels, why was D&C not played at that show?
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Random Newspaper Articles
JohnOsbourne replied to Conneyfogle's topic in Magazines / Newspapers / Press
Yes, fantastic scans, thanks! My German is very rusty, but does one of those say, "Jimmy Page, Devil's Guitarist"? -
Random Newspaper Articles
JohnOsbourne replied to Conneyfogle's topic in Magazines / Newspapers / Press
These are fantastic pics, where did they originate? -
I agree with the overall thrust of your position, but again, that is not the aspect of copyright law the jury is going to be asked to evaluate. In fact, the songs to me don't sound that much alike apart from the small section of notes in question. (Bias aside, STH is majestic, while Taurus is just crap.) However, the plaintiffs are claiming that Jimmy came up with the idea after being exposed to Spirit's music, and some of his subsequent actions convey just that impression. I think you are overstating the barriers the plaintiffs have to clear to win this thing. (And yes, it will get tied up in appeals for a long time, but that won't make it go away.)
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Yes, it's a common musical progression, but the issue before the jury is whether a *specific* song (Taurus) influenced Zep in composing STH, not Davey Graham or some 16th century composer. And while Page has always cited Graham as an acoustic influence, it seems he didn't attribute influence on structures like STH until his deposition, the canonical account had been that it was a moment of inspiration in the Welsh countryside, no? Plus his denial of familiarity with Spirit's music seems like a stretch, age-related or not. I'm simply saying, the jury is going to see too many things that don't quite add up. All of these things should have been thought through better before letting it go to court.
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Malofiy is a jackass, no question. But a top-flight lawyer (considering what Page must be paying him) would have made himself aware of any incriminating statements pointing to his client's familiarity with Spirit's music. It's not like Jimmy was an obscure musician, his public statements are not that hard to find given the resources, even accounting for the primitive state of media in the 70's. Page has set himself up here, if not for a fall, then at least to cast some suspicion in the eyes of the jury. His lawyer deserves a big share of the blame here (although it's possible Page hired himself a yes-man).
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He can say it now, but there's evidence that he was well aware of Spirit's music around the time he wrote STH. By denying such knowledge, he either comes across as evasive, or his recollection of other, non-Spirit influences can be called into question. The time to acknowledge Spirit while simultaneously denying particular influence by Taurus was at the very beginning. This would have undercut much of the plaintiff's claims. Unfortunately Jimmy's incompetent lawyer hasn't advised him appropriately.
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Of course an old interview can be used as evidence here, this isn't a criminal case. (And I thought Zep's past drug use can't be brought up at the trial, they can't say they were too stoned to remember.) The issue concerns whether Page and Plant were influenced by Taurus when they wrote Stairway, and hence the extent to which copyright law may have been violated. It doesn't really matter if Jimmy truly can't remember admiring Spirit, there is evidence that he did and it looks like he's dodging the question. The jury will not like this.
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Largely agree with your points re. plagiarism, but unfortunately they're not relevant to the decision the jury is capable of making. And yes, it appears Page's lawyer is pretty incompetent.
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I stand corrected, I thought he was sticking with the "immaculate conception" account of the origins of the song. But he says he recalls influences before 1968, but not a 1976 interview where he praises Spirit's music? Again, not going to look good to the jury.
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He's coming off as evasive regarding his knowledge of/familiarity with Spirit's music, as has Plant (re. his presence at a Spirit concert). An American jury is not going to look very favorably on this, hence it's bad for their case. It doesn't matter that it's a very common chord progression, that something similar was written by Davey Graham in the 50's (has Page ever referred to Graham as an influence for STH?), etc. The jury is going to hear very similar-sounding parts of two songs, see that the guys who came later are acting like they have something to hide, and there you go. Needless to say, the outcome of this case is not going to affect my love of Zep in any way, but overall Page has taken a lose-lose situation and made it worse. I understand the perspective that of all their songs he had to stand firm on this one, but he really should have thought harder about just how strong his case really was.
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Someone should start a poll/vote on what the outcome will be.
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This is indeed a brilliant version, but the next night (also in Vancouver and on SB) is even better.
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Definitely have a listen, it's one of the best shows from the tour (which is really saying something given how well they were playing then). Unfortunately the soundboard only runs through Stairway.
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By tour/year, yes. In '73 they were about 10-11 minutes in the first leg, 12-13 in the second leg. In '75 they were much longer, usually around 20 minutes, but they could get to be 24 minutes or more towards the end of the tour on the West Coast. '77 versions were typically over 1/2 hour.
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Agreed this is one of, if not the, best versions. Have you heard the version from the next night (7-29-73)? That's also killer, similar to but different than the 28th (the soundtrack version). As far as soundboards from '73, Buffalo and Seattle are also worth checking out. For audience recordings from '73, try Milwaukee, Providence, and Pittsburg. Honestly, though, there are so many good versions from July of '73 it's hard to choose. Check them all out!
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Great article, definitely.
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Exactly, the "one dollar" is just a publicity stunt. This news today is encouraging, the first such in a while.
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Agreed. Unfortunately Page misjudged the possibility of this going against him.
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I understand that, of course. Perhaps I phrased things awkwardly, although it seemed clear enough; you think there is a very low probability the plaintiffs will win, I think that belief is unfounded. The recent court decisions certainly don't make this look like an annoyance anymore.
