I honestly don't think I can narrow it down to just one. There's several factors involved and it depends on my mood too. Regardless, some of my personal favorites are: 5/3/71 9/14/71 9/23/71 6/25/72 6/27/72 3/24/73 7/27/73 3/21/75 5/24/75 5/30/77 All of LA 77 (with maybe the exception of 6/27) 7/17/77 7/7/80 - even though this is far from technically perfect, there's something about Page reaching for the stars even though he's fucked up that's really inspiring IMO.

This one, if only the sound were better:

Really been getting into these ladies lately, especially this song:

There seems to be a lot of confusing reports going on right now about his condition. I'm seeing a lot of sources saying he's dead/taken off life support, but I'm also seeing how the LAPD apparently fucked up and announced his death prematurely. According to this source, he's still clinging to life, but it's not looking good at all. Regardless, I'll take any sliver of good news I can get today!

Just saw this headline. Awful news. Really hope he pulls through: http://www.tmz.com/2017/10/02/tom-petty-found-unconscious-full-cardiac-arrest/

The go-to example for most people is Achilles Last Stand at Tempe. Not only does the recording suck (it's distant and muffled, and you can even hear "All Right Now" bleed through the tape towards the end), but the performance is horrendous. The intro is actually pretty cool and unique, but then a flashpot blew up in Jimmy's face, and he spends the rest of the song struggling (and failing) to catch up with the others. Plant's voice is shot and he seems confused about whether to follow Jimmy or Jones and Bonham, creating a cacophony of noise. This, imo, is the single worst performance of any song they ever did: As for The Rain Song, I don't think they ever played it horribly, but there are some versions out there where Robert's voice was pretty rough, or the mellotron got out of tune. Check out Sheffield 73 or Greensboro 75 for examples of Robert's voice at its weakest. Other than that, quite a few version of Rock and Roll were rather lackluster, due again to Robert's weak voice. There's also Kashmir from Zurich 1980. What a trainwreck. Check out 2:25 for when it really goes awry: Just a couple of examples. I'm sure others will provide plenty more, mostly from 77 onwards!

I agree with what others have said here: it's a great document of the band on a very good night in 1970. Of course, given that it's 1970, that means it's an exceptional performance! I do have a question though: is there a bootleg of this show out there that has done the complete show (minus Thank You and SIBLY of course) with Plantations and the complete HMMT? I sampled Winston's Remaster, but it eliminates the band introductions at the beginning of HMMT. I saw the complete version of this song on Youtube, but the pitch was too low. Has anyone adjusted the pitch properly and kept the rest of the show (including Heartbreaker and Long Tall Sally) intact? The Year of Led Zeppelin blog did a good compilation of several bootlegs, but I was wondering if there was one release that has the complete show in the best sound possible. Thanks in advance!

Not saying you're wrong, but do you have any examples (with timestamps) of when he would play a bit of Maggot Brain?

There's been a mention of it on the New Mystery Soundboard thread, but I think this is worthy of its own discussion. I just got done listening to Heartbreaker and it sounds 1000% better than the soundboard. Much more lively, brutal, and in your face. For some reason, many of the 75 boards have left me feeling cold. I guess it was a combination of Plant's weak voice and Page's clean tone. I can definitely say that I'm going to be blasting this one repeatedly though. The matrix really makes the guitar come across rather loudly and I'm consistently blown away by Plant's voice at this show. He sounds almost as good as he did in 77 (or a good night in 73).

Bumping a long dead thread because The Ramones are one of my all time favorite bands. Their first three albums are amazing and essential for anyone who is a punk fan or just a fan of pure rock and roll. I know some say they overstayed their welcome by putting out mediocre albums in the 80s and 90s, but there are still great songs scattered throughout their discography right to the very end. And even then, they still put out great albums like Pleasant Dreams (VERY underrated) and Too Tough to Die. Agreed with the person above who said Dee Dee was a twisted lyrical genius. But above all, they had a great sense of melody. Somehow they managed to make stuff like "I Don't Wanna Walk Around With You" sound catchy as hell even though it was just three lines repeating over and over. So catchy in fact that you almost wished the songs went on for longer. Great live band too:

6/21/77 is the definitive version for me. As others have said, Robert is the clear star here. You can tell he's putting everything he has into this version. I've always found 6/25/77 to be a tad overrated and I've never understood the love for Landover 5/28 (sluggish as hell IMO).

Offenburg is indeed a fantastic performance from Page and probably the best overall show of the tour. That being said, I really like Dazed (especially the "Machine Gun" tease before the bow solo), but it's not quite as good as the other two. The band skips the Mars: Bringer of War section, and it feels somewhat hurried and rushed (even though Page in particular is playing his ass off). Vienna and Hamburg have that little something extra, the "X factor" if you will. But Offenburg is a great rendition as well, just a 9 or 9.5 out of 10 rather than a 10 out of 10.

It's a close tie for me between Vienna 3/16/73 and Hamburg 3/21/73. Those versions are both absolutely amazing. The Page/Bonham interplay was never better than it was on this Euro tour, and these two versions capture it at it's peak imo. It's as if the stage has become a battleground, a war zone if you will. The jams are just explosive from beginning to end. Imagine being in the front row hearing that in person! I keep going back and forth between them and I honestly can't decide. Vienna has Page slightly more "on" while Hamburg has Bonham slightly more "on". Vienna has better sound throughout, but Hamburg has a bigger portion of the song in soundboard. Vienna has that incredible interplay prior to the bow solo, while Hamburg has that jaw-dropping outro jam. Vienna has that fantastic moment where Page shreds acapella, while Hamburg has Plant singing "got a cold sweat!" while Bonham throws in mind-melting fills, and then has him doing those Tarzan wails. Well, regardless, these two for me are the greatest live songs that Zeppelin ever did. Dazed would never be bettered (as a whole anyway) than it was here imo.

I'd have to go with 6/23/77. Yes, TSRTS version is legendary, but it's edited and, while tight, only hints at what the band would do with the song in the future. While Page's solo here doesn't compare with TSRTS, I really feel like the band as a whole nailed what they were trying to do with this song live. There are no wasted notes, no moments that drag on for too long, no points where I lose interest. Every section flows and, at 30 minutes, it manages to fly by. Plus, listen to that climax! "The dogs of doom are howling more" indeed!

Great stuff!

The most amazing news blooper I've seen in quite a while!

I'm guessing you heard the soundboard? If so, I recommend Winston's "Seattle Matrix". They matrixed the soundboard and audience tape and it sounds great. Awesome balance of clarity and atmosphere imo! That gig is indeed a great one. Probably my personal favorite version of The Rain Song.

I'm in awe! Strider, I can't thank you enough for sharing your memories with us. You are such a great writer and I concur with others that you should write a book sometime (not just of Zeppelin but of memories of seeing other artists as well). Your memories are truly a major highlight of this site. Thank you so very much!

Here's a playlist of the 26th. It's missing Nobody's Fault But Mine, but otherwise appears to be complete. Welcome to the forum, btw!

Ok. I simply HAVE to know more about the photo below. All I could find was a caption that says "Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin performing on stage in 1972 wearing a joke mask and holding up a cutout of Homepride Fred. January 01, 1972" I'm pretty sure the date is wrong. Does anyone know when/where this was specifically taken? And what's the story behind him wearing the mask? Or the cutout for that matter?

He actually already posted his memories of the 73 tour: I am definitely adding a +1 to hear the memories of 6/25/72 (unless Strider already posted it and I'm missing it somewhere). Strider, I'll just repeat what I said earlier. Your writing is superb. The way you set the scene telling of what things were like in that era, then the building sense of anticipation as you recount the days leading up to the concert, then reading your description of being there and experiencing it while I listen to the bootleg...it's the closest this young man (who wasn't even born when Bonham died) will ever come to seeing the boys in concert. By all means, feel free to continue the journey for this LA run, as well as the HTWWW show and the 75 shows (unless I missed those too). Your posts are definitely a major highlight of this forum!

Definitely continue on! Your writing is really great and puts me right there in the seats!

Wow! Excellent post Strider! Very well-written and detailed! For a few wonderful moments, I could actually picture myself sitting there at the Forum. I can't even imagine what it must have been like to have seen and heard this show in person. I distinctly remember hearing this for the first time and, like you, I was so floored by TSRTS that I didn't even notice Jimmy dropping out in Sick Again. You are incredibly lucky to have seen Zeppelin as many times as you did! I am very envious and I look forward to your further memories of this run!

What else?

Studio: Good Times Bad Times When The Levee Breaks Fool In The Rain Live: The Song Remains The Same 6/21/77 Dazed & Confused 3/21/73 Achilles Last Stand 5/21/77