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FT. WORTH, TX 8.23.71 WHOLE LOTTA LOVE JAM


Strider

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Hey there...in prep for a project, I've been digging through my Led Zeppelin boots, trying to find something I haven't listened to very often, and I found this one that was buried in one of my boot boxes.

ahead_after_f.jpg

It's a compilation of segments from various shows, which is one reason why it probably ended up in the box...I like my boots to just focus on one entire show. The first 6 songs come from the June 18, 1972 Seattle show...from Immigrant Song to Going to California. The 3rd disc is from the Page & Plant taping for MTV's "Un-Ledded" special. But the highlight of the boot is the middle section, which covers the last 2 songs on Disc 1 and the entire Disc 2: almost 8 songs from the August 23, 1971 Ft. Worth show at the Tarrant County Convention Center.

I think I listened to this boot only once when I got it years ago and then put it away. But listening to it again this morning, I was blown away by the Ft. Worth section...it begins with Dazed and Confused(starting from the violin bow section), then follows Stairway to Heaven, Celebration Day, That's the Way, What Is and What Should Never Be, Moby Dick and Whole Lotta Love(inc. Boogie Mama, Bottle Up and Go/Trucking Little Mama, Mess O' Blues, You Shook Me), before concluding with the opening part of Communication Breakdown.

Two things of note...the taper sounds like he was close to Jimmy's amps, as Jimmy's guitar is really clear and has amazing presence on the tape. You can still hear Robert and the other guys, but it's Jimmy's guitar that really sears your ears, especially during Whole Lotta Love.

And this brings me to my second point, and question...right after the You Shook Me part of the WWL medley, at the 21:00 minute mark, the band gets into this really cool jam that at first sort of sounds like the riff they used for their cover of "For What It's Worth", but upon further listening to both, it sounds different. If you have this version of Whole Lotta Love handy and can listen to it, I was wondering if anybody knows if this was a one-time only jam, or if they used this bit other times? Also, is this jam based on a known song, or something Zeppelin came up with on their own?

Okay, I just found this clip of the second part of the Ft. Worth Whole Lotta Love on Youtube...it begins at You Shook Me, so listen for the part after You Shook Me and before the "Woman, way down inside" part. By the way, Jimmy sounds particularly nasty and psychotic during this You Shook Me!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU-q2eo0Pww

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Fort Worth '71 is probably my favorite Whole Lotta Love jam. Like you said, Jimmy is just on fire, which is accentuated by the taper being in front of Jimmy's amps. During "Trucking Lil Mama", listen carefully, after Robert sings 2 verses, he starts to sing a 3rd and Jimmy cuts him off to jam. It's funny because you can tell Jimmy is so fired up to rip off a solo he just can't wait. And at the end, Robert's "LOOOOOOOOVVVEEE!!" is the highest pitch I've ever heard him sing, it just keeps going higher until it's almost a dog whistle.

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Oh come on! Nobody has any ideas on what that jam is or what song it's based on?

To save you time, I'll even tell you when in the clip it starts...around the 5:48 mark. So come on all you trainspotters and experts in all things Zeppelin and/or music, help me out!

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Oh come on! Nobody has any ideas on what that jam is or what song it's based on?

To save you time, I'll even tell you when in the clip it starts...around the 5:48 mark. So come on all you trainspotters and experts in all things Zeppelin and/or music, help me out!

Kind of sounds like a variation on Cream's "I'm So Glad" to me.

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Kind of sounds like a variation on Cream's "I'm So Glad" to me.

That's what I thought too. I believe there's a similar sped up jam on Tokyo 9/23/71.

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"I'm So Glad" was an old blues tune written by Nehemiah "Skip" James. When the band recorded the song, they made sure that Skip received the royalties he was entitled to, something that was not often done in those days.

I'm pretty sure the band played it in Vancouver 4 nights earlier as well. I say pretty sure because I remember thinking that what ever the jam was...it sounded a lot like the Cream version I was familiar with at the time.

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