Strider Posted June 1, 2014 Posted June 1, 2014 Since people have been talking about already receiving their Led Zeppelin remastered sets, I guess it is time to set up separate threads for us to discuss each album's merits and our thoughts and reviews on the music, the bonus tracks, the remastering job, the packaging, all the bells and whistles...pro and con. This is the Led Zeppelin II thread. Let me be clear...this is for your reaction to the actual product. Not what you heard on youtube or third-hand from a friend's phone. Also, no press reviews please...there is already a thread for those in the news section. This thread is for us fans on the Forum to discuss the remastered Led Zeppelin II sets once we receive them and have listened to them...hopefully on a good-quality sound system. Quote
zafreth Posted June 1, 2014 Posted June 1, 2014 it's a very good one, deluxe cd. very good package i do not have any comments, since the music it's marvelous and the remaster it's superb! Quote
Melcórë Posted June 1, 2014 Posted June 1, 2014 I've already given my thoughts on the base album remasters -- I find them superb, and only listen to these remasters! The hi-res (24/96) files sound stunning to me. In terms of the companion disc, I've been most intrigued by "Heartbreaker" and "La La" thus far. The "backing track" representations -- "Thank You" and "Living, Loving Maid," in particular -- are also really cool. I find I've been able to appreciate the albums all the more by listening to the tracks on the "companion" discs -- I think Jimmy succeeded in his efforts, at least from my point-of-view. Quote
Strider Posted June 2, 2014 Author Posted June 2, 2014 Oh, I forgot to mention that you should feel free to share any photos you take of your Led Zeppelin II sets, what the books look like and the booklets, the joy of you opening the package for the first time, etc. Also, if you care to when you are posting your thoughts, please denote which format of the remasters you got: The Deluxe, the Super Deluxe, CD only, Vinyl only, iTunes, etc. Quote
kayley10 Posted June 2, 2014 Posted June 2, 2014 A new interview with Jimmy on the Dave Fanning show on RTÉ (Radio Telefís Eirann, Ireland's national broadcast service). He sounds really comfortable. http://www.rte.ie/ra...031:01-06-2014: We also hear the interesting news that the song with JPJ singing was "La La". It's title comes from the fact that JPJ was lala-ing his idea of what a vocal track would sound like and LA LA was written on the tape box. So that's it. The plot thickens. I did a capture yesterday of the full interview and will be uploading it. Quote
Kingofpunk Posted June 2, 2014 Posted June 2, 2014 I am just playing my cd copy of Led Zep 2 & to my ears it sounds much fresher & cleaner & subtle stuff like Robert Plants vocals on Thank You. The drum solo on Moby Dick sounds powerful as well & Bring it on home beginning bit sounds less crusty if you know what I mean. A very good remastering. Very pleased. Quote
henrybonzo Posted June 2, 2014 Posted June 2, 2014 (edited) I am just playing my cd copy of Led Zep 2 & to my ears it sounds much fresher & cleaner & subtle stuff like Robert Plants vocals on Thank You. The drum solo on Moby Dick sounds powerful as well & Bring it on home beginning bit sounds less crusty if you know what I mean. A very good remastering. Very pleased. Agree, thank you had me listening, plants whispers are so clear, it added new character to the song and it's not one i listen to often. That said, and this maybe how it was meant to be, it sounded like the master channel was pushing it on whole lotta love and lemon song, everything else so far is mint, cd's by the way Edited June 2, 2014 by henrybonzo Quote
caesar's_chariot Posted June 2, 2014 Posted June 2, 2014 Just purchased all three deluxe CD packages from Amazon (too bad local record stores are a thing of the past). It sounds like the CDs sound great. What about the packaging and the enclosed booklet? Quote
henrybonzo Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 not sure why the companion features the intro/outro to Moby Dick, the only difference is the count in, would have loved some bonzo outtakes instead Quote
JTM Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 not sure why the companion features the intro/outro to Moby Dick, the only difference is the count in. .......and the BIG chord at the end....long available on bootleg. Quote
leandar Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 I ordered the albums on Amazon and got digital downloads of the albums for free with them so I'm still waiting on the CD's but enjoying the digital versions. I'm still working through the albums, for LZ II, I say these sound superb, I really love ''La La'' so far. I don't recognize it, is this something different they were working on or did this turn into a released song later on down the line? If it was meant to be a new song, I do wish they could have finished it, cause it is superb. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say this is my favorite new track for Led Zeppelin II. And I do have to say, I have to fight the temptation to flip ''Heartbreaker'' and ''Thank You,'' cause they were reversed on the cassette version of the album and that's how I first heard the album. All the albums, in fact. Quote
tmtomh Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 I think the mastering on this is great - it's not going to best the Robert Ludwig vinyl cut for bass or pure impact, but this new remaster is definitely the clearest version we've ever heard, and probably the most balanced. The rhythm section on The Lemon Song is just great. I like the bonus material: It's nice to hear Heartbreaker without Bonham's drums compressed and EQ'd to within an inch of their lives; and La La makes me smile every time I play it. But overall, I'd have to say the Zep II bonus material is the weakest of the three. Too many backing tracks, too many tracks that are not sufficiently different from the regular album tracks. The fact that some are in mono is interesting, as I believe these are the only Zep true mono mixes that ever have been released officially. But unlike with, say, the mono fold-down of Communication Breakdown, mono doesn't really enhance any of these tracks. I have no regrets for buying this deluxe CD edition along with all the rest. But I like the others better. Quote
henrybonzo Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 LaLa has elements of riverside blues, written around the same time? Quote
Stairway To Heaven 18 Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 got all three albums deluxe cd's i must say i love the remastering on the albums much better clear sound than the remastering in the 90's and also the companion disks as well my favorite's on the companion disks are ramble on,heart breaker, since i've been loving you, and jennings farm blues i also like trouble in mind keys to the highway really looking forward to jimmy page releasing the other albums does anyone know when led zeppelin IV is gonna come out. Quote
caesar's_chariot Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 I thought I read that we have to wait til 2015 for the rest. Hope I'm wrong about that. Quote
Stairway To Heaven 18 Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 that's what i heard as well i heard that led zeppelin IV, houses of the holy and physical graffti might come out in july i could be wrong about that why wait till 2015 though since the first three albums came out now why don't release them all this year. Quote
Cinnawarrior Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 (edited) Anybody else wish they would have finished La La? I think that number had a ton of potential to be an underrated Zeppelin gem. Edited June 3, 2014 by Cinnawarrior Quote
henrybonzo Posted June 3, 2014 Posted June 3, 2014 I thought I read that we have to wait til 2015 for the rest. Hope I'm wrong about that. Grapevine says IV, HOTH, PG-October Presence, In Through The Outdoor, Coda-February Quote
ledastray Posted June 4, 2014 Posted June 4, 2014 I got the super deluxe box for this one and now I want LZI and LZIII deluxe boxes too. The book is wonderful, containing photos I haven't seen before and even a replica of the 1969 concert program. Neat stuff. Some songs on the LP sound good on my record player with headphones plugged in. Others sound odd. Like Heartbreaker. The vocals sound very muffled and the guitar very loud. This could be due to my having a cheap record player though. I had to borrow a friend's laptop computer to hear the HD download files since I couldn't get the ZIP file that they come in to open on my phone or iPod. They are high quality FLAC files. These sound GREAT with the headphones. Really amazing sonic texture. I don't have a proper CD player so I don't know how those sound. If anyone has heard both the FLAC files and the iTunes version of the new remasters, what did you think? Are the iTunes files as good? Quote
mckjuana Posted June 4, 2014 Posted June 4, 2014 .......and the BIG chord at the end....long available on bootleg. This is a shame. It would have been a great opportunity to release the extended drum solo too (from the same bootlegs). Quote
mack Posted June 4, 2014 Posted June 4, 2014 Another "short and to the point" Deluxe edition 8222/30000 Once again, amazing job and amazing presentation. I particularly liked the backing tracks on the supplemental disc, as they really allowed the incredible craftsmanship of Jimmy, JP and Bonzo to shine. LZ III will arrive on 6/5 Can't wait! Quote
SuperDave Posted June 4, 2014 Posted June 4, 2014 Another "short and to the point" Deluxe edition 8222/30000 Once again, amazing job and amazing presentation. I particularly liked the backing tracks on the supplemental disc, as they really allowed the incredible craftsmanship of Jimmy, JP and Bonzo to shine. LZ III will arrive on 6/5 Can't wait! My copy of Zep III is delayed as well and funny that it was shipped before the other two, which I saw sitting in a box by my door, when I got home from work tonight! What a great thing to come home too! My Zep III box, I hope should be here tomorrow! Currently, in transit in a UPS warehouse about 60 miles away! Quote
kirchzep27 Posted June 5, 2014 Posted June 5, 2014 Mostly been listening to the extra material. So great to hear strong versions of ramble on and what is...two crucial songs for they're catalogue and vision as a band. I see this version of heartbreaker getting huge amount of radio airplay. Specialty satellite radio has a lot here to play, with the instrumentals, thank you, lala and llm. With the album, the remastering this time is showing a big difference, vibrant, crisp, clear. The effect on vocal on, what is and what should never be....the separation of instruments on ramble on. It's like being a kid again and listening to this material. They don't seem to play too loud either, may be wrong about that, but I'm not hearing bass or drums being overdriven so far. Quote
scylla Posted June 5, 2014 Posted June 5, 2014 (edited) CD only here - I can't afford £90 box sets but I don't really mind. It's about the music! (Though, that said, if anyone wants to post some close-up pics of what you get, I'd enjoy seeing them). The main disc: Excellent. Just clearer, sharper, more separated somehow. You can pick things out better, follow one instrument and then go back and follow another. The difference is dramatic through my iPod headphones, a bit less so through the normal stereo but still definitely better. I think I may now be a convert to "Thank You" and "Heartbreaker", which were never particular favourites and ones I'd sometimes skip - I don't think I'll be doing that any more. The last 1 min 20 sec of "Thank You" has this sort of sparkling beauty which it didn't before - I just suddenly sat up and said "That's gorgeous" like I'd never heard it before. Then you go straight from that, which seems lighter and more delicate, into the opening of "Heartbreaker" which seems heavier and harder and has a power it didn't seem to before. And that solo - it's definitely gone from one I thought was OK but not their best to something I really love. Then there's "Living Loving Maid" and the lyrics are so much clearer - I'm making out lines I never quite got before. On "Ramble On" the playout is much clearer and you can hear the vocal for longer; on "Moby Dick" I can hear detail I never did before (sorry, don't know the names of drums, but to me it sounds like there's a whole new drum in there). The only things I think are perhaps made slightly worse by the remastering are the insistent rat-a-tat sound which is now more audible on the quiet bits of "Ramble On" (just distracts from the guitars too much for me) and possibly the opening of "Bring It On Home" - it seems to me the opening is a bit less muddy than it used to be, and for me that's not such a good thing as I've always adored the way the main guitar comes in so sharp and bright and just cuts through that like lemon juice. I mean, it still does, but I think the contrast is just a tiny bit less now. The companion disc: It's interesting rather than thrilling. (I'm finding the LZI companion disc thrilling). "Whole Lotta Love" is the best - it sort of veers between sounding like the song we all know and love and, in the middle section, something that sounds kind of tentative and awkward, and then finds its feet again, then meanders again... what really jumps out at you is the way that Jimmy and Robert haven't quite got it all worked out yet, but John Bonham really, really has. The way that the rest isn't quite finished makes you focus on the drums more, on how incredibly powerful yet precise it all was... God, he was good. The lack of the three-second chorus makes such a difference too. The magic of rock and pop music - the way that it's the tiniest, simplest little vocal phrases or guitar licks or whatever that lift a song from something OK to something magical. Apart from that the rough mixes aren't really different enough from the finished article to be all that fascinating. Slightly different inflections on a few vocals, a few slightly different guitar phrases, Bonham shouting "1,2,3,4....". "Thank You" is a nice song, but the tune doesn't have the beauty to be any better as an instrumental (ditto "Living Loving Maid"), and as for "Moby Dick" basically the same but with the middle section cut out - why? I agree with the comments above that it's the weakest companion disc of the three - time will tell, but I think probably I'll be listening to the WLL rough mix and "La La" at least now and then forever, and the rest will mostly be forgotten. But it was interesting. "La La": it's pretty good - I hadn't expected anything earth-shattering or they'd have released it first time round, but it's very nice. Particularly in its second half where it starts to sound like it's about to turn into something powerful and makes you wish they'd turned it into a proper song with a vocal. Makes you think about what magical chemistry they had - Jimmy was always a brilliant guitarist (and Jones a brilliant bassist, and Bonham a brilliant drummer), but it's only when you pair it with that voice that you get something that really grabs you by the throat. A musical marriage made in heaven if ever there was one. So, on balance, brilliant remastering, good enough that I wouldn't resent having paid for the album twice even if there wasn't a companion disc. And some interesting stuff on the companion disc. Only other thought: what were they thinking with the appalling sixth-form art on the inside of the sleeve? Gruesome. Edited June 5, 2014 by scylla Quote
SuperDave Posted June 6, 2014 Posted June 6, 2014 Nice review and agree with you a lot on this. The whole album itself does sound much more clearer. Always felt the mix on this even with the remasters during the early 90's was a bit muddy. You should invest in some great headphones and dump the iPod ones. Just got some Audio Techica phones and they are great. The over the ear type. Forget the ear buds etc. The old style traditional full size ones can't be beat, even if bulky. Who needs compact ones, when you're talking about supreme sound and clarity! Quote
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