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REMASTERED LED ZEPPELIN I: Post Your Reactions/Reviews Here


Strider

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The Zeppelin truly deserved the acclaim – it is boggling that in a matter of months they have achieved such a high degree of musicianship and become one of the biggest crowd pullers around.

Concentrated touring has given them an extra edge in every department and with drummer John Bonham and bassist John Paul Jones laying a solid rearguard the frontal dialogue between Page and Plant has developed to a startling and stimulating extent.

In one way, they appear to be fighting each other for dominance, in another they become as one but in the final analysis they serve to haul each other onto greater and greater heights. Plant, with shoulder length blond curls, employs his voice as a fourth instrument. Page, a contrast with shoulder length black hair, evens the score by using his instrument as an extra voice. The result at low key is fascinating; at its high devastating.. (NME, July ’69)

This has got to be one of the most right on descriptions of LZ that I've ever read. Absolutely perfect.

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"Celebration Day" is excellent, but it's not... this. This, I think, is the sort of performance you get from young people

Hi scylla - love your comments. I think your point is well taken, though I might add that while the vibrancy and intensity of early LZ does reflect the youth of the performers, I also find that the maturation reflected by the changed sound of just a few years later also has great musical value. I am thinking we will have lots of evidence of that in the rest of the remasters.

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I just found this forum thread - it's what I've been looking for: Discussion focused on the music of the remasters rather than the physical packaging.

That said, I've been posting my very personal responses to each of the remaster discs on my blog, Mage Music. I received my Deluxe CDs on June 3 and have been only allowing myself to listen to one disc every few days, so I have just yesterday posted about the LZ II Companion Disc.

I write my reactions to the music as I am listening to the disc for the very first time, which is why I refer to them as "very personal responses". Here are links to the posts:

Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin Live At The Olympia

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin II Companion Disc

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I finally received my deluxe Zep I today! Have already listened to the studio album and am listening to side 2, disk 1 of the Olympia concert. Of course I have been listening the the auto rip versions while waiting for the vinyl to arrive and was excited to see how it would compare. I don't have a great system, but am enjoying this immensely. I had never heard the Olympia show before and understand what Page had to work with, so I'm not critical of this edit at all (never heard the boot so as far as I know I'm not missing anything). I'm excited to have it on vinyl.

Someone mentioned getting a damaged box in the mail with damaged goods inside. I can relate to the story. I received Zep II with a big hole in the box and a damaged album cover (vinyl was fine). I complained to Amazon, and in spite of a couple of hassles along the way (asking for a return of the original, damaged album, threatening to charge me for the auto rip that came with the purchase) amazon did me right. They rushed me a replacement (which arrived on Sunday, Fathers' Day!) at no charge. I get to keep the first copy (my son snagged the new, unopened copy with the intent of keeping it in pristine condition: who can say no to your kid as they discover the joy of Zep and vinyl?) which, although the cover is damaged plays great (and has the more impressive remastered sound than Zep I, but hey, no complaints at all! I had been wanting to have all zep on vinyl, but the copies I have are not in the best shape, so was excited to be able to buy new vinyl copies).

Ok I tried really hard to stay on topic with fair success...

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Listening to the Paris concert at the moment. Haven't given the album a listen yet, but I will tonight with my Shure SRH440s.

Here are some unboxing photos of LZ1. Taken with my Nexus 5, so photo quality may not be that great.

attachicon.gifIMG_20140603_152159.jpg

This was a promo poster thrown in by the record store. Put it up next to my CD promo poster on my wall.

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The box.

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It's my book in a box.

No reading material apart from the newspaper clippings pictured inside, as far as I know. Haven't had the time to read through all of it.

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The press release.

attachicon.gifIMG_20140603_152406.jpg

Fuckin' awesome. Everything looks so official and business-like.

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That's the front and back of the folder.

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Here are the LPs. Was expecting a gatefold cover for the companion audio, but it was just a single sleeve for both LPs.

attachicon.gifIMG_20140603_152600.jpg

There's the back of them.

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Here's the album art prints. The smaller alternate art did not come with the set, that was a bonus record store promo.

attachicon.gifIMG_20140603_152655.jpg

No. 16,475. I can't tell you how happy I am that it isn't a weird prime number or some shit like that.

Post #2 incoming

The deluxe version is triple gatefold, but is a little tough to manage. Like some 3 cd releases with the 2nd disk in the middle page, the 2nd vinyl album is in the middle and hard to get in/out. I think individual sleeves might have been better. Hmmm... I just pulled my vinyl copy of Yessongs and it has the same style gatefold... Though easier to get the albums in and out.

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Hi scylla - love your comments. I think your point is well taken, though I might add that while the vibrancy and intensity of early LZ does reflect the youth of the performers, I also find that the maturation reflected by the changed sound of just a few years later also has great musical value. I am thinking we will have lots of evidence of that in the rest of the remasters.

By "Celebration Day", scylla meant the release of the 2007 O2 concert, not the song.

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By "Celebration Day", scylla meant the release of the 2007 O2 concert, not the song.

Aha. I thought we were talking about the remasters. I wasn't paying enough attention.

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What I take away from listening to my Deluxe CD Led Zeppelin III is a new appreciation for how diverse these guys were, how bold and adventurous. Any technique, any sound – it was all fair game to get their music out there. My reactions at: http://jimmypagemusic.blogspot.com/2014/06/remasters-2014-report-led-zeppelin-iii.html

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Aha. I thought we were talking about the remasters. I wasn't paying enough attention.

To be fair, she was talking about the remasters. She was relating the impact on her of the band's youthful raw performance of the companion audio of the December 10, 1969 Paris show as opposed to the 2007 "Celebration Day" performance.

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Since these are the Definitive Editions of the Led Zeppelin albums, I guess that means these are the definitive song credits, as well.

So, for Led Zeppelin's first album, the scorecard now reads:

Side One

1. Good Times Bad Times

jimmy Page - John Paul Jones - John Bonham

2. Babe I'm Gonna Leave You

Anne Bredon - Jimmy Page - Robert Plant

3. You Shook Me

Willie Dixon - J. B. Lenoir

4. Dazed and Confused

Jimmy Page - inspired by Jake Holmes

Side Two

1. Your Time Is Gonna Come

Jimmy Page - John Paul Jones

2. Black Mountain Side

Jimmy Page

3. Communication Breakdown

Jimmy Page - John Paul Jones - John Bonham

4. I Can't Quit You Baby

Willie Dixon

5. How Many More Times

Jimmy Page - John Paul Jones - John Bonham

Am I the only one disappointed by the disappearance of George Hardie's "Led Zeppelin coming out of the clouds" logo that used to be on the back cover below the song credits?

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I am still on the first album. I have listed to my original album, then played the remastered right after..did that again yesterday ( both with and without headphones) , and today I hope to compare the original CD with the new remastered and then the Paris concert compared to the bootleg I have. Need another weekend or two to soak it all in, then I will post a review as I am comparing each song. So far I really LOVE the new remastered sound. :stereo:

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The sound of the first album is excellent , I really got a "jump" when during YTIGC when the band kicks in.

As a side note it has been a long time since I have heard the songs in their original running order. :blush:

The companion album, while I enjoyed listening, I am more looking foward to the studio stuff, so this maybe the least played of the collection.

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I have a question about the I and II vinyl reissues. I bought the deluxe version on the 180 gram vinyl. I think there might be a manufacturing defect and I wanted to post and see if anyone else noticed this. There seems to be a slight echo on the records that wasn't there before. It's most apparent at the beginning of the record. For example, "Good Times Bad Times" starts with the iconic "Bum-Bum" riff, right. If you put on the reissue record and crank it (as you should always do with this record, you can hear 2 passes of "Bum-Bum" before the "real" one comes in and starts off the songs. They're very faint, but it's annoying and the original LP is not like that. Led Zeppelin II is like that as well - right before the first track. LZ III doesn't have that issue, but "out on the tiles" sounds a bit distorted. I have (what I think is) an above-average turntable, about a year old. A Pro-Ject Debut with Ortofon cartridge, so It's not the turntable, as I've tried several other records and have never had this issue. Any thoughts? Anyone out there feel like cranking LZ I (the deluxe version of the studio album, not the live album)? I can email a 10-second sample of what I'm talking about if anyone can help, but this forum doesn't allow me to upload it here.

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Sigh. It's over. I strung it out as long as I could, but there are no more remaster discs to listen to until next fall.

I feel like I've been given an extraordinary gift of perfect imperfection. A bittersweet gift, at that, not without the price of emotional investment. Your experience may vary. More at my blog. http://jimmypagemusic.blogspot.com/2014/07/remasters-2014-report-led-zeppelin-iii.html

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Not sure how many people have noticed/cared: It seems that all of the digital download versions (iTunes, HDtracks, Qobuz, LZ.com) feature the "single" edited version of GTBT/CB from the companion disc...that has to be an error, right?

Sigh. It's over. I strung it out as long as I could, but there are no more remaster discs to listen to until next fall.

I feel like I've been given an extraordinary gift of perfect imperfection. A bittersweet gift, at that, not without the price of emotional investment. Your experience may vary. More at my blog. http://jimmypagemusic.blogspot.com/2014/07/remasters-2014-report-led-zeppelin-iii.html

"Next fall," you write on your blog...and yet it's less than a handful of months away! Chipper up -- we'll have plenty to be excited about soon. :)

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"Next fall," you write on your blog...and yet it's less than a handful of months away! Chipper up -- we'll have plenty to be excited about soon. :)

It is forever and ever in Led Zeppelin time!

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Thankfully, Zeppelin time seems to have caught up to our own -- the wait from 2012 is nearly over!

I don't know about nearly over, but there's light at the end of the tunnel I think!

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I am still on the first album. I have listed to my original album, then played the remastered right after..did that again yesterday ( both with and without headphones) , and today I hope to compare the original CD with the new remastered and then the Paris concert compared to the bootleg I have. Need another weekend or two to soak it all in, then I will post a review as I am comparing each song. So far I really LOVE the new remastered sound. :stereo:

I look forward to hearing your full reviews Deborah. This is a great way to compare. I cannot do this (originals ruined - long story). However, I am thrilled to say I have a turntable again and loving it.

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Not sure how many people have noticed/cared: It seems that all of the digital download versions (iTunes, HDtracks, Qobuz, LZ.com) feature the "single" edited version of GTBT/CB from the companion disc...that has to be an error, right?

I have no idea what you are talking about. Can you be more precise? What "single edited" version of GTBT/CB are you talking about? The one on my cd and vinyl companion discs are the same length...and they are the same length as the one I have on bootleg. They did not perform a complete GTBT at the Paris concert, just the opening intro that leads into CB.

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  • 4 years later...

Hi guys! New user here. 
I just bought the cd 2-disc deluxe edition for a Christmas gift and i notice that in the back cover of the cd the tracklist transparent adhesive isn't perfectly glued. 
I just wanna know if the tracklist adhesive is intended to be removed. I can't open the cd because is a gift and if the tracklist adhesive have to be glued in the packaging I don't like this imperfection. Otherwise, if the back cover has to be clean with artwork only and the tracklist adhesive goes away in the opening it's okay. 
Please, help me understand :) Thanks!

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14 hours ago, teon said:

Hi guys! New user here. 
I just bought the cd 2-disc deluxe edition for a Christmas gift and i notice that in the back cover of the cd the tracklist transparent adhesive isn't perfectly glued. 
I just wanna know if the tracklist adhesive is intended to be removed. I can't open the cd because is a gift and if the tracklist adhesive have to be glued in the packaging I don't like this imperfection. Otherwise, if the back cover has to be clean with artwork only and the tracklist adhesive goes away in the opening it's okay. 
Please, help me understand :) Thanks!

I peeled mine off the cling film and stuck it on the back sleeve inverted image, in fact I did it with all the two disc sets except for PG and ITTOD where I left it on the cling film, I just slit the cling film to remove the discs. In fact I resealed ITTOD with clear tape because I think the companion disc is garbage.

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The thing is that the transparent tracklist seems to be stuck (badly) on the inverted image, not on the cling film. Idk honestly if peeling off the cling film the tracklist goes away as well and idk if the inverted back cover has to be clean without it. 

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On ‎12‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 4:17 PM, teon said:

The thing is that the transparent tracklist seems to be stuck (badly) on the inverted image, not on the cling film. Idk honestly if peeling off the cling film the tracklist goes away as well and idk if the inverted back cover has to be clean without it. 

That doesn't sound right, the track list should be on the cling film, looks like you have used reseal.

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12 hours ago, JTM said:

That doesn't sound right, the track list should be on the cling film, looks like you have used reseal.

Uhm, that's bad... 
I can peel off the tracklist from the back cover anyway or there's risk to ruin the package? 

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