Led Zeppelin DVD is a mammoth package featuring over five hours of material on two disks. The primary concert footage is taken from four separate shows at The Royal Albert Hall, Madison Square Garden, Earls Court, and Knebworth, and span nearly ten years. The Royal Albert Hall show is the earliest of the bunch, recorded in 1970, only months after releasing the Led Zeppelin II album, and they were already on their way to reaching superstar status. This show reminded me of when they showed Spinal Tap during their early, pre-heavy-metal-band TV performances when they still had short hair and wore cardigan sweaters. It wasn't quite that funny though. Jimmy wasn't yet wearing his trademark black, dragon-embroidered, bellbottoms and matching vest, but was dressed in some gay looking checkered sweater-vest. It was just very un-rock-star looking. He and Plant's best mutton-chop sideburn contest was also pretty amusing. On the other hand, the music was incredible, and that is what matters the most.

The fantastic restoration of this early film footage is miraculous. The audio quality is better than most new DVDs currently being released. Hearing Jimmy's bow playing jump from speaker to speaker during the phenomenal performance of "Dazed and Confused", sent chills down my spine. Some of Zeppelin's songs take a very different form live, and "How ManyMore Times" turned into an awesome extended jam during this particularshow. Jimmy's guitar playing is so sloppy at times it made me cringe, butseconds later he would turn around and play something that makes your jaw hitthe floor. The sloppiness is just more noticeable now in the days of Vai,Satriani, and Petrucci, but then again how many of their riffs can you hum offthe top of your head, compared to Jimmy's guitar riff encyclopedia. "Moby Dick" featured a 21 year old John Bonham performing his incredible drum solo, using both his hands and his drumsticks. The surround mix was especially effective during this song as different drums and cymbals emanated from different speakers and totally enveloped you. John Paul Jones was always the secret weapon for Led Zeppelin. He never received the notoriety or praise as the other three members, but he was probably the most accomplished musician of the three. His bass playing throughout this DVD was staggering, and the later shows will feature more of his keyboard and mandolin prowess as well. The middle section of "Communications Breakdown" had an extended blues jam that featured Jones' impressive bass playing. Right down to the final smoking version of "How Many More Times", featuring Plant wailing on the harmonica, the entire show was mesmerizing.

The 1973 Madison Square Garden songs were taken from previously unseen and restored footage from The Song Remains The Same movie. From the opening moments of "Black Dog" you get a sense of how much the band has changed in the three years since The Royal Albert Hall shows. They now exude that swagger of being the number one rock and roll band in the world. Jimmy is all decked out in his trademark concert attire, extra long hair, Les Paul slung way too low, and that constant look of ecstasy on his face as he rips through those legendary solos. The guy couldn't have weighed more than a buck-o-five, thanks to a steady diet of Jack Daniels, heroin and sexual decadence. It's miraculous the guy lived through the seventies. There were only four songs featured from this concert and they were all fantastic--finally a complete version of "Black Dog". John Paul showed off his keyboard skills during one of my favorite Zep IV tunes, "Misty MountainHop". He and Bonham locked into a monster groove throughout the song,demonstrating why they were the best rhythm section in rock back then. "The Ocean"! Holy shit this song RIPPED. "Laaa Laaa - La La La Laa - Laa La La La La La La La Laaaaaa". Enough Said!