It is impossible to deny Led Zeppelin their right to the moniker "reigning kings of rock 'n roll." Twenty-plus years after their demise, it is as obvious as ever that the band is on top and will always remain on top of the heirarchy. Put aside any disdain for the band from overexposure - whether it be from their status in constant rotation on classic rock or the (unfortunate, in my opinion) use of "Rock And Roll" in the Cadillac commercials that incessantly run every five minutes on every channel, everywhere, and seemingly forever. With the release of How The West Was Won, a three-disc compilation of two concerts from the band's 1972 tour, and the minimalistically-titled DVD, a five hour and twenty minute trip via footage of four concerts throughout the 70s and archival material (none of it replicating material from the CDs,) the band re-stakes its claim at the top of the pile.
This is not a review. Not really, anyway. A review seems pointless for material like this - not only is the music of importance, it's the very stature a set of live releases like this represents. Aside from the very poorly received The Song Remains The Same, a shambles of a live album for a band whose very legend is built upon its live shows, and the more recent BBC Sessions, which only serves to document the band in very small snapshots, the band has somehow slipped by the latest trend of classic-rock masters releasing live album after live album to both appease hungry fans and the bands' own hungry bank accounts. And what a shame - from the moment "Immigrant Song" blares from the speakers, it is obvious that the live material from this band far outshines the studio counterparts. You could not successfully argue that the studio material represents a mannered performance - Led Zeppelin in any form throughout it's career was anything but mannered - but upon hearing the aggressive, insistent, and driving treatment those tracks receive on stage you may never again be able to listen to your well-worn copies of the classic albums. More importantly, for someone like me, who wore out his fascination with Led Zeppelin years ago, this set revitalizes and resurrects the greatness this nearly mythical band formed around itself. It's become far too easy to write off this band's material because it has become so familiar, so ingrained, so omnipresent - the reverence with which one must refer to the "almight Zep" is almost simply assumed. Long after I've memorized the albums, long after nearly everything the band has recorded has been played innumerable times on radio and every form of recordable media - and, of course, those Cadillac commercials - this set comes along and packs a wollop.
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