Fans of Led Zeppelin are in for a real treat, coming in late May. Here's the scoop:
Atlantic Records has announced the forthcoming release of the mother lode of Led Zeppelin live recordings. Slated for a simultaneous May 27th release are "LED ZEPPELIN DVD," a two-disc set, and "HOW THE WEST WAS WON," a three-CD set. Long sought-after by Zeppelin devotees and collectors, this marks the first-ever official release of these rare and legendary performances, which span the group's entire career. Much-rumored and eagerly anticipated, the DVD and CD sets each contain entirely different material, so there is no overlap between the two releases. As a gesture to the band's millions of fans, both sets are specially priced - the 2-DVD set at 29.98 list, and the 3-CD set at 26.98 list. "LED ZEPPELIN DVD" will be marketed by Atlantic Records in collaboration with Warner Strategic Marketing.
Clocking in at nearly five and a half hours, "LED ZEPPELIN DVD" has been culled from just a handful of performances which were ever filmed during the band's extraordinary lifetime. As guitarist Jimmy Page explains, "We were never really part of the pop scene. It was never what Led Zeppelin was supposed to be about. Our thing was playing live. In that sense, Zeppelin was very much an underground band. The fact that it became as successful as it did was something that was almost out of our control. We actually shunned commercialism, which is why so little official footage of the band has ever been seen before."Featured are performances from: London's Royal Albert Hall in January 1970, just one year after the release of their debut album; their triumphant five-night run at London's Earl's Court in May 1975; and their record-breaking shows at England's Knebworth Festival in August 1979, just one year before the death of drummer John Bonham led to the band's dissolution. Also included are songs from New York's Madison Square Garden in July 1973 which were not included in "THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME" concert film, the only previously released live Zeppelin footage. Other highlights of the DVD include: extremely rare television appearances, among them a performance for Danish television in March 1969; promotional clips; TV interviews; behind-the scenes material; and even a bit of fan-shot "bootleg" footage.
Continued on the next page Page 1 — Page 2
Article comments
1 - Tim Hall
Not strictly accurate to say "The Song Remains the Same" is their only live release; there's also the BBC recordings released couple of years back, with a show from 1971
2 - Ed Driscoll
Tim,
I think the press release was referring to "the only previously released live Zeppelin footage", i.e., movie footage. But even that isn't strictly accurate, as Zeppelin appeared performing "Dazed and Confused" live in a 1969 concert film titled Supershow, which was released by Sony on videotape in the late 1980s, and occasionally turns up on Ebay.
Ed
3 - bryan
Well from this preview of the work, I am dissapointed, The bbc sessions and the song remains the same give plenty of goodies from the first five albums of zep, and this review made it sound like their won't be much from beyond Houses of the HOly. Cmon, why can't I see something like Ten Years gone or in my time of dying live? Instead I am stuck with like 10 live versions of communication breakdown.
4 - Ed Driscoll
Bryan,
I would have liked to have seen a live version of "Ten Years Gone" myself--it's one of my favorite Led Zeppelin songs. About a decade a go, their performance of the song from Knebworth was shown about ten years ago on MTV, so obviously video of it exists. Although stripped down to an instrumental trio, and without Page's 17,000 guitar overdubs, it clearly lost the power of the studio version, which maybe why he chose to leave it off the upcoming DVD.
But I'll bet everyone has a favorite Zep song that's missing from both sets. Me? I'll take what I can get, especially with the DVDs.
Ed
5 - Graham C. Marshall
I son has just turned eighteen years of age and is a Zep fanatic. He plays drums in a tribute band and cannot get enough live footage. The forthcoming DVD and CD of live music, no matter what the content, will be enthusiastically received. It's not just about content, it's also, for a player, about inspiration, technique and stage presence.
6 - Vince
I love Led Zeppelin but feel that in some ways they were already passed their prime when The Song Remains the Same was filmed. I look forward to seeing performances from earlier in their career when life hadn't yet exacted such a heavy toll on the band. Interview footage from the DVD will be much appreciated as well since I have seen very little in the way of interviews with the band.
7 - Jeff Anderson
A great place to look for DVD related products and information. For all your dvd needs.