Led Zeppelin/AL,USA 1973 Upgrade

ZEP’s first table-connected soundboard heaven, the 1973 US tour. The first half of the tour, which was divided into two parts, was particularly blessed with sound sources, and it is still fresh in our memory that the best versions of table-connected sound sources such as Denver and Kezar Stadium were released just a year ago. Therefore, we have handled quite a few ’73 American soundboards, but the soundboard album of the mobile performance on May 13th was like a missing hole among them. The 1973 American table-connected sound source rush was released from Dallas and Chicago in the early days of CD, but this mobile appeared in a very rare format called cassette boot, which will be reconsidered now that cassettes have regained popularity. Around the same time, a large number of table-connected soundboards from the 1973 tour were circulated among traders. Riding on this bubble, a label called Ghost Music released a large number of cassette trade sound sources. One of them was released in two parts, “UPWARDLY MOBILE” and “MOBILE DICK”. At that time, the items released in large quantities by Ghost were released on CD, due to the era of cassette trading, and the Genesis convention and pitch deviations were neglected, but for maniacs who are not involved in trading, it was useful in that they could listen to a large number of first-time sound sources on CD. Surprisingly, nothing beyond those two titles appeared immediately, but the best version appeared on the MIDAS TOUCH label’s “GOIN’ MOBILE”. In the 21st century, it was replaced by “ALABAMA GETAWAY” released by EMPRESS VALLEY and has remained so to this day. The great appeal of the Mobile direct-connected sound board was that it excelled in freshness and clarity among the many sound boards that existed at that time. It felt like that was perfected in “ALABAMA GETAWAY”. “MOBLIE 1973” appeared many times after that. Although it was not a major level, it was a CD that was well-received among maniacs because it was upgraded to a certain extent. However, recently, a shocking upgraded version that wiped out those already released items has appeared on the Internet. This was the basis for this release, but the new version was created by the familiar dadgad. The sound source obtained for the remaster was said to be of “unknown generation,” but this was surprising, as the sound quality was fundamentally improved from the previous version. It is clear that the sound source was in good condition even before the remaster, and the upper feeling is so overwhelming that it makes you wonder if the generation was not revealed intentionally. Compared to this version, the past items that felt so easy to listen to were more or less small due to noise reduction. It is so different in dimension, this is truly a wonderful upgrade. That said, while taking the time to remaster, overseas enthusiasts tend to neglect pitch errors (bitter smile). There were some parts that were not fixed even though they said “the speed has been adjusted”. In particular, the noticeable pitch drop around “The Rain Song” was adjusted. The final touches were put on the sound source that had undergone an amazing upgrade. After all, it is a wonderful sound source, and for this release, we have made some fine adjustments to other parts that we were concerned about. Please refer to the separate section for details. As mentioned at the beginning, the Mobile direct-connected sound source was well-known for its outstanding recording balance and clarity among the many 1973 American soundboards, but the biggest attraction is that Johnsy’s bass is captured in an exquisite balance. Because of this, you can hear him make a big mistake in the transition from “Rock And Roll” to “Celebration Day” (a really rare mistake for him, the most calm member of the group), and it is an excellent sound source that allows you to feel the awesomeness of his bass playing, which tends to be weak on other 1973 direct-connected soundboards. Johnsy’s spectacular bass playing is also captured in “The Song Remains The Same” and “Dazed And Confused”, and it can be called a valuable resource that reminds us how he was the key to the ZEP sound. And yet, the Mobile sound source is also valuable in that “ZEP playing carefully in America in 1973” is captured with the highest sound quality throughout. Both Jimmy and Bonzo play surprisingly carefully, and Jimmy’s phrases, which show a wonderful spread in the solo of “Stairway To Heaven”, are probably in the top three in America in 1973. At this point, he had not yet fully inclined to action-oriented, and was not yet drowning in the pleasures of LA. Bonzo’s playing, which supports it, is also wonderful, and the realistic tone is excellent. Plant has also evolved to a state where he can listen with peace of mind, with a relaxed singing style other than “Over The Hills And Far Away”. Then, in the first half, while playing carefully, the members explode as if they were waiting for it, and at around the 20th minute of “Dazed And Confused”, a hyper play reminiscent of 1973 Europe is played mainly by the rhythm section. With the European table-connected sound board, the balance was such that Jonesy was often neglected, but as I have mentioned many times, the mobile has a large presence, so the awesomeness of the play is conveyed even more. In mid-May, the excavation of the direct-connected sound board was densely concentrated among the 1973 US tour, but the mobile, which boasted outstanding clarity among them, was upgraded in 2019. Of course, the end of the show after “Heartbreaker”, which was not recorded, remains unrecorded, but the amazing upgrade that makes you forget even that is really amazing. As a result of the realization of such a quality improvement and the adjustment of the pitch at the time of release, it has evolved into a superb item that can be recommended not only to ZEP enthusiasts but also to rock fans. It is the appearance of a direct-connected sound board album that anyone can listen to with confidence. Surprisingly careful performance and clear sound quality that is easy to understand…no complaints. (Remaster memo) ★ Compared to the previous release, the sound is overwhelmingly good. The feature of this board is that the high tones are well-received, and conversely, there are some parts that sound rough. Especially disc 1. ★ The points that are inferior to the previous release are that the intro is about 5 seconds shorter. The outro is about 0.3 seconds shorter. The outro was deemed unnecessary and no compensation was made. The intro is important, so I compensated for it, but the previous version had a lot of noise reduction, so it didn’t sound the same as the new version, so I adjusted it as much as I could and compensated for it, but that’s about it. ★The right channel is lower in high than the left, so I adjusted it. The left and right balance has been improved. ★Pitch adjustment The pitch of Disc 1 was corrected to be 20% slower by a semitone towards the end. Disc 2 is correct. Live at Municipal Auditorium, Mobile, Alabama, USA 13th May 1973 SBD(UPGRADE) Disc 1 (60:04) 1. Introduction 2. Rock And Roll 3. Celebration Day 4. Black Dog 5. Over The Hills And Far Away 6. Misty Mountain Hop 7. Since I’ve Been Loving You 8. No Quarter 9. The Song Remains The Same 10. The Rain Song Disc 2 (55:5 8) 1. Dazed And Confused 2. Stairway To Heaven 3. Moby Dick SOUNDBOARD RECORDING