Description
The Kezer Stadium was a great performance that made Robert Plant say, “It’s been a long time since I’ve played at the Fillmore (also in San Francisco) that I’ve had such a good feeling.” It’s such a famous day that most enthusiasts think of ZEP’s 1973 live performance when they hear “Kezer.” The greatness of the performance is that many items have been released, starting with the famous LP “PERSISTENCE” with its nostalgic, creepy jacket design. That being said, it seems that the situation has been surprisingly complicated when it comes to Kezer CD items. “THE VIBES ARE REAL,” which set the precedent for Kezer CDs, was a release with a lot of pitch and cut problems, and the red jacket artwork was not very bright. A while later, low-generation sound sources began to spread explosively at the cassette trade level at the time, and about 20 years ago, the next generation Kezer CDs were overflowing. These are also nostalgic items such as “TAKKA TAKKA”, “WHO’S NEXT” and “BEST VIBES IN FRISCO”. After all, it is a famous performance and a famous sound source, and items continued to be produced after that, but in the 21st century, a shocking sound board excavation was realized. However, this SBD was recorded only at the end of the show after “Moby Dick”. Many of the PA-out SBDs excavated from the 1973 US tour are incomplete, but since the original was not recorded with the premise of release, this can’t be helped. Nevertheless, the outstanding clarity unique to SBD has an irresistible charm. But more than that, the sound quality of the stereo audience recording, which has made Keser’s greatness known for a long time, is also attractive. Therefore, currently, package items that take the best of these two sound sources are mainstream. In short, the value of audience recording has not faded at all in the sense that you can enjoy the whole performance. It boasts an exceptional sound image for a recording at an outdoor stadium in 1973, and Plant’s voice is captured with a surprisingly large balance. However, as the precious sound source went through the cassette dubbing, it became prickly, and all of the 90’s Kezar CDs mentioned above gave the impression of being harsh on the high notes. Because it was the era, it was not equalization but a degradation phenomenon caused by the drop in the generation. This situation continued for a long time, but a shocking upgrade that wiped out the roughness unique to the Kezar audience was realized in the early 2010s. This was the version transferred from the master tape by the familiar Krw_co. The texture was completely different from the previous generation drop cassettes, and surprised ZEP enthusiasts around the world. The upper feeling is exactly what the expression “rounded off” fits perfectly. And “MARY KEZAR”, which combined this upgraded sound source with a sound board, became the best of the new era. And it was Kezar that released the early upper version sound source by Krw_co. Despite this, last year they released “KEZAR STADIUM 1973”, which combined the Krw_co version with a version of the soundboard that had recently appeared on the Internet under the name “Unaltered Sound”, and it became a bestseller, even though there was nothing particularly new about it. Why is it being released now? It’s nothing other than the master of the SBD part. In other words, it was the basis of “LED FIVE”, which released the Kezar SBD for the first time in the early 21st century, and the WATCHTOWER version of “THE VIBES ARE REAL”. Of course, it’s not a copy of the route via the Internet. That said, there are no parts that are more upper than the previous items, so there are none (bitter smile). The reason is that the Kezar SBD benefited from the era when the media for trade shifted to CD-R, and each one was released with the same sound quality (except for equalization). Therefore, the SBD part this time is exactly the same quality and content as the past items, but it was still a point that I wanted to mention that it was recorded from the original master. Even more noteworthy is the audience recording part. For this release, the pitch deviation and fluctuation that occurred in the best version, Krw_co, has been perfectly adjusted. To tell the truth, the biggest drawback of the Kezar Audience was that the pitch was basically high and unstable. This was the biggest drawback that was neglected not only in the creepy jacket LP “PERSISTENCE” but also in most Kezar CDs released on CD. In particular, this problem was completely ignored in the Kezar CDs of the 1990s. On the contrary, even the best of recent years, “MARY KEZAR”, has not been able to fix this problem. In other words, the original Krw_co version was nothing more than a neglect of the pitch fluctuation. In the face of this major drawback and serious situation, this time we have made a thorough pitch adjustment that was not made at the time of the gift release. Finally, we have finally achieved the best release of the Kezar Audience, where you can listen to the entire work in a completely stable state. I’m sorry to say this, but when it comes to Kezar, the audience recording is overwhelmingly more enjoyable. Because ZEP in 1973 was at the height of their unhealthy rock and roll life, they made the mistake of being two hours late for the afternoon show, which started while it was still light, instead of the usual night. In addition, the show was hosted by Bill Graham. Although ZEP made him and the packed audience anxious, it was surprising that the engine was fully open in an instant once they got on stage and started playing. The one who shone the most on stage that day was Bonzo. This was obvious just from the scene where the bass drum was repeatedly hit as the opening “Rock And Roll” headed towards the ending. There’s no doubt that this alone will make you shiver. However, at this stage of the song, the bass sound of Johnsy reverberating through the venue was weak, which can be said to be a phenomenon unique to 1973. Fortunately, his bass also gets better from the second song, “Celebration Day,” but because of that, you can clearly hear Jonesy’s rare mistake of miscomposing the song. What makes this live performance even better than Bonzo is Plant, who is in top form throughout the whole show. He has come to terms with his inability to scream like he did the previous year, and he is now able to sing powerfully despite his changed voice. On the other hand, the Kezer audience had the problem that “Moby Dick” was hardly recorded, but in fact it was a scary 30 minutes long (bitter smile), so many people should find it easier to listen to. On the other hand, it is a pity that we cannot enjoy the bargaining of “Dazed And Confused,” where Page, dressed in all white, played a great performance, encouraged by Bonzo, who was in top form (as you can see from the photo from the day). To be honest, I don’t enjoy the SBD part as much as the Kezer audience. It is undeniable that the balance of the recording from the PA out does not fully convey the dynamism and excitement of the venue. However, the fact that the SBD recording of this day started with “Moby Dick” is very interesting. Originally, it was a sound source recorded on cassette from the PA by members and staff as a record, not a release. The fact that it was recorded from “Moby Dick” means that it was recorded on cassette at Bonzo’s request. It can be inferred that he asked for the sound because he intended to perform a longer drum solo than usual on this day. Among the photos of the day that remain, Plant, Jonesy, and even Bill Graham are captured looking at the stage, and even Plant is seen sitting upright (lol) waiting for his turn, but it is highly likely that these were taken during “Moby Dick”. In terms of capturing such a long play, the documentary value of the SBD is certainly high. There is also the similar benefit of recording Graham’s post-show announcement for longer than the audience recording. This part was recorded again from the master, and the audience recording was also recorded in perfect condition in every sense. This is the new best version of one day, which is one of the top three performances on the 1973 American tour! This is the first version ever recorded with perfect pitch. The audience is Krw_co. The soundboard was obtained independently. The audience on Disc 1/2 corrected the pitch 40-60% higher than the Krw_co version. The soundboard on Disc 3 corrected the pitch about 20% lower than the semitone in the latter half. Disc 1/2 was adjusted to the mid-high range to make the performance clearer and to improve separation. Live at Kezar Stadium, San Francisco, CA. USA 2nd June 1973 Audience Recording (Reel Master) Disc 1 (62:33) 1. MC Intro #1 2. MC Intro #2 3. Rock And Roll 4. Celebration Day 5. Black Dog 6. Over The Hill And Far Away 7. Misty Mountain Hop 8. Since I’ve Been Loving You 9. No Quarter 10. The Song Remains The Same 11. The Rain Song Disc 2(78:31) 1. Dazed And Confused 2. Stairway To Heaven 3. Moby Dick 4. Heartbreaker 5. Whole Lotta Love 6. Communication Breakdown 7. The Ocean 8. Announcement Soundboard Recording Disc 3(62:08) 1. Moby Dick 2. Heartbreaker 3. Whole Lotta Love 4. Communication Breakdown 5. The Ocean 6. Announcement 7. Final Announcement
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