Led Zeppelin/CA,USA 6.22.1977 4 Source Mix

The LA Forum 6 performances, the pinnacle of the 1977 US tour, will be recognized by ZEP enthusiasts around the world. These wonderful stages became widely recognized because they were recorded by the legendary taper Mike Millard. In the LP era, the number of items was limited, so it seemed that attention was focused only on Eddie on the 21st and the Badgeholders on the 23rd. However, now there are sound sources and items from all performances, proving that it was a special period of the 1977 tour. However, June 22nd is a nemesis among the 1977 LA performances, where such great performances were mass-produced. This is because there was no Millard sound source on this day, and it is speculated that he was not even able to go to the concert in the first place. Although it was a show sandwiched between Eddie and the Badgeholders, this is a very unexpected situation. Also, although the Badgeholders LP was recorded by a different person than Millard, the audience recording, which also boasts excellent quality, was used. In that respect, the audience recording of “recorder 1”, which occupies the first half of the 22nd. If I had to describe this in one word, it would be… very old-fashioned sound quality. What’s more, it’s mono sound quality. The sound image is far away, and even up to “Nobody’s Fault But Mine”, there is a high-frequency noise-like sound, which makes it seem as if you are listening to “poorly received AM radio”. After all, the other LA performances have such high sound quality, and even for June 26th, which does not have a mirrored sound source, we have no choice but to rely on the audience recording of inferior quality, but compared to that, the sound of the 22nd, which will be released this time, is generally rough. That said, the performance is extremely hot from the first half, as expected from the 1977 LA Forum. The day before, Bonzo’s lively play at the opening became legendary, but on this day, Bonzo exploded with lively drumming in “In My Time Of Dying”. And that’s not all. The other three also gave a great performance in response to Bonzo’s stirring performance. Frankly speaking, let’s say that this is the best “In My~” during the 1977 LA performance. The ending is an ascension ending, with Plant pulling it! In the middle of this song, there is a rare happening that the sound output of the venue goes down (the venue shows a “What’s wrong?” kind of reaction), and “No Quarter” is a long version that reaches 30 minutes while Jonesy’s classical piano is clear. On June 22nd, there are four kinds of mono audience recordings, and there are already items that combine them, but this time it is made based on the version uploaded by “Weedwacker” in 2012. Then from the acoustic set, it switches to “recorder 3”, which has the easiest sound quality to listen to. Even so, it still does not reach the level of quality of the mirrored recording, but it is improved to a state that is easy to listen to at once compared to the other audience recordings of this day. In addition, since it is from the acoustic performance part, the difference is even more obvious. Although it is still a monaural recording lacking clarity, the sound image becomes closer at once, which is a major point. The performance also has a long part in “Bron-Y-Aur Stomp”, which is reminiscent of the last day in LA, where only the rhythm section plays. The second half of the day was also very interesting, and “Over The Hills And Far Away” made me want to ask, “Are you going to do it in this position?” Moreover, the performance is also very hot here. In particular, Page’s play in the second half is richer than usual, which is quite a great performance. His solo “Guitar Solo” is also interesting, with a monotonous “Miyoon” phrase that is different from usual and more synth-like, and there was also an incident where the sound output problem at the venue recurred again. In the end, there was even a problem where Page’s guitar completely disappeared after 3 minutes of “Achilles Last Stand”, but that’s why the hyper voltage of the performance was so intense. It was as if the whole band was venting their anger at the PA malfunction into their performance. Especially at around the 6:30 mark, Page and Bonzo’s crazy playing gave me goosebumps. This is the kind of performance that should be called LA quality. The show continued to be hyper as usual, and “Stairway To Heaven” was brought to a climax with exquisite detail. The point is that Jonesy’s electric piano is a good hidden flavor. The same song was performed the day before, but this day was also a great performance. There may have been some parts where they were motivated by the trouble in the second half of the show, but it is clear that both Plant and Page are in a good 77 mode. And the “Weedwacker” version that was the basis for this release is undoubtedly the best in that it made the rough quality of the audience recording as easy to listen to as possible. However, it is true that there are some rough equalizations, and for this release, these have been alleviated overall, resulting in a better feel than the original version. In addition, the pitch changes caused by using multiple sources have been thoroughly adjusted. As a result, the recording volume is expanded to four discs. Another problem, the uneven volume caused by the change in source, has also been adjusted in the same way to make it easier to listen to. As you can see from this, this release has made the longest show in the first half of the LA Forum in 1977 into the most listenable state ever. And the performance is super hot! Led Zeppelin / LA Forum 1977 2nd Night 4 Source Mix Disc 1 (45:13) 1. Intro (R1) 2. The Song Remains The Same (R1) 3. Sick Again (R1) 4. Nobody’s Fault But Mine (R1) 5. In My Time of Dying (R1) 6. Since I’ve Been Loving You (R1/2/4) Disc 2 (46:34 ) 1. MC(R2) 2. No Quarter(R2/4) 3. Ten Years Gone (R3/4) Disc 3 (44:08) All R3 1. MC 2. The Battle Of Evermore 3. Going To California 4. Black Country Woman 5. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp 6. White Summer / Black Mountain Side 7. Kashmir Disc 4 (74:41) All R3 1. MC 2. Over The Top 3. Over The Hills And Far Away 4. Guitar Solo 5. Achilles Last Stand 6. Stairway To Heaven 7. Whole Lotta Love 8. Rock And Roll