Led Zeppelin

Given that they were the biggest band in the world, Zeppelin were notoriously camera-shy in their heyday. Their official filmic legacy until now has been just the fascinating but flawed The Song Remains the Same. While this new set presents some previously unseen footage from the same 1973 Madison Square Garden gigs, its real wonders lie in the earlier (1970) Royal Albert Hall footage and the later Earls Court (1975) and Knebworth (1979) concerts. Everything here looks and sounds new-minted, thanks to painstaking restoration and remastering of both audio and visual sources, a Herculean labor of love on the part of co-producer Dick Carruthers working hand-in-glove with Jimmy Page. Trawling through thousands of yards of previously unseen film and unheard tape recordings--some with missing visuals, some with missing audio--Page and Carruthers have chosen only the best possible footage available. They were also at pains to make the segments segue seamlessly so that the viewer is treated to what feels like a continuous concert--just sample the transition from a grainy Super 8 "Immigrant Song" (Sydney, 1972) to "Black Dog" at MSG.

Highlights? It's not hyperbole to say that every powerhouse minute of this collection (some 230 minutes of concert footage plus another hour and a half of extra DVD material) is a rare musical and visual treat. But hearing Page's violin bow work on "Dazed and Confused" in DTS or Dolby 5.1 is an experience not soon forgotten. --Mark Walker

Led Zeppelin live was something special. Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and John Bonham gave it their best every time they hit the stage. The Rolling Stones have always proclaimed themselves at the "Greatest Live Rock and Roll Band," but Led Zep can also make their claim for that title in this special 3 DVD set.

In 1970, where this muscial journey begins, video and sound recording was light years from today's digital revolution. This was a time when long playing vinyl albums sometimes were released in both a mono and stereo versions!

Jimmy Page and crew worked many months in restoring the video quality and remastering the sound to glorious Dolby Digital and DTS formats.

To just comment on a few songs in this incredible sonic document would be missing the point. Having witnessed their live performances at back stage, side stage and front stage I know that for any hard core Led Zep fan this is as good as it gets! For the casual fan of that time in history or the younger generation you can now see and hear what the fuss was all about.

The Led Zeppelin DVD collection validates the reason for having a home theater system!

These guys might have had the rock star swagger, but they knew they were great and we knew they were something very special.

As Baseball Hall of Famer Dizzy Dean once said "It ain't bragging if you can do it!" and I think this sums it up nicely for the Hammer of The Gods.


Hammer Of The Gods   June 9, 2003
Thomas Magnum (NJ, USA)
39 out of 40 found this review helpful

Led Zeppelin's self-titled DVD is a treasure chest for all fans of the band. Nearly four hours of never before seen concert footage is spread out over two disks that feature performances from every era of the band's career. It is a real eye opener for fans who never experienced the band live to see the sheer power and magnetism of the group at the height of their powers. The best aspect of the collection is the brilliant sound and picture clarity. Jimmy Page spearheaded this project and although surviving members Robert Plant and John Paul Jones contributed, Mr. Page is the lifeblood of the work. The remastering of the footage's sound and picture is breathtaking. One only need to view the four songs from the Madison Square Garden concert to see the first rate work. This is footage from a concert that was filmed for the band's 1976 film, The Song Remains The Same. In viewing that movie, the picture is somewhat grainy and the colors blurred, but on this disk, the picture is sharp and clear. Led Zeppelin sold tons of albums in the 70's, but it was their legendary live performances that made them rock gods and this collection brings that view into focus.


The mother lode of live Led Zeppelin   March 10, 2003
Rezaul Hasan Laskar (New Delhi, India)
241 out of 287 found this review helpful

Well, this 2-DVD set is yet to be released but I'm still rating it at five stars. The press release put out by Atlantic Records describes the set and the accompanying 3-CD live set as the "mother lode of Led Zeppelin live recordings"!

Slated for a simultaneous May 27 release, this marks the first-ever official release of rare and legendary performances spanning Led Zeppelin's entire career.

But the DVD and CD sets contain entirely different material so there is no overlap between the two releases.

Clocking in at nearly five-and-a-half hours, The "Led Zeppelin DVD" has been culled from just a handful of performances ever filmed during the band's lifetime.

Guitarist Jimmy Page explained: "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 on the DVD are performances from London's Royal Albert Hall in January 1970, just a year after the release of their debut album, their 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 a year before drummer John Bonham's death led to the band's dissolution.

Also included are songs from New York's Madison Square Garden in July 1973 that were not included in "The Song Remains The Same" concert film, the only previously released live Zeppelin footage.

Other highlights on the DVD are 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 bootleg footage shot by fans.

The DVD has been painstakingly restored, remixed and remastered in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, DTS, and PCM two-channel stereo under the personal supervision of Jimmy Page and director Dick Carruthers.

Carruthers recently told reporters that the DVD set is intended as a definitive statement of all that is fit for release, though that quality threshold was set very high by surviving Led Zeppelin members.

While Carruthers collected film and video material, Jimmy Page and Kevin Shirley assembled surround mixes from Page's huge archive of live recordings.

The DVDs present the material in chronological order and the supplementary material consists of early European TV appearances on the first disc, and interviews and 1990-vintage promos on the second, including the only decent interview footage of the late John Bonham.

The Albert Hall footage is from a two camera 16mm shoot and the second disc reportedly has a stunning version of "The Immigrant Song" for which footage could not be found. So some Super 8 footage from Australia has been edited promo-style to accompany it.

Track listing:

Disc 1

Live at the Royal Albert Hall (1970) 1hr 42 mins
We're gonna groove
I can't quit you baby
Dazed and confused
White summer
What is and what should never be
How many more times
Moby Dick
Whole lotta love
Communication breakdown
C'mon everybody
Something else
Bring it on home

Disc 2

The immigrant song
Madison Square Garden (1973) 23:24 mins
Black dog
Misty mountain hop
Since I've been loving you
The ocean

Earls Court (1975) 49 mins
Going to California
That's the way
Bron Y Aur stomp
In my time of dying
Trampled underfoot
Stairway to heaven

Live at Knebworth (1979) 51:41 mins
Rock'n'roll
Nobody's fault but mine
Sick again
Achilles last stand
In the evening
Kashmir
Whole lotta love


Was there really any doubt?   May 28, 2003
30 out of 33 found this review helpful

Worth the price just to see the Royal Albert Hall Performance.
Biggest surprise...Knebworth 79. Even the best boots don't do it justice. Bonham is a freakin' machine! Earl's Court is wonderful as I think most have anticipated.

Once again, they've got the midas touch.
Video and Sound quality are unbelievably outstanding!