Comprised of six sessions recorded for the BBC between March 1969 and April 1971, The Complete BBC Sessions has now been remastered and made more complete thanks to the missing tracks from those sessions now included on a third CD in this set. While some might grumble that this reissue doesn't include the sessions and track list in the order they were recorded, it's still probably as complete as we are going to get, and this new remaster treatment has done a spectacular job of giving these recordings the clarity they deserve. Housed in a cool triple foldout digipack complete with plenty of info on the sessions, this one falls right in line with the rest of the Jimmy Page remaster series and nicely rounds out the collection.
As there has never been a wealth of official live Led Zeppelin recordings, this collection of BBC songs was a welcome release and sits alongside the How the West Was Won as strong companions to The Song Remains the Same, making a powerful trio of live Led Zeppelin. Many of the bands early tracks are represented here, and though there is a bit of overlap on the songs played, you can hear the subtle differences from track to track. The venues where these tracks were recorded at include the Playhouse Theatre, Maida Vale Studios, Aeolian Hall Studio 2, and the Paris Cinema, with some of the strongest performances coming from the Playhouse & Maida Vale, where the band played twice during this period. The Paris Cinema date is noteworthy as it contains the longest set and introduces songs from the bands third and fourth albums, including rampaging renditions of "Immigrant Song", "Since I've Been Loving You", "Black Dog", as well as stellar takes on "Stairway to Heaven", "Heartbreaker", "Whole Lotta Love", and "Dazed and Confused". This was Led Zeppelin completely peaking and at the height of their powers.
Plenty of improvisation to be found throughout these three CDs, as the band were no strangers to experimenting and branching out with their instrumental skills, but these BBC recordings are also noteworthy for rare tracks like "Travelling Riverside Blues", "The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair", and "Sunshine Woman". So, while some might question whether to purchase these BBC sessions again, the inclusion of a full disc of previously unreleased material from these same sessions is reason enough to take the plunge for any serious Led Zeppelin fan.
See more about this release on our recent YouTube show!
Track Listing
Disc One
01. You Shook Me
02. I Can't Quit You Baby
03. Communication Breakdown
04. Dazed And Confused
05. The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair
06. What Is And What Should Never Be
07. Communication Breakdown
08. Travelling Riverside Blues
09. Whole Lotta Love
10. Somethin' Else
11. Communication Breakdown
12. I Can't Quit You Baby
13. You Shook Me
14. How Many More Times
Disc Two
01. Immigrant Song
02. Heartbreaker
03. Since I've Been Loving You
04. Black Dog
05. Dazed And Confused
06. Stairway To Heaven
07. Going To California
08. That's The Way
09. Whole Lotta Love (Medley: Boogie Chillun/Fixin' To Die/That's Alright Mama/A Mess of Blues)
10. Thank You
Disc Three
01. Communication Breakdown *
02. What Is And What Should Never Be *
03. Dazed And Confused *
04. White Summer
05. What Is And What Should Never Be *
06. Communication Breakdown *
07. I Can't Quit You Baby *
08. You Shook Me *
09. Sunshine Woman *
* Previously Unreleased
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