Led Zeppelin - 1979 - Past Present and Future (EVSD)

Led Zeppelin
1979
 Past Present and Future 
EVSD

When Led Zeppelin scheduled their comeback from the events of 1979 they planned it in three stages. The first was the recording of a new album, which they did in November 1978 in Stockholm. The second was a return to the stage in Europe, and the third and final was a US tour which, as events would dictate, would never occur.

Although they planned their first concert in two years with the huge Knebworth festival, they decided to play two warm up gigs in Copenhagen, Denmark a week before. These were the first shows in Denmark since they played the KB Hallen in 1973. These were poorly advertised and planned. The first show was delayed several hours because Zeppelin couldn’t fit their lighting rig in the venue. While trying to regain their live prowess and breaking in their new set list, these are essentially public rehearsals before an uncritical audience.

The setlist itself reveals Zeppelin trying to “cut the waffle” (as Plant said in an interview after Knebworth) by cutting out the long solos and playing more songs while maintaining a two and a half hour marathon set. Trying to have it both ways produced one of their most clunky and disjointed set which seems to lose any kind of momentum it builds. Nevertheless it is one of their most complete in terms of comprehensiveness with songs from every one of their albums including the not yet released In Through The Outdoor.

Led Zeppelin
July 23, 1979
Falkoner Theatre
Copenhagen

101. Opening
102. The Song Remains The Same
103. Celebration Day
104. Black Dog
105. Nobody's Fault But Mine
106. Over The Hills And Far Away
107. Misty Mountain Hop
108. Since I've Been Loving You
109. No Quarter
110. Hot Dog
111. The Rain Song

201. White Summer - Black Mountain Side
202. Kashmir
203. Trampled Underfoot
204. Achilles Last Stand
205. Guitar Solo
206. In The Evening
207. Stairway To Heaven
208. Rock And Roll

Led Zeppelin
July 24, 1979
Falkoner Theatre
Copenhagen

101. Intro
102. The Song Remains the Same
103. Celebration Day
104. Black Dog
105. Nobody's Fault But Mine
106. Over the Hills and Far Away
107. Misty Mountain Hop
108. Since I've Been Loving You
109. No Quarter
110. Ten Years Gone
111. Hot Dog
112. The Rain Song

201. White Summer / Black Mountainside
202. Kashmir
203. Trampled Underfoot
204. Sick Again
205. Achilles Last Stand
206. Guitar Solo
207. In the Evening

The first Copenhagen show exists on a superlative sounding stereo audience recording which surfaced soon after the event on the famous Melancholy Danish Pageboys Get It On (Danskmusic M-197-3). The same tape is used for all compact disc releases including Melancholy Danish Pageboys Get It On Remake (Silver Rarities SIRA 80/81) misdated July 24th, Melancholy Danish Pageboys Get It On (Cobra 022), 79 (Antrabata) with all four 1979 shows, Copenhagen Warm-Ups (TDOLZ Vol. 94), Copenhagen Warm-Ups (Empress Valley EVSD 30/31/32/33/34), Copenhagen Warm-Ups (Tarantura), and Copenhagen Warm-Ups (Last Stand Disc LSD-1/2/3/4 and the reissue LSD- 86/87/88/89). All these have minor variations which are meticulously documented on the Bootledz site, but all generally sound great. This green cover no label version however is one of the very best versions available and remains so despite the other releases in the ensuing years. The only flaw is some digital interference beginning in the last half of “Hot Dog” and running through the first minute of “The Rain Song.”

The tape begins with the audience cheering and Robert Plant on stage making an announcement saying “Good evening. We have no lights….we must apologize but the lights keep going so we’re gonna play with like half a light show.” The audience start their rhythmic clapping and Bonzo joins them before the band start the opening song, a rusty version of “The Song Remains The Same” followed by “Celebration Day” for the first time since 1973.

“Thank you very much, and thank you for your patience and waiting for the disappearing lights. Well it’s been eight years since we were here last time. There’s not too much talking to do, quite a bit of playing” he says as an introduction to a good version of “Black Dog.” The following numbers are played with hesitation and Page messes up the short guitar break in “Misty Mountain Hop.” “Since I’ve Been Loving You” follows although not with the segue employed in 1972 and 1973. This is the debut of the new double solo arrangement where Page plays two guitar solos instead of one, a practice he will keep through the 1980 tour.

“After quite a while we seem to managed to create an LP. And LP’s, albums usually reflect…didn’t think I was gonna go through all this, but they usually reflect where you’ve been, what you’ve done, what you think, and consequently this one’s some ethereal quality. It’s called ‘Hot Dog'” Plant says before the first of two new songs in the set. They play tentatively and it seems Page wants to duplicate the guitar solo from the set but changes his mind and the results are a mess. Afterwards Plant again apologises for the lights, saying, “That was because we were very heavily influenced by the P.A. and lighting company who charges so much money we had to write that song and they got the royalties. That’s why only half the lights are working.” When someone requests “D’yer M’ker” Plant replies, “never heard of it.” “The Rain Song” is played for the first time alone, not linked with “The Song Remains The Same.”

In the second half of the show “White Summer” sounds very good as does “Kashmir.” After “Achilles Last Stand” Plant speak about “virgin soil that we now tread. It’s not only have we been quite quiet for two years, but in being quiet we only found this song about six months ago.” The long theremin solo of the 1977 tour is gone for the violin bow solo exclusively which leads into a tympani introduction for “In The Evening.” The studio recording begins with a short but effective violin bow exercise so utilizing this arrangement makes sense. It also builds up the tension for their latest epic barn burner, much like how they did on the previous tour with “Achilles Last Stand.” The show ends with “Stairway To Heaven” and only “Rock And Roll” as an encore. Overall it sounds like what it is: an open rehearsal fills with bum notes and weak performances.

The second Copenhagen show was also released on vinyl soon after the event on the vinyl Copenhagen Warm Ups: 2nd Night (Empire & Geiko Sukui 3ZC-07249 1-6), In The Evening (Dane Records SX 502), Raging Violent The Virtuoso (no label), and Zep Over Europe (Earthwords ZEL A-H). Compact disc releases have all been in a four disc set with the previous night and can be found on the titles listed above and which are documented meticulously on the Bootledz website. The recording is slightly more fuzzy than the first night but still excellent and very powerful with several tape flips after “Since I’ve Been Loving You” and “Kashmir” (which cuts off the final notes).

Getting their first live performance in two years out of the way, they deliver a much tighter and more confident show than the first which some collectors say is the best of the four 1979 appearances. “The Song Remains The Same” has much more energy as it burst on the stage with a dramatic segue into the fanfare that is “Celebration Day.” “Well good evening to you. It’s very nice to be back in Copenhagen after many years, in fact, since last night. It’s very nice to have the lights back with us tonight and it’s very nice to have Susan Watson Taylor’s young nephews here too” are Plant’s opening words before “Black Dog.”

“Misty Mountain Hop” with Page hitting the solo correctly. Plant sings through a harmonizer which is probably meant to duplicate the doubled vocals of the studio recording but oftentimes sounds quite silly. “Since I’ve Been Loving You” is introduced as a “blues…and that’s been virtually the background of ninety percent of the stuff we’ve ever put on record.”

Page plays some pretty sounding trills in “No Quarter” in the verses. There is almost no keyboard solo from Jones since Page comes in very early. He plays a fluent solo but seems to steal the spotlight. Afterwards they get ready to play “Ten Years Gone” for the first time in two years. “This next one’s really a bit of a departure from set formula” Plant says since they didn’t play it on the 23rd. There is a delay with Jones’ guitar and Plant quips, “very shortly we shall be doing eleven years gone.” When the audience begins to chant and stomp in rhythm Plant jokes, “you should have been here last night.” The complicated Physical Graffiti track is played without a hitch retaining its pristine beauty.

“Sick Again,” which was not played on the 23rd, is added to the set list after “Trampled Underfoot.” The violin bow solo leading into “In The Evening” provides the greatest excitement of the evening, being an effective piece of theatrics with the audience clapping along. “Whole Lotta Love” is dedicated to Beowulf as they introduce a new seven minute arrangement of the song. In tracing the evolution of the piece over ten years, from its single form to medley to the vehicle for theremin battles, this is one of the greatest versions. The middle section contains a tight and hard riff pummeled over the head of the audience which caps a great evening by the band. Copenhagen Warm-Ups on Zoso was issued in the mid nineties in a basic, no-frills packaging and remains one of the best versions available for these interesting concerts.

Led Zeppelin disappeared after the tragic events in 1977 and remained hidden from the public eye for two years, an eternity in the world of music. When they chose to play their first concerts in two years, and their first in England in four, they planned it in the most spectacular way imaginable by headlining not just one but two massive Knebworth festivals. This was the only way they could possible accommodate the demand for tickets.

The importance of these shows is best summed up by author Dave Lewis, who wrote: “For many in attendance it was their first ever concert experience. For many it would be the only time that they would get to see Zeppelin perform live. For that reason alone it holds a special affection in their live history. The first show in particular, with so much riding on it, was perhaps the most important they ever played.” (Led Zeppelin: Celebration II: The ‘Tight But Loose’ Files).

The two warm up shows in Copenhagen revealed a band who were not quite ready to headline such massive events, a point that Robert Plant stated shortly after the two when he said: “Knebworth was useless. It was no good at all. It was no good because we weren’t ready to do it, the whole thing was a management decision. It felt like I was cheating myself because I wasn’t as relaxed as I could have been. There was so much expectation there and the least we could have done was to have been confident enough to kill. We maimed the beast for life, but we didn’t kill it. It was good, but only because everybody made it good. There was that sense of event.”

Journalist Chris Welch, fifteen years afterwards, observed: “Fans [at Knebworth] were still supporting the band, but there was definitely a feeling [Led Zeppelin’s] days were numbered. Audience reaction at Knebworth had not been overwhelming and many seemed content to stand and stare, like mesmerised spectators at an alien ritual, a far cry from the hysteria of earlier shows. Robert Plant seemed perplexed at the silence between songs, when you could practically hear a pin drop in that vast, cold field. It wasn’t until he led the way into ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and ‘Trampled Underfoot’ that roars of appreciation began to echo around Knebworth. Robert’s only comment at the end of the last show was a guarded ‘It’s been quite good.'”

At least five audience recordings exist but in 2002 an almost complete soundboard recording surfaced. It is clear and well balanced but also very narrow sounding and has cuts in “The Rain Song” and “Whole Lotta Love.” It was issued on Blind Date (Empress Valley EVSD-214-219), You’ll Never Walk Alone(Tarantura 2000, TCD-9-1/2/3 & DVD) and on the horrid Lost Masters Knebworth ’79 (Celebration CDM-007, LTDCDM-007RE). Watchtower released the tape first in a seven disc set housed in cardboard sleeves and a deluxe box with the soundboard of the second Knebworth soundboard and a bonus disc with the first hour of the May 25th, 1975 Earls Court soundboard. Later they issued the two Knebworth shows separately in jewel cases. Of all the soundboard recordings, this is considered to be the better balanced and clearer of them all. The soundboard tapes caused a general re-evaluation of the event which was given another boost when much of the August 4th show was used on the official Led Zeppelin DVD.

Led Zeppelin

August 4, 1979

Knebworth Fair

Stevenage

101. Opening

102. The Song Remains The Same

103. Celebration Day

104. Black Dog

105. Nobody's Fault But Mine

106. Over The Hills And Far Away

107. Misty Mountain Hop

108. Since I've Been Loving You

109. No Quarter

201. Ten Years Gone

202. Hot Dog

203. The Rain Song

204. White Summer~Black Mountain Side

205. Kashmir

206. Trampled Underfoot

207. Sick Again

208. Achilles Last Stand

301. Guitar Solo

302. In The Evening

303. Stairway To Heaven

304. Rock And Roll

305. Whole Lotta Love

306. Heartbreaker

Led Zeppelin

August 11, 1979

Knebworth Fair

Stevenage

401. Opening

402. The Song Remains The Same

403. Celebration Day

404. Black Dog

405. Nobody's Fault But Mine

406. Over The Hills And Far Away

407. Misty Mountain Hop

408. Since I've Been Loving You

409. No Quarter

501. Hot Dog

502. The Rain Song

503. White Summer~Black Mountain Side

504. Kashmir

505. Trampled Underfoot

506. Sick Again

507. Achilles Last Stand

601. Guitar Solo

602. In The Evening

603. Stairway To Heaven

604. Rock And Roll

605. Whole Lotta Love

606. Communication Breakdown

The tape begins with the pre-show canned music before “The Song Remains The Same” and “Celebration Day” both sounding very intense and afterwards Plant sounds very excited greeting an audience in England for many years: “Well, I said Well. ah ah. I said Well. Good evening. Good evening. It’s nice to see you again. I told Pagey that one or two people would be here, but he said he doubted it very much. Well I can’t tell you how it feels. I think you can probably, you’ve got a good idea anyway, but it’s great.” “Black Dog” in the 1979 sounds very light and punkish compared to versions in the past. “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” is referred to as the time they “went to Munich and made an album called Presence which had a track on it Charles Schaar Murray really liked…he’s still taking the pills.”

One of the highlights of the show is “No Quarter” where Plant introduces John Paul Jones as “the man from Casablanca…some say a man in his own right, other say Royal Orleans” because of his white suit. At eighteen minutes long, Jones plays a tasteful solo on the electric piano recalling the same unified vision of the Earls Court performances capped off by one of the best solos by Page of the evening. “Ten Years Gone” is also tight. This is also the final time it is played live by Led Zeppelin since it will be dropped the following week.

Before “Hot Dog” Plant addresses all the people who came, from “Comharden, Newcastle, Birmingham, Kiddaminster, Freddie Bannister” and laments the delay of the new album, “so the album that came out two weeks ago unfortunately got delayed again. First it was a fortnight ago, and then it was a week ago, now it’s next Friday. It just goes on and on and on. This is a track from it that we should dedicate to trials in America.” He is surprised that people know the title already, “How come you know what it’s called? You’ve been reading about the Swedish and the Danish, hey?” After the tepid performance he becomes defensive, saying “Yes, still got a sense of humor….So we got all the way here, and now the equipment blows up. Never mind. It’s got to be better than Earls Court. Who’s the person who owned that goat and the little wagon that we saw out there two nights ago, camping out there? Just come round the back with us afterwards, and write an acoustic set with us.”

The guitar solo before “In The Evening” is a bit longer than in Copenhagen with the same fanfare Page used on the 1977 tour. The Götterdammerung introduction is very effective as a prelude to the new track which has its rough patches but is a great live vehicle. Before the final number Plant thanks the crowd for coming, saying “well all you people who’ve come so far, it’s been like a blind date, if you like. We’ve even loosened up and laughing. This is a song I guess we should …so many people who’ve helped us over the years, and no people more important that yourselves who come here on a blind date. This is for you.”

There is no editing in the tape after “Stairway To Heaven” so several minutes of chanting and cheering in audible before the encore set. Each of the Copenhagen shows received one, but both Knebworth shows got three. “Rock And Roll” is the first and following which the crowd serenade the band with “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” Plant joins and in twenty years afterwards, in an article in Mojo magazine, Page is quoted saying, “there were tears in the eyes” during that event. “Whole Lotta Love” is played in the same arrangement premiered in the second Copenhagen show and although Page stumbles at bit in the transition from first verse to middle, comes off fine and “Heartbreaker” closes what is one of the most important gigs in Zeppelin’s career. Plant’s assessment is correct. It is a very good and professional performance that hints at their former prowess but their two year layoff is all too apparent. Nevertheless Watch Tower produced a great version of the event which is an important piece of Zeppelin’s live history.

Such was the belief in Led Zeppelin’s undiminished popularity that, when they booked their big UK come back for the Knebworth Festival in 1979, promoter Freddie Bannister took the unprecedented step in booking two concerts on consecutive weekends. Whereas the first Knebworth show drew an estimated 100,000 people, the second drew only 40,000 (some sources put the number as high as 80,000) and the idea backfired on the promoter.

Robert Plant in particular resented the almost universal criticism of the first weekend and his complaining during this show really spoils the mood. However, between the two Knebworth shows, this is arguable the more artisically satisfying.

It was the last of the four in 1979 and there are signs that the band were gaining more confidence. They were supported on this day by New Barbarians, Todd Rundgren’s Utopia, Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes, The New Commander Cody Band, and Chas and Dave.

After the opening songs Plant shows his bitterness at being slammed in the press after the first Knebworth show, saying, “Well, it didn’t rain, but it rained on us in the week from one or two sources, and we’re just gonna stick it right where it really belongs.” It is immediately obvious that the emotion and intensity of the first week is lacking.

“Over The Hills And Far Away” is ruined by a loud crackling in the PA system. Page in particular sounds distracted during the solo and stumbles into the second half. “What’s going on?” Plant asks. “It must be the samosas” he jokes but the noises persist through “Misty Mountain Hop” which, “apart from a load of crackling featured Jonesy on narcissistic keyboards.”

“No Quarter” is fifteen minutes long and includes a masterful duet between Jones and Page in the middle section where there seems to be some telepathy between them proving this is one of the greatest live vehicles written by Led Zeppelin and it is a shame this would be the final live version.

“Ten Years Gone” is dropped so Plant goes into the long introduction to the first new song of the set, saying, “In the neolithic caves in Peru they’ve been finding a lot of colored drawings on the walls, and along with the colored drawings they also found a new album cover. We’re managing to get the album out in about two weeks. As you’ve no doubt read the reviews, it’s tremendous. You can imagine. It’s called In Through the Out Door, which is one of the methods of entry that proves to be harder that one would originally expect. And this is one of the tracks from it. It’s called…and we dedicate this to the Texas road crew, and all the people to be found in the sleazy hangouts around there…it’s called Hot Dog.”

“The Rain Song” is very strong and the tape picks up Jones playing some pretty and unique bass-lines in the middle of the piece. The next portion of the set is occupied with some of their most adventurous songs of tours and journeys beginning with “White Summer.”

Whether the thematic link was intentional or not, but “Kashmir,” “Trampled Underfoot,” “Sick Again” and “Achilles Last Stand” all deal with motion and adventures in foreign lands in one way or another. They are performed well although “Sick Again” seems to puzzle the audience and “Achilles Last Stand” stumbles out of the gate and is generally sloppy.

Everyone seems tires after “In The Evening” as Plant introduces the final song of the main set, saying, “it comes to the time now when we really got to thank you for hanging about for four years you English folk. And you French people, for hanging about since ooh, I don’t know how long. I would like to thank everybody who’s come from everywhere to create part of the atmosphere that we’ve had. The other bands that we’ve had with us, Commander Cody. Good, good, good, good. Todd, Keith, and Ronny [Keith Richards and Ron Wood who opened for Zeppelin as the New Barbarians]. Peter Grant. Thanks everybody.”

A tired version of “Stairway To Heaven” is played before they come back for the encores. “Can you do the dinosaur rock?” Plant asks before “Rock And Roll.” The new arrangement of “Whole Lotta Love” is much more tight and vicious this evening and the final encore is a quick version of “Communication Breakdown.”

“It’s been great….We’ll see you very soon. Don’t know about the Marquee, but somewhere soon. See you later, bye” are Plant’s parting words. For an historical piece this is a great document to have of this show, warts and all.

BONUS:

Led Zeppelin, after a two year absence from the stage, scheduled one of the biggest comebacks in the history of of rock. With two massive festival appearances in August, it was meant to give the band the biggest amount of exposure on the biggest stage in the British festival circuit. The importance of these shows is best summed up by author Dave Lewis, who wrote: “For many in attendance it was their first ever concert experience. For many it would be the only time that they would get to see Zeppelin perform live. For that reason alone it holds a special affection in their live history. The first show in particular, with so much riding on it, was perhaps the most important they ever played.” (Led Zeppelin: Celebration II: The ‘Tight But Loose’ Files).

The two warm up shows in Copenhagen revealed a band who were not quite ready to headline such massive events, a point that Robert Plant stated shortly after the two when he said: “Knebworth was useless. It was no good at all. It was no good because we weren’t ready to do it, the whole thing was a management decision. It felt like I was cheating myself because I wasn’t as relaxed as I could have been. There was so much expectation there and the least we could have done was to have been confident enough to kill. We maimed the beast for life, but we didn’t kill it. It was good, but only because everybody made it good. There was that sense of event.”

Journalist Chris Welch, fifteen years afterwards, observed: “Fans [at Knebworth] were still supporting the band, but there was definitely a feeling [Led Zeppelin’s] days were numbered. Audience reaction at Knebworth had not been overwhelming and many seemed content to stand and stare, like mesmerized spectators at an alien ritual, a far cry from the hysteria of earlier shows. Robert Plant seemed perplexed at the silence between songs, when you could practically hear a pin drop in that vast, cold field.

“It wasn’t until he led the way into ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and ‘Trampled Underfoot’ that roars of appreciation began to echo around Knebworth. Robert’s only comment at the end of the last show was a guarded ‘It’s been quite good.’” The soundboard tapes caused a general re-evaluation of the event which was given another boost when much of the August 4th show was used on the official Led Zeppelin DVD.

Both shows from the professional source have been in circulation for many years and have seen many worthy releases. Cosmic Energy, on of the pioneer labels for video titles, gives the two Knebworth shows a sterling BluRay transfer. Much like with their work on the Earl’s Court and Page & Plant in Irvine videos, there is noticeable improvement in clarity over other versions. The picture is more sharp and the colors are more rich and vibrant.

Cosmic Energy also score high marks for packaging. The carry case come in a brown paper bag (inspired by the In Through The Outdoor marketing campaign) and has many other artifacts such as a miniature reproduction of the program, tickets, button and a poster. It’s one of the best packages Cosmic Energy has ever assembled.

Knebworth Festival, Stevanage, England – August 4th, 1979

The video tape begins with the pre-show canned music before “The Song Remains The Same” and “Celebration Day” both sounding very intense and afterwards Plant sounds very excited greeting an audience in England for many years: ”Well, I said Well. ah ah. I said Well. Good evening. Good evening. It’s nice to see you again. I told Pagey that one or two people would be here, but he said he doubted it very much. Well I can’t tell you how it feels. I think you can probably, you’ve got a good idea anyway, but it’s great.”

"Black Dog” in 1979 sounds very light and punkish compared to versions in the past. “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” is referred to as the time they “went to Munich and made an album called Presence which had a track on it Charles Schaar Murray really liked…he’s still taking the pills.”

One of the highlights of the show is “No Quarter” where Plant introduces John Paul Jones as “the man from Casablanca…some say a man in his own right, other say Royal Orleans” because of his white suit. At eighteen minutes long, Jones plays a tasteful solo on the electric piano recalling the same unified vision of the Earls Court performances capped off by one of the best solos by Page of the evening. “Ten Years Gone” is also tight. This is also the final time it is played live by Led Zeppelin since it will be dropped the following week.

Before “Hot Dog” Plant addresses all the people who came, from “Comharden, Newcastle, Birmingham, Kidderminster, Freddie Bannister” and laments the delay of the new album, “so the album that came out two weeks ago unfortunately got delayed again. First it was a fortnight ago, and then it was a week ago, now it’s next Friday. It just goes on and on and on. This is a track from it that we should dedicate to trials in America.” He is surprised that people know the title already, “How come you know what it’s called? You’ve been reading about the Swedish and the Danish, hey?”

After the tepid performance he becomes defensive, saying “Yes, still got a sense of humor….So we got all the way here, and now the equipment blows up. Never mind. It’s got to be better than Earls Court. Who’s the person who owned that goat and the little wagon that we saw out there two nights ago, camping out there? Just come round the back with us afterwards, and write an acoustic set with us.”

The guitar solo before “In The Evening” is a bit longer than in Copenhagen with the same fanfare Page used on the 1977 tour. The Götterdammerung introduction is very effective as a prelude to the new track which has its rough patches but is a great live vehicle. Before the final number Plant thanks the crowd for coming, saying “well all you people who’ve come so far, it’s been like a blind date, if you like. We’ve even loosened up and laughing. This is a song I guess we should …so many people who’ve helped us over the years, and no people more important that yourselves who come here on a blind date. This is for you.”

There is no editing in the tape after “Stairway To Heaven” so several minutes of chanting and cheering in audible before the encore set. Each of the Copenhagen shows received one, but both Knebworth shows got three. “Rock And Roll” is the first and following which the crowd serenade the band with “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” Plant joins and in twenty years afterwards, in an article in Mojo magazine, Page is quoted saying, “there were tears in the eyes” during that event.

“Whole Lotta Love” is played in the same arrangement premiered in the second Copenhagen show and although Page stumbles at bit in the transition from first verse to middle, comes off fine and “Heartbreaker” closes what is one of the most important gigs in Zeppelin’s career. Plant’s assessment is correct. It is a very good and professional performance that hints at their former prowess but their two year layoff is all too apparent.

Knebworth Festival, Stevanage, England – August 11th, 1979

After the opening songs Plant shows his bitterness at being slammed in the press after the first Knebworth show, saying, “Well, it didn’t rain, but it rained on us in the week from one or two sources, and we’re just gonna stick it right where it really belongs.” It is immediately obvious that the emotion and intensity of the first week is lacking.

“Over The Hills And Far Away” is ruined by a loud crackling in the PA system. Page in particular sounds distracted during the solo and stumbles into the second half. “What’s going on?” Plant asks. “It must be the samosas” he jokes but the noises persist through “Misty Mountain Hop” which, “apart from a load of crackling featured Jonesy on narcissistic keyboards.”

“No Quarter” is fifteen minutes long and includes a masterful duet between Jones and Page in the middle section where there seems to be some telepathy between them proving this is one of the greatest live vehicles written by Led Zeppelin and it is a shame this would be the final live version.

“Ten Years Gone” is dropped so Plant goes into the long introduction to the first new song of the set, saying, “In the neolithic caves in Peru they’ve been finding a lot of colored drawings on the walls, and along with the colored drawings they also found a new album cover. We’re managing to get the album out in about two weeks. As you’ve no doubt read the reviews, it’s tremendous. You can imagine. It’s called In Through the Out Door, which is one of the methods of entry that proves to be harder that one would originally expect. And this is one of the tracks from it. It’s called…and we dedicate this to the Texas road crew, and all the people to be found in the sleazy hangouts around there…it’s called Hot Dog.”

“The Rain Song” is very strong and the tape picks up Jones playing some pretty and unique bass-lines in the middle of the piece. The next portion of the set is occupied with some of their most adventurous songs of tours and journeys beginning with “White Summer.”

Whether the thematic link was intentional or not, but “Kashmir,” “Trampled Underfoot,” “Sick Again” and “Achilles Last Stand” all deal with motion and adventures in foreign lands in one way or another. They are performed well although “Sick Again” seems to puzzle the audience and “Achilles Last Stand” stumbles out of the gate and is generally sloppy.

Everyone seems tires after “In The Evening” as Plant introduces the final song of the main set, saying, “it comes to the time now when we really got to thank you for hanging about for four years you English folk. And you French people, for hanging about since ooh, I don’t know how long. I would like to thank everybody who’s come from everywhere to create part of the atmosphere that we’ve had. The other bands that we’ve had with us, Commander Cody. Good, good, good, good. Todd, Keith, and Ronny [Keith Richards and Ron Wood who opened for Zeppelin as the New Barbarians]. Peter Grant. Thanks everybody.”

A tired version of “Stairway To Heaven” is played before they come back for the encores. “Can you do the dinosaur rock?” Plant asks before “Rock And Roll.” The new arrangement of “Whole Lotta Love” is much more tight and vicious this evening and the final encore is a quick version of “Communication Breakdown.”

“It’s been great….We’ll see you very soon. Don’t know about the Marquee, but somewhere soon. See you later, bye” are Plant’s parting words. For an historical piece this is a great document to have of this show, warts and all.

It’s remarkable how well these shows have aged. Each new release over the years has improved these festival’s reputation, and Mean Business certainly does that. It’s definitely worth the asking price and stands as the new definitive collection for these latter day Zeppelin concerts.