MOJO MAGAZINE OUT NOW WITH NEW INTERVIEWS/ JIMMY PAGE WORKING ON REMASTERING THE LED ZEPPELIN CATALOGUE FOR RELEASE IN 2013
Two separate reports have confirmed that Jimmy Page is working on a project to remaster the Led Zeppelin catalogue for a re-issue programme to commence next year.
Talking of future plans ahead in an interview with Phil Alexander in the superb new issue of Mojo magazine, Jimmy Page comments “There are also a number of Led Zeppelin projects that will come out next year because there are different versions of tracks that we have that can be added to the albums so there will be a box sets of material that will come out next year. There will be one box set per album with extra music that will surface”
In an excellent interview with Jimmy’s’ manager Peter Mensch which appeared in the October 28th edition of the Sunday Times magazine, Krissi Murison reported that ‘’ Mensch is in London for a few days to meet his most famous client of all, Jimmy Page’’. The feature also goes on to report that Mensch was ‘’ ‘’In a taxi heading to the west London studio where Jimmy Page is holed up, remastering every Led Zeppelin LP.’’
I have long since advocated that there was massive scope to remaster and overhaul the Led Zeppelin catalogue with the addition of outtakes and unreleased material. These recent reports indicate that 2013 will see this project come to fruition – it’s yet another mouth-watering prospect for all Led Zeppelin fans.
The new issue of Mojo is an absolutely essential purchase. It has a front cover featuring JPJ, Robert and Jimmy and an excellent cover mount CD –a 15 track blues collection titled Let’s Move styled in the cover art of Led Zeppelin II. There a new interviews staged in late September with Jimmy, Robert and John plus additional interviews with Jason Bonham, Roy Harper and The Edge. Accompanying photos include shots from the Ross Halfin New York rooftop session.
I spoke briefly to Mojo’s editor in chief Phil Alexander (a long-time supporter of TBL) at the London press conference the day after he had conducted the interviews and he was very enthusiastic as to how they had gone.
Above – At the Zep London press conference with Phil Alexander Mojo editor in chief .
All three along with Jason add much insight into exactly what the 02 and the Celebration Film meant to them. There is also indication of Jimmy’s own musical plans ahead. Mojo also reeprts that Robert has conibuted vocals to the new Primal Scream album due out next year.
Keeping up with the press reporting of any major Led Zeppelin happening is always one of the most enjoyable aspects of such activity – Mojo has long since offered up substantial coverage of the band (notably cover stories chronicling the 2003 DVD,the 02 reunion and Jimmy Page’s pictorial book).With this Celebration Day exclusive they have once again got right into the heart of the story.
A quite magnificent effort and simply essential Zep reading…
More details here
http://cover.mojo4music.com/Item.aspx?pageNo=1842&year=2012
A good start to the day – coffee and the brilliant new issue of Mojo magazine.
Dave Lewis – October 30th, 2012.
Here’s a You tube clip featuring the Kashmir 02 live single as aired on Radio 2 last week.
Kashmir – Celebration Day (CD Audio)
Until next time…keep reading – keep listening…
Dave Lewis/Gary Foy
October 30th, 2012
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NICE one Rodney .Yes iagree with alot! of what you said ect.But aread a old MoJo interiew th is weekend with jimmy page and he mentioned back in Aug 2004 he had found some numerous recorded material in casset and ditial
formatsand that was his next project to go through and see if anything can be used plus his own personal recording he has so he been very busy with this project well before the o2 show in 2007in fact !over 7yrs to prepare this pending relase in 2013 so it should be worth the wait to see exactly what he has be up! too and actually will produce.
I agree and disagree with many of the comments here. But l realise we all want the Zeppelin catalogue to be presented in the best way possible – best possible sound, interesting remixes, alternate versions and outtakes, live versions, unreleased songs and so forth, without the original albums being “butchered” or compromised – we are all on the same page as far as that is concerned.
One of things l do not like with deluxe versions of famous albums is when they do add these alternative versions of the songs and, frankly, once heard, l never want to hear them again because the versions chosen originally were, in fact, better. They made the right choice at the time of release.
I felt in particular the 2 CD deluxe version of Elton John’s Tumbleweed Connection did not benefit from the alternate takes of the songs that appeared on the original album. They were not that different anyway, they very similar to the original. Likewise, l hated how singles from the same recording session for an album are tacked on the end of the album, as if they are part of the original album when they weren’t. And if that is not bad enough, they tack on the B-side of the single as well.
Firstly, it does not preserve the album in its original form. Secondly, if you don’t like the singles or additional songs you are forced to stop the CD, which is annoying. Thirdly, in my experience the b-sides of singles are usually crap songs anyway.
They were when they released the 2 CD deluxe version Elton John’s Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy. I loved the singles Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds and Philadelphia Freedom, but they did not fit the album (which is why they were not on it in the first place) and the b-sides were atrocious. What was worthwhile was a full concert on the 2nd disc which featured the entire Captain Fantastic album live with his new band at Wembley with a whole bunch of older songs, a really energised performance, great playing and well recorded. Now the remastering of the studio album was great, it sounded terrific and the reproduction of the original album art work was faultless. But extra stuff needs to be considered carefully, extra does not always mean an improvement or more great music. I am not suggesting Jimmy Page would let that happen, his instincts have always been to go for quality, not quantity and he is meticulous. But these comments on Elton John’s deluxe versions are some reference points where it was not always a good idea to add stuff or to do so in a manner that did it compromise the original album, even in a minor way. In the Captain Fantastic example, l would have preferred the original album was on one disc, and the concert and the a-sides of the singles were on the second disc. And the b-sides just dumped in a bin.
Now if Jimmy Page is going to do it like the King Crimson box sets or Pink Floyd’s Immersion series of box sets for Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here or The Wall, then l think something worthwhile is being done. Making Of documentaries with the musicians, engineers, album designers and music critics, live concert recordings, the original stereo mix plus a new stereo and/or 5.1 mix, CD and 180 gsm vinyl pressings, totally different studio recordings of some songs, booklets on the recordings. Duplications of tour programs, tour posters. Yep, l am in for that.
I liked the idea that has already been suggested that a concert is added from the period the album is recorded. Or perhaps a compilation of live tracks from various concerts, if that turns out better.
The problem is l doubt there are fully recorded concerts that relate to each album when they were released in the Zeppelin archives. Other than the Royal Albert Hall 70, Los Angeles 72, New York 73, Earl’s Court 75, Seattle 77 and Knebworth 79. Most of which has been released in part or in its entirety already and what’s on the BBC Sessions. There might be other concerts in the vaults – and correct me if l am wrong – but wouldn’t this have been mentioned by now by the band? I know How The West Was Won was kept a secret for a long time, and Jimmy Page always seems to have some extraordinary hidden up his sleeve and l sincerely hope there are great live recordings like this one hidden away, but somehow l doubt it.
But l agree the Earl’s Court concerts should be released, perhaps that is going to be another project, along with a DVD Blu-Ray release, in a box set. And there is some pretty ordinary footage with sound from Seattle 77 which could be used for something, Who knows what else they have?
Which leaves the only other source for live recordings – bootlegs. Sound board or audience tapes. We all know the sound on these recordings is dodgy and in some cases utterly unlistenable in comparison to a professionally engineered multitrack recording and, unless you are obsessives like all of us here, most people could not stand the majority of bootlegs that exist, solely due to poor sound quality. Now, what is the possibility with today’s technology of making any sound improvements on these bootlegs?
Don’t get me wrong, l have a very substantial collection of Zeppelin bootlegs, l love the bootlegs, and l believe they should be made available officially to the public. They are recorded documents that show how remarkable Zeppelin were as a live band and how many of the songs were transformed in concert and developed over the years. The concerts themselves were an entire experience, a journey of 2-3 hours and each tour it was different. I honestly believe bootlegs like Listen To This Eddie should be released as part of Zeppelin’s legacy, if some of the glitches can be “fixed” or even if they can’t. I also think these bootlegs should be accompanied by an extensive history of who these insane people were who recorded them, how they did it and the companies that released them. There are some great stories that need to be told. As well as who did some of the great covers, like the illustrator who did several for Led Zep like Bonzo’s Birthday Party. The artwork for many Led Zeppelin bootlegs should be preserved or documented in some way, they are part of Zeppelin’s folklore. I agree that the concerts in Europe 73 feature some bewildering playing by the band. In a sense, only part of Zeppelin’s greatness is known, the bootlegs form a hidden history of rock-n-roll and of Zeppelin and they should be released and preserved, along with interviews on the bootleggers and album designers either in writing or filmed for a DVD documentary. I realise now the boots can be downloaded from the net, but your average listener is not going to wade thru approximately 500 concerts and the multiple releases of some concerts just to find the real gems. But some of these gems could be released with the new boxed sets if proper multitrack recordings do not exist. Or alternatively be released as their own box set or a series of boxed sets. Bootleg the Bootleggers. Another project for Jimmy Page to consider.
I also read with interest one suggestion that In Through The Out Door needs to be remixed – not simply – remastered.
Would Jimmy Page be prepared to actually remix an album, which would without doubt greatly improve the sound quality of their studio recordings? If anyone is in doubt just play the original mix of No Quarter from 1976 version of The Song Remains The Same and compare it to Kevin Shirley’s 2007 remix to hear what amazing results you can get. Its as if Zeppelin were recorded yesterday. The sound image is just enormous, the dynamic range is greatly increased, it sounds insanely loud without any loss of detail or shrillness entering the mix and increased depth in terms of background or nearly subliminal sounds or ambient sound, heaps of bottom end could be added, all the instruments and vocals would be better defined and sound bigger and thicker. Personally l would love to hear a remix, the original mixes are stupendous, they are benchmarks, but l think Zeppelin’s recordings would be greatly improved if they were remixed and now is the ideal time. You could have the original mix released on one disc, with the 2013 remix on another disc. However, you do it for one album and you would have to do it for all of them. And that would be a huge undertaking for all 10 studio albums (l am counting Physical Graffiti as 2 albums).
And the question of Kevin Shirley as the engineer – are you joking? The guy did a superb job on Led Zeppelin DVD, How The West Was Won and The Song Remains The Same. He also did the recent Celebration Day sound mix.
I realise many are upset over the editing of certain songs for the soundtrack to The Song Remains The Same, but obviously those edits were made to duplicate what was heard and seen in the film. That was not Kevin Shirley’s decision. The sound mix itself is a huge, huge improvement. That is what he should be judged on. He added some things to the mix, with Jimmy Page’s full approval. The vocal edits were done at the insistence of Robert Plant. There is an interview with Shirley on the net that explains what happened.
And yep, l prefer the original solo that formed the coda to Celebration Day. That is an awesome moment of interplay between Page, Bonham and Jones. But hey, couldn’t this be an opportunity to redo the soundtrack and treat it as a live album?
You retain the 2007 mix, but fix the “faults” or edits that occurred to accommodate the film. The original solo coda section from Celebration Day l am sure can be reinserted, likewise the full versions of Black Dog, No Quarter, Moby Dick and Whole Lotta Love. That awkward insertion in Dazed and Confused from another night could be substituted with what was played in the original vinyl release. You know, in the fast guitar solo section just after the vocals and before going into San Francisco, there is a clanger of an edit in there. AND the encores of Communication Breakdown and Thank you, which were played in New York in 1973 could also be added. The Song Remains The Same fully restored and extended version. The box set could have the 2007 film version soundtrack plus the 2013 version. Then everyone is happy.
And while we are dreaming, whatever happened to that idea of re-editing the film footage of The Song Remains The Same? Which apparently the band wanted to do in 2007 but Warner Brother’s said “No”. So Jimmy Page wasn’t out of sync at certain times. Or just re-editing it so it is more exciting.
It seems to me several versions of the film could be produced. 1. The original film as released with some re-editing to make it more exciting. 2. The original film as in version 1, plus inserting full versions of the songs with film re-editing to accommodate the longer song versions (if the footage exists) plus inserting songs that were not in the original film. 3. Same as version 2 but the fantasy sequences are removed and are full live performance footage versions of the songs (if the footage exists). And shouldn’t the resulting DVD Blu-Ray discs containing all 3 versions of the film be included in the boxed set, making it a genuinely worthwhile purchase? Sounds amazing to me.
And l agree with Dave that it would be wonderful to hear instrumentals like Swan Song and whatever else might be laying around the vaults of songs that might have been unfinished but enough exists to warrant them being released. The “what may have been” factor. Experiments, jams, germs of songs on acoustic guitar that became something else entirely or were never used.
There is, of course, a fantastic medley of blues, similar to Hats Off To Harper, but different material, with just vocals and acoustic guitar from the Led Zeppelin III sessions. It is awesome.
One of the things l really liked about the box set for Layla was the extra disc of recorded Jams, none of which were used in the original album and features some brilliant playing. Perhaps there are recordings like that of Led Zeppelin in the studio or from sound checks or rehearsing for tours. There must be. Is there a version of the leviathan When The Levee Breaks, which they did rehearse for the US tour in 1975 but was never played in concert? Rumour has it that a special steel enclosure or pit was constructed to surround the drums in a potential live performance, a natural echo-reverb chamber, to duplicate the universe crushing drum sound heard on the studio recording. I mean, if a recording exists of the rehearsals, this has to be heard. The Wanton Song was another. I am sure there are many songs they rehearsed for tours and never performed and, if we are lucky, Led Zep recorded. Fingers crossed.
My apologies for making my comments so unacceptably long – but this is all food for thought of what may emerge in the future, especially if it is perceived by the band and Atlantic Records that there is a significant market for all this material that ultimately adds to Led Zeppelin’s legacy. And not just for people who grew up with Led Zeppelin in the 1970s. There are many people l know, teenagers, twenty and thirty year olds who genuinely love this band, not as nostalgia, but as great music that still speaks to their generation as it did for ours.
I for one would love to see Jimmy release the alternate All of my Love extended version with the fantastic guitar solo, as well as the rehearsal song fire from the spring 78 rehearsals at Clearwell castle in Wales. Also would be great to see a released version of the Swan Song instrumental, as well as the rumored songs Lost in Space and St Tristans Sword. Releasing more concerts is also a great idea. How about a box set of all the Earls court 75 concerts together or all of the LA forum 77 concerts in 1 box set? They would all be great releases. I for one would love to hear new music from Jimmy. He must have a ton of new songs stored up from the past 12 years or so. He did write a follow up album to the Clarksdale album with Robert that was never finished, also the xyz demos with Chris Squire and Alan White of Tes, not to mention any new material he did with Jason Bonham and John Paul in rehearsals after reunion concert.
YES Jimmy Page is doing this remastering of the whole zep catalogue
but with adifference he is adding extra tracks to each album of the back catalogue and extra unheard tracks which will be added as extra to each album so he has to remix and remaster each album in any case
plus add the extra tracks as well plus mix and remaster any out takes and demo`s for the box set`s i just hope he has taken much more care and time this time round with this Epic Project.Time not on his side any more as he is 69 next January i wish him well and lookforward to hearing the finished project and new pending music next as well.
Jimmy Page has decided to do this remastering project this time round . Back in 1990
Alantic Records asked him to do it and only gave him May 1990 to do the WHOLE album catalogue so it must have been a rushed project at the time
thats my own opion . Also the new music added would be fresh to my ears and the remastering project this time round would be the same picture`s but in a superb frame`s.Jimmy Page is 69 next january and time is simply not on his side anymore.I hope Jimmy Page has spent a lot! longer than a month on this project than he did 22 yrs go.I wish him well and luck for his future new / live music should be something special i think .
Cool the jets guys – In Jimmy Page I trust completely – as guardian of the flame he us the ultimate arbiter of taste and I trust him totally – he will do a magnificent job – I was so overwhelmed by the quality of the “Celebration Day” movie it blew me away – I cannot wait for the new releases – as for criticism of TSRTS re-issue I agree but we still have the original and the update has its charms – Jimmy has done a magnificent job of releasing quality material and I expect no different next year – a man of impeccable taste and judgement who will not let us down….
Pete, no, his work on The Live at The Greek with The Black Crowes, amongst others. Don’t judge the man on ‘Song Remains’
To John Barnet Dennison : re Kevin Shirley…because of the outstanding job done on “TSRTS” redux? 🙂
I’d hoped that Jimmy would have used Kevin Shirley to remaster the back catalogue. I’m sure they’ll sound tremendous anyway. Can’t wait!
I hope Jimmy takes the opportunity do do a 5.1 or even a 3.1 mix. What a lot of the zep catalogue needs is to be stipped back to the component tracks of each song. From there, the fundamentals of the drums and bass should be fed straight in to the LFE channels. Most people have subwoofers in their systems to take advantage of this.
I predict that the blu ray version of Kashmir on Celebration Day will sound better than the original and a lot of that will be down to the power of the drums on the O2 version. Have a listen to the original now and, magnificent though the track is, it seriously lacks bottom end power.
Anyone who has heard the Blu ray hi res version of Dark Side of the Moon will attest to the benefits of remastering in this way. A simple 2 track mix will not add any improvement to what is already available.
Live stuff would be great, if the live tapes Page was collecting
weren’t stolen out of his house.
There were cameras at the ’77 Pontiac show for the jumbo-tron behind the band…were they only live feed with no film.
Where can I get a Tight But Loose coffee mug?
Regards,
dw
I’m with Peter. Great suggestion to couple the albums with contemporary live shows!
I would also like to see the vocal mix fixed for Physical Graffiti and Presence, as well as ITTOD. It would be great to actually be able to clearly hear what. R A Plant Esq was singing!
Best wishes to all who have been dragged through the fence backwards by Hurricane Sandy. Where I am staying in Manhattan has been spared but many, many New Yorkers and others in the area are doing it very hard indeed.
I’m with Peter. Great suggestion to couple the albums with contemporary live shows!
I would also like to see the vocal mix fixed for Physical Graffiti and Presence, as well as ITTOD. It would be great to actually be able to clearly hear what. R A Plant Esq was singing!
Best wishes to all who have been dragged through the fence backwards by Hurricane Sandy. Where I am staying in Manhattan has been spared but many, many New Yorkers and others in the are are doing it very hard indeed.
……I’ll add my vote to a remaster AND a remix for Out Door, as per the Deep Purple expanded editions………
Good idea Peter! As I posted on another site (www.bcb-board.co.uk) :
I + with one of the four April ’69 San Francisco shows
II + Dallas Pop Festival in August ’69 (although pretty much any of those summer festival sets would suffice isn’t there a rumour of the Seattle soundboard out there?)
III + Bath Festival June ’70 (it may be out there…)
IV + Hampton September ’71 ( a kick arse show – I’d settle for anything from this tour, where Robert’s voice was at its absolute peak, or any of the Japan September ’71 shows )
HOTH + a release from the European tour in early ’73 (the German gigs were exceptional)
PG + Earls Court (any of the five will do) or LA March ’75
Presence + LA June 21 or 23
ITTOD + (Knebworth or maybe Berlin 1980 – their last ever gig).
Wearing and Tearing and Darlene rolled into a remastered ITTOD would be ideal. They would certainly change the album for the better.
Reckon I’m with Klaus. I’m not very interested in a disc full of alternate intros to Black Dog or whatever. But I would be interested if every reissue was accompanied by a live date from the era to demonstrate how the music had evolved etc. How about these for starters?
Zep I plus one of the Fillmore dates
Zep II plus RAH two disc special ed!
Zep III plus Bath festival!
Zep IV plus early Levee and Stairway outtakes (ok might be interesting!)
HoH plus Japan live date (no one believes all the tapes were destroyed come on!)
Physical plus Earls Court 23rd May
Presence plus 23 June 77 ( we know Jimmy has ithe whole show not just the clip that’s surfaced so far)
ITTOD err open to offers on this one.
Thoughts?
Dave,
Obviously this is great news. But personally, I would prefer a live set. To the best of your knowledge, has Jimmy entertained assembling something like an Earls Court live set?
Best,
Tim
Well I hope that Jimmy makes a better job of this than the dreadful “Mothership” in terms of the ‘sound wars’ and a better job of this than the simply unforgivable editing (nay, butchering) of the “TSRTS” redux. Is Kevin Shirley involved?
If the back catalogue is presented with genuine outtakes and unreleased material – that’s great. I hope we aren’t going to get ‘alternate’ mixes which are just the same songs with bthe solos not previously considered up to scratch and/or individual instruments dropped in and out (ala Deep Purple and “Machine Head” particularly).
On an unrelated note – who is the producer of the audio for “Celebration Day” – just Jimmy or Jimmy and who?
Hi Dave,
to me a newly remastered full Zep back catalogue will be received with open arms. I like what e.g. Pink Floyd, The Who, even The Stones, Mr. McCartney or Derek & Dominos did with their lavish Deluxe / Anniversary Editions.
The so called Remasters box-set was released 22 years ago. Early+Later Days & Mothership ship were just compilations and hey: we had only the few mentioned compilations in all those years after the big crash. That’s more than just discipline.
I’m sure Mr. Jimmy Page will bring us the best mixes/masterings in todays technology and hopefully together with some interesting additional material. Multiple formats (Vinyl, CD, Audio-DVD …) all together as box-sets (one for each orginal album) are very welcome, too!
It will be PASSION – HERITAGE – EXCELLENCE!
I’m looking forward to 2013!
Ian – I think it’s the studio stuff that is the focus ahead.
Larry -I’d go along with that too
Hi Dave – respect your opinion too … we´ll see what “unreleased material” sees the light of day. All the best, KLAUS
……..well if you don’t want to buy the albums again you don’t have to!! Will be good to hear both the released and the unreleased in state-of-the-art quality.
Dave, no doubt you’ve been asked this a million times before but I haven’t seen the answer- is there any interest from the band in doing something like a multi-CD live box, given the cornucopia of Zeppelin concerts available under the counter?
In Through The Out Door is the one Zeppelin album that is in desparate need of a complete sonic overhaul. So hopefully Jimmy will take the opportunity to see to that as part of this project.
Larry
Klaus respect your opinion but have to disagree – I do not think this will be a cash in remastering exercise – the Zep catalogue has not been represented in the way say The Who’s has been with their Deluxe editions (and many other bands) with pleasing visuals/sleeve notes and additional tracks. I for one believe Jimmy will do an incredible job on this which will redefine the whole Zep catalogue with the emergence of unreleased material. I for one would love to hear an official version of the Swan Song instrumental and many other known outtakes.
Remastering the remastered catalogue a mouth-watering prospect? – Well, I don´t think so. In fact, it annoys me, it pisses me off! After “Remasters”, “Early Days”, “Mothership” there comes another cash-in – Pagey presses out every possible dime from the body of work just like Aerosmith or The Stones are doing it for decades. Back it in the olden, Grant-lead golden days, one of the many reasons for being proud to be a Zep-fan was their business policy, which wasn´t money-minded, they didn´t release Singles (so the myth keeps telling, although it isn´t true) or “Best Ofs”, not to speak of “alternate versions” or any other crap.
Another question: who cashes in the royalties of “A Celebration”? As far as I remember the o2 Show was declared as a benefit-show …….
I know what your saying Dave but Im not convinced any improvement in audio quality will be that noticable at least not via the systems most people use to play music these days. I could well be wrong though , it has been known 🙂
Steve -things have moved on in tech terms I am sure and I would think Jimmy will want this catalogue to be presented in the best way possible.
Leaving aside any new or unreleased material, I was under the impression that the entire Zeppelin back catalogue had already been “remastered” in fact In sure many of us already own the celebrated “remasters” box set from the early 90’s . What’s different about these tracks ?
GREAT news! ANY Led Zeppelin release is a good one for me. I have seen some criticism that the albums are being remastered “again” For me Jimmy Page knows what he’s doing and to all those who are “disappointed” he’s doing this then my message is Just don’t buy it! – I certainly will be amongst the hordes who do!
Mark
I am looking forward to the re-releases of the zeppelin albums. Hopefully they will not be casualties of the loudness war. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again. I would gleefully trade in every single Led Zep bootleg I have if they release bootlegs like Queen or the Jimi Hendrix estate do. I cannot wait to hear the new releases.
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