Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters – Blues…Roots And Hollers US Tour Latest:

Robert Plant and the SSS in Shreveport LA – photos and report by Suzanne McElyea.

I know many of you say Shreveport?  Why did he stop there on his Southern Journey tour?  The Shreveport Municipal Auditorium gave birth to Elvis (and the wonderful sounds from his ace guitarist James Burton).  Both of them have life size statues outside the venue and Elvis’ dressing room inside still remains the same.  This was the launching spot for Hank Williams, Johnny Cash and is the city where Lead Belly hung out and played his 12 string in bars on Fern Street just a couple of blocks over.

On this night, Robert would meet with James Burton and vogue in front of Elvis’ mirror prior to taking the stage.  And the band, knowing that James Burton was in the house, was in PRIME form.

Robert and James Burton spoke about Gallows Pole and how Robert and Jimmy listened to Lead Belly’s genius while writing their version.  James Burton spoke about how Jimmy had wanted to spend time with him one day and he had a session so Jimmy showed up carrying all his own equipment into the studio – this was well into his LZ days.  Shreveport history had much to offer and these old friends had much to talk about and then it was time for the show.

The 1926 Art Deco Theatre went dark.  Over the speakers came Suzie Q as a tip of the hat to James Burton genius and then out came the band and they start with Howling Wolf’s Killing Floor.  Robert voice was INCREDIBLE. The band killed it.  They, too, were in fine form on this evening.

Robert moved into Rainbow off his latest album and again sounded amazing.  They suited into a new take on Black Dog.  Here he introduced the sounds of Africa to the sounds of Shreveport to complete the circle.

Next came Turn It Up off his new album and the band was really rocking.  Then they moved into Spoonful and these two songs combined showed off the power of Robert’s voice, and his ability to mesmerize an audience.

Then,he took us back to one of his older musical hits. I’m In the Mood was presented to an excited crowd.  At the three minute mark, he almost paused in the music and allowed the crowd the react for 15 seconds to the Page/Plant symbol he put up in the background.  This is ONLY time he showed this all night.  And it was not a Page/Plant song.  Let the rumors begin.

The band moved into How Many More Times and Dazed and Confused and turned this heavy tune into an Irish jig.

Then Dancing Days were here again – and I got to hear this for the first time again in many years.

Robert then sang Little Maggie from his latest album.  He talked about some of the southern roots of on his and from this song.

Fixin to Die came next and he allowed the band to showcase their talents.  This is by far his second best band!  They made him proud this night.  The performance on this was roaring.

He ended the regular performance with Whole Lotta Love (Who Do You Love and Hoochie Coochie Man)

The Encore was Poor Howard, a tribute to Lead Belly and Rock and Roll.

I haven’t described each song in detail as I recorded them and they are on YouTube.com for you to watch (my channel Suzanne.mcelyea).  But I believe you will agree with me that the Space Shifters were Sensational and Robert sounded pretty phenomenal.

Robert is a student and has learned all he can about this region of the south, it’s music, it’s history.  He learned the origins, took the music back to Africa and now has put it all in blender and represented it in new ways.  Always a journey.  Always innovative.  He doesn’t stand still – he keeps moving forward and that is why you can always go see a “new show” no matter how many times you make the journey

Suzanne McElyea

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Robert Plant interview at this link:

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/entertainment/music/2016/03/09/robert-plant-discusses-past-time-shreveport-upcoming-concert/81478382/

and more coverage here:

http:​//www.​dallasobserver.​com/music/robert-plant-was-roc​k-n-rolls-storytelling-man-of-​the-world-at-the-bomb-factory-​8129244

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Photo above by Debby Thurman – Becnel.

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Led Zeppelin News Update:

In conjunction with the Led Zep news site, each week I will be re producing highlights from their weekly email update news summary. This goes out every Sunday. Sign up details are below. Many thanks to James Cook.

• Jimmy Page

  • It’s been confirmed that Jimmy Page will reissue his 1965 solo single “She Just Satisfies” for Record Store Day in the UK. The 7″ vinyl single will be re-released as a limited edition on April 16.  and you can find out more about the day here.
  • Jimmy Page attended a poetry night at The Troubadour in London on March 7 where his girlfriend Scarlett Sabet performed.
  • Jimmy Page’s Facebook page paid tribute to producer Sir George Martin who died on March 8.

  Robert Plant

  • Robert Plant played five shows in the US. He performed in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and two shows in Louisiana. See below for setlists from those five shows. Click on the links to see videos of the tracks.

  March 6 – St. Augustine, Florida

  Killing Floor
  The Lemon Song
  Rainbow
  Black Dog
  Turn It Up
  Spoonful
  All The King’s Horses
  The Rain Song
  No Place To Go / Dazed And Confused
  Communication Breakdown
  Little Maggie
  Fixin’ To Die
  Whole Lotta Love
  -Encore-
  Rock And Roll

  March 7 – Mobile, Alabama

  Dancing Days
  Rainbow
  Dazed And Confused
  Black Dog
  Turn It Up
  Spoonful
  That’s The Way
  No Place To Go
  Communication Breakdown
  Little Maggie
  Fixin’ To Die
  Whole Lotta Love
  -Encore-
  Poor Howard
  Rock And Roll

  March 9 – Jackson, Mississippi

  (We don’t have a full setlist for this show)

  Black Dog
  Babe I’m Gonna Leave You

  March 10 – Baton Rouge, Louisiana

  The Lemon Song
  Rainbow
  Black Dog
  Turn It Up
  Spoonful
  The Rain Song
  No Place To Go / Dazed And Confused
  Embrace Another Fall
  Communication Breakdown
  Little Maggie
  Fixin’ To Die
  Whole Lotta Love
  – Encore-
  In The Mood
  Rock And Roll

  March 11 – Shreveport, Louisiana

  Killing Floor
  Rainbow
  Black Dog
  Turn It Up
  Spoonful
  In The Mood
  No Place To Go / Dazed And Confused
  Dancing Days
  Little Maggie
  Fixin’ To Die
  Whole Lotta Love
  -Encore-
  Poor Howard
  Rock And Roll

  (You can view photos of this show here)

  • Robert Plant gave an interview to The Shreveport Times in which he said that he and his band are “working on new songs as we go along.” You can read the interview here.
  • Robert Plant will perform at the Royal Festival Hall in London to support Refugee Week on June 19. It’s part of Guy Garvey’s Meltdown festival, so expert a collaboration on the Elbow song “The Blanket Of Night.” Other performers will include Nick Mulvey, Nadine Shah and Josephine Oniyama, and they’re expected to perform with Plant.
  • Robert Plant has set up a new company called “Peace & Love On The Road.” It’s not clear what the company is for, though.

  Upcoming events:

  March 13 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
  March 15 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Dallas, Texas.
  March 17 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in San Antonio, Texas.
  March 18 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Midland, Texas.
  March 20 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Austin, Texas.
  March 21 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Austin, Texas for Austin City Limits.
  April 16 – A vinyl reissue of Jimmy Page’s 1965 solo single “She Just Satisfies” will be released for Record Store Day in the UK.
  June 19 – Robert Plant will perform at the Royal Festival Hall in London with Guy Garvey, Nick Mulvey, Nadine Shah and Josephine Oniyama.
  July 1 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Rock Werchter music festival in Belgium.
  July 2 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Beauregard Music Festival in France.
  July 7 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the NOS Alive Music Festival in Portugal.
  July 28 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Austria.
  August 2 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Germany.
  August 4/5/6/7 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Wilderness Festival in the UK.

• The Led Zeppelin News email goes out every weekend. To receive it each week sign up here: https://t.co/yp9fGJMSGH

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Keith Emerson 1944 – 2016:

Like millions of others across the globe, I was deeply saddened by the news of the passing of Keith Emerson aged 71 – even more so given the tragic circumstance surrounding it.

His work in The Nice and ELP gave me so much pleasure. I loved his playing in The Nice – The Thoughts Of Emerlist Davjack is right up there as one of my all time fave tracks – I used to play it endlessly in my bedroom in the early 70s. Then on into Emerson Lake and Palmer. I never bought into that overblown criticism of the band – John Peel’s comment describing them as being ”a waste of electricity ‘ was way off the mark for me. They were the cornerstone of prog and pomp – tracks such as Hoedown, Still You Turn Me On, Take a Pebble, Pirates etc have stood the test of time and still sound great today.

To my regret, I never got to see ELP live – however I did see Keith perform at the Ahmert Ertegun  02 Reunion show prior to Led Zeppelin. My very good friends Tom and Phil are big fans – they saw ELP at the Oval in 1972. Back in the days of mail order bootlegs, I vividly remember scoring the epic ELP live bootleg The Lobster Quadrille for Tom in 1974. In the recent vinyl buying years, I have acquired many an ELP item – and Tom purchased the limited edition coloured vinyl ELP set at the Record Store Day a couple of years back. Last Sunday morning I had a bit of tribute to Keith on the player as can be seen in the pic below.

The fact is, Keith and his music have been part of our lives -something tangible we have all shared and delighted in …therefore this is another loss that feels like a light has gone out from our past.

There are some Keith Emerson connections with Zep, notably the story that Keith purchased John Paul Jones’ GX1 keyboard from him (see story below). It’s also worth mentioning that when I interviewed Peter Grant in 1993 he told me that in 1970 they did have some vague discussions to possibly add a fifth member and Keith Emerson’s name was mentioned. It was only a passing thought and of course nothing came of it but it says everything about Keith Emerson’s reputation that his name may have been in the frame. He was a musician who bought genuine personality and showmanship to his music…RIP

This from Jeff Straman’s Achilles Last Stand website.

A pioneer in innovative and experimental keyboards, Emerson was one of the more popular owners of the Yamaha GX-1 synthesizer, along with Stevie Wonder and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones.

“…I had a new toy. I had this big new keyboard. And Robert and I just got to rehearsals early, basically. […] With Zeppelin writing, if you came up with good things, and everybody agreed that they were good things, they got used. There was no formula for writing. So Robert and I, by the time everybody turned up for rehearsals, we’d written three or four songs. So we started rehearsing those immediately, because they were something to be getting on with,” John Paul Jones recalled.

Jones brought his GX-1 on stage in 1979, for the Copenhagen warmups and the two Knebworth shows for Kashmir and In The Evening, both featuring a very gritty, sine wave-sounding synth tone.

Despite only being used on the road for three months, John Paul Jones held on to the Yamaha GX-1 until 1987, when it was sold to Keith Emerson. Emerson’s GX-1 had been stored in his barn recording studio and damaged by a rogue tractor. Jones’ GX-1 was used for parts. Emerson’s GX-1 was later sold to Italian keyboardist, Riccardo Grotto.

http://www.led-zeppelin.org/current-news/1901-that-one-time-that-keith-emerson-bough-john-paul-jones-yamaha-gx-1-synth

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Bad Company Competition: Win a copy of Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy – The Very Best Of Bad Company double vinyl album.

I’ve linked up with Smash PR/Rhino for an easy to enter competition to win a copy of the new Bad Company compilation on double vinyl.

Rock’n’Roll Fantasy -The Very Best Of Bad Company is a superb 19 track collection on the Swan Song label. Full details and track listing below.

Here’s the competition question.

At what location did Bad Company record their first album?

Send your answer to my email at davelewis.tbl1@ntlworld.com – please add your mail address details.

The first all correct answer drawn out after the closing date will win the copy of the vinyl double album The Very Best Of Bad Company.

Closing date is Sunday April 3. The winner will be notified on Monday by email on April 4.

Here’s the album details:

THE VERY BEST OF BAD COMPANY

Collection Spotlights 19 Of The Band’s Greatest Tracks Recorded Between

1974 And 1982 Including Previously Unreleased Alternate Versions Of

“Easy On My Soul” And “See The Sunlight

LOS ANGELES – During its reign in the Seventies and Eighties, Bad Company recorded a number of timeless rock anthems, sold millions of records, even more concert tickets, and influenced an entire generation of musicians.

To celebrate the British rocker’s enduring legacy, Rhino is introducing a new retrospective that spotlights the absolute best from the band’s first seven albums including two unreleased tracks.

The 19-track collection spans 1974 and 1982 and features many of group’s best-loved songs, like “Can’t Get Enough,” “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and “Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy.”

Longtime fans will certainly appreciate the inclusion of previously unreleased alternate versions of “Easy On My Soul” and “See The Sunlight.” Both of these are different versions than the ones that appeared on the deluxe editions Bad Company and Straight Shooter, respectively that Rhino released earlier this year. Singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Paul Rodgers along with guitarist/songwriter Mick Ralphs, bassist Boz Burrell and drummer Simon Kirke recorded Bad Company’s eponymous debut in 1973. When it was released in 1974, the album was an instant smash and climbed to the top of the album charts. Since then, it has been certified five-times platinum. It features such instantly recognizable tracks as “Movin’ On” and “Ready For Love,” which are included on this new collection.

Bad Company returned the following year with Straight Shooter, which has been certified triple platinum thanks in part to the success of such tracks as “Good Lovin’ Gone Bad” and “Shooting Star.” Run With The Pack, the group’s third consecutive platinum album, is represented here by four tracks including “Simple Man” and “Live For The Music.”

The group recorded three more albums — Burnin’ Sky (1977), Desolation Angels (1979) and Rough Diamonds (1982) — which spawned several outstanding tracks included here such as like “Gone, Gone, Gone” and “Electricland.”

ROCK ‘N’ ROLL FANTASY: THE VERY BEST OF BAD COMPANY

Track Listing

1. “Can’t Get Enough” (Single Edit)

2. “Bad Company”

3. “Movin’ On”

4. “Ready For Love”

5. “Easy On My Soul” (Alternate Version)*

6. “Good Lovin’ Gone Bad”

7. “Feel Like Makin’ Love”

8. “Shooting Star”

9. “Weep No More”

10. “See The Sunlight” (Alternate Version)*

11. “Live For The Music”

12. “Simple Man”

13. “Honey Child”

14. “Run With The Pack” (Single Edit)

15. “Burnin’ Sky”

16. “Rock ’N’ Roll Fantasy”

17. “Rhythm Machine”

18. “Gone, Gone, Gone”

19. “Electricland” (Single Edit)

*Previously Unreleased

And here’s some more Bad Company release information…..

BAD COMPANY: LIVE 1977 & 1979

Double-CD Set Is The First-Ever Official Live Album To Feature The
Band’s Original Line Up And Includes Two Previously Unreleased Concerts

Available From Rhino On April 29

LOS ANGELES – Despite its reputation as one of the most exciting live bands to ever rock an arena in the Seventies, Bad Company never released a live album during its meteoric rise to the top of the charts. That will soon change when Rhino introduces the first-ever official live album to spotlight the original Bad Company line up: Paul Rodgers, Mick Ralphs, Simon Kirke and Boz Burrell.

LIVE IN CONCERT 1977 & 1979 will be available on April 29 as a double-CD set. The collection includes more than two-and-half hours of unreleased music taken from 24-track tapes in the band’s vault. The music heard on this live collection features absolutely no enhancements or overdubs, nothing but the band as they performed live on the night of the concert. Vinyl fans take note: the concerts will also be released individually as double-LP sets later this year.

LIVE IN CONCERT 1977 & 1979 includes two previously unreleased concerts – with one additional track taken from the group’s June 26, 1979 show in Washington, DC.

The first disc captures the band’s show at the Summit House in Houston, Texas, which took place on May 23, 1977. It was recorded during Bad Company’s tour supporting its fourth studio album Burning Sky. After opening with the title track from the album, the band went on to play selections from all its previous albums: Run with the Pack (1976), Straight Shooter (1975) and Bad Company (1974). Among the crowd-pleasing highlights are strong performances of “Shooting Star,” “Ready For Love,” “Good Lovin’ Gone Bad” and “Feel Like Makin’ Love.”

The next disc fast-forwards two years to the band’s March 9, 1979 show in London, which was recorded during the band’s tour for its multi-platinum album, Desolation Angels. Several songs from that album were performed during the show, including “Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy,” “Gone, Gone, Gone” and “She Brings Me Love.” The group also performed several songs from earlier albums that weren’t part of the 1977 concert, like “Run With the Pack,” “Rock Steady” and “Can’t Get Enough.”

LIVE IN CONCERT 1977 & 1979 also includes the band’s stellar cover of “Hey Joe,” which was recorded on March 9, 1979 at the Capitol Center in Washington, DC.

LIVE IN CONCERT 1977 & 1979

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Jimmy Page and The Yardbirds – Forthcoming Record Collector Feature:

One of the things I’ve been working on these past few weeks is due for publication soon – it’s a major feature for Record Collector on Jimmy Page and The Yardbirds 1966 -1968 – it’s in the next issue of Record Collector due out March 24…keep an eye on the link below for more details.

http://recordcollectormag.com/

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DL Diary Blog Update:

Friday treats at the Vinyl Barn in Bedford last Friday – a splendid singles and EP’s haul including Cilla Black, Billy J Kramer and a crop of Beatles EPs – all produced by the late great Sir George Martin – so there was no way they could stay in the rack… thanks Darren!

This week has been a full on one for the Evenings With Led Zeppelin book project. Mick and I have finally got around to assessing the potential layout and design of the book – aided considerably by Mike Tremaglio’s guiding light. There was an intensive Skype session with Mike earlier in the week to agree on a template moving forward. This really is a massive project that will stretch well into next year. The challenge is on to present this book as a definitive work on the subject. I’ll be revealing more about it all soon.

As you will have read above, the freelance feature I’ve been working on in recent weeks is a major one concerning  Jimmy Page and The Yardbirds 1966 -1968.

This is an era I’ve been meaning to get around to chronicling properly for some time. It proved to be quite a task in terms of bringing together all the differing strands that influenced the course of those final Yardbirds days. What I also wanted to illuminate, is how the seeds of Jimmy’s vision for Led Zeppelin were being sown throughout that latter period. it’s a pretty captivating story and I hope I’ve done it justice. You can find out from March 24 when the new issue of Record Collector goes on sale.

Staying with Record Collector, the current issue has a great feature on how to search out bargain priced records for under a tenner. This includes a guide by Andrew Ure of bargain priced psych singles to be found. There’s more on this subject on Andrew’s website which is well worth checking out.

http://www.dollarrecords.net/

More about the Record Collector feature here:

http://recordcollectormag.com/articles/bargain-best-ever

The feature also hones in on bargain priced funk, soul, punk, mod singles. There’s more to come of this in future issues. it’s all about discovering great music at a bargain price and that is a subject right up my street.

On those lines – here’s a round up of recent vinyl bargains that I’ve snapped up for under a tenner – in some cases well under – all in good playable condition from VIP Record Fairs, the Vinyl Barn, Oxfam shops,Empire Records St Albans and eBay.

Albums:

1:  The World of Blues Power – Various Artists including John Mayall, Eric Clapton, Paul Butterfield, Ten Years After etc.(Decca)  £4

2:  Special Price Series –  Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger And The Trinity (UK Polydor) £10

3:  Young Americans – David Bowie (RCA US pressing with inner sleeve) £9

4: Friday Night & Saturday Nights In Person – Miles Davis (US Columbia double album) £8

5: Wooden Nickel – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (Canyon Records bootleg album ) £9

6: Beatles For Sale – The Beatles – (UK Parlophone mono original) £6

7: Their Satanic Majesties Request – The Rolling Stones (US London 3D cover) £9

8: Desolation Angels – Bad Company (US Swan Song) £4

9: Still Crazy After All these Years – Paul Simon (Columbia promo pressing) £5

10: With A Little Help From My Friends – Joe Cocker (MFP compilation) £3

Singles:

1: Whole Lotta Love/Immigrant Song – Led Zeppelin (Atlantic Belgium) £1

2: The Boxer – Simon & Garfunkel (UK pic sleeve)  £1.99

3: I Want You/ Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues (live) – Bob Dylan (CBS UK original ) £3

4: Nowhere Man EP – The Beatles (Parlophone) £5

5: No Mules Fool – Family -(UK Reprise ) £3

6: Dandy In the Underworld – T.Rex (UK pic sleeve) £1

7: Summertime Blues – The Who (UK Track) £1

8: Still ‘m Sad/Evil Hearted You/Shapes of Things/For Your Love EP – The Yardbirds (Charly label) 50p

9:  Hold The Line – Toto CBS promo copy – 99p

10: Girls Talk – Dave Edmunds – (Swan Song) 50p

On the player, many of the above – plus and of course Emerson Lake and Palmer including the epic live album that proudly proclaims ”Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends…”

… and we all know, that along with many other much missed musicians of recent weeks, Keith Emerson’s show will roll on within the legacy of the fantastic music he has left us with…

  Dave Lewis – March 17, 2016

YouTube clips:

Robert Plant & The Sensational Space Shifters:

Robert Plant & The Sensational Space Shifters:

Until next time…

Have a great weekend..

Dave Lewis/Gary Foy – March 17, 2016.

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