Led Zeppelin Remasters : 34 Years Gone…

Another anniversary the Remasters releases all of 34 years old this week. I absolutely loved that period – it was so incredible to see the resurgence of interest that surrounded them – here’s some 34th anniversary thoughts…

Led Zeppelin Remastered…it was 34 years ago… 

It’s amazing to think that there was a time back in the day, that the only way of hearing Led Zeppelin’s music was via the ten original albums – ie the eight original studio albums, The Song Remains The Same soundtrack and the posthumous collection Coda.

There were no greatest hits albums, no BBC sessions, no 1972 live albums and certainly no i-tunes, Spotify HD downloads and streaming.

True the Led Zeppelin catalogue had been released on CD – though  not from the original masters and transferred via analogue tapes. The results were mixed. I did a feature in Record Collector in early 1990 reviewing the original CD’s (I’ll need to dig that one out) ,blissfully unaware that Jimmy was about to overhaul the entire catalogue for CD.

Thus the arrival in October of 1990 of the five LP CD box set and double Remasters compilations was a very big deal indeed.

I wasn’t the only one I am sure, who had not paid much attention to the studio albums in recent years. My Zep listening time was taken up analysing the many Zep shows that were appearing on CD sets and the fresh outtakes that had surfaced.

The arrival of the Remasters was a revelation. Suddenly we all realised just exactly what it was that had made this band so special.

Lapsed fans got back on the wagon –a whole new generation of younger enthusiasts also jumped aboard. Overnight Led Zep’s stock shot up…and it never looked back.

The Remasters releases were absolute game changers in the way Led Zeppelin were viewed and appreciated.

I have very fond memories of this period  – it was the point where I realised their legacy was intact. It was fantastic to follow all the media buzz that went with it including Jimmy’s appearances on MTV and the promo videos for Travellin Riverside Blues and Over The Hills And Far Away.

In the Our Price record store I managed Bedford we really went to town – with pre release build up and in store displays. This activity resulted in the store racking up £10,000 worth of business on the box sets and double albums. I was later awarded a triple gold disc award by Warners in the UK. Here’s a pic of the shop window in November 1990.

Like I say, I was about to produce a book that emphatically chronicled the band’s music. The book Led Zeppelin – A Celebration published the next summer was very well received…and it set me on a mission to totally commit myself to chronicling the world of Led Zeppelin that has not let up for the past quarter of a century.

This is something I wrote at the time for Record Collector. I remember putting this together – the words came tumbling out such was my enthusiasm for it all – and it remains one of my favourite pieces of writing on the band.

I’ll be bringing out the Remasters box set vinyl and CDs to enjoy over this weekend  reveling in Jimmy’s vision of – as he put it ”The same picture with a different frame”

And what pictures they are….

DL

Here’s my feature that ran in Record Collector in December 1990…

LED ZEPPELIN REMASTERED…

DAVE LEWIS REVIEWS JIMMY PAGE’S DEFINITIVE COMPILATIONS OF ZEPP’S BACK CATALOGUE

Earlier this year, I summed up my feature in Record Collector on Led Zeppelin On CD by offering Atlantic Records the following advice: “In the light of the shortcomings of the Led Zeppelin CDs, it would be good to see Atlantic embark on a re-mastering job to eliminate some of the errors that have occurred. An even better idea would be for Jimmy Page himself to oversee such a project which could easily take the format of a special box set release. Atlantic Records take note!”

At that time, I was unaware of Atlantic’s plans to produce just such a set, so it came as a pleasant surprise to learn that my request was about to become a reality. The project began to take shape when Jimmy Page was approached by the label to remaster the original Zeppelin catalogue for a compilation release. Dissatisfied with the general reproduction of the available CDs, Page jumped at the opportunity to restore his old masters to the standard he envisaged. Studio time was booked at New York’s Stirling Studio in May, where Jimmy spent a week with engineer George Marino digitally transferring the material from, in most cases, the original two-track master tapes.

The project in mind was a multi-track box set release for which Page drew up possible track listings for the other two ex-members to sanction. “I really wanted to improve the release”, Page is quoted as saying on the officially press release; “basically it’s the same picture with a different frame”. John Paul Jones added: “The songs sound as fresh now as when they were first recorded, and the new positions in the running order seem to put them in a totally different light.”

The original concept was to package 54 remastered tracks in a deluxe box package with a 36-page book of photos and essays. Atlantic’s European distributors East West were supremely keen to also issue an edited version aimed at the mainstream market. And so a condensed version with 24 tracks on a triple album and 26 on a double cassette and CD was also prepared — for Europe only.

This release, under the title “Remasters”, formed the major spearhead of WEA/East West’s Christmas market campaign. After all the years of avoiding the greatest hits treatment, the Zepp catalogue received the full commercial push as East West undertook a massive marketing campaign to back to October 15 release of “Remasters”. Window displays were installed, including inflatable blimps which are sure to join earlier models as collectable Zep items. Mysterious teaser adverts appeared in the music press depicting the shadow of the Zepp airship looming over several international locations, recalling the similar obscure ads placed as a trailer for the band’s fourth album. Even a TV advertisement was prepared, set to appear on screens across the country in the run-in to Christmas.

COMMERCIALISE:

But East West did fail in the final quest to fully commercialise this “Remasters” package: they did not receive the blessing of Page, Plant and Jones to issue a U.K. single. The plan was to issue “Stairway To Heaven” on December 2 as a four-track CD single and 12″ picture disc, with “Whole Lotta Love”, “Immigrant Song” and “Good Times Bad Times”. Although the classic Zep anthem would have been a strong contender for the Christmas No. 1 spot, the no-U.K.-singles rule prevailed. This collection of tracks subsequently surfaced in two already well-in-demand U.K. promo items. The first is a four-track 10″ pressing (Atlantic LZ 2), housed in a black sleeve depicting the specially commissioned Mission Control-designed colour illustrations that mirror the images of the band’s famous four symbols. There is also a four-track promo CD single (Atlantic CD LZ 1), packaged in a cardboard oblong box. Both items are definitely prime additions to any Led Zeppelin rarities collection.

The condensed “Remasters” set duly surfaced on schedule, and entered the U.K. album chart at No. 10. As a layman’s introduction to the group, its track listing does include the majority of Zepp classics, though I was surprised to find that “When The Levee Breaks” and “The Ocean” — two tracks which have been heavily sampled by other artists, and have this found their way to the forefront of the Zepp canon over the last decade — had both been omitted. I personally would have viewed these tracks as more historically representative than lesser stepping stones such as “Celebration Day” and “Houses Of The Holy”

While there can be little complaint about the overall musical content of “Remasters”, or the typically offbeat sleeve design concept of the Zepp shadow looming over a mysteriously carved cornfield, the lack of any track details on the sleeve is a disappointment. Despite the fact that Atlantic’s press release for the condensed set promised “extensive sleeve notes” on the vinyl edition, purchasers of “Remasters” are afforded none of the intensive recording data to be found in the box set booklet. There is not even any indication as to which album each track came from. As the set is obviously aimed at the less committed fan, surely this would have been a simple device to draw attention to the entire Zep catalogue.

Unfortunately, omissions such as these present “Remasters” as something of a cold marketing ploy issued to cash in on the peak consumer period. Compared to the deluxe box set package, it certainly pales considerably. At nigh on £20 a throw, “Remasters” should have been presented with far more information, and some additional alternate photos. That’s particularly the case, given the fact that completist collectors will need this set as well as the extended box, as it strangely contains one remastered track not to be found anywhere on the box set — namely the first album opener, “Good Times Bad Times”. The fact that all the different formats of “Remasters” are scheduled to be deleted on March 31 1991 will also add to its desirability to the keen Zep enthusiast.

And now to the box set itself, simply titled “Led Zeppelin”. This is beautifully packaged in a strong 12″ box with a slightly different view of the ‘Zepp over cornfields’ scene. The accompanying 36-page book is also of superb quality and contains some wonderful photos. The three essays by noted American critics Robert Palmer (who coincidentally also wrote notes for the Rod Stewart “Storyteller” set), Kurt Loder and Cameron Crowe are admirable summaries of the band’s career. However, for all his “front row seats to the Zepp experience”, Crowe manages in the space of eight pages to document wrongly the date of the release of “Houses Of The Holy” (March ’73, not May), the date and location of their meeting with Elvis (L.A. in May ’74, not Las Vegas in 1972), the date they flew to Stockholm to begin recording “In Through The Out Door” (November ’78 not January), and the date of Live Aid (July ’85, not ’87).

While it’s great to see a full track rundown of when and where each track was recorded, some errors again creep in. Two of them can be put down to the confusion some researcher had about the different way dates are printed in the U.K. and U.S. — the recording date of the Albert Hall rehearsal take of “I Can’t Quit You Baby” was actually January 9 1970 (9/1/70 in U.K. usage) and not September 1 1970 (9/1/70 in American eyes). Similarly, the recording date of “Bonzo’s Montreux” becomes December 9 1976 instead of September 12. Elsewhere, printing gremlins creep in on the “Gallows Pole” entry which has it being recorded in 1972 and released on “Led Zeppelin 3” in 1970. I would also question the actual release dates^ of some of the albums in the U.S. discography — the soundtrack album, for instance, being a month out. This may seem like nitpicking, but I cannot be alone in finding such errors annoying, particularly as “Led Zeppelin” was designed as a definitive retrospective.

And the music? In compiling 54 tracks, Page was faced with the difficult task of knowing what to leave out. Obviously everyone has different favourites and a set list like this is always going to be disappointing. For me, the biggest letdown is the lack of tracks from “Physical Graffiti”, by their own admission Led Zeppelin’s premier achievement on record.

But what is included is a truly wondrous cross section of the musical diversity that coloured the Zeppelin catalogue during their 12-year reign. In remastering the tracks, Page has added a punch and clarity that the original CDs sorely lacked — without tampering with the original tapes, so there is no remixing here aside from the new Bonzo creation, which I’ll come to in a moment. The cleaning-up of the analog tapes also greatly helps the light and shade of tracks like “The Battle Of Evermore” and “Ten Years Gone”, while Page has restored the correct studio banter to the ending of “In My Time Of Dying”.

SURPRISES:

Some of the anomalies and surprises to be found in this mammoth collection include the fact that the timings of many tracks here are vastly different to the claims on the original albums. For instance, “Kashmir” (previously listed as 9’41”) now appears as a correct 8’31”, though the tracks are absolutely identical. The only piece amongst the 54 which I have noticed being different to the original is “Nobody’s Fault But Mine”. The “Remasters” take is 12 seconds longer than the “Presence” original due to the inclusion of an extra guitar riff chorus on the intro. Elsewhere, the three-second white noise count-in on “Immigrant Song” is deleted here, as is the eight-second intro to “Tangerine”. But the warming up of guitars on “Black Dog” is present, and sounds much more pronounced than before.

It’s interesting to hear familiar classics placed in a different light — “Heartbreaker” now segues instantly into “Communication Breakdown”, for example, rather than “Livin’ Lovin’ Maid”, while “The Song Remains The Same” drifts into “Ten Years Gone”. The sequencing of the tracks does, as John Paul Jones noted, put them in a new context.

Finally, some new delights. In merging John Bonham’s “Moby Dick” with his later “Bonzo’s Montreux”, Page has produced an affectionate tribute to the late drummer, achieved with Synclavier programming at Atlantic’s studios in New York earlier this year. Some might question whether he should have tampered with the originals, but the finished track mixes elements of Bonham’s developing technique over seven years. It’s also a joy to hear the “Zepp 3” leftover “Hey Hey What Can I Do” — a warm semi-acoustic groove previously only available on the B-side of the U.S./European “Immigrant Song” single, and on the long-deleted “New-Age Of Atlantic” sampler LP.

Also included are two much-bootlegged BBC recordings, which sound superb. “Travelling Riverside Blues”, a Page/Plant arrangement of the old Robert Johnson blues classic, is a prime mid-’69 remnant with a spiralling Page slide guitar riff and some dominant Bonzo bass drum patterns — all now heard to their full effect for the first time. “White Summer/Black Mountain Side” comes from the live Playhouse Theatre show recorded on June 27th 1969, and brings back many nostalgic Zep memories.

Of course, there will be a school of thought that Page should have used this box set project to issue more unreleased gems — many of which have turned up on top quality bootleg CDs over the past year. There was also scope here for the much vaunted chronological live album idea which Page often hinted at in the latter Zepp era. Though there may be few fully-fledged studio tracks with finished vocals in the vaults, recent bootlegs have proved that there are some tantalising alternate takes which would have added spice to the set. “Led Zeppelin” is superb in its own right, but many enthusiasts will view it as a missed opportunity to hear more enlightening live and studio cuts. Certainly one CD of rare material would have made the whole thing much more worthwhile.

My personal choice of a bonus rare CD of material which is known to exist would have lined up like this: “Communication Breakdown” (live Royal Albert Hall, 1970); “Jenning’s Farm Blues” (electric studio rehearsal of “Bron Y Aur Stomp”, 1969); “Blues Medley” from the “Hats Off To Harper” session (1970); “No Quarter” (instrumental studio out-take, 1972); “Over The Hills And Far Away” (live in Dallas, 1975 U.S. tour); “Tangerine” (live, Earls Court 1975); “Trampled Underfoot” (live, Earls Court 1975); “The Song Remains The Same/Sick Again” (live, New York 1977); “Ten Years Gone” (live, New York 1977); “Train Kept A-Rollin’ ” (live, Zurich 1980); “All My Love” (alternate extended version, 1978). But maybe Jimmy is saving that lot for the “Re-Remasters”!

Overall, despite the misgivings about the track listing, some irritating errors in the booklet and the difficulty of pleasing collectors old and new, the “Led Zeppelin” box set is a worthy investment, and compares well with similar packages by other artists. Certainly, in restoring the Zeppelin catalogue to CD with the sound quality it deserves, Page has done a superb job. With the incredible resurgence of interest in the band in recent times — they must surely be the most popular defunct band outside of the Beatles — the set is sure to be in huge demand.

This collection will stand as a lasting testament to the sheer diversity of Zeppelin’s recorded work. It should also prompt re-examination of epic works such as “Achilles’ Last Stand” and “In The Light”. The latter track’s final few minutes, capturing Jimmy’s overdubbed guitar parts rippling across Robert’s chorus, the Jones drone and Bonzo’s timely hammering, is perhaps the most impressive section of the entire 54-track set. And it sounds glorious.

Will they reform? Will there be a live chronological video to supplement this release sometime next year? The remastered “Led Zeppelin” set should keep all Zepp fans riveted to their turntables as we await the next chapter in a story that is far from over.

Dave Lewis – October 1990

Dave Lewis is the author of a forthcoming book on Led Zeppelin titled “Led Zeppelin — A Celebration” (to be published by Omnibus Press, spring 1991).

First published in Record Collector December 1990

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Becoming Led Zeppelin’ will finally be released in May

The new logo for ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin’ (Sony Pictures Classics)

Almost seven years after work on the film began in 2018, “Becoming Led Zeppelin” will finally make it to cinemas in May. On Friday, we discovered a release date for the film listed on a Portuguese film industry website which strongly suggests “Becoming Led Zeppelin” will open on May 16.

The emergence of the probable release date comes as a new trailer for the film began showing ahead of screenings of “Venom: The Last Dance” in the US on October 24. The trailer doesn’t give a release date for the film beyond saying it will be released in 2025, including in IMAX cinemas. We expect this new trailer to be released online within the next two weeks.

Also on Friday, we spotted that the film’s US distributor Sony Pictures Classics unveiled a new logo for the film (you can see it above). To us, this looks like an attempt to focus part of the film’s story on the 1960s with the “groovy” font.

The emergence of a release date for the film lets us look ahead to what we may see around the premiere. It’s a safe bet that Jimmy Page will attend in-person events and speak to the media to promote the film.

Will Robert Plant and John Paul Jones help promote the film ahead of its release? Documents uncovered by LedZepNews last year revealed that the filmmakers planned for all three surviving members of Led Zeppelin to promote the film during its 2021 festival premiere. But in the end, only Page showed up.

Plant and Jones have kept their distance from “Becoming Led Zeppelin”. The last time they helped to market it was when they provided statements about the film for its announcement in 2019. And with Plant due to be on tour in Scandinavia around the time of the film’s expected release in May, we think it’s unlikely he’ll show up to any premieres.

Please help us to release 1,100 pages of legal filings about the writing of ‘Stairway To Heaven’

For the past few months, LedZepNews has spent hours speaking to attorneys in the US. We discovered that sealed legal filings from the 2016 copyright trial over “Stairway To Heaven” contain more than 1,100 pages of transcripts of interviews with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones in which they discuss the creation of the song, accusations that Led Zeppelin stole music from other artists and talk about their alleged drug use.

These transcripts are the written record of hours of deposition hearings that the three men sat through ahead of the trial, possibly the most extensive and in-depth interviews they’ve ever done.

The transcripts were filed under seal, meaning they’re not available for the public to access. Legal advisors we’ve spoken to all believe there is a pretty clear legal basis for the files to be unsealed, but the judge responsible refuses to listen to our polite informal request.

That leaves us reliant on finding an attorney in Californa willing to file a motion in the court to ask for the files to be unsealed. And we haven’t yet had any luck finding an attorney with the capacity to take this on pro bono, or even on a “low bono” basis. The cheapest estimate we’ve been given for getting the documents is $10,000 in legal fees.

After hitting a dead end following the judge’s rejection of our request and our search for attorneys reaching its conclusion, LedZepNews decided to go public with the situation this week in the hope that may help find a solution.

Our request is simple: Are any readers able to connect LedZepNews with any attorneys in California who might like to help reveal the secret story of the writing of “Stairway To Heaven”? Drop us a reply if you’re able to give us a hand! We can also be reached on ledzepnews@gmail.com

Auction watch

The production master tapes for Led Zeppelin II (eBay/Sierains)

Two interesting items have appeared on eBay from a seller in the US. They’re production masters for Led Zeppelin’s second and fourth albums.

These aren’t the holy grail of Led Zeppelin collectables, the original master tapes for the albums. Instead, they’re a few generations removed from them and were the tapes used to produce vinyl copies of both albums.

The seller is asking for $2,999.99 for the Led Zeppelin II tapes and for $3,999.99 for the fourth album’s tapes.

The production master tapes for Led Zeppelin’s fourth album (eBay/Sierains)

Jimmy Page

Gibson began selling its new acoustic guitar replica with Jimmy Page

A promotional photo released by Gibson showing Jimmy Page holding one of the new replicas of the 1964 Gibson SJ-200 acoustic guitar (Gibson)

As we expected, Gibson officially unveiled its second replica guitar from its new partnership with Jimmy Page on October 22. The replica is a recreation of the 1964 Gibson SJ-200 acoustic guitar that Page played on Led Zeppelin’s debut album and in his April 23, 1970 appearance on “The Julie Felix Show”.

The guitar is limited to 50 collector’s edition models played by Page and signed on the back of the headstock as well as 100 slightly less limited models that were signed by Page on the label in the sound hole. The collector’s edition models are already sold out.

To promote the new replica, Gibson released a video showing Page playing one of the guitars (albeit we don’t actually hear him play). Bizarrely, the soundtrack to the video is a version of “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” edited to remove Robert Plant’s vocals.

We had a close listen and there seems to be some sort of vocals deep down in the mix, perhaps a sign that artificial intelligence was used to delete Plant’s voice. Alternatively, perhaps Page or someone else went back to the master tapes and created this version of the song just for Gibson’s video.

We asked Gibson about this mystery version of the Led Zeppelin song, specifically asking if it was edited using AI or was a new mix. They ignored our email, after previously replying to LedZepNews about the guitar replica.

The release of this replica was handled differently to the first replica from the new partnership, the Gibson EDS-1275. That guitar was only available to purchase in person through Gibson shops. This acoustic replica was immediately available to purchase online this week.

Along with the new video of Page, Gibson also released seven promotional photos of Page holding one of the replica guitars. We posted them all on Facebook here.

Robert Plant

Robert Plant is still on tour with Saving Grace

Robert Plant continued his European tour with Saving Grace this week, performing in Trieste, Italy on October 21; in Brescia, Italy on October 23 and at the Baloise Session music festival in Basel, Switzerland on October 25. The band will perform in Antwerp, Belgium today (October 27).

Writing on Instagram this week, Plant said that he was “sad to leave Italy.. 11 shows.. in.. 15 days.. great spirit..”

Here’s “Friends” from the October 23 performance in Brescia, Italy:

Here’s the start of “And We Bid You Goodnight” from that show, which includes Plant telling the crowd: “Don’t give it all away too soon. It’s just like sex, take your time.”

Plant posed for a photo backstage at that show with Italian musician Zucchero Fornaciari:

Plant was photographed at the Torre D’Ercole restaurant in Brescia:

Here’s “Friends” from the October 25 performance at the Baloise Session music festival in Basel, Switzerland:

Looking back on last week, half an hour’s video has emerged of Plant’s show in Padova, Italy on October 20:

We also have some great photos from the show and also a fan who managed to get a kiss from Plant in a bar:

Upcoming events:

• October 27 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Antwerp, Belgium.
• October 29 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Paris, France.
• Late October – “Led Zeppelin – Whole Lotta Love: A People’s History” by Richard Houghton will be published.
• November 5 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Harrogate, UK.
• November 6 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Stockton, UK.
• November 13 – The Playing For Change album Songs For Humanity, featuring John Paul Jones on a cover of “When The Levee Breaks”, will be released.
• November 23 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Woking, UK.
• November 24 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Southend, UK.
• December – Gibson is expected to release regular production models of its replicas of Jimmy Page’s 1969 Gibson EDS-1275 double neck guitar.
• Late 2024 / Early 2025 – Jimmy Page’s amp company Sundragon will release its new Nymph amps
• Spring 2025 – An expanded version of Live at the Greek, the live album featuring Jimmy Page and The Black Crowes, is due to be released.
• May 3 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Brussels, Belgium.
• May 5 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
• May 6 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
• May 8 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Copenhagen, Denmark.
• May 9 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Malmö, Sweden.
• May 11 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Gothenburg, Sweden.
• May 14 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Oslo, Norway.
• May 16 – ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin’ is likely to be released in cinemas around this date and Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Stockholm, Sweden.
• May 18 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Tampere, Finland.
• May 19 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Helsinki, Finland.
• May 21 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Tallinn, Estonia.
• May 23 – Robert Plant will perform with Saving Grace in Vilnius, Lithuania.
• June – The book “Rock Visions”, which has a chapter on Led Zeppelin memorabilia, will be published.
• September 11 – The book “Valhalla!: The A to Z of Led Zeppelin” by Paul Brannigan will be published.
• October – John Paul Jones’ song cycle for Dame Sarah Connolly will premiere in London.That was our 364th email. Have any questions or feedback? Reply to this email and we’ll get back to you.Follow Led Zeppelin News on Twitter and Facebook to stay up to date on news as it happens, and check ledzepnews.com for the latest news.

Many thanks to James Cook for his continued excellent LedZep news coverage. 

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More Remasters Memories:

It was 34 years ago…

The scene in the Our Price record shop in Bedford that I managed  34 years ago – for on October 15, 1990 the first ever Led Zeppelin compilation set was released – the double album Remasters,.to be followed two weeks later by the 4LP/CD box set. It opened up Zep to a whole new market..and boy did we sell some Zep product as Colin Stonebridge, Justin Cromie and Jason Foster will remember…great music retail days they were…

It was 34 years ago 2:

The scene in the Our Price record shop window in Bedford on this day 34 years ago this month – for on October 15, 1990 the first ever Led Zeppelin compilation set was released – the double album Remasters..to be followed two weeks later by the 4LP/CD box set.

As I had a vested interest (I was writing the Led Zeppelin A Celebration book a the time) I made sure we racked up the sales – much of the window came from my collection – including that rather splendid Japanese poster of Jimmy Page on the right…all this contributed to me being awarded a triple gold disc by Warners for my efforts to ensure Led Zeppelin were right back at the forefront of record, CD and tape buyers…where they have remained ever since

It was 34 years ago 3:

The triple gold disc I was awarded by Warner Music in the UK for my contribution to the sales of the Remasters releases –notably the £54 priced 4CD/LP box set –in the Our Price Store I managed in Bedford we generated over £10,000 sales during the opening weeks of release… not bad for a store of just 980 square feet. Great retail days they were…

Dave Lewis – October 2024

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Priory Of Brion in a tent – It was 25 years Ago:

Saturday October 26:

Sunday October 27:

Update here…

It’s been hugely nostalgic to look back at that momentous day all of 50 years ago when I embarked on my music retail journey. Unsurprisingly, it’s brought some reflective thoughts and the playlist has reflected the somewhat melancholy mood here. Anyway, it’s on in to November with a lot to do including the current writing project and more work on the DL memoirs…

Current DL Playlist:

Nick Drake – Five Leaves Left

Joni Mitchell – Blue

Cat Stevens – Tea For The Tillerman

Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin III

David Crosby – If I Could Only Remember My Name

Bob Dylan – Desire