11/25/1971 Leicester, England (master>dat>cdr)Immigrant Song, Heartbreaker, Black Dog, Since I've Been Loving You, Celebration Day, Going to California, That's the Way, Tangerine, Bron-Y-Aur Stomp, Dazed and Confused, Stairway to Heaven, What is and What Should Never Be, Whole Lotta Love, Rock and Roll, Communication Breakdown
The first two songs seem a bit subdued. Plant is holding back, his voice lower than usual. Black Dog is plodding and heavy. Plant sounds tired and sick while introducing Since I've Been Loving You. His syrupy voice enhances the bluesy atmosphere. Page plays with laid-back intensity, perfectly accented by Bonzo's drunken finesse. Celebration Day includes an excellent funky rhythm workout during the guitar solo. Page flubs a note at the beginning of Tangerine, causing him to stop and restart the song. Plant's flu adds to the mournful tone, a beautiful performance.
The lead-in to the bow solo during Dazed and Confused features an excellent heavy jam. The guitar solo/workout section once again features an excellent Theme from Shaft. The song continues to develop nightly, the true centerpiece of the show. Amazing. The medley during Whole Lotta Love includes Otis Rush's So Many Roads, an extended blues jam, an excellent heavy rendition of Goin' Down Slow, Boogie Chillen', Hello Mary Lou, Rave On!, and a slow mournful rendition of Elvis Presley's A Mess of Blues. Several shouted requests from the crowd are granted as the band closes the show with Communication Breakdown. The crowd is left chanting for more. A great performance despite a slow start and Plant's fatigue.
The tape is clear and well-balanced. Sounds as if it was recorded from near the bar, clinking glasses can be heard during the quiet moments.
This was recorded by my Uncle on an ITT cassette recorder.Let's say a loan to someone and before we knew it it's out as a 3CD box set in Japan! Oh well..
ReplyDeleteThis is a great show, even with Plant being sick. He still sounds good and even hits most of the high notes in Stairway. The band is very loose during the whole performance and this is definitely a close to "must hear"
ReplyDeleteAnd this is one of the very last times that Plant sounded like the "old" Plant
This is the best show from the '71 UK end-of-year performances. If you want a decent recording of a decent show, then this is it.
ReplyDeleteLonger than usual acoustic section is a nice touch too.
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