Perhaps one of the most known leftovers album of all time. It's contains eight tracks and was released over two years after Jon Bonham's death. So let's see what we have here.
1-We're gonna groove-Recorded in early, 1970 at the Royal Albert Hall, but it later had some guitar overdubs added. It's a little clunky at times, but has a good feel to it after a couple of listens.
2-Poor Tom-Recorded in the spring of 1970.I have always liked this one a bit. Maybe it's a little light for Zeppelin at the time, but nonetheless it flows rather nicely at least to my ears.
3-I can't quit you baby-This one was recorded at a sound rehearsal in September of 1970. It's decent, but somehow it feels like it's lacking in emotion to some extent. That's probably chalked up to it just being a rehearsal.
4-Walter's Walk-This was recorded in 1972. It's decent enough as far as the music goes, but Robert Plant's vocals sound a little raw at times. Like perhaps it was rough draft and they quite worked it out.
5-Ozone baby-One of three tracks here recorded at the sessions for "In through the out door". I actually think this is pretty good. It's smooth and a little poppy, but for me it sounds like a decent blend of pop hooks and the band's earlier 70's sound.
6-Darlene-Also recorded the same time as track five. It's fair, but not very much like a Zeppelin to me. Then again neither are a lot of songs that made it on this album. Some nice rhythms overall, but far from outstanding.
7-Bonzo's Montreux-Recorded in late 1976 and it centers around Bonham's drums. I can certainly see where it maybe wouldn't have been the best fit on a studio album. Still it's the song on this album that I play the most. It deals more with odd tones rather than with speed and perhaps that's why I like it.
8-Wearing and tearing-Recorded the same time as tracks 5 and 6. Robert Plant sounds a little strained and maybe a little more like he did on his early solo albums. This track has a good groove to it and moves along nicely.
I think too often people moan and criticize this album because they have compared it to a Zeppelin studio album and I don't think that's fair. That's like comparing apples and oranges. This is an album of leftovers and it will not have a cohesive feel. It has some sparks and the bottom line is I am glad they released rather than not releasing it. There is nothing that involved here, but it's nice addition to the other Zeppelin albums.
I think you make a really good point that it shouldn't be measured against the regular studio albums. When you don't expect it to be Houses of the Holy or something, it is pretty listenable and I too am glad it was released.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually quite fond of Coda and it was the first Zep album I replaced on CD before I got the others. I agree with you and Bob that Coda shouldn't be measured against the other albums because this was more or less a final farewell for the fans instead of something truly committal; only then would Coda have qualified as a disaster, but I've always dug it hard for what it is.
ReplyDeleteYou're right--it's a case of apples and oranges. That said, this is a nice orange that doesn't disappoint me as a strong fan of apples.
ReplyDeleteI still listen to Poor Tom, Wearing and Tearing, and Bonzo's Montreaux regularly.
-- david
I'm not real familiar with Coda but I like Zeplin enough to check it out sometime.
ReplyDeleteCoda is really the only Zeppelin album that you need to know the "story" behind in order to fully appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteStill, I really love Darlene...of course, it probably helps that I had a huge crush on Darlene Jones when I first started listening to this album :)
Interesting - some different opinions on my review of the same album a few weeks back. I'm not a fan of drum solos and despite acknowledging that Bonzo's Montreaux was a tribute of sorts I would have preffered more 'songs'. I thought the run through of I Can't Quit You anything but flat mind.
ReplyDeleteStill an album I listen to quite regularly though.
Bill
Good review.
ReplyDeleteI like this album and I'm a huge Zeppelin fan.
Still, I get why some people have a "problem" with this album.
Allyson
www.bringbackglam.com
bob-I think this album is one of the better leftover type albums.
ReplyDeleteRay-I think it's gotten more attention than other album of it's type. So it must have something going for it.
David- I listen to it every once in a while and own it on vinyl and cd.
Captain Corky-It's worth picking up if you can get it cheap.
Robert-I am glad they listed information about when each song was don on the sleeve. Some albums of this nature don't give that information.
rock of ages-I think that overall this album has held up fairly well over time.
allyson-Although I think most of the negative things I heard about this album was years ago so maybe people have come to terms with it.