Well, it was a long time ago, memorial day 1977. Home from school. My roommate had come up for the show. My brother had scored the tickets for me - 5 tickets because at the time I had 5 buds who wanted to go, now just me and Tom. Interestingly, during the day a local tv station was showing "yellow submarine" by the beatles, what a way to start the day. There was another guy who lived nearby, we were going to see if he wanted to go to the show . got there he said his parents wouldn't like it if he went...man you're 21 who cares what your parents think.. Anyway, on to the show...
Get some beer for the ride up to the capital center (side note here where
the bullets- now wizards and capitols used to play- place still there
unused owner built a new place IN DC.) Man lots of folks here 4th night
of the cap center run. Zeppelin had been setting all sorts of attendence
records this spring for shows, Pontiac Silver Dome I remember was a
record, this was a record for the the DC area - 4 nights 22,000+ each
night sold out. Anyway lots of hot zeppelin babes in the parking lots
drinking and smoking. So I had 3 extra tickets, sold them to a couple of
guys, made a few $ enough to cover the cost of my ticket and a t-shirt,
which I still have (black with swan song "angel" says 1977 Tour in white
letters.) Get in, find our seats, easy frisk this day, had cut my hair the before I left school, for summer job, so I looked clean cut..lol, so the pipe got in and the instamatic camera. You don't know what anticipation it was to
see Zeppelin Live. Page/Plant, Page Crows, Plant solo, nothing compared
to seeing Zeppelin in the spring/summer of 1977. They were it in 77,
nothing bigger nothing better, they ruled rock-n-roll, and the concerts
were "events" unto themselves. They were ½ hour or so late as I
remember, ah the wait the wait.. the lights go down......yes.. light up
the "rainbow" pot. I had-multi colored stuff that's why we called it
rainbow...
Dragon Slayer boot review.... Song Remains the Same,
something wrong with the tape deck for first song , lots of distortion,
but better that Running on Pure Heart and Soul(ROPHAS). Live it was
LOUD. Sick Again, after the first few cords, a switch is hit, aahhh the
sound gets much better, from here on sound quality is much better than
ROPHAS, about a 9 in most places. Sick Again, standard fair for 77
shows. Nobody's Fault is next. Here the boys crank up the intensity, rousing version. During the song somebody shoots a bottle rocket/smoke bomb at Robert , it hit him or got very close, Robert does this twirl in the smoke and takes his shirt off. Taking his shirt off made me think the smoke bomb hit him. Anyway, so during the break, he talks about getting undressed before small audiences but never before 22,000., then puts his shirt back on, and Jimmy slides into IMTOD. OH my, this version has to be up there as one of the best all time, great slide work, great Bonham fills, just a great version of this tune. SIBLY is next, back to back blues numbers but again Jimmy slides
into this one also, some killer solos in this song. Next is the nimble
fingers of JPJ, for No Quarter. Funny thing....I decided I wanted to walk
around during this number, it was Tom's favorite song and he didn't
really want to get up, but I said he maybe we will see some hot
chicks... lol, well anyway we toured the arena with the chords of NQ
pumping out of each tunnel. Wow mesmerizing song. This version still has
the cut after the first verse, tape change obviously. Without the
missing vocals this would be another all time great version, well it
still is actually. More so because of Jimmy's playing when he comes back
in after the JPJ solos. Great jamming, killer stuff, this is Zeppelin at
their improvisational best. End of CD 1.
CD 2 Ten Years Gone, Plant says waiting for Jonesy, "strolling behind
the amps casually while drinking wine, come on Jonesy". Then JPJ sits
down and the boys proceed to play THE best Ten years Gone I have heard(
course I was there so I am prejudiced). Sound quality is just amazing
much better than ROPHAS. ROPHAS had some overloading during TYG and the acoustic set. Not so with Dragon Slayer... has to be the same tape but from very low gen tape, if not the master. These songs bear out this
statement. You can hear the tambourine in the back ground, and there is
a one of a kind solo at the end by Page, like a machine gun ripping off
the notes. Then the acoustic set, Battle For Evermore, Black Country
Woman, Bron-yr-Aur Stomp. Just before this a Plantation, " music comes
in colors and we are going to change the shade a bit for your
entertainment, so you don't remember us just as a gong, gong gong
gong..." pretty funny. Again, very clear, no distortion as in ROPHAS. One
of the best acoustic sets, no glaring mistakes, very good stuff. Then
White Summer/ into Kashmir, good not great, of course I have listened too
much to the 6-25-77 Kashmir, so every other version pales in comparison
to that one. Here Page does the jamming at the end not Bonzo. End of
Disc 2
Disc 3 Over the Top...... Complete here, the ROPHAS was cut at
about 15+ minutes, 21:45 here, good version. Guitar solo... well had to
be there I guess, missed not seeing Dazed live, this was what we got in
77. The best part was the green laser pyramid coming down from the ceiling turning around Page as he did the bow part (just like in the movie
TSRTS). Page dose a little part of the star spangled banner in the
middle also, good version of the guitar improv thing, the best being
that 6-25 show IMHO. OK, then into Achilles - good version, nothing outstanding to point out... Then the end is coming.... Stairway...aahh .. well again to see them do it live then get to re-live the experience, words can't describe the emotion, the excitement, but YOU can enjoy the fret work solo of Page on this version of Stairway, different than any version I have heard ( the 8 minute mark on!!, the stop start) different than any 77 version, Page
was on this night with Stairway. Some shows on the tour seemed a bit
tired at the end, NOT here - ripped up the place, crowd was WILD!!
Encore... Seeing the flashlights as the boys return to the stage!!!
WLL/R &R... they turned up the PA that is why it sounds louder on the
boot, IT WAS!! Man to end the show with R&R, that is unfair!!! And
contrary to other boots (Destroyer III I think) and other folks they did
NOT play Trampled as a second encore here, lights came on etc etc. OMG
we were spent, you should have seen the air guitars during the encore-
most every guy in the place was jamming along with Page, it was
unbelievable!!! Oh man, that was 24 years ago tonight! I can't believe
it.
harry
