This show has been around forever in lower quality but this is transferred from the reel master. Heinz Esser is the taper of this awesome Free concert, and he also taped Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple (and more). He caught a great performance by Paul Rodgers and Co. for sure. Paul Kossof is a master of tone and technique at only 19 years old. Andy Fraser's thicc bass and Simon Kirke's tight drumming create a powerful engine, with Paul Rodgers at the controls.

I play The Hunter (Zep fans will recognize this song) and Fire and Water which are both incredible.

The very last time the Firm played publicly was May 28, 1986 in good ol' Seattle. Everyone in the band knew it was the end of the project, and they all play their hearts out. Paul Rodgers outdoes himself with delivery and passion. Jimmy is very upbeat and talkative. This show is really good.

You know how I am at best lukewarm on the Firm, overall, but the Mean Business tour sounds streets ahead of the 1985 tour. You're going to enjoy the energy, the music, and the balls of this show. I play an incendiary Spirit of Love, a furious Midnight Moonlight, and a very heavy and dark bluesy I Just Wanna Make Love to You. Even if you're not a big Firm fan this one is the exception. Enjoy.

The 1996 Page/Plant tour of Japan has been extremely well regarded, and documented, for close to 30 years. Thanks to the fantastic audio and video captured, with the ok of the band, by Third Eye, we have a magnificent full stereo recording of February 12, 1996 in Tokyo.

We hear a tender Tea for One (only ever played on this tour) with orchestra, a brilliant and bombastic Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, with a nice Stairway tease, and a supremely tight and cool af Whole Lotta Love, which contains the original, the Knebworth version, and new sections exclusive to the Page/Plant partnership. It's awesome. The whole show.

I once again revisit one of the finest Zep concerts, at least of the post 1973 era. July 24, 1979 at the Falkoner Theater in Copenhagen is absolutely brilliant concert by the biggest band in the world, playing a 1200 seat venue, as a warmup to their 200,000+ Knebworth shows the next month.

I play Trampled Underfoot, In The Evening (2nd time played), and a raucous Whole Lotta Love with a new arrangement for a new era.

All this in anticipation of the newly discovered live film from this show, to be released with synced sound by LedZepFilm, on 2/18/25 on his youtube channel. So cool.

Only the first two songs of this show are publicly extant, and I always have love for the runt of the litter, so here we go! Led Zeppelin played Wallingford, Connecticut on August 17, 1969 and we are able to hear Train Kept A Rollin' and I Can't Quit You Baby, at least. Thank god for tapers!

There's a good reason I'm coming back to this show, after almost 5 years. Watchtower has released a version of this show in fantastic quality, without the noise reduction that muffled prior releases. It's also one of the best shows from one of the best years of one of the best bands around. So there's that.

This is band's first night of their first Japanese tour and they're out to impress the people of Tokyo. I play a superlative Since I've Been Loving You, which you should listen to right now. I also play an exceptional Stairway to Heaven with an amazing solo, and I finish with the small acoustic set of Bron-y-Aur Stomp, That's the Way, and Going to California. The sound is fantastic as is the performance.

On August 19, 1971 Led Zeppelin began their North American tour in Vancouver, BC and we have the pleasure of hearing peak Zep, thanks to an intrepid taper. Last time I touched upon this show we featured the first few songs; this time we're back for more. I play a scorching Black Dog (sung like the record), a powerful (better than the European ones, imo) Gallows Pole (on the doubleneck 12 string), and a raucous and frenzied cover of Eddie Cochran's Weekend. Each performance is pure fire, as is the rest of the show. Truly awesome.

May 11, 1986 is the date The Firm played the Cleveland Colosseum for concert which was broadcast on the Westwood One Radio Network, back in the day. Thus the quality is professionally mixed stereo. The fantastic sound quality brings out the virtuosity of the band. Tony Franklin and Chris Slade are a beautifully solid rhythm section, fluid enough to let Jimmy weave in and around the beat like a dervish.

I play fantastic performances (I mean it) of Prelude/Money Can't Buy, You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling, and Live In Peace. This is a really fun and enjoyable concert and I hope you liked it as much as I did. I covered this show awhile back, but after listening I decided it needed a redux.

"It's not the side effects from the cocaine. I'm thinking that it must be love"

David Bowie struggled a bit in the late 80's/90's, in a comparative sense, after the stratospheric success of Let's Dance with the MTV generation. In the tour he is partnered with King Crimson/Zappa alum Adrian Belew, with whom Bowie had recorded Pretty Pink Rose (a minor hit and an awesome song).

On July 23, 1990 the band played Hartford, CT. This is the show we're listening to in this bonus episode. I play Ashes to Ashes, Pretty Pink Rose, & Station to Station. It's a very high energy gig and Belew's signature sound really suits the material.

Led Zeppelin played Kyoto, Japan on October 10, 1972 on their second (and last) tour of the country. This is a merge of two excellent sources, put together and speed corrected by Dario Romero. The sound is very good as is the performance. You'll like it. Where else are you gonna hear The Rain Song played with a wah wah?

The band are now the biggest band in the world and were set on making sure everyone knew it. They play songs from the as yet unreleased Houses of the Holy album. I love hearing audiences hear Zep songs for the first, and this doesn't disappoint. I play The Song Remains the Same (called The Campaign at this point), The Rain Song, and an Over the Hills and Far Away in which Robert sings the original higher melody for one of, if not the last time.