In my younger days, this particular album-and its companion in concert video-was one of my favorites. The original vinyl, a double album with a gatefold cover and a booklet, was a feast for my eyes and ears.
But I should have known better. Years passed, the Internet came into existence and information became available for those who seek it. One of such web sites was The Garden Tapes, run by Eddie Edwards who is simply obsessed with details and facts of live recordings-official and unofficial (bootlegs to you and me) and obviously has a lot of time in his hands. After going through his analysis and findings, the world of "live Led Zeppelin" was never the same for me.
It is not that all official live Zeppelin records (others being BBC Sessions and How the West Was Won are mostly fake or crammed with overdubbing but there was enough mingling with these recordings by Jimmy Page that left a sour taste in my mouth since I have always preffered/searched for "raw" and authentic material by the artists/groups which would give me an approximate record of that night(s) in which the recording in question took place. Alas, this was not the case with Led Zeppelin and The song Remains the Same. The music, with or without the information provided by Edwards is still good and occasionally very good but the magic, the authenticity which I believed in for so long is not there anymore.
The track Moby Dick-a feracious drum solo by the late John Bonham-being the most intact (undoctored by Page) performance from those nights at the Madison Square Garden in New York City, it is nowadays difficult for me to relate this performance as a good live document of this super group.
Last year I bought the remastered version of this album (at the time it was the only one that Page left off from Zeppelin remaster series) in Milano, knowing that even this 'new' version is different than the original vinly version. So, why did I buy it? For two simple reasons: 1. it was in the discount section, the price was right and 2. I am (and have always been) a sucker for live recordings even when the circumstances around their creation is (highly) questionable.
One small note before I leave: the video recording of the concert and its accompaying soundtrack (again-sometimes radically different) is also dealt in Edward's site and worth reading.
So, for your further consideration, please refer to this link and draw your own conclusions:
http://www.thegardentapes.co.uk/
And, till next time,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgHSk91RhL8
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