Collectors Music Reviews

Led Zeppelin (Original mix from matrix 1)(Rock Archives  RA-0706001)

Good Times Bad Times, Babe I’m Gonna Leave You, You Shook Me, Dazed And Confused, Your Time Is Gonna Come, Black Mountain Side, Communication Breakdown, I Can’t Quit You Baby, How Many More Times

Oftentimes, the lure of obtaining Led Zeppelin bootleg titles is the novelty of the release. Alleged sound upgrades, box sets and new source to a concert recording already in one’s collection are examples of why another version of that same show is added to the library. It may also be that, because the recordings are based on unofficial products, that there’s always the hope that the new item will be an improvement to what’s already out there. Perfection cannot be improved, however, and the recent release by Scorpio of Zeppelin’s landmark first album adds little to one’s collection in this reviewer’s mind.

It should be noted that Scorpio is indicated nowhere on the sleeve or disc but, instead, Rock Archives (with the index number RA-0706001 used) is given credit for the release. There is nothing to be written about the music that isn’t already well known to readers of this review, and there’s nothing new on this disc. There are a fair number of pops and crackles from the stylus apparently sourcing this recording, which brought me back to my record album listening days. So there’s definite nostalgia here, and there are no skips by the needle! The disc is printed with turquoise lettering, as are Led Zeppelin and Atlantic records symbol on the cover.

The glossy sleeve itself is surprisingly thin paper, and not a heftier cardboard so commonly used for album replica releases. Included inside the sleeve is a reproduction of both sides of a vinyl album’s center hub, which reads that the album was “Made in Gt. Britain”, which was the attraction of obtaining this title in the first place. One is to assume, I guess, that the recording on the disc is from this Great Britain vinyl album. Outside of that, and the novelty of putting this item in your collection, there is little point to getting this release. And you can’t justify it by its price, because the commercially released version of this recording – which is perfection that cannot be improved – is a mere fraction of this bootleg title’s cost. All in all, this title is not recommended.

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