During Led Zeppelin's decade on top of the rock world from the late 1960s to the late 1970s, the group released some of the finest records in all of popular music. Yet it never released a live album that captured all the band's legendary on-stage power.
Zeppelin has finally delivered a full-throttle live disc in "How the West Was Won," a collection of live tracks from a pair of 1972 shows. The album is an outstanding record of a band at the peak of its power, and it far outstrips Zeppelin's only other official live album, "The Song Remains the Same," a 1976 record that has been widely denounced as inconsistent and unrepresentative of their live performances.
Some fans may be disappointed that the CD includes a mixture of two different performances as opposed to a single uninterrupted show -- the concerts used date from June 25, 1972 at the L.A. Forum and two days later at the Long Beach Arena -- yet the record still comes off reasonably well as a cohesive whole. Also, by using multiple concerts, Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page -- who also stood in as producer for the album -- gained another degree of freedom in being able to choose the high points from the pair of concerts.
The music displays for the first time why Led Zeppelin is revered as one of the finest concert attractions in the history of rock and roll. The musicianship is consistently excellent, highlighted by Page's masterful guitar riffs and John Bonham's power-packed drumming.
Complementing their fine musicianship, a satisfying set list enables the group to really, in the classic sense, get the led out. Classics like "Stairway to Heaven," "Rock and Roll," "Whole Lotta Love" and "Dazed and Confused" are all here, as well as such other gems as "That's the Way," "The Ocean," "Dancing Days" and "Since I've Been Loving You."
Many of these songs benefit from the live treatment, particularly when the band does not stray too far from the original recording, and is content to add spontaneity and muscle to enhance the tunes.
True to the model of live '60s rock bands, each song is extended nearly to its logical limit. "Dazed and Confused" clocks in at nearly 25 and a half minutes, "Whole Lotta Love" passes the 23-minute mark, and "Moby Dick" is nearly 20 minutes long.
Listening to a track that long is always a bit of an acquired taste, but Zeppelin generally keeps things interesting in these epic selections. The band provides some great solos courtesy of Page and Bonham, but the self-indulgence, while perhaps enjoyable in a live setting, does not translate especially well to someone who can just listen to the CD. Consequently, some of the longer songs have periodic episodes of dryness that can wear on a listener who is not necessarily a die-hard Zeppelin fan.
Some of the songs make the listener yearn for the original versions, as at times the roughness of these live recordings don't quite measure up to the musical ideal of the studio versions.
But just like many of their classic studio releases, "How the West Was Won" demonstrates the versatility of the band. The group shows how it can pump out tight rockers like "Immigrant Song" just as capably as it plays the stripped-down folk-rock of "Going to California."
Yet overall, the key to the success of this record is the timing. The shows come from a tour preceding the release of the masterpiece that was "Houses of the Holy," so the band could cull from that record in addition to its previous four LPs. Also, the still -- relatively -- spry group could put on energetic shows much like the early performances that helped Zeppelin build its lofty reputation. And that combination of excellent songs and skillful showmanship is what makes the record so great.
"How the West Was Won" serves as an ideal addition to any serious Led Zeppelin collection. As great as their studio albums were, the real essence of the band comes through in its live performances. For anyone who never had the chance to catch a performance by Led Zeppelin during the prime of the band's career, this is the best possible substitute. For anyone who is a serious Led Zeppelin fan, this album is a necessary purchase.
