Released
40 years ago today, Led Zeppelin’s final collection of studio
recordings was issued on November 19th, 1982. Created partly to satisfy
record company obligations and party to thwart bootleggers, the album
was a clearing house for the unreleased remnants of the group’s studio
activity throughout their career.
Following the tragic death of
drummer John Bonham, Led Zeppelin terminated their career, leaving their
last LP, In Through the Out Door, as their inadvertent swan song. Yet
there were lingering commitments with Atlantic Records, to whom the band
still owed one more studio album. While the group were exceptionally
economical with their studio time, creating very little that did not get
used for their finished albums, there were still a few stray odds and
ends which managed to slip the net over the course of their career. It
wasn’t a lot, but it was enough to generate a healthy trade in the
bootleg business as poor quality unofficial copies of these tracks
circulated among the bands more ardent fans. It was enough to convince
Jimmy Page that there would be some interest in curating a proper,
sanctioned compilation of these recordings, which would also help him
tie up loose ends regarding record label obligations.
The
material on the album spans pretty much the entirety of the group’s
career, though it can be broken down into two primary sets by LP side.
The first side features four recordings spanning 1969 to 1972. We’re
Gonna Groove, the LP opener, is actually a live recording, but the
audience sounds were removed and guitar overdubs were added in order to
be able to call it a “studio recording”. Poor Tom was an outtake from
Led Zeppelin III, and I Can’t Quit You Baby was from a pre performance
soundcheck rehearsal. Walter’s Walk was a 1972 Houses of the Holy
outtake with vocal overdubs added. For the second side, most of the
material comes from 1978 In Through the Out Door outtakes with the
exception of the 1976 Bonzo’s Montreux drum solo. In 1993, a CD reissue
included four additional tracks from various sources including the
B-Side from the Immigrant Song single, a couple of live tracks and an
outtake from their debut LP.
Critically, given it’s a “leftovers”
package, it’s obviously not going to stand up as a cohesive collection
in the same way as the groups formal albums. However, it still
showcases many of the group's virtues which made them the legends they
became. For any serious fan of the band, its a welcome capstone to
their illustrious career. The cover graphics were again provided by the
Hipgnosis design house, whom had been responsible for several other
covers for the band over the years, but this would actually be the
prestigious firm’s final design commission before the the company was
dissolved and its partners would go their separate ways.
