BBC Sessions by Led Zeppelin was originally released in 1997, and it represented a significant album back then due to the fact that their concert movie The Song Remains The Same was the only live record of the band until these sessions. Double CD reminded us of the raw blues rock of Led Zeppelin, the four group band who are very keen to improvisation. This year, we have got a third disc, with the whole compilation being named The Complete BBC Sessions.
Freshly released compilation is the collection of everything Zeppelin has recorded for BBC and it is one step closer to a total demystification of the band. Third disc comprises previously unreleased tracks, but also lost recordings from the 1969 sessions. There are nine recordings overall – two of them from Communication Breakdown, two from What Is And What Should Never Be, Dazed and Confused, White Summer. Also, blurry blues recordings of blues standards I Can’t Quit You Baby and You Shook Me are also to be found here. The only brand new song is Sunshine Woman.
The first two CDs is probably already own by casual fan. Raw, live material, non-contaminated with studio production or additional recordings. Discography reach includes first four albums, and it stands as a strong evidence of Led Zeppelin’s power. Improvisation is the golden rule of any real musician. Every night playing the same old solo? No way. Zeppelin accepted the great challenge of making a mistake, which is why some songs are not completely brilliant, but listening to the spontaneous live version of many anthological songs is equally exciting. I must admit that the iconic skill of improvisation might be reserved only to Led Zeppelin.
The third CD could only be interesting to the historians of the band. In summary, BBC Sessions now incorporates five versions of Communication Breakdown, a song that, truth to be told, does not leave much space for improvisation. Dazed and Confused and What Is And What Should Never Be both come in three versions, just as You Shook Me and I Can’t Quit You Baby. It is too bad that the third disc sounds kind of blurry.
Never before released Sunshine Woman shares the same destiny, even though it is a great piece of blues rock. White Summer might be the most precious recording of the third disc. Page’s trans-genre ability to rock on guitar is spectacular.
Led Zeppelin do not owe us anything after this compilation. There is not a live recording that could defame their greatness as a band and there is certainly not a recording that would make them become even greater. Everything is in its right place.
