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Earth was shaking, they stood and stared
There’s a new, very unofficial remaster of California Jam. The video was cleaned up and upscaled, which is laudable, but the audio stays pretty much the same. Which is regrettable, as in our humble opinion it is the sound that’s the weakest link of the recording.
Thanks to steve4422 for the heads-up.
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
This looks fantastic. Many thanks to whomever took the time to do it. Missing Lay Down Stay Down, but still… If the audio can somehow be salvaged, they should definitely put it out as an official release.
April 30th, 2025 at 18:35Video unavailable!
April 30th, 2025 at 20:40What went on behind the scenes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ppuo4RoUPSI&t=92s
April 30th, 2025 at 20:43If it is missing Lay Down Stay Down it is obviously a vhs copy we could presume. The link is unavailable to us Antipodeans all the way out here in no man’s land. I just felt like a little ‘moan’ there as I haven’t had one for a few weeks, just to please the almighty, sorry Uwe. I do remember the original VHS I owned actually sounding better than the dvd that I now have, the one released about 20 years or so ago. Can the audio be improved upon, most probably not. It sounds ok, the original I am talking about, it is a sign of those times. I watched the Black Sabbath performance from the Cal Jam online a few weeks ago and it is similar, ok-ish in sound. All good history and nostalgia though. Pretty amusing to see Ozzy talking about it all back then, he seemed so straight and sort of innocent in charming way. What happened Ozzy? Cheers.
April 30th, 2025 at 23:23The enhancements help a lot visually. You can see the faces in the crowd, you can see Ritchie and Jon’s facial expressions better. I like the “Burn” album but just wonder what it would’ve been like with Ian Gilland Roger Glover out there. I think the Machine Head songs would’ve sounded immensely better, but we wouldn’t have had the great “Mistreated” tune or “You Fool No One.”
May 1st, 2025 at 00:13Their was a rumor going around at the time that someone had fallen head first drunk into a porta potty and had died because of the toxic gas, crazy! if true. 🚽☣💩
May 1st, 2025 at 12:07Last I heard, the audio masters exist physically, but the rights are unresolved, so nobody does anything with it.
May 1st, 2025 at 19:44For my money, the audio of the DVD release around 20 years ago was a marked improvement on its VHS predecessor. The crowd was more audible also while the extra audience shots made for a more engaging experience.
I’m not really interested in any edits that omit Lay Down Stay Down.
May 2nd, 2025 at 16:30Becoming Led Zeppelin is a great documentary; it’s a shame Deep Purple can’t have one. Blackmore, Gillan, Paice, and Glover’s egos won’t allow it. There’s so much material! It’s a shame.
May 4th, 2025 at 03:35Is there a part 2 “Unbecoming Led Zeppelin” too, I’d really like to see that! 😂
May 4th, 2025 at 17:38A lot easier to do documentary on LZ as there were ONLY four band members and only ten years or so of an existence. There are as we know a few bands that have a myriad of different members, for better or worse, usually worse in some aspects. A soap opera situation if ever there was one. Some of them did that ‘rockumentary’ thing around the early 90’s and it was already getting a little over crowded. Imagine these days…………….we only have a certain amount of time in this life. Not that I will be watching any of them as we are already familiar with the history and the tantrums, bitterness and back stabbing and everything else that goes with it. Having said that I am keenly awaiting Uwe’s review of the mighty Zeppelin one. I better not hold my breath though…………Oh come on Uwe, you know you want to…………..you know you NEED to. Many here would love a non bias review from Zep’s numero uno supporter. Cheers.
May 4th, 2025 at 23:33I’m not such a great fan of rock documentaries – of any band. I prefer listening to records or seeing them live, I don’t even really like filmed live gigs, it’s not the same to me as being there.
I wouldn’t take much interest in a Zep documentary because Zep’s popular and charismatic mysticism eludes me. I’d rather see something about Slade or Wishbone Ash or Be Bop Deluxe. Bonham, Jones, Page & Plant hold no fascination for me as people though as a parent I’m moved by Percy’s tragic loss of his son Karac (it’s the most traumatic thing that can happen to you as a parent) and find Page’s dabbling with Aleister Crowley’s own brand of Satanism as a philosophy (and not as devil worship) kinda interesting (while I don’t believe in it for a second I find the occult entertaining).
May 5th, 2025 at 13:30Watching Becoming Led Zeppelin I thought to myself…well it’s a worshipping affair…like most rockumentaries are. Aimed at the fan. I am not – but I like a good chunk of their stuff. First thing that came to mind: not a word about stealing so much from the old Blues men. (Where as the Purple boys always openly admitted they nicking ideas and riffs from other artists – often in good humour, especially Ritchie) Page got to talk a lot about how grandiose he is. Only Percy mentioned something about lifting some pieces from Blues songs.
May 5th, 2025 at 18:34Interesting to me where the bits about England in the 60s…the times, the music scene, the postwar poverty, the spirit, visiting the US for the first time. And John Paul Jones really stole the show for me. He used to be overshadowed by P&P. Here he came across quite thoughtful and really likeable. I did not regret going to the movies but I wouldn’t call it a must see. As I would call the Ginger Baker movie…though I’m not even into Cream.
John Paul Jones was the odd one out in LZ. Most successful bands seem to have at least one quieter respectful member somewhere in its circle. An accomplished musician he is and he did fly under the radar and he would have enjoyed staying out of the limelight. Regarding these cash grab documentaries, it is just another sad way for the business end of this charade to make shit loads of money, nothing more or less. They will keep doing it too, especially as it involves the big names in entertainment. They (the business zealots) are very much like sycophants. That Beatles doco said it all. I would never even waste my time with any of that. That big golden wheel keeps on spinning, unfortunately. Cheers.
May 5th, 2025 at 22:24Ginger Baker is hilarious!
I always took JPJ to be Zep’s salient intellectual. It certainly wasn’t Bonzo. 😁
May 5th, 2025 at 23:13It looks like James Patrick may be getting dazed and confused again.
https://www.loudersound.com/news/jimmy-page-is-being-sued-again-by-the-man-who-wrote-dazed-and-confused-a-track-made-famous-by-the-yardbirds-and-led-zeppelin
May 6th, 2025 at 01:28Why is there so much hate for Led Zep? I think it is highly unfair and cruel. All they did was steal from Black people, their opening acts and from singer-songwriters that really didn’t mean a thing. Cut them some slack!
All these people are just jealous. LEAVE LED ZEP ALONE !!!
https://youtu.be/ElXi7yDHyWo
May 6th, 2025 at 13:59I always thought that Mr Holmes agreeing to the ‘inspired by Jake Holmes’ credit was a poor result for him. He should be credited as the songwriter or a co songwriter along with Page, nothing less. Regarding Uwe’s latest passionate ‘defence’ of the mighty Zep, I like it. Cheers.
May 7th, 2025 at 01:04@ 17 …but they are very keen to point out who stole from them of course.
I cannot think of any other player of his stature that takes himself as serious as Page does. He is so full of himself. But the terms Led Zeppelin and good humour never really had room in one sentence, did they…
May 7th, 2025 at 07:13@ 19 – Max – I can think of many musicians who get branded with the ‘too serious’ tag. That in itself is humorous to me. What is too serious? Their demeanour, their attitude to fans and the press or is it while they are on stage performing. Jimmy Page has a swagger at times as do many other rock ‘stars’. The media do portray that more than anyone else though, they love it because they need it. Regarding the humour in LZ, well that would depend on what you deem as humour. I have enjoyed humour at times from all these different rock bands over the years. However it should be all about the music, that is how we know about them in the first place isn’t it? And let’s face it, we know sweet f..k all about these people behind their closed doors and that is a good thing and the way it should stay. Cheers
May 7th, 2025 at 12:40I think Percy has developed a pleasantly wry humor about + distance to all that is Led Zep these days and Page has adopted this gentlemanly demeanor as a senior citizen, but in their heyday Led Zep not only sold shitloads of records and tickets (mainly in the US and the UK), but also wore the “we’re great artists”-stance on their sleeves prominently. They did deem themselves superior to bands like DP, Vanilla Fudge, The Who, Spirit, Allman Bros, Black Sabbath or Grand Funk Railroad (never mind how Grand Funk with their raucous people’s boogie pinned Zeppelin against the wall when they opened for them, with Peter Grant kicking them off the tour immediately), there was a distinct sense of entitlement there.
To their defense, they were cocky & brash, testosterone-charged young men back then. Peter Grant’s empire building can’t have helped either though ruthlessly efficient. The ripping off other people’s ideas, not crediting them and then trying to weasel out of it behind a phalanx of attorneys (coupled with an unbearably faux air that they are the ones being ripped off by envious others, quite the chutzpah!) is lamentable though and leaves a sour taste.
May 7th, 2025 at 14:04A reference to Cozy Powell and Rainbow at the Primus searching for a new drummer auditions that I have been enjoying online. The drummer Thomas Lang mentioned Cozy’s ‘Over the Top’ album and Les Claypool kicks in with ‘holy f..k, Cozy Powell and Rainbow’, he then sings with passion a short cameo of The Gates of Babylon. A wonderful moment. Those drummers auditioning for Primus, man there are a few really good drummers there as we would expect. Fabulous entertainment too with all the comedy, Les is great for that as well as his improvisation and all the Primus rhythm and funk rock. Larry LaLonde the guitarist, I do enjoy his playing, a different player indeed. Superb tv or tube watching for anyone who has not witnessed it or if there are any drummers out there or even Primus aficionados. Cheers.
May 7th, 2025 at 21:15@ 21- good comments and the ego side of many artists gets that attitude thing going. However the so called ‘competition with each other’ press coverage is tiresome at best. I don’t agree with Zeppelin or Page receiving certain awards or any other artists in that sense. What about all the other musicians that don’t receive any accolades and awards. Mind you when I was rather young watching actors receiving awards I always thought, what about the other actors etc. That side of the entertainment industry is pretentious and very bias indeed. Still the press are loving it all and Pink Floyd or I should say whoever is releasing this ‘new’ Live at Pompeii movie are milking it too. That isn’t new at all as we know and it was always very well filmed etc. But the new technology and 4K high definition and ‘immersive sound’ creates a new market and a new frenzy of sorts. I remember having an immersive experience decades ago with that Floyd movie and all of today’s technology wasn’t even around back then. Cheers.
May 7th, 2025 at 21:35