Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A much maligned but original album, 5 May 2006
This 1978 album was the last that Zep would commit to vinyl, the formula completely overhauled after Robert Plant tragically lost his son to pneumonia whilst the band were full flight on their behemoth 1977 US tour. Plant took a year off to recover and John Paul Jones beat the rest to the studio and programmed a lot of keyboard backing. The album opens with "In the Evening" classic Zep rock with a killer riff, the style changes with samba "south bound suarez" yee haw country rock "hot dog" and "fool in the Rain " "carouselambra is an epic cut of different sections which dominates side two a bit like Jan Hammer in places, the guitar and drums are excellent but are buried down the mix for a change, "all my Love" is a great track marred but crappy now dated keyboard effects and "i'm gonna crawl" emerges from a banal keyboard refrain into one of the most powerful emotive blues type songs of Zep's career. It's not their best work but it's worth a look for "in the Evening", "i'm gonna crawl" and the hilarious "hot dog".
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Don't beleive what you read., 16 Nov 2007
I love this album, more than Presence and more than Houses of the Holy, am I wrong?. I think that too many people concur with the accepted wisdom that this LZs crap album. It's not, it is excellent, probably poppier than any other album of theirs but there are a number of songs on here that stand the test of time. The production is very much of its time, the remaster does much to tidy that up. The other big change is that there is a more orchestral feel to the album, more synths which demonstrates the ascedancy of JPJ's star at this time. Jimmy obviously gave him more latitude and it is a qualified success in this respect.
In the Evening continues the incredible vein of excellent and original, Side One, Track Ones that they have produced over their career. Whole Lotta Love, Immigrant Song, Black Dog - lordy lordy what a band. From the droning eeerie intro to the crashing introduction of the band to Jimmy Pages weird crunching noise as he embarks on a great little solo, this song intrigues. I once played this to a bewildered school disco. Great track.
Southbound Suarez has a persistent chugging boogie woogie piano riff driving it along. A decent if unremarkable song.
Fool in the Rain is fun song with a relentless beat that once in your head doesnt go. Good for finding a cadence while cycling or god forbid running. Until the latin breakdown near the end - why I don't know but its another demonstration of the bands virtuosity and versatlity.
Hot Dog is a short frivolous piece of rockabilly. The weakest song on the set but by no means awful.
Carouselambra is epic in scale, underpinned by a terrific synth riff from JPJ.
All My Love is a great love song. A tender paen to Plant's young son Karac who died when barely out of being a toddler. The proud Aryan is not a fascist sentiment, its a tribute to a little blond boy. As a result I think it possesses one of Plants most tender vocal performances. Another, better accepted inclusion on my school disco playlist. Neither wonder I didn't cut it as a DJ, I was happy though.
I'm Gonna Crawl is another love song with a gentle synth orchestral beginning. the song itself is decent, a good workout for JPJ and the mighty Bonzo.
Overall I love this collection, this record and Presence continued to demonstrate Zeppelins love of tinkering with various styles and showed further movement away from their blues roots. It is not as riff heavy as any of the earlier work by there are some great cameos from Page. I for one think this variety is no bad thing. If you want the same thing every time try Quo or the stones. I think its as good as some of the early material just different.
Make up your own mind.
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23 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not as bad as you might think, but not the best, 2 Aug 2004
Led Zeppelin's final album may seem the most dated today, due to it's then revolutionary use of polyphonic synthesizers and it's very intensive production, foreshadowing the 80's sound. This also leaves the guitar lacking in raunch and the vocals somewhat muffled. Yet as an example of where Led Zeppelin was going in the late seventies, it's very interesting. Opener 'In the Evening' is a typical magestic Led Zeppelin rock number,(in the vein of Kashmir) enhanced by Jones's synths. 'South Bound Saurez' is a strange boogie style number with Jones taking center stage on piano. 'Fool in the Rain' is a weird samba type song which again shows Led Zeppelin doing something very different. 'Hot Dog' is one of Zep's worst songs in my opinion, a tastless ode to 50's rock n roll. 'Carouselambra' is the gem of this album, plastered in synths and charged with an ominous energy that carries it through it's ten minute duration. 'All My Love' is Robert's lament to the death of his son, Karac, but though the sentiment is genuine the dated synths fail to make the impact acoustic guitar would. Final number I'm gonna Crawl is a blues, but again the twist is the incorporation of synths, but it still works fantastically in the vein of it's predecesors Since I've been loving you and Tea for One. So, if you have got all the other albums and fancy something different, get it, especially for Carouselambra.
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