Re: Early 1969 shows (ALAIHY)

[Ed Zeppelin <grab1196@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>On  7 Nov 97, J.W. Beaver wrote:
>
>> Sorry to bug you all again, but for how long was 'as long as I have
>> you' in their set list?  That is probably the most powerful song I
>> know, and if anyone has a good copy I'd love to trade.... later! 

 JR added:
>'As Long as I Have You' was a Garnett Mimms song that usually started 
>a medley that contained everything from 'Fresh Garbage' to 'Cat's 
>Squirrel' and 'Cadillac, No Money Down'. I've always felt that the 
>best versions of the medley was from the '69 Fillmore West shows. I 
>don't believe it lasted into the following tours at all, as their 
>*own* catalog of songs began to grow and they weren't limited to the 
>material from the first album for their live shows. I, for one, would 
>have liked to have heard that medley in every setlist up until '80. 


 'As Long As I Have You' is absolutely one of the best songs they ever
performed. It was a part of the '69 set right from the beginning (in fact,
it appears on the earliest known Zep recording, the Gonzaga '68 show). It
was not played when Zep returned to Britain for various BBC performances,
and it did not return when they came back to the US in the summer of '69. I
think the medley was dropped less because they had their own material
(songs from the second album didn't appear until later in '69) but because
a lot of the US shows they played that summer were festivals, which forced
them to perform a shortened set. Something like ALAIHY, which could near 20
minutes in length, had to be dropped to make room for the other songs from
the 1st album. By the time they started headlining shows again (October)
they *did* have more songs to play, so ALAIHY was never seen again.
 Probably the best version in terms of performance and sound quality is
4/27/69. I can't even describe it, it's just so powerful. Robert's
blistering voice, Jimmy's rampaging feedback-laden guitar, Bonzo thundering
away, and Jonesey funky and rock solid as ever. I get excited just thinking
about it. :-) 
 I also love the 4/24/69 version, when Jones' bass amp explodes. Plant's
ad-libs are great, and it's amazing to see how the energy of the band
carried right through such a catastrophic equipment failure. 
"I think we've got some trouble with our equipment, yeah/I think we're
gonna get it together/I think we're gonna have a good time!/I think I'd
better find the right key!"
 
 Priceless!


 Born in darkness,
 Ed Zeppelin