Sparked by the 50th anniversary of Led Zeppelin IV and “Stairway to Heaven,” seasoned, deep-dive journalist and book author Bob Spitz set out to write the ultimate account of one of the most legendary bands of rock ‘n roll. The author of previous bestsellers The Beatles: The Biography, and Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia […]
The concert industry exploded in the 1970s, and the live album, a stopgap project once reserved for only the biggest artists, became a compulsory ritual and a pivotal moment for many artists. Live albums captured legendarily loud bands like The Who and The Ramones in their natural element. Once obscure regional acts like Bob Seger, […]
This article originally appeared in the April 1996 issue of SPIN. “Los Angeles is my favorite city in the world!” declares super foxy Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Dave Navarro, offering as proof of his conviction the city’s name tattooed on the back of his neck. “I would never live anywhere else.” Navarro, drummer Chad Smith, […]
It’s become a cliché, even for post-Baby Boomers, to look back wistfully on the early ’70s as some kind of untouchable golden age for popular music. But when you survey all the era’s best albums in list form, it’s hard not to trust that instinct. I mean…holy shit. In 1971, the psychedelic era hadn’t completely […]
Nandi Bushell’s back with another stellar cover, and this time she’s doing things a little differently. Instead of sharing a full performance of a song, she recorded herself making a loop of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” in celebration of Jimmy Page’s 77th birthday. Like always, she flawlessy executed drums, guitar, and an insane bass line. In […]
We know, we know — the best concert of all-time is your friend’s obscure indie-punk band playing a sweaty neighborhood basement back in ‘94. We admit that one slipped through the cracks. Maybe it’s a fool’s errand, but this list is our attempt to narrow down three and a half decades of worthy live music events […]
The contentious back-and-forth suit between Led Zeppelin and the estate of songwriter Randy California won’t be going to the U.S. Supreme Court. On Monday, the Court said that it won’t be hearing the case, leaving in place the March ruling that said that Zeppelin didn’t infringe upon “Taurus,” California’s 1967 song with his band Spirit. […]
I’ve met Robert Plant four times. First as a punky grade-schooler, sitting cross-legged on my friend’s worn-out shag carpet, carefully slipping LPs out of their dust jackets for fear her older sister will wring our necks for touching her records. Houses of the Holy, Led Zeppelin IV, I, II. Aside from not leaving fingerprints on […]
Continuing their ongoing series of broadcasting classic shows from the past, YouTube will host a broadcast of Led Zeppelin’s Celebration Day. The show, at least for now, was the last time that Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones (with Jason Bonham filling in for his late father on drums) performed together under the Led […]
For the latest concert to be streamed from their archive, Foo Fighters have shared another classic stadium show from London. Taking place over two nights in 2008 at London’s Wembley Stadium on their Echoes, Silence. Patience & Grace, Dave Grohl and company tore through their usual set of standards, but with a twist. Like their […]