I swear I’m not transitioning Life in the Vinyl Lane into a live Led Zeppelin album review blog. That being said, I have come across a few live records over the last month or so and, well, the blog is about what I’m listening to, so there you go. Plus the recording quality of these records varies so wildly I figure the posts can serve both as a reminder to me and offer insights to others who might be considering them.
By the time of this six-date Japanese tour Led Zeppelin had put out their first four albums, and Houses Of The Holy was right around the corner. So it’s perhaps a bit surprising that of the eight songs on this record, half of them are from Houses… (and another is a cover of “Stand By Me”). Wikipedia has a page devoted to this tour that provides the typical set list, and based on it My Brain Hurts appears to consist of what was typically the middle of the set. It’s a bit of a strange collection in that none of the big hitters from the first four albums are here – the only three songs from their previous releases are “Misty Mountain Hop”, “Since I’ve Been Loving You”, and “Bron-Y-Aur Stomp” (incorrectly listed as “Bron-yr-aur”), so no “Rock And Roll” or “Black Dog” or “Whole Lotta Love” or “Stairway…” To me, however, this is a strength – there are dozens if not over a hundred live recordings of those songs, whereas much of this material remains less commonly captured, and all the more so because the recordings are from a time when the Houses… tracks were brand new.
The sound quality is adequate. The low wend is a bit flat and disappears at times under the snares, guitar, and vocals. Plant’s voice is decently captured but a bit distant, the higher and louder parts punching through but lower parts overwhelmed by the instruments. Some of the better parts are the guitar solos, such as Page’s work in the middle of “Since I’ve Been Loving You” – it feels like the engineer used this as the point of emphasis in the mix. “The Song Remains The Same” is the high point to my ears, the low end having enough punch that you can even hear John Paul Jones’ bass. Overall the sound is good enough, when combined with the interesting collection of songs, to make this a worthwhile listen.