Roy Harper album with Jimmy Page guest spot remastered

Roy Harper's 1971 album Stormcock, which features the lead guitar of Jimmy Page on one track, is to be reissued next month on CD.

Page's contribution to the second of the LP's four tracks, "The Same Old Rock," was a fine acoustic guitar track credited on the original album artwork to the pseudonym S. Flavius Mercurius.

The four-song studo set was released on CD through the Science Friction label in 1994, but liner notes prepared for that edition promised, "Greater sleeve-notes will be written with a special edition."

This remastered version, now said to be ready for release in October, is said to make good on that promise, offering 20 pages of liner notes with new observations from Harper and plenty of photographs.

In addition, the sound is greatly improved over the previous CD release, according to a quote attributed to Harper in a posting at a fan discussion site.

"Certain lines and certain words will not chop your ears off at high volume any more," said Harper. "Bottom end is taken care of properly."

He also alluded to at least one hidden surprise fans might appreciate, but he wouldn't specify exactly what they are. "There are one or two secrets. You may eventually spot them," he said. "It won't matter much to the general public that much, but it sure does matter to me."

No official release date has been touted as of yet, but it will be related here as the information becomes available.

Last August, Page was scheduled to join Harper at the 2006 Rhythm Festival as part of a live performance of Stormcock in its entirety, along with David Bedford, who provided the orchestral arrangement that closes the album. Page canceled, however, saying recuperation from arthroscopic knee surgery made him unable to play, and Harper's son, guitarist Nick Harper, replaced him. It would have been Page's fifth performance in all since giving up regular stage appearances in August 2000 due to a back injury.

Discovery lends credence to Led Zeppelin reunion rumor, still unconfirmed

So now the word according to Blabbermouth.net is that a hold has been placed on the O2 Arena in London for the night of Nov. 26. The venue and date match up with the details that have been reported about the possible Led Zeppelin reunion. As others point out, it doesn't mean that the reunion is assured to take place, but just that people have been planning it just in case.

NME says fan says Plant said reunion is on

Now the New Musical Express Web site is reporting that Robert Plant told a fan he was going to a meeting with former Led Zeppelin bandmates Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones to discuss reforming the band for the concert discussed in the media. So if you believe the mag-said-fan-said-he-said hype, and if you believe Robert was serious at the time, then we are a little over two months away from a Led Zeppelin reunion!

How feasible is Nov. 26?

What's the feasibility of a Led Zeppelin reunion concert in London on Monday, Nov. 26?

Robert Plant is pretty busy, but he doesn't have any shows scheduled at the moment. Jimmy Page hasn't played a concert in a while, and John Paul Jones seems to have a pretty open calendar when he's not working on his own album or another side project.

Also mentioned in this reunion rumor is Jason Bonham, son of the late John Bonham, now playing drums with Foreigner. According to their tour schedule, the band will just be ending a tour of South Africa with a show in Cape Town on Nov. 24. So that could put him up in England for a day of rehearsal on the 25th.

Now you may be thinking that's cutting it short. But of course, the few Led Zeppelin reunion gigs in the past have pretty much all happened on little or no rehearsal at all, so this wouldn't be unprecedented.

As far as a marketing standpoint for their new releases, the date would be excellent. Mothership is due Nov. 12 in the UK, with The Song Remains the Same soundtrack and DVD release exactly one week later, and that alleged concert exactly one week later. Three Mondays in a row of huge Led Zeppelin events? Genius.

Zep reunion rumors fuel ticket sales

Imagine seeing a Led Zeppelin reunion concert advertised: Page, Plant and Jones all in one place with whatever drummer. You want a ticket, right? In fact, you want a whole ticket package. If you don't live near the venue, you also want a hotel and transportation. Convenient: Somebody's advertising a whole package.

Only problem: This Led Zeppelin reunion isn't confirmed. It's only one of a zillion reported reunions over the last 27 years. And we're all too familiar with the history of a Led Zeppelin reunion not happening and the circumstances that make reuniting impossible.

But they're selling tickets, you assure yourself. That must be legit, right?

Think again. BBC headline: "Led Zep Ticket Row; Fans warned not to buy from touts."

Don't waste your money.

Plant on Fats Domino tribute CD

There's a two-disc set coming out on Sept. 25 called Goin' Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino. Of immediate interest to Led Zeppelin fans are the two cover songs recorded by Robert Plant with a couple different groups. One of his songs can be heard online in MP3 format along with two other tracks from the double album:

1. Robert Plant & Soweto Gospel Choir - Valley of Tears: http://six-by-nine.org/muruch/robertplant-valleyoftears.mp3
2. Dr. John - Don't Leave Me This Way: http://six-by-nine.org/muruch/drjohn-dontleavemethisway1.mp3
3. Randy Newman - Blue Monday: http://six-by-nine.org/muruch/randynewman-bluemonday.mp3

Plant's track above was recorded with the Soweto Gospel Choir from South Africa. His other addition to the album, "It Keeps Rainin'," was recorded with the Lil' Band O' Gold, from Lafayette, Louisiana. After they recorded their song, Plant ended up playing with them at Tipitina's in New Orleans. Their 30-minute set, detailed in full both by a New Orleans Times-Picayune blog and Lafayette's hometown Independent Weekly, included both Fats Domino covers Plant had recorded for the album and a few Elvis Presley songs and snippets of Led Zeppelin songs alongside the blues song "Hoochie Coochie Man" made famous by Muddy Waters.

The album also includes the late John Lennon's classic cover of Domino's "Ain't That a Shame" and new recordings from a bunch of the same artists who frequently show up on compilations like the Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute and the Sun Records tribute: Bonnie Raitt (SRV), Eric Clapton (SRV & Sun), Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (Sun), B.B. King (SRV), Sir Elton John (Sun), Sir Paul McCartney (Sun) and Dr. John (SRV). Plant was also on the Sun Records tribute album.

Proceeds from sales of the Fats Domino tribute album will benefit the Tipitina's Foundation, whose goal is "to preserve and restore New Orleans' music culture in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina." A press release says the album "will help raise desperately needed funds specifically earmarked for instruments to be donated to New Orleans' public school children. Monies raised from the sales of Goin' Home will also go toward the rebuilding of Fats Domino's home and to create a community center in the Crescent City's still ravaged Lower 9th Ward."

Doing time for bootlegging

A guy against whom Jimmy Page testified in court pleaded guilty last month to charges stemming from his selling bootlegged recordings of Led Zeppelin and other bands. Now the guy has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.

Not long ago, a Zep fan who attended the trial in Scotland compiled his recollection of the questions and answers with Jimmy on the stand. If accurate, this account provides some insight into Jimmy's misunderstood stance on bootlegs.

What can't be mistaken is Jimmy's statement that some tapes of his went missing over 20 years ago, taken from his personal stash at home. One must assume this was the source of some Zep studio outtakes that have circulated through the years, plus soundboard recordings from live shows now common to collectors. At any rate, it gives Jimmy the opportunity to elucidate on the ethics of bootlegging.

The main argument against it is that unsanctioned bootlegs aren't really worth the prices they're charging due to their questionable quality. It is Jimmy's argument now, and it was the same one Zep manager Pete Grant had back in the '70s. Now, many bootlegs are of good quality, but Jimmy has noticed bootleggers release the same shows over and over again, each time improving the sound quality a little so as to capitalize on each sequential release.

It's capitalism at its most egregious because no matter what the price, people will buy it. The veracity of Zep fans translates to a big demand for these recordings. It's a compliment to the band, for sure, and a testament to how electrifying the band was in its shows and how important they are to the history of rock 'n' roll.

But who profits from it? People who don't have the right to release these recordings in the first place, that's who. And not Jimmy. Hence the frustration he experiences. Other people are controlling the name and image of Led Zeppelin when they release these bootlegs, and they're reaping the benefits too. Peter Grant made it so that only the band could do those things: They would retain control over their image and music, and they would get 90% of the gate at their shows. Peter allowed it no other way. Jimmy is evidently doing Peter's work..

Recording shows for your personal enjoyment? Fine, says Jimmy. Sharing recordings among fans? Yes, short of financial gain, he says. Get money involved, and that's when he objects.

But doesn't Jimmy have a habit of visiting Japanese bootleg shops? True, he visits those shops and even gets his photo taken with fans. He doesn't deny that. And he even smiles in the photos. He doesn't want to be a jerk to fans, does he? But what about the bootlegs he collects there? He doesn't pay for them. Why would he? They're his. Who has the right to own them? He does. In Japan, they don't challenge him.

Twenty months. Does the punishment fit the crime? Sound off.