Houses of the Holy 2014

Good Album

Do they even have a bad album ? NO ! Even the album that they put all their rejects on, Coda, kicks ass ! I only have one more record to buy to replace my entire Zep collection with new vinyl. Even though the old snap, crackle, pop vinyl still sounds great.

I have an original 1973 pressing I bought used in maybe VG condition and bought the remaster to get a cleaner copy. I received the German pressing and was worried I got the problem child. I listened to both sides having listened to my original yesterday and I have to say this is a great pressing - no complaints at all. I listened to The Ocean back to back with the original and did note that the guitar in spots seems to have very slightly more overtones/fuzz than the original but if you've heard/played overdriven/fuzz electric guitar (I have), the new pressing seemed more accurate to me. The bass/drums/vocals on that track sounded no different than original. I don't find anything to complain about - zero surface noise and great music. For those interested, using a Shure V15 V with Jico SAS/B stylus in SME III arm.

I enjoyed the whole album. I am glad agave the album in my collection.

Vinyl plays perfect 0 skips, a break away from their typical hard rock style of their first 4 albums, the change first happened with Led Zeppelin lll shifting towards folk rock and continuing that for their fourth album, this record displays that more so and an art rock and softer scale on some songs like “the rain song” overall this is one of Led Zeppelin‘s Magnum opuses, if that’s even a word lol

Led Zeppelin has been my favorite ROCK band for the last 40 years. There has not been one band since that could even begin to compare to them. Even though they haven't released a studio album since before the untimely death of one of rock's greatest drummers, John Bonham, in 1980, their music is still loved and appreciated by millions across the planet to this day, and can be heard on classic rock radio everywhere. They never recorded a bad song, or "filler" material. No other band can claim that. This album is no exception; every song is uniquely brilliant, covering a wide range of musical styles. From Jimmy Page's opening cascade of over-dubbed guitars on "The Song Remains the Same" to that kick-ass jam ending "The Ocean," every song takes you to a different place. They were riding high at the top of their game in 1973 when this was recorded, and this album shows off not only their musical prowess but also a level of song-writing maturity only hinted at previously. Just listen to the melancholy yet hopeful "The Rain Song" or the dark, brooding, uncompromising "No Quarter." It's no wonder that the first person Jimmy Page called in 1968 when he wanted to start a new band was John Paul Jones - so much more than a mere bass guitarist. Or the moment that they bring out the sledgehammer and "Over the Hills and Far Away" changes from a nice, acoustic melody into a balls-out rocker as Robert Plant wails, "Many have I loved ..." This album is the stuff that legends are made of.

Sounds very good, no complaints.

"Houses Of The Holy" was THE Zeppelin album of my last couple years of high school. I still remember the giddy feeling I got the very first time I heard "Dancing Days" pumping through the family radio on good old WRIF. I don't know how many times I listened to my vinyl copy, Koss Pro 4AA headphones clamped on my head, and my Mom constantly admonishing me that I'd ruin my hearing.It was the time when everyone I knew wanted to be in a rock band, and several of us acquired guitars. Led Zeppelin tunes were often frustratingly impossible to nail down, because none of us were sophisticated enough to know about alternate tunings, which Jimmy Page frequently employed.Likewise, and sadly, no one in my circle was aware of John Paul Jone's immense contribution to Zeppelin's sound. To us, it was all about Plant, Page and crazy Bonham. Jones was just 'the bassist'.As the years passed and CDs overtook my growing music collection, my tastes drifted away from Rock. And when I picked up a couple of the early CDs of Zeppelin's work for old times sake, I was very disappointed in the crappy quality of those transfers.Flash forward, and I finally got around to picking up this Deluxe remaster. Maybe Mom was right, because this still doesn't seem to have the warmth and vibrance I remember from the vinyl - maybe it's my hearing.However, this CD is heads and tails better than my old HOTH CD.Where's that confounded bridge? :)