Jimmy Page is keeping busy with the recent publication of his photo biography called "Jimmy Page By Jimmy Page", and the ongoing LED ZEPPELIN reissue campaign. Page's deluxe remastering job on the band's fourth and fifth albums, 1971's "Led Zeppelin IV" and "Houses Of The Holy", is coming on October 28.
The Pulse Of Radio asked Page if while handling the band's classic masters while upgrading their quality, he was ever tempted to throw them back up on the board and do some minor tweaking to them. "I'm not into re-writing history, I'm just re-presenting," he said. "All of the music that you hear across the companion disc is all basically mixes from the time. I thought it was essential to have mixes from the time, because you've got the mindset, it's showing the mindset of what's being done. To go to the multi-tracks and start remixing, then that's a whole different total ballgame. I wasn't into that. I really wanted something whereby totally reflected what was going on at that point of time — of the time capsule, if you like, of when these things are being recorded. That's what the idea was of this."
The Jimmy Page-remastered editions of "Led Zeppelin IV" and "Houses Of The Holy" will both be released with previously unreleased audio content in a variety of packages — including a limited edition "Super Deluxe" box set.
Earlier this year, LED ZEPPELIN's recent live set, "Celebration Day", recorded during their 2007 London reunion concert, won the Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album" beating out releases from BLACK SABBATH, DAVID BOWIE, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, NEIL YOUNG with CRAZY HORSE and KINGS OF LEON.
Although Robert Plant has long been thought of as the lone holdout in a LED ZEPPELLIN reunion, it seems that an offer was made by him, which Jimmy Page chose to pass on. Plant, who's receiving good notices for his SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS album "Lullaby And… The Ceaseless Roar", spoke to the Uncut magazine following the announcement of the next two ZEPPELIN reissues on October 28 — "Led Zeppelin IV" and "Houses Of The Holy" — and addressed Page's claims of him being uninterested in teaming up, saying, "I feel for the guy. He knows he's got the headlines if he wants them. But I don't know what he's trying to do. So I feel slightly disappointed and baffled."
Plant revealed that he proposed working again with Page in an acoustic capacity. "A couple of years ago, I said, 'If you've got anything acoustic, let me know. I'll give it a whirl,'" Plant said. "It was hands across the water. He just walked away. But we couldn't do anything proper. The weight of expectation is too great."
Back in May, Page told The New York Times that Plant was blocking the return of LED ZEPPELIN. "I was told last year that Robert Plant said he is doing nothing in 2014, and what do the other two guys think?" he said. "Well, he knows what the other guys think. Everyone would love to play more concerts for the band. He's just playing games, and I'm fed up with it, to be honest with you. I don't sing, so I can't do much about it. It just looks so unlikely, doesn't it?"
In June, during Plant's press conference in Morocco to publicize the SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS' shows, Plant addressed Page's comments, saying, "He needs to go to sleep and have a good rest, and think again. We have a great history together and like all brothers we have these moments where we don't speak on the same page, but that's life."
When The Pulse Of Radio last caught up with Robert Plant, he was asked what the bottom line was regarding him resisting a full-scale LED ZEPPELIN reunion. "It's not that I've been obstructive," he said. "It's just that it meant what it meant when it meant it, and beyond that there was no story, and with John's [Bonham] passing and all that stuff, it was gone. There's no need for it."
Continuing its mission to bring music back to television, AXS TV will showcase the television premiere of LED ZEPPELIN's "Celebration Day" concert film. Recorded live at London's O2 Arena on December 10, 2007, the film captures a two-hour-plus tour de force of the band's signature blues-infused rock 'n' roll that instantly became part of the legend of LED ZEPPELIN. Founding members John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant were joined by Jason Bonham, the son of their late drummer John Bonham, to perform 16 songs from their celebrated catalog, including landmark tracks "Whole Lotta Love", "Rock And Roll", "Kashmir" and "Stairway To Heaven". Although 20 million people applied for tickets, the band's first headline show in 27 years was seen only by the 18,000 ticket holders who were fortunate enough to have secured seats through the worldwide lottery.
The historic concert will premiere on AXS TV Concerts on Sunday, November 24 at 8-10 p.m. ET (5-7 p.m. PT). There will be encore broadcasts every night of the week at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT from Monday, November 25 through Thursday, November 28, Thanksgiving. The concert premiered theatrically last year and is also available on Blu-ray, DVD, CD, vinyl, and digital download, but has never been seen on television prior to its debut on AXS TV.
"LED ZEPPELIN is such an integral part of the musical landscape and evolution of rock 'n' roll," said AXS TV founder Mark Cuban. "Making such a landmark performance accessible to millions of households is one of the ways AXS TV intends to bring music back to television."
Following heralded premieres in New York, London, Berlin, and Tokyo, "Celebration Day" made its theatrical debut in 40 countries and over 1,500 screens. The concert was then released in multiple audio and video formats and shot to the top of charts worldwide. To date, "Celebration Day" has sold over 2 million copies worldwide.
