August

‘Whole Lotta Love’

Not only were Led Zeppelin fiercely opposed to single releases, they were even more opposed to releasing singles in the UK. Apart from the limited ‘Trampled Underfoot’ single of 1975, ‘Stairway To Heaven’ and ‘D’yer Mak’er’ were the only other Led Zeppelin tracks to make it to the vinyl single stage, albeit as promo 7-inches only. It’s something of an irony, then, that the first single Atlantic earmarked for release in the US back in 1969 would be the group’s first commercial CD single release in the UK. Released in time to bring attention to the band before their BBC Sessions was released, this time ‘Whole Lotta Love’ was edited from 5.36 minutes to 4.50 minutes.

November

BBC Sessions

Led Zeppelin’s first live release since the The Song Remains The Same debacle of 1976, the two-CD BBC Sessions set (No. 12 US) was a much better representation of the group’s live sound. Heavily bootlegged since their original performances, the otherwise-unreleased versions of Sleepy John Estes’ ‘The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy Hair’ and Eddie Cochran’s ‘Something Else’ were relished by fans when officially released by Led Zeppelin. BBC Sessions wasn’t without its flaws, however, most notably the editing of the 1971 ‘Whole Lotta Love’ medley and the absence of the 1969-played ‘Sunshine Woman’, an otherwise-unreleased Led Zeppelin song.

Personalities | Introducing Led Zeppelin
Personalities | Led Zeppelin | After The Break Up (1998) | Key Events