Live Yardbirds: Featuring Jimmy Page

Last updated
Live Yardbirds: Featuring Jimmy Page
LiveYardbirdsfeatJimmyPage.jpg
Live album by
ReleasedSeptember 1971 (1971-09)
Recorded30 March 1968
VenueAnderson Theatre, New York City
Genre Rock
Length44:48
Label Epic
The Yardbirds' Epic chronology
Featuring Performances By: Jeff Beck Eric Clapton Jimmy Page
(1970)
Live Yardbirds: Featuring Jimmy Page
(1971)
Yardbirds Favorites
(1977)

Live Yardbirds: Featuring Jimmy Page is a live album by English rock group the Yardbirds. It was recorded at the Anderson Theatre in New York City on 30 March 1968. At the time, the Yardbirds had been performing as a quartet with Jimmy Page on lead guitar since October 1966. [1]

Contents

The album includes several familiar Yardbird songs, but often extended with longer instrumental solos. [2] "I'm Confused," based on Jake Holmes' "Dazed and Confused", is a highlight of the album. [3] Using some different lyrics, Page re-recorded it with Led Zeppelin for their debut album later in 1968.

The group was dissatisfied with the recordings and objected to a release of the recordings, but after Page became famous with Led Zeppelin, Epic Records issued the album in September 1971. [4] Page took legal action and Epic was enjoined from further distribution of the album. [4] Over the years, there were several more attempts to release the album. [2] In 2017, Page discovered the concert tapes in his personal archive and remixed the recordings. [5] An album with the Anderson concert and demo recordings from the same time, were released in November 2017 on Yardbirds '68 .

Recording and releases

Although a live album, Epic Records overdubbed crowd noises from bullfights and other sound effects onto the original tracks against the band's wishes, in part because the live recordings were considered lacking in sound quality. This was a result of the general inexperience of the engineers in recording live rock music. For example, only a single microphone was deployed for the drums, hung above the kit. This resulted in the loss of much of the lower-range percussion in the recording. [6]

The Yardbirds rejected the album as a candidate for release upon its original completion in mid-1968, but Epic released it in 1971 in response to Led Zeppelin's success in the marketplace. [4] Page took legal action against the label for releasing Live Yardbirds without authorization and Epic quickly withdrew it. [4] Epic parent CBS' Columbia Special Products (CSP) label reissued the album in 1976, but this was again legally challenged by Page, and the album again quickly withdrawn. [2]

Authentic Epic and CSP copies of Live Yardbirds are thus quite rare, and the album has often been counterfeited (sometimes in black-and-white covers claimed to be promotional copies) as a result. [2] The album's cover art was designed by James Grashow, a woodcut artist who had earlier created the artwork for Jethro Tull's 1969 album Stand Up .

Yardbirds '68

Although the master tapes for this concert were presumed to be destroyed or otherwise unavailable, they were located and remixed by Page. Together with several demo recordings from the same period, they were released in November 2017 as Yardbirds '68 . [7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [3]

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Bruce Eder gave the album four and a half out of five stars and notes the dominant role of Page's guitar playing. [3] Although Eder feels "The performance also reveals just how far out in front of the psychedelic pack the Yardbirds were by the spring of 1968", he adds:

Ironically, this album isn't quite as strong as the contemporary Truth album by Jeff Beck, mostly because the Yardbirds were still juggling three sounds: the group's progressive pop/rock past, the psychedelia of 1968, and a harder, more advanced blues-based sound. [3]

Track listing

Songwriters and track running times are taken from the original Epic LP. [8] Other releases may have different listings.

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Train Kept A-Rollin'" Tiny Bradshaw, Lois Mann, Howard Kay3:10
2."You're a Better Man Than I [9] " Mike Hugg, Brian Hugg6:50
3."I'm Confused"Unlisted6:47
4."My Baby" Mort Shuman, Jerry Ragavoy 5:01
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Over Under Sideways Down" Chris Dreja, [10] Keith Relf, Paul Samwell-Smith, Jim McCarty, Jeff Beck 2:39
2."Drinking Muddy Water"Relf, Jimmy Page, McCarty, Dreja [10] 3:16
3."Shapes of Things"Samwell-Smith, Relf, McCarty2:48
4."White Summer"Page4:19
5."I'm a Man"Ellas McDaniel a.k.a. Bo Diddley 11:59

Personnel

The Yardbirds

Production

Notes

  1. Clayson 2002, p. 182.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Russo 2016, p. 102.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Eder, Bruce. "Live Yardbirds Featuring Jimmy Page – Album Review". AllMusic . Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Russo 2016, p. 99.
  5. Alexander 2017.
  6. George-Warren 2001, p. 1094.
  7. Reed, Ryan (25 August 2017). "The Yardbirds Prep Jimmy Page-Produced Double-LP Compilation". RollingStone.com . Retrieved 1 October 2017.
  8. Kaye 1971, Back cover.
  9. "You're a Better Man than I" is a medley with "Heart Full of Soul", written by Graham Gouldman.
  10. 1 2 Chris Dreja's name is misspelled twice – "Drega" on "Over Under Sideways Down" and "Ereja" on "Drinking Muddy Water". He is listed incorrectly on several other Epic releases.

Related Research Articles

<i>Little Games</i> 1967 studio album by the Yardbirds

Little Games is the fourth American album by English rock band the Yardbirds. Recorded and released in 1967, it was their first album recorded after becoming a quartet with Jimmy Page as the sole guitarist and Chris Dreja switching to bass. It was also the only Yardbirds album produced by Mickie Most.

Dazed and Confused (song) 1967 song by Jake Holmes

"Dazed and Confused" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Jake Holmes in 1967. Performed in a folk rock-style, he recorded it for his debut album "The Above Ground Sound" of Jake Holmes. Although some concluded that it was about a bad acid trip, Holmes insists the lyrics refer to the effects of a girl's indecision on ending a relationship.

Becks Bolero Instrumental first recorded by Jeff Beck in 1966

"Beck's Bolero" is a rock instrumental recorded by English guitarist Jeff Beck in 1966. It is Beck's first solo recording and has been described as "one of the great rock instrumentals, epic in scope, harmonically and rhythmically ambitious yet infused with primal energy". "Beck's Bolero" features a prominent melody with multiple guitar parts propelled by a rhythm inspired by Ravel's Boléro.

<i>Five Live Yardbirds</i> 1964 live album by the Yardbirds

Five Live Yardbirds is the live debut album by English rock band the Yardbirds. It features the group's interpretations of ten American blues and rhythm and blues songs, including their most popular live number, Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightning". The album contains some of the earliest recordings with guitarist Eric Clapton.

<i>For Your Love</i> (album) 1965 studio album compilation by the Yardbirds

For Your Love is the first American album by English rock band the Yardbirds. Released in July 1965, it contains new studio recordings along with previously released singles. The album features some of the earliest recordings by guitarists Eric Clapton and his replacement Jeff Beck.

<i>Having a Rave Up with the Yardbirds</i> 1965 studio album / live album by the Yardbirds

Having a Rave Up with the Yardbirds, or simply Having a Rave Up, is the second American album by English rock group the Yardbirds. It was released in November 1965, eight months after Jeff Beck replaced Eric Clapton on guitar. It includes songs with both guitarists and reflects the group's blues rock roots and their early experimentations with psychedelic and hard rock. The title refers to the driving "rave up" arrangement the band used in several of their songs.

"White Summer" is a guitar instrumental by English rock guitarist Jimmy Page, that incorporates Indian and Arabic musical influences. Page initially recorded and performed it with the Yardbirds and later included it in many Led Zeppelin concerts.

Paul Granville Samwell-Smith is an English musician and record producer. He was a founding member and the bassist of the 1960s English rock band The Yardbirds, which launched leading guitarists Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page to fame. As a youth, Samwell-Smith attended Hampton School with The Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty.

Christopher Walenty Dreja is an English musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist and bassist for rock band the Yardbirds.

Shapes of Things Song first recorded by the Yardbirds in 1966

"Shapes of Things" is a song by the English rock group the Yardbirds. With its Eastern-sounding, feedback-laden guitar solo and anti-war/pro-environmental lyrics, several music writers have identified it as the first popular psychedelic rock song. It is built on musical elements contributed by several group members in three different recording studios in the US and was the first Yardbirds' composition to become a record chart hit. When it was released as a single on 25 February 1966, the song reached number three in the UK and the top-ten in the US and Canada.

"Tangerine" is a folk rock song by the English band Led Zeppelin. Recorded in 1970, it is included on the second, more acoustic-oriented side of Led Zeppelin III (1970). The plaintive ballad reflects on lost love and features strummed acoustic guitar rhythm with pedal steel guitar.

Train Kept A-Rollin Song first recorded by Tiny Bradshaw in 1951

"Train Kept A-Rollin'" is a song first recorded by American jazz and rhythm and blues musician Tiny Bradshaw in 1951. Originally performed in the style of a jump blues, Bradshaw borrowed lyrics from an earlier song and set them to an upbeat shuffle arrangement that inspired other musicians to perform and record it. Johnny Burnette and the Rock and Roll Trio made an important contribution in 1956 – they reworked it as a guitar riff-driven song, which features an early use of intentionally distorted guitar in rock music.

<i>Ultimate!</i> 2001 compilation album of 1963–1968 songs by the Yardbirds

Ultimate! is a comprehensive career retrospective album by English rock group the Yardbirds. The 52-song two–compact disc compilation was released in 2001 by Rhino Records. The tracks span the period from the group's first demo recordings in 1963 to the last singles in 1968. They include all 17 of the group's singles, both A-side and B-sides, supplemented with more than a dozen album tracks, their performance for the film Blow-Up, and three early solo numbers by singer Keith Relf.

Heart Full of Soul 1965 song by the Yardbirds

"Heart Full of Soul" is a song recorded by English rock group the Yardbirds in 1965. Written by Graham Gouldman, it was the Yardbirds' first single after Jeff Beck replaced Eric Clapton as lead guitarist. Released only three months after "For Your Love", "Heart Full of Soul" reached the Top 10 on the singles charts in the UK, US, and several other countries.

The Yardbirds discography

The Yardbirds were an English rock group that had a string of Top 40 radio hits in mid-1960s in the UK and the US and introduced guitarists Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page. Their first album released in the UK, Five Live Yardbirds (1964), represented their early club performances with Clapton. The Yardbirds' first American album, For Your Love (1965), was released to capitalise on their first hit, and to promote the group's US tour. However, Clapton had already decided to pursue a different musical direction and was replaced by Beck. Several popular singles with Beck followed, including a second American album, Having a Rave Up with the Yardbirds (1965), that, as with their previous album, was a split release featuring songs with both Clapton and Beck.

The Yardbirds English blues and psychedelic rock band

The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist/bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell-Smith. The band is known for starting the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Jeff Beck, all of whom ranked in the top five of Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 greatest guitarists. The band had a string of hits throughout the mid-1960s, including "For Your Love", "Heart Full of Soul", "Shapes of Things", and "Over Under Sideways Down".

<i>Golden Eggs</i> 1975 compilation album (bootleg) by The Yardbirds

Golden Eggs is an unlicensed compilation of previously released recordings by English rock group the Yardbirds. The LP record album was originally issued in 1975 by Trademark of Quality (TMQ), a Los Angeles-based enterprise that specialised in bootleg recordings.

<i>Yardbirds 68</i> 2017 compilation album by the Yardbirds

Yardbirds '68 is a double CD and LP record album by English rock group the Yardbirds. Recorded in 1968 in New York City when the group was a quartet with guitarist Jimmy Page, it includes live performances and demos. Page produced the album, which was released in November 2017 on his own record label.

A Certain Girl 1961 single by Ernie K-Doe

"A Certain Girl" is a rhythm and blues song written by Allen Toussaint, with the credit listed under his pen name Naomi Neville. New Orleans R&B singer Ernie K-Doe recorded it in 1961. Minit Records released the song as the B-side of "I Cried My Last Tear".

References