Led Zeppelin Continue Reissues With 'IV' and 'Houses of the Holy'
Alternate versions and 80-page hardbound book highlight classic band's reissues.
Less than a year after reissuing their first three albums as deluxe sets, Led Zeppelin plan on putting out two more in the fall. On October 28th, the group will release deluxe editions of its 1971 album, Led Zeppelin IV , and its next record, 1973's Houses of the Holy .
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Like the previous deluxe reissues, each album will include the original LP, newly remastered by guitarist and producer Jimmy Page, alongside a second disc of previously unreleased audio culled from the band members' vaults. Additionally, each release will also be available as a single album, a single vinyl LP, a deluxe double-LP, digital download and a super deluxe box set, the latter of which features the CDs, LPs, a download card, an 80-page hardbound book with previously unseen photos and memorabilia and a high-quality print of the album cover.
The group's fourth album has become one of the best-selling albums in history since its 1971 release. Home to AOR staples like "Stairway to Heaven," "Rock & Roll," "Black Dog" and "When the Levee Breaks," the album, which is technically untitled, has been certified 23-times platinum. The deluxe edition contains previously unreleased versions of each of the album's eight tracks. Included are alternate mixes of "Rock & Roll," "Misty Mountain Hop" and "Four Sticks," a mandolin/guitar mix of "The Battle of Evermore" and a markedly different version of "Stairway to Heaven" that the group recorded at Los Angeles' Sunset Sound Studio.
'Houses of the Holy' super deluxe box set. |
Courtesy of Rhino Entertainment |
That record's follow-up, Houses of the Holy , contains the singles "Over the Hills and Far Away" and "D'Yer Mak'er" and has been certified 11-times platinum since its 1973 release. The deluxe edition bonus disc for Houses of the Holy contains rough, in-progress mixes of "The Ocean" and "Dancing Days," as well as two songs with varied instrumentation: a guitar mix backing track for "Over the Hills and Far Away" and a version of "The Rain Song" without John Paul Jones' piano.
Although the group worked together on assembling these reissues, its surviving members have no intention of touring together anytime soon. In May, Robert Plant told Rolling Stone that he wished to leave things off with the group's 2007 one-off at London's O2 Arena. "A tour would have been an absolute menagerie of vested interests and the very essence of everything that's shitty about big-time stadium rock," he said. "We were surrounded by a circus of people that would have had our souls on the fire. I'm not part of a jukebox!"
Page said he was "fed up" with Plant's comments in a June interview with The National , but ultimately took the high road. "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," he said.
Here are the track listings for the deluxe editions' companion audio discs (the songs remain the same on the original LPs):
Led Zeppelin IV (Companion Audio)
1. "Black Dog," Basic Track With Guitar Overdubs
2. "Rock and Roll," Alternate Mix
3. "The Battle of Evermore," Mandolin/Guitar Mix From Headley Grange
4. "Stairway to Heaven," Sunset Sound Mix
5. "Misty Mountain Hop," Alternate Mix
6. "Four Sticks," Alternate Mix
7. "Going to California," Mandolin/Guitar Mix
8. "When the Levee Breaks," Alternate U.K. Mix
Houses of the Holy (Companion Audio)
1. "The Song Remains The Same," Guitar Overdub Reference Mix
2. "The Rain Song," Mix Minus Piano
3. "Over the Hills And Far Away," Guitar Mix Backing Track
4. "The Crunge," Rough Mix - Keys Up
5. "Dancing Days," Rough Mix With Vocal
6. "No Quarter," Rough Mix With JPJ Keyboard Overdubs - No Vocal
7. "The Ocean," Working Mix
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