Remixing Led Zeppelin - 001 - 1968.12.30 - Spokane, WA, USA.

Léo Chupin
7 days ago
14 min read

Updated: 5 days ago

Led Zeppelin is one of the best live bands ever! On stage, they are powerful, raw, innovative, and experimental, pushing the boundaries of rock 'n' roll with lots of improvisation, variation, medleys, covers, and energy. They were active between 1968 and 1980 and played around 600 shows, of which around 300 were recorded, either officially or illegally taped by someone in the audience with a tape recorder and a microphone. Fans have been trading and sharing those tapes for ages.

I used to collect and listen to them all. Some have great audio quality, while others are terrible. But I used to listen to them all! After graduating as an audio engineer and record producer, I returned to this passion, but I didn't know where to start again: every show has dozens of different versions, with different generations of tapes (the more you copy a tape, the more information is lost in the new transfer), different transfers, edits, remasters, bootleg labels, and so on. There are a few sites trying to sort things out, but they lack audio technical expertise.

So here I am, comparing, remixing, and remastering every version of every show that I can find to achieve the best possible quality. While I'm at it, I'm also gathering all the information and resources I can find. I'm going to start from the beginning, with Led Zeppelin's first live recording from the 30th of December 1968 in Spokane, Washington.

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1 - The backstory of the show

2 - Information on the recording and setlist

3 - Photos and press

4 - A Remix? What to listen to ?

5 - How does it sound compared to the other bootleg reference?

6 - Notes on the Remix

7 - Name of the Remix & Artwork

8 - Performances and Plantations

9 - Thanks and mentions

10 - Links and resources

1- The backstory of the show

As seen in the film “Becoming Led Zeppelin” the band got off to a flying start! They rehearsed together for the first time on August 19, 1968. They played their first show on September 7th, 1968, in Denmark and recorded their first album in September–October of the same year.

After playing roughly 18 shows in three months in Scandinavia and the UK, and even before the release of the first LP, they flew to the USA to promote it. They started the tour with five dates as the opening act for Vanilla Fudge. This may have been due to the cancellation of the Jeff Beck Group tour, but there is no concrete evidence to support this theory.

It's difficult to have precise information about that era; all the books have mistakes and approximations in dates and places, but here is what I can gather and cross-verify from “Hammer of the Gods” by Stephen Davis, “Trampled Under Foot” by Barney Hoskyns, and “The Man Who Led Zeppelin” by Chris Welch:

Before the tour, John Paul Jones spent a few days with his wife in New York City. On 23 December 1968, the band (without JPJ) arrived in Los Angeles with road manager Richard Cole and roadie Kenny Pickett (Pissquick). Their infamous manager, Peter Grant, stayed in England to spend Christmas with his family. They all shared rooms at the famous Chateau Marmont hotel.

Jimmy Page Passport with L.A. customs stamp from the 23th December. (Thanks Z).

While in LA, they went out to clubs, “hang out” with the GTOs (Girls Together Outrageously (half groupie crew, half band, with an LP produced by Frank Zappa), which featured Jimmy Page's famous “Girlfriend” Pamela De Barres. Led Zeppelin started right away with their crazy Sunset Strip rock and roll tales before playing a single note in America.

The famous producer Kim Fowley talks about how Jimmy Page's confidence and style have grown since 1965.

John Paul Jones joined them directly in Denver on the 26th. According to Richard Cole, they started to bond properly during the Portland show. In a way, Spokane may actually be the “first” Led Zeppelin show.

Led Zeppelin's five-date tour opening for Vanilla Fudge, 26-30 December 1968 (Denver pic: Steve Morton). (thanks LedZeppelinPhtographs on Instagram)

Led Zeppelin's first live recorded show took place on Monday, 30th December 1968, in Spokane, Washington State, at Gonzaga University's John F. Kennedy Pavilion, essentially a gym/basketball court. (More information on the venue can be found here).

Opening for Vanilla Fudge, they were billed as Len Zeffelin (lol). The entry price was $3 (around $25 in 2025).

Excerpt from Spokesman article of 2007 :

We knew who Jimmy Page was, from the Yardbirds, and we heard it was his band,” said Bob Gallagher, who was a teenager at the time. “I was a big Vanilla Fudge fan because psychedelia was really happening then. … But we were excited about seeing Jimmy Page.

Spokane was experiencing a severe cold snap that week, with temperatures dropping to 10 below. Apparently, the Kennedy Pavilion (Gonzaga’s gym) wasn’t well-heated either, because many fans remember it as being icy inside, as well.

Bonham came out and started drumming on ‘Train Kept a-Rollin’,’ and everybody went, ‘Holy crap,’ There’s never been a drummer like him. He was awesome. Then they all started playing and they were totally amazing.

"We were hoping that the first band wouldn’t stay on stage too long,” said Kerry Whitsitt of Spokane. “Little did I know that by the end of Led Zeppelin’s set, I would be reeling in my seat, transfixed by Robert Plant’s voice, body language and raw sexuality (I just knew he was looking straight through me most of the night). … It was electric in every sense of the word. We didn’t want them to leave the stage – ever!”

“Then when Vanilla Fudge came on, they were so sleepy, It was like, after that, psychedelia was dead and heavy metal was born, all in a three-hour show.

Jimmy Page on Instagram :

On this day, fifty years ago, in 1968 I played Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA with Led Zeppelin. This is reputed to be the first primitive Led Zeppelin bootleg: it seems unusual that a support band with limited billing might be recorded before the main attraction, but I think it may well have been a guitar fan in the wake of The Yardbirds who might have recorded this. The Americans were quite muso and would follow the onwards incarnations of musicians on their journey.

2- Information on the recording and setlist

December 30th, 1968 (Monday)

Kennedy Pavilion, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington, USA.

1. The Train Kept A Rollin’ (Cut In)

2. I Can't Quit You

3. As Long As I Have You (Inc. Fresh Garbage, Rag's Groove, Mockingbird)

4. Dazed and Confused

5. White Summer

6. How Many More Times (Inc. Beck's Bolero, The Hunter)

7. Pat's Delight (Cut Out)

Total time: 57:03

There might have been other songs, but we will never know.

The show was recorded using a mono Norelco cassette recorder. Norelco was Philips' brand in the US for household electronics. After doing some research, I would guess that it was a Norelco EL3001 or EL3002 :

The EL3300 (1963) was the first cassette recorder invented by the Dutch brand Philips. It featured germanium transistors, was expensive, and was technically average. No Norelco version was made, and it didn't have great success.
The EL3001 (1964-1965) is pretty similar and less expensive. It was released in North America by Philips under the Norelco brand. It is considered to be the first cassette record player to be released in America.
The EL3302 (1967) was the most common and best evolution.
- It was very well designed with a proper erase head and adjustable bias.
- The claimed frequency response was 80 Hz - 10 kHz.
- It was equipped with a motor featuring electronic regulation and 0,3% flutter and wow.
- Now with an aluminum cover instead of plastic.
- This model was sold under other brand names: Norelco (US), Radiola (FR), Stella (UK),…
- In 1968, they switched from germanium to silicon transistors, which made them cheaper.
- These models were a massive hit, selling millions of units until around 1974-1975.
- In 1970, they released a stereo version.

Norelco EL3301

Philips EL3302 (left) and a Norelco EL3302 (right)

Fun fact : In 1968, Keith Richards use an EL3302 to record the guitar on Street Figting Man.

More info on Philips/Norelco tape recorders here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

The person who made the recording (whose name is unknown) sat next to the mixing desk in the front row. It was recorded on a single 60-minute cassette tape.

Except for the first song, the sound is good, with good drums, vocals, and guitar, but there is a lot of distortion and noise. My guess is that the low frequency overloaded the microphone/preamp of the tape recorder, or the gain was simply too high.

The first song, “TKR” is very distorted, but it gets better during “ICQYB”. It's also possible that during the first song, the taper lowered the input gain.

The recording first surfaced incomplete on vinyl in the 80s on the “Alpha and Omega” bootleg.

Bob Gallagher to The Spokesman

About 30 years later, one member of that club (the ones who saw the Zep show in 68) walked into Gallagher’s store and started talking about that show. “He said, ‘Let me tell you this: I taped that show and I still have the tape,’ ” said Gallagher. “I went, ‘Whoaaa.’ “The man told Gallagher that he had been a sophomore at Gonzaga at the time, and he had brought in a little Phillips recorder, with a microphone inside the unit. He had taped the entire concert from his seat right next to the sound board. A few days later, the man (Gallagher can’t remember his name) came back into the store with the original tape. Gallagher made a copy, which went on to become the most complete of the various bootleg versions (an incomplete copy had been made years before by a friend of the man). “I’m responsible for getting the best version of the master tape out to the world,” said Gallagher. “You don’t keep it for yourself – you get it out to everybody.”

3 - Photos and Press

There are only four photos taken by Jim Forster, a scan of the ticket, and the clip from the advertisement in a local paper (see above).

I just discovered this photo of Jimmy Page (and Robert Plant) backstage, apparently taken by the brother of Jim Foster.

(Thanks to “Montreux” for finding and sharing it.)

4 - A Remix? What to listen to?

- Most complete recording possible

- Less noise (less tape hiss, less saturation, less crackle, …)

- More clarity

- More precise Electric Bass

- Solid drums (better impact)

- Clear Voice

- Better balance (frequencies, instruments)

- More consistency: no drops in volume or distance. Energy is constant throughout the show.

- All the instruments are easier to hear all the time.

- Overall, a more comfortable and enjoyable listening experience.

- Still a saturated mono audience recording taped with a cassette recorder in 1968, but better.

5 - How does it sound compared to the other bootleg references?

There are 2 categories for this show: the ones that miss some tape and the complete ones.

A_The versions that missed 5 seconds at the beginning, 20 seconds after Dazed And Confused and 30 seconds of the end of Pat’s Delight. They are Master/low gen > dat/cdr :

- Zeppelin Digital, Presence, KRW_CO and Capricorn’s Gonzaga ’78 are exactly the same tape/transfer. They sound ok, probably the better option if you would rather not listen to the remix. But it's incomplete.

- Tarantura’s Yarbird’s Fame is the same transfer but far too limited and compressed.

- SM Remaster : More high frequency and more noises in the high frequency.

B_The « Complete » tape :

- EVSD is complete. Powerful sound but very noisy and distorted with some tape flutter in the stereo (moving from left to right constantly)

- Southern led (5th gen) : I’ve listened to two different transfers yet very close transfers. The sound lost a lot of quality through the five copies and still has countless noises and tape issues. But the only one in 48Khz.

- Dadgad Remaster: the first remaster (2008?) from an unknown high-gen tape. Distant and noisy. But high respect to the godfather of Led Zeppelin Remaster.

- There is a composite version made from Zeppelin digital patch with EVSD, but the edit is a little clumsy.

6 - Notes on the Remix

Spokane’s Favorite Fudge’68

Remix by The Captain

Mono Audience Recording

Wav 44Khz-16bits

Main Source : Master > Cassette > DAT > flac

Patch Source : EVSD “Lifetime Warranty” DVD-A>Isuper DVD reaper>Wav

Remix By The Captain : Flac/wav sources>Izotop RX 10(Cleaning & Demix) > Pro tools (mixing)> Protools (Mastering)>Hofa Mastering Pro (Split file and names) > Wav> flac 8(RX)

I used the Presence transfer (same as Digital Zeppelin and KW_CO repost) with a patch from the Empress Valley DVD-A.

The Empress Valley transfer is different (less generation, I guess, and better preamp/machinery), and a more complete tape with more 'energy,' but also more noise, saturation, and artifacts. I preferred working with the cleanest-looking transfer.

The patches are at the beginning of Train Kept A Rollin (5 sec), the end of Dazed And Confused (clapping) (20 sec) and at the end of Pat’s Delight (30 sec)

My main focus was on consistency of volume and sound without distractions! I tried to enhance the listening experience while preserving the original tape. The aim is for it to sound the same, but better. Of course, it's not exactly the same, but I've tried to stay true to the original. No generative AI was used.

I carefully cleaned it using Izotope RX 10 Studio. I never touch the music or musical noises. I dealt with each noise individually. yes, you read that correctly: individually, one by one. It took a long time. I know it's a sensitive subject among collector. I tried my best. In the future, I’ll try different approaches to this issue.

I demix the show using Izotop RX10 Studio. No pannings were applied. It was just for treating each instrument separately and for individual automations.

I carefully mixed the performances as i would mix a live album using the best plugins on the market: UAD, Acustica Audio, FabFilter, Softube, Plugin Alliance, and many more. Once again, I try not to alter the tone and performance but compensate for the defects of the recording. For example, Jonesy and his bass are more present, as well as the cement of Bonzo (kick and snare). Moreover, “White Summer” and “Pat's Delight” are way more audible.

The mastering is a last touch of global treatment and automation. As for commercial mastering I’m leaving 1 dB of headroom, and I’m between -14 and -10 dB LUFS, depending on the songs.

So, you get a more consistent show with no drop in volume or distance, more precise bass, and better drums. This is a mono recording, but I've widened it slightly (while keeping it true to the original).

There is still some saturation, but much less, and there is no more tape hiss. It used to feel like we were listening to the show from another room. Now, I feel like I’m on stage with the band!

I hope you will enjoy this show. I’m really looking 'for feedback to improve.

7 - Name of the Remix & Artwork

The artwork pays tribute to the plain white bootlegs with stamped lettering from years gone by. People used to make their own covers with pictures, press clippings, writing, and drawings.

I tried to find a funny name that captured the energy of the show. From all accounts, Led Zeppelin really destroyed other bands that came after them. Vanilla Fudge is a nice, sweet treat, but Led Zeppelin was Spokane's favorite and not so vanilla. ;)

8 - Performances and Plantations

For such a young band, their performance is remarkable! They're still getting to know each other and making odd mistakes, but their performance is fresh and already very advanced. They play with passion and improvisation and a raw energy. Plant and Bonham are particularly impressive!

Judging by the photos, it appears that JP and JPJ played on Vanilla Fudge's Fender amps. Consequently, their sound is much better than in Los Angeles or San Francisco, where they used Rickenbacker amps (among other things), and the sound was much thinner and more aggressive. It's just a guess, but it sounds like it.

The Train Kept A Rollin’

Jimmy Page has a guitar/pedal issue that forces a drum interlude before the solo. One more riff to settle it, and here comes the solo.

I Can't Quit You

The transition between the two songs is great. The sound quality is improving. Plant is wonderful, and Bonham is amazing. Listen to him during the guitar solo. It feels like he's encouraging Page to do more (with the drum fills at the end of each section). Every so often Bonham feels like a puppet master over Jimmy Page. Great solo and guitar licks, by the way!

Plantation: Thank you very much. Good evening from Led Zeppelin. Um, you won't believe this, but, um, I don't think either part of ourselves or the equipment is quite used to the temperature, and the uh, it's taken about three hours of, um, gas stoves under the equipment before we can get it together.

Let's see whether we can keep things going. It's a thing, can you hear that echo? A thing by Garnet Mimms, of all people, called As Long as I Have You.

As Long As I Have You (Inc. Fresh Garbage, Rag's Groove, Mockingbird)

A pretty rare soul song turns into a fierce medley. Later on it will become the trademark of Led Zeppelin. Bonham is once again amazing. Beautiful high screams from Plant on Fresh Garage (from the band Spirit) it's when it sounds like "pom pompom pompom"...

Page takes a great solo on Rag’s groove (from Miles Davis). ("la lalalala la la")

Perfect transition/break to Mockingbird (from Bo Diddley). (“Hush little baby…”) then back on ALAIHY (“Born In darkness…”) On of the highlights of the show.

Plantation: Thank you very much, um let's see, we're all dying. I didn't know you've got flu and things here, but carrying on regardless. This is a number off an album that comes out in about three weeks time on the Atlantic label. It's called Led Zeppelin, and this is a track from the album Led Zeppelin. It's called Dazed and Confused.

Dazed and Confused

Still very close to the studio version (far from the 40 minutes versions of 1975)

Great bow/wah sections! There is a wrong chord from page at a point. ;)

The remix really brings back the bass on this song; this is really pleasant!

White Summer

Quite long and rare versions of the song without the Black Mountain Side section. The remix brings the song back to life; the guitar is no longer buried in the noise.

Direct and proper transition with HMMMT (we can hear Jimmy unplugging his Danelectro).

How Many More Times (Inc. Beck's Bolero, The Hunter)

Plantation: Jimmy Page. Jimmy Page there. At this point, um, although it's not the end of the show completely, I'd like to introduce the group to you. On bass, John Paul Jones, on drums, John Bonham, Jimmy Page lead guitar, and myself, Robert Plant.

Great drum groove from Bonham

On the first bend of the guitar solo, Page got guitar (pedal?) issues and couldn't play, to which Plant sang “Talk to Me Babe” during that “silent” time.

Great Q&A, great bow playing.

Robert Plant lets out some of his highest recorded notes at the end of the song, literally sounding like an alarm !

Plantation : Thank you very much. Thank you. Um, it seems we, ah, when we feel that we want to get warmed up properly, you know, I mean, we're the first act on, no bones about it, but we think we're warming up a bit more now. We're gonna feature John Bonham on percussion, John Bonham on drums. This is one ah for all of the women back over the sea who are waiting for their men to return from the plane. I don't know what they call it over here. I've been told it's something to do with 12, in that we have a rifle which is a 12 um, a 12 what? Well this is, that's John Bonham there who just did that on the drums. This is called Pat's Delight.

Pat's Delight

Great drumming!!!! The remix really brings this section to life!

9 - Thanks and mentions

Huge thanks to the bootlegs and Led Zeppelin community. Specially "The Dogs Of Doom" : "No Oscar" for the feedback, "LedZeppelinPhotographs" for the pictures "Montreux" for the backstage pic. The pyzep and Presence forums.

This is by a fan for the fans. Whatever you do, please credit The Captain.

If you have any information, recordings, or videos of this show or other Led Zeppelin shows, please contact me here.