Led Zeppelin by Led Zeppelin

First off I am a Led Zeppelin enthusiast - between owned all their material on different formats, different books, magazines et cetera I saw this promoted on Facebook Ads and I pre-ordered right away. I unfortunately was traveling before I got back home to see the book but I read the reviews because I was excited and saw the negative reviews and positive reviews. I want to talk about my thoughts and for those on the fence buying it because you read through some bad reviews I want to take the opportunity to express my opinion. My Thoughts: My initial impressions on fulfillment by Amazon were amazing the book was shrink wrapped and bubble wrapped in a well sealed box. This was appreciated greatly as I was abroad. Once I got the box out of the shrink wrap the book looks absolutely gorgeous with a canvas feeling (not sure what it is called so best describing it) with gold engraved Led Zeppelin. Aesthetically it is appealing because it is simple, clean and with the canvas style book you don't feel you will finger print it up with clean hands. The stock used is a high quality and the colors used on each page are vibrant of very high quality. The book is coffee table grade and well put together. As advertised (more on that in a bit) this illustrated history is thorough with classic images of the band as well as never before seen. I don't know how much the band had influence on the arrangement of photos through the pages but whomever did an amazing job on presentation. I also appreciated they did them chronologically and not a potpourri where one page you have photos from all eras. As you flip through you will find some annotations about the photo from the band and in the back there is a college of notes about each photo. The book also presents how the album art was conceptualized and that was entertaining. Notes about criticisms you will read about: As you read reviews here and abroad you will see some of the following: "It is all pictures" I mentioned above and used the words "As Advertised" when the book was promoted and described as the official illustrated history. What peeves me is when I read both in good reviews and bad reviews that it is all pictures and no text. An illustrated book is a book that takes you on a journey through images. One reviewer thought this was going to be "The Beatles Anthology" and was disappointed - at what point was that even promised? Look if you want a good recommendation for the history of Zeppelin - I always like Keith Shadwick's piece on Zeppelin. Maybe that would be in my mind the ideal companion to this book. One for the story, one for the images. "I have seen that picture before" OR "If you have the Internet you have this book" I have an extensive Zeppelin collection of print materials ranging from NME, Melody Maker, Creem, Guitar World, Rolling Stone, Mojo, Q Magazine, issues on Led Zeppelin, Live Dreams (book), Neal Preston's book, and so on - there is no doubt there will be images in this book from those sources. I will also say there is a good bit of photos I haven't seen before - I don't have the rough numbers but I didn't get the feel I will inundated with regurgitated material. I also appreciate the mixture of classic photos with never before seen. I will also mention I noticed with classic shots more times than not there was some annotation or story behind the image and to me that is what makes this refreshing. "Clearing out the vault" The band really hasn't done much since Bonzo's death, there are only so many images of them that exist. I appreciate this volume because the collection put together means something to the band. To me, between there mega releases of each album and this, they are clearing out the vault. Even with doing that, I don't see it as a negative connotation, I see it more as closure for the band. They are putting everything out there, if you want it you can consume it. Final Words: Overall I think this is well put together. As a diehard, I find many great things with this illustrated (KEY WORD) history of the band. When I leaf through the pages, I see an image from a show and I go to my Zeppelin bootlegs and say that is from this show. Very nostalgic. I find the book a great way to have a definitive concise illustrated (KEY WORD) history of the band. If you were to pick a book you wanted to visually represent the band this is it. If you are hoping for a narrative in text, in the prose of the band, this is not it for you and there are plenty of other releases out there that will fulfill that request.

Led Zeppelin were never about extensive liner notes and press tours and magazine interviews. This is one of the many things that made them seem so outside and above ordinary rock bands: they remained mysterious others, and anything Zeppelin did seemed like some kind of mythic visitation. By 1977 or so the world had shifted and what had once seemed vast and magical felt "unapproachable" or whatever, but at their peak, they were the absolute pinnacle of the 70s rock band, a gigantic, sweeping, violent force through culture. This book is just a glimpse into that myth, but it couldn't be anything other than what it is and represent Zeppelin fairly. Others are complaining that there isn't enough text, but any more and it just wouldn't be Zeppelin. Zeppelin were never, ever about explaining themselves, or going "behind the music," or justifying what they did in any way at all. They just did it, and you either got it or not, but they weren't going to present any arguments other than the music they made and the image they offered via their album art and performances. If you want some kind of detailed text-heavy post-mortem on Zeppelin, you never really got Zeppelin. But if you can accept that Zeppelin is best left largely unexplained and that great art deserves to keep some of its mystery intact, this book will absolutely give you something valuable. I mean, c'mon, It's almost 400 pages of photos from the breadth of their career. And yes, if you've been a Zeppelin fan since the 70s like me, you've probably seen some of them before, but very many you probably haven't, and seeing them all in the same place creates something that feels appropriately monumental. So no, you're not going to get a "rock bio," and this is a GOOD thing. Rock bios probably obscure more than they illuminate anyway, and art as otherworldly and mysterious as Led Zeppelin's deserves to be untouched by that. Accept that there is no "true story of..." when it comes to Led Zeppelin apart from your experience of how they move you and you will be very happy to have this book.

Led Zeppelin by Led Zeppelin is worth every penny. High quality. The book is broken down by eras and has fantastic photos. He was happy to get this gift. And it's not easy buying for my 23 year old son. I grew up in the 70's listening to my Led Zep albums. My son got hooked too. Last summer we saw Plant & Krauss in Charlotte, NC. Magical evening. Buy this book for yourself or another Zep fan!

Or, even if you don't have all the LZ luxury version titles, this is a worthy companion both to the casual collector and the completest. Filled with great picture reproductions from shows, magazine articles and band archives, as well as a comprehensive (read: positive) history of the band, any Zep fan will want this book! As for the physical book, it is made of heavy paper, it is thick, and the binding is very durable looking. It should last a lifetime (provided you don't dogear your copy) and will look beautiful on anyone's bookshelf, or coffee table. Buy this book!

It's a huge book with a lot of Led Zeppelin history. Just what I wanted! Thanks!

As with Jimmy's brilliant book this book is just jam packed full of photos and so much information about the band that you never knew before. So if your a big fan of Zeppelin then I say to you that you so need this book in your life and collection. I can say 100% that you will not be disappointed with it at all. By the time you reach the last page in the book like me you will want to begin reading all over again.

Un imprescindible para fans de la banda. Una calidad de edición y encuadernación excelente. La pena que sólo se edite en inglés, pero aún así es un lujo que se desgrana poco a poco.

Jimmy Page did an amazing job with this book! A must have for any Led Zeppelin fan! I am a huge Zeppelin fan and have followed them for decades, this book includes photos and information that I have never seen or knew of before. Get it!

Bought this for my son as a gift... he loves it