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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
This was a good, mostly unbiased account of the crazy, and surprisingly brief, years of Led Zeppelin.
adventurous
emotional
informative
medium-paced
The inside cover flap boasts: Led Zeppelin gave no quarter, and neither has Bob Spitz. "Led Zeppelin" is the full and honest reckoning the band has long awaited, and richly deserves.
Despite those lofty fighting words on the flap, “Led Zeppelin The Biography” is hardly a reckoning. It is nothing more than a mean-spirited book report.
Spitz’s “reckoning,” apparent in his bibliography and chapter notes, is mainly sourced from the works of others. Almost every Zeppelin-related book, periodical, radio interview, and fan forum (huh?) out there is sourced. Harvested quotes and information are inserted to fit the narrative Spitz chose to spin, with little heed to whether the sources are inaccurate or innuendo, or whether selected quotes are used in proper context.
As other reviewers have noted, there isn't anything new in this book. The personal interviews that Spitz conducted are with mostly peripheral figures, most of whom fell out of favor with the band, rendering their statements less than objective. A few interviewees are identified mysteriously as “confidential” sources. None of the interviews produced anything beyond similar recollections made in other books. Credibility is questionable when certain figures alter their stories over the years.
Spitz editorialized throughout the text and made deliberate word choices to mock the group and manager Peter Grant. Some barbs weren’t subtle. Calling John Bonham, who died from alcohol abuse, “sh*tfaced as usual" was in poor taste. Spitz also overused creative license in what is supposedly a factual biography. Exactly how is it that Spitz can declare without quoting a source that Jimmy Page had a “cell-like bedroom” as a child, or that his parents had a radio on which “Jimmy worked its Bakelite dials with a safecracker’s expertise?” Spitz also took the liberty of inventing dialogue in numerous passages with no identified sources.
Amidst other factual errors that appear from cover to cover, Spitz made the bizarre error of stating that Sandy Denny sang on “Gallows Pole.”
Spitz included the requisite wokery which seems to be a requirement for an author to get published at this moment in time. However it is unrealistic to view events that occurred 50 years ago through the moral lens of today. In what world other than Spitz’s “reckoning” can Robert Plant’s blues singing be considered “cultural appropriation”?? As enlightened to new social mores as Spitz attempted to be in some areas, he fat-shamed Peter Grant repeatedly and ridiculed John Bonham for substance abuse disorder. Bullying isn’t very enlightened. Spitz also mocked journalist Chris Welch numerous times throughout the text, but sourced no less than three of Welch's published books on Zeppelin and Peter Grant.
The photos are stock images widely available on the internet. The dates for three photos relating to the notorious Oakland shows which took place in 1977 are erroneously captioned as 1979. A photo identified as a rehearsal for Knebworth is from a completely different time period.
Despite those lofty fighting words on the flap, “Led Zeppelin The Biography” is hardly a reckoning. It is nothing more than a mean-spirited book report.
Spitz’s “reckoning,” apparent in his bibliography and chapter notes, is mainly sourced from the works of others. Almost every Zeppelin-related book, periodical, radio interview, and fan forum (huh?) out there is sourced. Harvested quotes and information are inserted to fit the narrative Spitz chose to spin, with little heed to whether the sources are inaccurate or innuendo, or whether selected quotes are used in proper context.
As other reviewers have noted, there isn't anything new in this book. The personal interviews that Spitz conducted are with mostly peripheral figures, most of whom fell out of favor with the band, rendering their statements less than objective. A few interviewees are identified mysteriously as “confidential” sources. None of the interviews produced anything beyond similar recollections made in other books. Credibility is questionable when certain figures alter their stories over the years.
Spitz editorialized throughout the text and made deliberate word choices to mock the group and manager Peter Grant. Some barbs weren’t subtle. Calling John Bonham, who died from alcohol abuse, “sh*tfaced as usual" was in poor taste. Spitz also overused creative license in what is supposedly a factual biography. Exactly how is it that Spitz can declare without quoting a source that Jimmy Page had a “cell-like bedroom” as a child, or that his parents had a radio on which “Jimmy worked its Bakelite dials with a safecracker’s expertise?” Spitz also took the liberty of inventing dialogue in numerous passages with no identified sources.
Amidst other factual errors that appear from cover to cover, Spitz made the bizarre error of stating that Sandy Denny sang on “Gallows Pole.”
Spitz included the requisite wokery which seems to be a requirement for an author to get published at this moment in time. However it is unrealistic to view events that occurred 50 years ago through the moral lens of today. In what world other than Spitz’s “reckoning” can Robert Plant’s blues singing be considered “cultural appropriation”?? As enlightened to new social mores as Spitz attempted to be in some areas, he fat-shamed Peter Grant repeatedly and ridiculed John Bonham for substance abuse disorder. Bullying isn’t very enlightened. Spitz also mocked journalist Chris Welch numerous times throughout the text, but sourced no less than three of Welch's published books on Zeppelin and Peter Grant.
The photos are stock images widely available on the internet. The dates for three photos relating to the notorious Oakland shows which took place in 1977 are erroneously captioned as 1979. A photo identified as a rehearsal for Knebworth is from a completely different time period.
I really enjoyed this biography! It's well written, well researched, and easy to read. It strikes a good balance between salacious stories and technical facts. I went into this knowing nothing about Led Zeppelin and came away utterly fascinated!
dark
informative
I found this less enjoyable than Spitz's book on the Beatles, but I'm not sure that's any fault of the author's. Led Zeppelin are just kind of depressing people. Phenomenal musicians, but, just, wow, Page's "affair" with the 14-year-old. Bonham's tendency to beat the crap out of people, unprovoked. Their cocaine loving manager. I'm kind of glad to be done slogging through this book. I can't imagine the dedication Spitz had in order to write it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Violence
Moderate: Death, Grief, Car accident
Minor: Vomit
A bit overlong examination of the band with a large portion devoted to Page’s early musical development and of course the band formation. Plant gets a bit of attention as well, but besides Bohnam coming across as a rage-induced-drug machine, most all of them remain character husks, or maybe there wasn’t much to work with. The manager Grant is covered here with a lot of anecdotes and sounded like a genuinely terrible human and all around coke fiend. It is interesting that Page and perhaps Plant have escaped the me-too scythe: it seem well documented that they had numerous under 16 dalliances, moreso than Polanski, and yet they remain unscathed in the public eye for the most part (and free to travel as they please). Maybe Page really did make that deal with the all powerful Satan as we learned in Catholic elementary school.
I’m not even going to waste my time writing down the thoughts I had while (speed) reading this badly written, in need of an editor, tedious biography of Led Zeppelin.
I encourage you not to waste your time trying to read it, but, rather read this Daily Mail article which covers everything in the book:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-10287743/Led-Zeppelins-hellraising-tour-manager-Richard-Cole-dies-cancer-aged-75.html
It also includes photographs.
I encourage you not to waste your time trying to read it, but, rather read this Daily Mail article which covers everything in the book:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-10287743/Led-Zeppelins-hellraising-tour-manager-Richard-Cole-dies-cancer-aged-75.html
It also includes photographs.
informative
slow-paced
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
audio YASS it was so dense but that’s what makes it so good- real info crafted in a digestible way. Audio was excellent although I wish they could’ve added sound bites of the songs.