Led Zeppelin: San Diego 1977 (Mike Millard Master) FLAC

Date: 1977-06-19
Venue: San Diego Sports Arena
Location: San Diego, California
Source: Audience
Lineage: Cassette Master > HiFi VHS/1 > DAT/2 > PC (Cool Edit) > CDR (Plextor 48/24/48A) > CDR(x) > EAC(secure mode/read offsets corrected) > wav > flac(level 7)
art here: http://www.zeppelinart.com/browse.asp?dir=1977%2F1977%2D06%2D19+san+diego%2Fmillards+mystery+train+%28no+label%29%2F
The fan recording of a concert is really an extension of taking snapshots of your heroes. Back in the ‘60s and ‘70s recordable media was just making its way into households as a consumer electronic device, either an expensive reel-to-reel deck or a convenient cassette recording deck. Just imagine sneaking one of those into a concert these days. More likely, the stealth recorder of choice today would be a mini-disc recorder or your handphone. Small enough to fit your pocket.
But Michael Millard was different. He arrived early at concerts near his home, pulled out a wheelchair from the boot of his car and proceeded to wheel himself into the arena as an invalid. He managed to secure front row "seats", almost always front and centre. Hidden underneath his wheelchair was a Nakamichi stereo cassette deck hooked up to two high-quality AKG mics. Security guards in those days were probably unaware of such goings on.
His recordings were much sought after for their quality - capturing the expanse of the stage plus the great ambience of the halls. His close proximity eliminated any echo from his recordings. All the instruments recorded right off the front speakers. Plant’s voice is crystal clear. But Millard had a habit of marking his tapes when he copied them for another collector or fan. He would, for instance, lower the levels when transferring the audio to a VHS tape or lower the volume in mid-song when making a cassette copy. It has been said he detested bootleggers who pressed up his recordings onto vinyls or CDs to sell. To that end, he kept a log of all the trades he made with clear indications of what markings he did to the tapes. That way, he knew which of his trades were sent to bootleggers.
He worked as a custodian in a public school. In a fit of depression, he committed suicide in 1990. His friends say he destroyed all copies of his Led Zeppelin recordings. What has survived are the first generation copies he made and shared freely with other Zep fans. These are what are now being traded back and forth.
Millard was active from 1974 to the ‘80s and was said to have taped shows by Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Yes, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jethro Tull and even Kansas. To date, we have never found a copy of his Who or Tull recordings. The non-Zeppelin masters are known to be in possession of Millard’s family. Hopefully, someday they will be shared again.

Tracklist:
Disc 1
01. The Song Remains The Same
02. Sick Again
03. Nobody's Fault But Mine
04. In My Time Of Dying
05. Since I've Been Loving You
06. No Quarter
07. Ten Years Gone

Disc 2
01. The Battle Of Evermore
02. Going To California
03. Mystery Train
04. Black Country Woman
05. Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
06. White Summer
07. Kashmir
08. Guitar Solo
09. Achilles Last Stand

Disc 3
01. Stairway To Heaven
02. Whole Lotta Love
03. Rock And Roll

Notes: Excellent audience recording. Mike Millard recording non bootleg source.
Quotes from "An illustrated exploration of Underground tapes" by Luis Rey:
-Nobody's fault but mine: During NFBM, Bonzo's always a few bars behind the group, resulting in a really new arrangement of the piece.
-Since I've been living you: A great version includes a dated and gloomy organ accompaniment.
The acoustic section is extended with a nice surprise: Mystery train. Page gets into a few riff of Dancing Days during the Stomp solo.
-Kashmir:An apparently "playful" Bonzo gives the impression of destroying it, always on the edge of a mistake, but finally delivers on of the best-ever performances of the piece.
-Achilles last stand: His erratic playing hits its peak as the end of ALS looses almost any cohesion.
-Stairway to heaven: Page gets into one of his memorable trips during the solo.

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comments always appreciated!