50 Years Ago: A Led Zeppelin Soundtrack Captures '70s Spectacle

Led Zeppelin's thrillingly outsized soundtrack for Song Remains the Same didn't suffer from the film's momentum-stealing dream sequences, but the album still had its own problems. Namely, the head-scratching exclusion of some key cuts from the movie, and the lingering sense that Led Zeppelin hadn't lived up to the moment.

Ironically, The Song Remains the Same was recorded over three nights in July 1973 at Madison Square Garden as Led Zeppelin was peaking commercially.In time, it's become something of a representational touchstone for an era of rock excess unseen before or since – a testament to sheer spectacle. But these New York City shows represented the last on a lengthy tour, and the group seemed worse for wear at times.

As a result, Jimmy Page always saw the project as more average than career-defining. "Well, it's not a terribly good night and it's not terribly bad," he told Creem in 1977. "Certainly not a magic one, but not ... tragic."

How Tragedy Impacted Led Zeppelin's 'Song Remains the Same'

Unfortunately, by the time The Song Remains the Same arrived on store shelves three years later on Oct. 22, 1976, things had actually turned toward the tragic. In 1975, Robert Plant's car plunged off a cliff on the Greek island of Rhodes, leaving both the singer and his wife badly injured.

For about a year and a half, it was unclear whether Plant would ever walk again – leaving him to do sessions work for their next studio effort while in a wheelchair. Led Zeppelin's time off the road would stretch toward two years.

Listen to Led Zeppelin's 'Dazed and Confused'

In the meantime, they released The Song Remains the Same to fill the void – even though just seven months had passed since 1976's Presence. The film was a box-office hit, reportedly grossing some $10 million in 1977, and its best-selling soundtrack stood as Led Zeppelin's lone live document for years.

Critics weren't always very kind – including members of the band. "It was not a great film," Page admitted in 1976, "but there's no point in making excuses. It's just a reasonably honest statement of where we were at that particular time."

Plant went even further, calling The Song Remains the Same "a load of bollocks." The reasons, back then, were many.

Why Jimmy Page Criticized 'Song Remains the Same'

Leaving aside the movie's head-scratching non-musical interludes, Led Zeppelin was widely accused of yielding to bloated ego. "Dazed and Confused" yawned to a half hour in length, while four other tracks were more than 10 minutes long. "On 'Song Remains the Same,'" Page once told Cameron Crowe, "you can hear the urgency and not much else."

He later pointed to a pre-show backstage robbery as one notable distraction. Others criticized the post-production editing process for both the film and album. After all, the original soundtrack included "Celebration Day," but not "Black Dog" – while, in the film, the opposite was true. "Since I've Been Loving You" and "Bron-Yr-Aur" were also left off the vinyl edition, while others were featured using different takes.

Watch Led Zeppelin Perform 'No Quarter'

Fast forward to 2007 and an expanded reissue – bolstered with new liner notes by Crowe – added back six songs. By then, however, it seemed the public's idea of this as a failed project was set in stone. Certainly, Page spent years ruminating on it. After all, but for an extended touring lull, things might have gone another way for Led Zeppelin.

He's said he felt boxed in by looming deadlines, the limitations of making a companion film and the need for product. As far back as the late '70s, Page had plans to produce a more linear concert recording – though that didn't finally take shape until 2003's How the West Was Won.

The Lasting Legacy of 'Song Remains the Same'

Still, there was no denying the eye-popping grandeur of The Song Remains the Same at its bow-fiddling best, as Led Zeppelin took their music to its absolute zenith. For all of its warts, there may not be a better document of the larger-than-life arena-rock era. They found new depths in moments like "No Quarter," too.

Led Zeppelin's soundtrack from 'Song Remains the Same' topped the U.K. charts, while becoming a four-times-platinum No. 2 smash in the U.S. Yet Page still wonders what might have been.

READ MORE: Ranking All 92 Led Zeppelin Songs

"It was a shame," Page told Trouser Press. "After Robert's accident, we were forced to tie it all up. We'd done work with it already and it had to come out. It was recorded across three nights but, in fact, the music for the footage mainly came from the first night. It was the best vocal performance ... but they just didn't have complete footage."

That left the band to "come up with the fantasy sequences to fill it up," Page added. "Had we been a band that's the same every night, it would have been very easy for them to link one night's performance with another. As far as live albums go, most groups will record over half a dozen nights and take the best of that – but as it was a visual, we couldn't do that."

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