It's hard to find fault with "Celebration Day", Dick Carruthers's document of Led Zeppelin's reunion concert on December 10, 2007. Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham play just about every song you'd expect to hear (unless you were counting on a selection from Zep's final studio album "In Through the Out Door"), from 'Stairway to Heaven' to 'Whole Lotta Love', and even manage a deft first-time live rendition of 'For Your Life'. There are a few shaky moments but, to the band's credit, these were not corrected with overdubs; for the majority of the two-hour show, everybody's in top form. By the time they launch into 'Kashmir', Led Zeppelin are firing on all cylinders, and the grandeur of their performance is such that the 27 years which had elapsed between the group's last full-length concert and this one simply evaporate. It's a stunning moment to witness, even for those of us who weren't there in person. My only beef with "Celebration Day" is that the bass guitar is often buried in the mix: John Paul Jones's doomy intro on 'Dazed and Confused' sounds like it's coming from miles away. Jones, and the song, deserve better.
Review of Led Zeppelin: Celebration Day
