Yardbords/Live Performance Chronicle 1964-1968

The Yardbirds debuted in the early 1960s, and have been going along with the history of rock music since it left its early days. As the members of The Yardbirds stepped into the next stage of their simple and clear rock music, they explored various musical styles such as blues, folk rock, pop music, and even psychedelic music to pave the way for the times. Just as the Beatles changed their musical style from rock and roll to Sgt. White and Abbey Road, The Yardbirds also changed themselves and forged ahead on a path that no one had preceded them. The change in musical style led to frequent changes in guitarists and other members, which in turn led to further changes in musical style. In the early days of the band, vocalist Keith Relf was the center and they mainly played R&B covers on stage, but when Eric Clapton joined, the band transformed into a professional band in an instant. [Eric Clapton Period 1963-1965] After Clapton joined the band, the band released their first album, "Five Live Yardbirds." The fact that it was their first live album shows the true essence of the band. The Tigers were also influenced by this, and their first album was also a live album ("On Stage"). Their unique style of playing long bluesy numbers on stage was not well received by the audience, as it was a time when the Beatles and the Stones were playing 30-minute performances with songs of about 2 minutes each. Manager Giorgio Gomelsky was craving a more catchy hit song to promote the band, and asked the band members to write a melodic and pop number. The result was "For Your Love." The title sounds sweet and "targeted," but it certainly became the band's first hit song and achieved commercial success. However, although they had a hit song, Clapton, who was interested in exploring the blues, was disappointed with such songs, even though it was for sales, and as a result, he left the band. The CD of this work first includes a performance from the Clapton period at the Marquee Club on March 20, 1964. This was recorded from the unedited source of "Five Live Yardbirds", and the opening is long and the sound before the extra reverberation was added makes the performance sound clearer. The host carefully introduces each member one by one, and the lead guitarist is introduced as "Eric "Slowhand" Clapton", which is particularly eye-catching. The song is "Too Much Monkey Business". The performance falls into the category of oldies, and there is no scene where "Slowhand" plays an active role, but the up-tempo arrangement gives a strong sense of "momentum" that breaks through all at once. Next is "I Wish You Would" from a live performance in Manchester on July 22, 1964. It is a rock and roll performance with an impressive herb sound by Keith Relf. Keith is not highly regarded as a vocalist, but his skillful playing of Herb is particularly noteworthy. The DVD of this work contains a rare first appearance video of this era. It is a TV show called "TELL IT ON MOUNTAIN" on July 22, 1964. In "Louise," a number with a strong blues color that Clapton desires, you can see him playing the guitar in a good mood. While standing in the same posture as now, he plays impressive phrases one after another while leaning forward and swaying his body. This is a video of young Clapton in his early days. The second song is "I Wish I Would." In the video, you can see Keith taking turns with Herb and singing. Clapton closes his mouth, faces forward, and plays lightly as if to say, "I can play this kind of song easily." It is moving to see Clapton standing while playing the guitar, which is so Clapton-like. In the part in the latter half of the song where the tempo increases, he leans forward and strums the guitar. [Jeff Beck Period 1965-1966] Jimmy Page was initially chosen to replace Clapton after his departure. However, he was already extremely busy as a session guitarist at the time, and he refused to join, so Jeff Beck was recommended instead. In contrast to Clapton, who was exploring the blues, Beck was interested in all kinds of playing styles and genres, and he quickly became accustomed to the band. This was probably the period when The Yardbirds shone brightest, with Beck, who could play a wide range of songs from pop numbers such as "For Your Love" and "Heart Full Of Soul" to hard rock. The performances from this period on this CD include "READY STEADY GO". The wonderful "The Train Kept A Rolling" seems to have been made possible by the shift to a pop and hard line with the addition of Beck. It is a performance that is typical of Beck, different from the performances by Jimmy Page in later years, and it would be fun to compare the two, including the guitar solo in the interlude. "I'm A Man" still has a hint of blues, and Keith's harmonica is used extensively in the arrangement. The other is two songs from the Italian program SANREMO FESTIVAL. First, there is an exchange with the host, and then they play two songs, "Questa Bolta" and "Paff...Pum". For better or worse, these two songs give a glimpse of the Yardbirds' flexible attitude towards music, and you can see that they play in a relaxed pop style. Beck's guitar solo has an almost Hawaiian feel. The DVD of this work contains two types of footage from the Beck period. First, four songs from the 1965 TV show "SHINDIG". The black suit and tie are the typical style of many group sounds of that era. Beck's guitar playing is very prominent, and you can see that the camera is shooting Beck relatively often. Melodious songs with beautiful chorus work, it was a change that seemed to wipe out the blues color of the past, and only Keith's harmonica remains. However, "I'm A Man" is special, and Beck's tricky playing style and the sound that people of that era would never have seen are the highlights. Next are two songs from the Paul Winners Concert at the New Musical Express on May 1, 1965. This is not a TV show, but a live concert with an audience in an arena. Two songs, "The Train Kept A Rolling" and "Shapes Of Things". Here too, Beck's playing stands out among the band. [Jeff Beck & Jimmy Page Period 1966] For a short period of time, Beck and Jimmy Page were bandmates at the same time. It all started when bassist Paul Samuel Smith left the band to fill the vacancy. Yes, Page originally joined as a bassist. What's more, it's surprising that Page had no experience as a bassist even though he joined the band. It was only natural that Chris Dreya, who had been playing guitar up until then, was immediately converted to bass and Page took over as guitarist. While Chris Dreya played the so-called rhythm guitar part, Page suggested a new direction for the band as a lead guitarist alongside Beck. Although it was a short period, the Yardbirds in 1966 was a rare era in which Beck and Page played twin leads in the same band. The DVD of this work contains footage of the two of them standing on the same stage. This is footage from the Province Rock Festival in France on June 27, 1966. Young Beck and Page performed together in matching white suits. With Page's addition, the stage suddenly became more glamorous. There are some exaggerated actions that are reminiscent of Zeppelin, which will be deeply moving for Zeppelin fans. They played three songs, "The Train Kept A Rolling", "Shapes Of Things" and "Over Under Sideways Down", but the stage configuration and the nature of the songs meant that there was little freedom in the performance, and they had to follow a certain formula to a certain extent, and Page clearly looked cramped. Perhaps as a reaction to this, we can see the seeds of freestyle rock blooming in the 1970s from this performance. Also recorded from the same period is "Happening's Ten Years Time Ago" from the TV show "THE MILTON BERLE SHOW" on October 26, 1966. The footage is innovative, with psychedelic image processing that reflects the coming era, and it's a shame that it's not in color. The melody is somewhat psychedelic, and Page and Beck line up on the left side and overlap each other with guitar solos. [Jimmy Page period 1966-1968] From this time on, the emotional discord between Beck and the other members became more noticeable. Beck sometimes participated in recordings and on stage, and sometimes he didn't. Although the official reason was to get treatment for his tonsils, the emotional conflict had worsened to the point where it could not be fixed, and Beck finally left the band. A replacement guitarist was considered, but Jimmy thought that he could do the guitar alone based on his previous experience, and the band started again as a four-piece Yardbirds. The band's musicality evolved further, but this was mainly due to Page's experience as a session musician. Around this time, the manager was changed to Peter Grant. The major flow of history is inevitably connected to the history that followed. While the early period, the Clapton period, the Beck period, and the Beck & Page period were all short-lived, the Page period was relatively long, and gradually the leadership of the band was handed over to Page. The CD of this work contains seven songs from the live performance at the Province Rock Festival in France on July 22, 1967, which is also recorded in the video described below. It also contains one song, "Smile On Me," from the live performance in Santa Monica on August 22, 1967. And finally, there are studio outtakes from the Page era. Only "Think About It" is from 1967, the others are studio outtakes from 1968. If you listen to the last song, "Knowing That I'm Losing You," you will know that it is the original song that was later released as "Tangerine." Although the intro and melody are almost the same, the lyrics are completely different, even the lyrics of the chorus "Tangerine ♪" are different, so it seems like a parody. However, this track shows that the melody of "Tangerine" was almost complete as of 1968. Next is the DVD of this work. Because it is a new era and the band was active for a long time, there is a wealth of material left on the Yardbirds' footage from the Page era compared to other periods. First, it is an appearance on the German TV show "BEAT BEAT BEAT" on March 15, 1967. Each member wore a colorful costume and performed four songs. Page's brilliant guitar playing clearly adds depth to the band, and the guitar-based sound is a departure from the band's previous oldies-like musical style. Page delivers an impressive solo, and the 67This performance, which was ahead of its time in that year, was a cutting-edge performance not seen in other bands of the same period. On July 22, 1967, they appeared at the Province Rock Festival in France, as they had done the previous year. A microphone was set up in front of Page, and he was seen adding his own chorus. It is interesting that they covered Dylan's "Go My Way." "THREE'S A CROWD" is a television interview from 1967, in which the four of them answer questions lined up outside in the sunlight, not in a studio. During the Zeppelin era, Page gave the impression of being taciturn, rarely speaking his voice, but here it is interesting to see him speak so eloquently. Next is a video of their appearance on a French television show on March 9, 1968. Page is positioned in the center of the stage, and vocalist Keith is positioned on the far left. This clearly shows who the band's leadership and musical main will be. The first song is "The Train Kept A Rolling." For those who know the later Zeppelin era, Keith's vocals are clearly lacking in ability, which becomes even clearer in the following song, "Dazed and Confused." Keith left the band at the end of that year, probably because he realized that he could not keep up with the music that Page was creating. The last video is a video of the performance at Anderson Theater in New York on March 30, 1968. This performance is famous as "LIVE YARDBIRDS," and this is the first video of that performance. Although it was originally a silent film, the sound of the day is perfectly synchronized. Moreover, it is one of the highlights of this work because it is a rare color video. [BIRDS OF A FEATHER] This work is a set that includes rare audio and video footage of the Yardbirds from 1963 to 1968, recorded chronologically for the first time. In particular, the video of the early days of Clapton's time is released for the first time, making it a must-see for enthusiasts. At the end of 1968, all the original members, including Keith, left the band, but Page and manager Peter Grant tried to continue the band and recruited new members for The Yardbirds. The new members were John Paul Jones, Robert Plant, and John Bonham. Since all the original members had left and the band had essentially become a different band, and the music associated with the name The Yardbirds was already recognized as old by the public at that time, the band went through a period of calling itself the New Yardbirds, and then moved on to a new band name, LED ZEPPELIN. The rest of the story is well known. The Yardbirds, who had left a significant mark on rock history along with the times, drew a close on their history when they changed their name to LED ZEPPELIN. However, it was not a breakup, but a developmental closure, and at the same time, it was the beginning of a new band. LED ZEPPELIN was not born suddenly one day, but inevitably came out to the world after going through such changes, and the Yardbirds played a prehistoric role. This set allows you to enjoy the chronological history of how the band's musical style changed over time from the early 1960s onwards, adapting to the times. AUDIO DISC MARQUEE CLUB, LONDON March 20, 1964 01. Too Much Monkey Business TWISTED WHEEL, MANCHESTER July 22, 1964 02. I Wish You Would READY STEADY GO 1965 03. The Train Kept A Rolling 04. I’m A Man SANREMO FESTIVAL January 1, 1966 05. introduction 06. Questa Volta 07. Paff...Pum PROVINS ROCK FESTIVAL July 22, 1967 08. Shapes Of Things 09. The Train Kept A Rolling 10. Mr. You're A Better Man Than I 11. Heartful Of Soul 12. My Baby 13. Most Likely You'll Go Your Way 14. Over Under Sideways Down SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA August 22, 1967 15. Smile On Me STUDIO OUTTAKES 1967-1968 16. Think About It 17. Avron Knows 18. Takes A Hold On Me 19. Spanish Blood 20. My Baby 21. Think About It 22. Knowing That I’m Losing You DVD DISC [ERIC CLAPTON era] TELL IT ON MOUNTAIN July 22, 1964 01. Louise 02. I Wish You Would [JEFF BECK era] “SHINDIG” 1965 03. For Your Love 04. Heartful Of Soul 05. I Wish You Would 06. I'm A Man NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS POLL WINNER’S CONCERT May 1, 1966 07. The Train Kept A Rolling 08. Shapes Of Things [JEFF BECK & JIMMY PAGE era] PROVINS ROCK FESTIVAL June 27, 1966 09. The Train Kept A Rolling 10. Shapes Of Things 11. Over Under Sideways Down THE MILTON BERLE SHOW October 25, 1966 12. Happenings Ten Years Time Ago 【JIMMY PAGE era】 BEAT BEAT BEAT March 15, 1967 13. Shapes Of Things 14. Happenings Ten Years Time Ago 15. interview 16. Over Under Sideways Down 17. I'm A Man PROVINS ROCK FESTIVAL July 22, 1967 18. Shapes Of Things 19. The Train Kept A Rolling 20. Mr. You're A Better Man Than I 21. Heartful Of Soul 22. My Baby 23. Most Likely You'll Go Your Way 24. Over Under Sideways Down THREE'S A CROWD 1967 25. Interview BOUTON ROUGE March 9, 1968 26. The Train Kept A Rolling 27. Dazed And Confused 28. Goodnight Sweet Josephine ANDERSON THEATER NEW YORK March 30, 1968 29. Mr. You're A Better Man Than I 30. Heartful Of Soul 31. Over Under Sideways Down