Live with Led Zeppelin

I've not mentioned this to many people but I appear on a Led Zeppelin CD.

The 2nd CD in the BBC Sessions compilation was recorded at the compact 200 seater Paris Theatre in London's Lower Regent Street for "In Concert" on 1st April 1971. I was in the audience to hear John Peel introduce the band before they launched into "Immigrant Song".

Not broadcast nor on the CD 3 minutes and 20 seconds later was the audience reaction which could at best be described as a light ripple of applause.

Decidedly unhappy with this response, Robert Plant asked us what our problem was. In fact, he may well have put it more forcefully than that. The answer shouted back was that the music was so loud that we couldn't actually hear it as a song.

The engineers then toned it down and a jolly good time was had by all. But in terms of loudness, this first number was without doubt painful. Never heard anything as loud in my life and don't want to ever again.

Of course, once recorded and edited, the broadcast sounded perfect. Today it is all the more enjoyable because there I am, close witness to a cracking concert.

How good was it? At the time I often used the phrase "Aural orgasm". True enough then. Still is.