Customer Reviews

Led Zeppelin -- Complete: Piano/Vocal/Chords

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Don't buy this book. It's a ripoff and shouldn't be in print. The guitar tablature consists of the very basic rythm of the songs with nothing else. In most songs, the rythm is even incomplete. There's no lead at all. Pay the extra 38 bucks and get the I-V box set. You'll be glad you did. The saying "Don't judge a book by it's cover" definitely applies to this one.

There are several different editions of "Led Zeppelin Complete". I own the one with the white cover and blue clouds, which is basically a "piano/vocal" edition, so that's the version that I'm reviewing here. I bought it back in '89 when there seemed to be no other Led Zeppelin music books in the stores. The book covers all the songs from the first 5 albums, minus the cover tunes (Lemon Song, You Shook Me, Bring It On Home, I Can't Quit You Baby). Hardly "complete", but a lot.

All piano/vocal books of rock bands are essentially what are known as "fake books": they show the vocal melody, the chord progressions, and most of the music transcribed for piano, with the bass staff usually following what the bass guitar is doing, and the treble staff usually following what the guitar is doing. Little fills and solos are invariably left out. So for what it is -- a general transcription book -- the book does its job.

I would NOT recommend this book if you're a guitarist or bass player looking for transcribed parts. Again, this is essentally a fake book for piano. I'm sure there are other Led Zeppelin books better suited to your needs. Not to say that the book is _useless_ to guitarists. Under the chord names of each song are those handy guitar chord diagrams (the ones that look like a little grid, with dots for the figer positions). And on songs where Jimmy Page used alternate tunings, these exact tunings are described, with the chord diagrams redrawn appropriately.

The book has other information, but it's laid out for only certain tracks and in strange ways. There are some notes from band members on how they play certain parts. But this is only for a song or two. The entire lead guitar part to "Since I've Been Loving You" is transcribed, but in a strange version of tablature (written as a series of fractions, where the top number is the fret and the bottom number indicates which string -- very weird!) The Houses of the Holy album is mistitled "Led Zeppelin V". The songs are grouped by album, but the order within each group doesn't match the order as heard on the album nor even alphabetical order. Fortunately there's the table of contents.

I'm a bass player, and the book has been somewhat helpful to me for reference over the years. I also first learned how to play barre chords on a 6-string guitar by looking at the diagrams in this book. Besides currently playing bass in a band that does some Zep covers, I also sing back-up vocals and additionally picked up the mandolin. So I dug up this book from my shelves, and just seeing layout of the chord changes and their transcriptions, along with the lyrics, was exactly what I needed.

This book should be purchased by music readers only -- not tablature readers. Of all the songs listed, only Stairway contains both music and tablature.

Don't make the same mistake I did.

This book is probably geared towards a beginner. It condenses the layers of Page's guitars into one guitar. That means a lot is let out of this book. Pretty much all of the solos are left out. I ended up getting the Classic Led Zeppelin I-V Box Set, which is very detailed. I would only recommend this book to a beginner.

don't buy this peice of junk, its a waste of trees and your money. the tabs are all wrong, half of the music isn't there, and it was written like the guy tabbing it had to leave in 5 minutes. the worst thing is that is only puts selective parts of a song in there like, for example, black dog has the intro and the chorus but as for the solo......nowhere to be found. and here's the entire tab for 'when the levee breaks'---
low E---3-0-3-0-3-0

this is the worst tab book ever printed and is a disgrace to led zeppelin.

Led Zeppelin Complete contains forty songs from the first five albums *written* (book's emphasis) by Led Zeppelin. These include songs ranging from "Dazed and Confused" to "The Song Remains the Same." (And, of course, includes "Stairway to Heaven." :-)

Some of the songs have unusual tuning (e.g., Hats off to (Roy) Harper) and this is indicated. However, I'm not sure I agree how the chords match up with the music. For example, in Ramble On, the illustration shows E as 0-2-2-1-0-0, though the notation (and the music) clearly intend x-x-x-3-4-3. Perhaps this is an automation error.

Stairway to Heaven is presented very well, including showing the complex ("ooh, it makes me wonder...") strumming of D-sus4 -> D -> Am7, both in notation and tablature.

Overall, a worthy addition for the guitar aficionado. However, it'd be nice to see the follow-on with songs from their other records, especially: Kashmir, All of my Love, Hey Hey What Can I do and the bonus tracks.

I got this book when I was a beginner and I thought it was great. The songs looked so easy to play. One of my favorite songs, When The Levee Breaks, had only 3 notes in it (according to the book). I took it to my guitar teacher and every song I wanted to learn was wrong except for stairway to heaven. None of the solo's are in the book and many of the songs are tabbed so easily that they are wrong. It says that this book is for beginners and it is. If you are half-way descent at the guitar, don't buy this book.

Yeah, don't buy this book unless you can't play the guitar. If you have any sort of skill with the instrument you will be bored with the holes they leave in trascribing the songs. There's not a single solo (who wants Led Zeppelin without the guitar solos). In fact, instead of 3 stars I'm giving it 1, because you could find better tabs online for free.

I have been playing guitar for a couple of years, but would not consider myself an expert. What I would consider myself highly advanced on, though, is Led Zeppelin. I am beyond a fan and listen to them everyday, and if anything, I do know their music. This book does not know very much.

There are a small, select number of songs I find helpful and accurate, and there are only two or three ("Celebration Day" and maybe "The Rain Song") that I consider COMPLETE. It does indeed contain every song from Led Zeppelin I-V, transcribed with chords and vocals, but is often incorrect. The tuning for "That's the Way" is wrong. The tablature for "Over the Hills and Far Away" is entirely wrong, and does not provide rhythm chords or a solo for that particular song. "When the Levee breaks" is the MOST ATROCIOUS of them all, giving you only 4 or so chords, that, supposedly, the song contains. "Gallows Pole" is poor in the same way... and "Since I've been Loving You" has only 3 or so chords...VERY BAD...and NO SOLO...isn't that the quintessence of the song anyway?? EACH and every song is INCOMPLETE.

In addition, it seems that songs that are not so "complex" such as "Tangerine" and "Celebration Day" are the only songs with a complete solo. "Stairway to Heaven" does not have a solo transcribed, nor does any other song for that matter (except those two).

Over all, the book is fair, but if you really want to learn the song inside and out, you will be disappointed. If you have been playing guitar for a while, you can figure out anything that is already in this book. For beginners, it's all right for the basics of each song, but it quickly becomes obsolete when you become a better player. I would not recommend this product.

Remember, the three major things missing are:

1)rhythm chords (that should be there)
2)bridges and such
3)AND SOLOS!

This book is perhaps reliable for lyrics to the songs, but the spoken lyrics in "How Many More Times" are missing. I give it three stars because it is good for beginners.

This book does not come close to allowing the aspiring guitarist to learn the secrets of Jimmy Page's magic. It contains basic, ocassionally grossly incorrect approximations of what Page is playing on guitar. The tabs are lazy and inaccurate.

I would recommend the Led Zeppelin I - IV Alfred's Classic Album editions instead.