BIRDCAGE RECORDS

This rare double CD set chronicles the height of Dread Zeppelin's extensive touring years. 18 tracks of raw Dread Zeppelin live recordings will have you doing the claw wherever you are!

"Whole Lotta Love (Live)"
"Heartbreaker (Live)"
"Rock'N'Roll Medley (Live)"

"Gadies and Lentilmen," beckons Tortelvis, the Man Who Would Be King, "My name is Wayne Newton ..." and this is Rock'n'Roll Babylon cum Hollywood Babylon by Bus.
Teasing the chix in a real come-on safari suit, sourpuss Charlie Haj, water and towel roadie to the Star, eases a lovely paradise-island lei over Tort's black mountainside 'do and on to the Great Man's shoulders, and Dread Zeppelin are already into Black Dog. Yet this isn't the fat wowing, big hippy-dipper of Four Symbols. This is the Sun King rock-a-doodle butt-fryin' milkcow boogie with a kung-fu kickin' ham reminiscent of new age Sun King Howlin' Wolf Child Percy -Hot Damn! Ooh, mercy ma'am.
DZ are gelling natty-dread. Another garland nestles on Tort's double chin as he stutters, "Uh¬hey hey mama," and guitarists Mr Jah Paul Jo, the Prince of Peace and Love, and Mr Carl Jah, the Prince of Polyester, pull that magickal mamma-jamma riff inno and outto a dub haze. Then the riff sits up and plays Hound Dog, and Tort is Elvis.
Charlie sponges the perspiration from Tort's rug¬like sideburns and milk-white angel face, as the singer momentarily removes his heavy steel shades. Tort surveys the starstruck crowd. " It sure feels good to be back in Hawaii." Heartbreaker is the ultimate Presley/Zeppelin amalgam, and Carl Jah ("One of the top, uh, five hundred million guitarists in the Richmond, Virginia, area," claims Tort) is its star. Clearly, Jimmy Page was just warming up the song for Jah's hammer of the gods.
On Whole Lotta Love, bassist Butt-Mon (in scrote-tight swimming trunks and crash helmet) Russian-dances and then holds aloft The Baby Chaydis (tied to his bass as a counter-balance) as Tort introduces the mite to the audience. The Baby Choydis cries and is spun over Bult-Mon's head. (Note: It's a god-damn doll, as Tort later admits).
"Y'know," pauses Tort, "that's some sick shit! We wrote this song ... in fact, we wrote all of these songs!"
Rock And Roll, dread heavy, splutters to a slop and Tortelvis drops to his knees. He is then helped up and guided lo the drum-kit by Charlie for Moby Dick.
Tort dedicates Immigrant Song to Burger King Whoppas and sings it like Johnny Weissmuller's Tarzan, then shares lead vocals with congamon Ed Zeppelin on Stairway To Heaven, which is so unbelievably brilliant, you wouldn't believe it. They end with My Way, Tort's "beautiful singing voice" so beautiful, people instantly weep. No, Led Zeppelin weren't bad, but clearly they were just warming up them tunes for Dread Zeppelin.
-PAUL ELLIOT Sounds UK