Original subtitles

Welcome to the making of KOD episode 2.

On the first installment, I analyzed the

circumstances that forced the band into

creating a postumous album. Today, we'll

explore the records editing and

compilation process in full. The making

of Kod took place at Soul Studios

England. Jimmy Page purchased the

property in the summer of 1980 and was

now ready to get his hands busy with Led

Zeppelin's ninth studio album. The

studio provided Paige with a key

contributor through British engineer

Stuart Eps. He had a long list of

credits including two key recordings

done at Soul Studios. Dutch band

Solution Jazz Rock with 1977's Fully

Interlocking and Elton John's A Single

Man released in 1978.

EPS had the necessary expertise. He knew

his way around the Soul's console and

room sound. Just what Jimmy Paige

needed. Fun fact, Steuart Eps worked on

one of my favorite albums, Kiki D's I've

Got the Music in Me. You can check my

documentary here on the channel. Jimmy

Page's gear at Soul Studios was all

about the Roland guitar and effects

army. This relationship began in late

1977 with the GR500, which ended up an

in through the Outdoors color palette

for Kyus Alamra. This guitar had

multiple configurations for massive

sustain, vibr, a sort of 8-bit

distortion, and much more. It was

basically a keyboard with strings. This

was Paige's way of keeping up with

Jonesy's Jamaha GX1 looking into the

future. But Jimmy didn't stop there and

expanded his guitar synthesizer arsenal

into a Roland G8 unit in a G202 in candy

apple red. A promotional shot at Soul

Studios captured Jimmy working out his

808 in matching blue jeans, blue shoes,

and blue pedal board. The rest of the

gear made Soul Studios a modern

environment for creativity. analog

modular synths like the Roland System

100M and 700, a sequencer, the MC8 micro

composer, a drum machine, the TR 808

rhythm composer, and the massive rolling

rack from which Jimmy chose the preamp,

stereo flanger, vocoder, and I mentioned

the chorus as his effects of choice.

Last but not least, Paige had the

futuristic design of the GR700 plus

media controller to dive deep into

endless possibilities. So, what about

the other Zeppelin survivors? Jumple

Jones enjoyed his private life away from

music headlines, while Robert Plan was

just a month away from beginning his

low-key Honey Drippers affair. Playing

1950s and 1960s cover tunes in selected

locations across the UK became the

working ground for what would soon

become his official solo career. Now,

Kota's mixing timeline is something of a

mystery as there's not that much

information on the exact dates. I watch

both Stuart Ep's interviews on YouTube,

and while he provides very valuable

insights on the process, I don't blame

him for not remembering the dates.

Robert kept himself busy with the Honey

Drippers project on and off April

through July. Jimmy went full page on

the Death Wish 2 soundtrack in August.

Then a month later, Plan went straight

to Rockfield Studios in Wales for

intense rehearsal and recording sessions

for pictures at 11. Paige, Plan, and

Jones reunited for a one-off charity

event at the Golden Pub on December

15th, 1981. It was close to ELP's

Manticor Studios, where Zeppelin

rehearsed back in late 1976. A strange

full circle and the world would have one

last Zeppelin album to enjoy.

1982.

>> By March 1982, Soul Studios was in full

force. Steuart Eps worked as producer

and engineer on three records. Wishbone

Ash's Twin Barrels Burning Plus

Vanderberg's debut and Bill Wyman's

third album,

>> Charles Bronson. Goodbye. One man will

death wish too. He's doing it for you.

>> Jimmy's Deathwish 2 came out in February

with Stuart Eps also credited for

engineering and mixing. Based on these

timelines, it's safe to think work on

KOD was resumed by then. The first

Leapin album to be mixed in the UK since

Physical Graffiti 1974. Pa's starting

point for the new album was not the

guitar, but a secret drum solo piece

neither Jones or Plan knew about. A

fascinating and exquisite anomaly in

their catalog. Bonso's Montro sessions

were held on September 12th, 1976 at

Mountain Studios, Switzerland. The

Zeppelin and their families were living

in tax exile there at the time. So this

track had already an extraordinary set

of conditions. A popular name in the

industry, Mountain Studios was the same

place for Yes. Did Going for the One,

Rick Wakeakeman's Criminal Record, NLP's

works one. Engineer John Temperly worked

with Paige in 76. His resume included,

yes, Going for the One, the Billy Cobb,

George Duke Band live on tour in Europe,

and Agura live in Montro. But it was

Temperly's previous work with military

brass ensembles, but proved to be the

perfect fit for Paige and Bonham's

vision of a massive drum orchestra

piece. These recordings managed to

capture the Big Bang effect in full

display.

meticulous studio notes were made to

build the final script for Bonso's

Montro. We can read a letterhead

Moonlight on the papers here as Soul

Studios used to be run by two previous

companies. One of them was Moonlight

Recordings. Page and Apps got the mixing

board ready. Up to 23 tracks were

assigned to John's kit. two channels for

bass drums, multiple ambience mics, and

a wide variety of percussion textures.

Symphonic Tony, congas, and timales. The

John Bond rhythm orchestra got some

additional treatments to an Evant Tide

harmonizer Paige bought midway through

1976. Speaking of which, Jimmy ran a

keyboard through this thing to create

the Caribbean steel drum effect we hear

in the closing section. With surgeons,

precision, every break, backward echoes

and effects were assembled into a

cohesive structure that only shows where

Jimmy sat in the upper echelons of music

producers.

Several takes were molded into a massive

yet musical drum statement. One wonders

just how emotional it was for Paige to

mix this, trying to mourn the

devastating absolute rock and roll

greatest drummer was gone. More than

just a song, a cathartic cry for love in

the name of a powerhouse legacy. The

most fitting postumous tribute to his

brilliance. No guitars, no bases, no

vocals, just percussive poetry, raw and

unfiltered. The kind of piece that only

truly reveals its weight and purpose

when played at loud volume. There is

much speculation as to the drum kit

Bonso used for this one. either the

amber vistellite, the black swirl

vistlite, the lvvic steel kit, or the

staccato kit he later used on

McCartney's Rockestra. I seriously

recommend you check out Mestra George

Frutes's take on this song on his

Bonmology channel to further expand the

magic behind this project. If we

carefully analyze the drum accents going

on here, it's clear Bonham had guitar

ears because his ideas almost mirror an

electric guitar riff. This 1976 session

later inspired Bonham's 1977 US tour

drum solo explorations as well as a

Latin percussion spotlight on In through

the Outdoors full in the rain. Oh yeah,

and the intro for In the Evening.

So, besides Bonso's Montro, what did

Jimmy have in the Zeppelin archives to

work with? First, let's keep in mind he

did not have the BBC tapes he used for

remasters 1990, nor the latter 2010s

reissues. He seemed to choose material

that could be properly remixed without

having to restore tapes beyond

reasonable time frames. A pragmatic

always, Jimmy Paige, the producer. So he

had one track from Zeppelin 1, two cuts

from Royal Outbur 1970, two songs from

the Zeppelin 3, one track from Houses,

and three songs from Inf for the

Outdoor. 1968's Sugar Mama was worked on

but discarded. Interesting to see tracks

15 and 16 assigned to backward drums and

a lot of ambience or room sound. Hey,

What Can I Do was put out as a b-side

single to immigrant song back in 1970,

so it's safe to think it didn't meet the

contractual agreement condition of

unreleased material. Seven tracks made

Final Cut for Kota, including Poor Tom

from the Delin 3. The drum kit here, the

Lid Green Sparkle, which many say was

Bonham's favorite kit. According to

Stuart Eps, they did something to it,

but he couldn't remember exactly what it

was. My gut feeling tells me they

applied some stereo expansion to the

drum track to beef it up at Lab Bonzo's

mantro. Now, one of the chosen tracks

was extra special. Robert Plan went to

Soul Studios to conduct a historic last

Le Zeppelin recording session to sing

1982 lyrics over an instrumental

outtake. The song was Walters Walk off

the 1972 Houses of the Holy Sessions.

What Robert laid down on tape at Soul

Studios were haunting verses that a

close examination lead to speculation on

Zeppelin's inevitable finale. Plan's

vocal style sounds very much in the vein

of feature single Burning Down one side.

You can further check the complete

breakdown of how Walter Walk's riff and

idea came to be on my making of series

episode 2. What we hear is Bonham's

green sparkle kit, but unlike houses,

the drum stereo image is wider,

something that seemed to be Cod's

parameter throughout. The big room sound

managed to integrate Robert's vocals

into a cohesive vibe despite being 10

years apart. The metallic sounding

rhythm elements here predate Guns and

Roses Sunset Strip style by many years.

Based on my Jimmy Page studies, I

believe many overdubs and league guitar

parts were done at Soul Studios with a

Roland Arsenal. Some cordal textures

around the 4-minute mark sound a lot

like Death Wish 2.

A bootleg holy grail for Zap fans.

Bonham's 1978 drum out takes from the in

through the outdoor sessions. The drum

kit here, Bonso's LVIC stainless steel.

Listening to this bootlick makes you

understand why Jimmy chose three

outtakes for release. Plus, there were

rumors of a 1979 EP that almost saw the

light of day in time for their net worth

shows. You can check my making of the

album series for further information on

these tracks. Now, the final versions on

KOD sound a bit different than the stuff

on their 1979 album. Guess what? Steuart

eps briefly mentioned that he mixed the

tracks at Soul Studios. While we don't

know exactly what he did, the vocals and

high hats sound brighter on Ozone Baby

and Darlene than the in through the

outdoor sound. Guitar-wise, these

feature Jimmy's Teleer throughout, yet

wearing and tearing feels different.

Paige's wall of sound overdrive sounds

closer to the Roland GR500, especially

on the open chords DNA. Unlike Ozone and

Arlene, drums are not up front, but

pushed back a bit to make room for the

fierce guitar layering. Although it's

hard to appreciate the bass, wearing

tearing is the leopan demolition unit

going against the critics who dare to

call them dinosaurs.

So, six tracks ready. Yet, Paige still

needed two more for an album's worth of

material. Because they couldn't

technically use live material, Studio

Magic was employed to match the

requirement and used two cuts from

Zeppelin's historic Royal Arbor Hall

1970 performance. The drum kit here,

Bonham's Levik Maple Thermogloss. Using

two songs from this show does raise the

obvious question if they could have

mixed the whole concert for a potential

release at some point in the8s. The 23

track recording sheet shows there was

much work put into it. We see several

channels for solos, harmonies, and

Roland synth guitar work. An EMS Cynthy

High-fly was used to create a robust

octave effect underneath a power chord

chorus section. It's easy to distinguish

the 1970 Marshall Highwood amp guitars

from the 1982 editions. The first track

on a Leeppelin record not credited to

any member but original songwriters

Benny King and James Beia. Engineer

Steuart Ep said he couldn't use the

ambience audience mics for I can quit

your baby because of audience noise. So

they went for an EMT digital reverb unit

for depth and that rehearsal feel.

Heat. Heat.

I need to die.

Was Kota ready for a market release, say

July 1982? No. And its state was pushed

back. Paige's deathwish soundtrack came

out in February. But the reason that

resonates the most is this one. Robert

Plan's solo career. You see, according

to Peter Grant's book, neither

Atlantic's VP Phil Carson nor him were

sure about Robert's new band and tried

to talk him out of it, which considering

Zeppelin's history 1977 through 1980 was

just a wrong thing to do. Things

escalated quickly and Robert was willing

to walk away from Swanong and Atlantic's

universe into another label. An

emergency peace treaty was worked out

with Amit Ertigan. Robert held his

ground. He was no longer the singer in

Le Zeppelin, but an entrepreneur who,

just like Paige back in 1968, wouldn't

follow the industry's playbook. And so

in June 1982, the same month as Chicago,

Survivor, Steve Miller, King Crimson,

and ABC, Pictures at 11 was released on

Swanong Records. It took many fans by

surprise, but industry insiders new plan

was eager to spread his wings with the

music almost one year in the making. He

played the Prince Trust Rock Gala in

July. Yet, he wouldn't embark on his

official solo band tour until almost a

year later. The Birmingham Evening Mail

talked about John Bonham's 20-year-old

sister Debbie, fronting local band Air

Crew. Movie theaters in both the UK and

America were still running called

following screenings of the song Remains

the same, but that was it. Kota had to

wait and then some more.

August 1982, Bad Company's Rough

Diamonds was released. The soundtrack to

a rough breakup, no longer Good Company,

but honoring their name. Unfortunately,

a nasty fist fight between two bandmates

sealed a deal and the group went their

shortly after. Swanson Record's second

most profitable name was gone. So, you

think Kota was ready for September.

Meanwhile, artwork duties were credited

to both Famous Crew Hypnosis and One

Assorted Images. While we know the first

group's long relationship with the band,

the second was a design company based in

central London. Their new wave and punk

credits points into Kod's art direction

of retro minimalism through solid

colors, empty spaces, and cut the chase

visuals. Early design sketches contain a

handful of ideas from geometric shapes

playing to 80s futuristic vibes to

stylized logos almost like a zeppelin

spaceship program or yes buffering into

90125. They slowly arrived at a defining

red line and structure to an almost

carton color background reminiscent of

inf the outdoors exterior paper bag.

Kota's back cover photo was set to an

image of desert circular farms you can

find in Africa and the Middle East. This

could be interpreted as both the band

coming to a full circle and the idea of

movement back to the concept of Jean

Bonum's drumming, a state of flow,

forever in motion, timeless artistry.

The circular forms could have influenced

Kota's type face, four letters separated

by a long line with the band's new8s

logo sitting beneath it. Online theories

say you can put the cover upside down

and see a cross, but I honestly don't

see it. Do you? The green type face was

a refreshing and subtle choice to

conclude Zeppelin's studio journey.

Looking at records released in 1981 and

1982, I found additional sources of

inspiration such as Foreigner Toto,

British Alcatraz, Distraits, New Age,

Steppers, Status Quo, Bounty, Maya, The

Undertones, Alan Man Band, New Order,

and yeah, Foreigner. But the biggest

inspiration came from the Beatles

Rarities, released in March 1980, as it

inspired Kota's gatefold to the tea. The

Fab 4's images allowed the listener to

immerse themselves in music history,

plus the infamous butcher shot as a

weird bonus. So, as you can see, Kota

took Q from here. Now, let me break down

every photo on Kota's gatefold.

Early days and latter days were set to

center shots of Bath Festival 1970 and

July 1979 at Dworth, almost a month

before Showtime. With this in place,

they went through the archives

accordingly. Melody Maker Award,

September 1975. Strangely enough, it

seems Jimmy's daughter Scarlet was

removed from the original photograph.

Holland, 1969, which was the same show

that the upcoming physical media release

of Becoming Leepplain is set to include

as bonus material. Robert Plan at Swan

Song's UK party 1974. The Band at Montro

October 1972. Rehearsals at Manticor

Studios November 1976. Opening night

Oklahoma 1977. Jones at Bath Festival

1970. Robert at Music Echo's Valentine

Awards February 1971. Germany 1970 with

British rock journalist Chris Welch. Cut

out Joe on circa March 1971. Most likely

Belfast Paige on May 1974 during the US

trip where Robert and Jimmy went to an

Elvis Presley show. Paige once again

this time a March 1976 interview. Bonham

Bath Festival 1970. Robert circa 1976.

Paige implant circa 1975. Jason and his

dad circa 1975 maybe 1976. Backstage at

Neporth yet Jimmy was cut out. The

famous yellow paper photo shoot November

1971. The song remains the same. US

premiere October 21st 1976. Another one

from October this time leaving Japan

1972. Paige playing cricket September

1974. The band at the last portion of

the romantic studio rehearsals January

1977. Paige at Swanong offices July 20th

1979. Robert Plan at Wembley's Empire

Pool November 5th 1978. John Bonham

Swansong offices 1974. Jumple Jones

backstage networth 1979. Paige arriving

at Networth 1979. Page Plan and Bonum

Indianapolis January 25th 1975.

Backstage Bonso on the All Right Now TV

show March 4th, 1980. Joan circa 1974

and John Bonham Swanong offices 1974. On

the next episode, the finale of the KOD

series, we follow the album into the

real world, the marketing confusion, the

critical divide, the chart rise and

collapse, and how decades later, Jimmy

Page rebuilt Kota into something far

greater than its 1982 debut.