[share_ebook] All Over But The Shoutin’ Rick Bragg

The second wave of reissues in Led Zeppelin‘s overhaul of their classic catalog pretty much follows the path set by the first: remastered versions of the original albums on one disc, and alternate takes and mixes (along with the occasional rare cut) on the other. The band’s self-titled 1969 debut included live tracks, but all of the others so far — including the new ‘IV’ and ‘Houses of the Holy’ — have basically replicated the original LPs with different versions of the same songs. That doesn’t give fans looking for more obscure Zeppelin tracks much to reach for, but Led Zeppelin weren’t ones to waste much. During the decade in which they recorded their eight albums, very few songs were left unreleased. Only one B-side — 1970's ‘Immigrant Song’ flip, ‘Hey Hey What Can I Do’ — even surfaced during their run. So don’t expect to hear any recently unearthed gems on the remastered deluxe editions of 1971's ’IV’ and 1973's ’Houses of the Holy.’

John Fogerty is many things, but predictable is not one of them. His solo career has proceeded in fits and starts, with waits as long as a decade separating solo albums, and when the records did arrive, they could be as brilliant as Centerfield or as bewilderingly misdirected as Eye of the Zombie. There was no telling what a new Fogerty record would bring, but perhaps the strangest thing about his sixth studio album, 2004's Deja Vu All Over Again, is that it's the closest thing to an average, by-the-books John Fogerty album that he's released in his solo career. Unlike its immediate predecessor, the Southern-obsessed Blue Moon Swamp, there is no unifying lyrical or musical theme, nor was it released with the comeback fanfare of that 1997 affair.