Album · Compilation
BBC Sessions
BBC Sessions gathers Led Zeppelin's work for the BBC across two spells. The first disc draws on four sessions from 1969, the band's debut year. The second captures most of their concert at the Paris Theatre in London on 1 April 1971. Atlantic issued it in November 1997, and a limited run added a third disc of interviews from 1969, 1976/1977 and 1990.
Fans had been trading bootlegs of these recordings for years, so an official release was welcome, and it was the first live Led Zeppelin album since The Song Remains the Same in 1976. Some listeners disliked the edits and omissions, including the unreleased "Sunshine Woman" session and about seven minutes of the 1971 "Whole Lotta Love" medley. A fuller version, The Complete BBC Sessions, followed in September 2016.
BBC Sessions: tracklist, credits and charts
24 tracks · 2:33:04Tracklist
- Disc 1
- 1You Shook MeWillie Dixon and J.B. Lenoir5:15
- 2I Can’t Quit You BabyWillie Dixon and Muddy Waters4:24
- 3Communication BreakdownBonham, Jones, Page, Plant, Gordon, Johnson3:13
- 4Dazed and ConfusedJimmy Page and Jake Holmes6:42
- 5The Girl I Love She Got Long Black Wavy HairBonham, Dixon, Estes, Johnson, Jones, Page, Plant3:03
- 6What Is and What Should Never BeJimmy Page and Robert Plant4:21
- 7Communication BreakdownBonham, Jones, Page, Plant2:41
- 8Travelling Riverside BluesJohnson, Page, Plant5:12
- 9Whole Lotta LoveDixon, Bonham, Jones, Page, Plant6:13
- 10Somethin’ ElseCochran, Cochran, Sheeley2:08
- 11Communication BreakdownBonham, Jones, Page, Plant3:05
- 12I Can’t Quit You BabyWillie Dixon6:21
- 13You Shook MeWillie Dixon and J.B. Lenoir10:19
- 14How Many More TimesBonham, Jones, Page, Plant11:51
- Disc 2
- 1Immigrant SongJimmy Page and Robert Plant3:20
- 2HeartbreakerBonham, Jones, Page, Plant5:16
- 3Since I’ve Been Loving YouJones, Page, Plant6:56
- 4Black DogJones, Page, Plant5:18
- 5Dazed and ConfusedJimmy Page and Jake Holmes18:37
- 6Stairway to HeavenJimmy Page and Robert Plant8:50
- 7Going to CaliforniaJimmy Page and Robert Plant3:54
- 8That’s the WayJimmy Page and Robert Plant5:43
- 9Whole Lotta Love (medley)Pomus, Shuman, Hooker, Besman, White, Crudup, Dixon, Bonham, Jones, Page, Plant13:45
- 10Thank YouJimmy Page and Robert Plant6:37
- Produced by
- Bernie Andrews, Paul Williams, John Walters, Jimmy Page, Jeff Griffin
- Recorded at
- Playhouse Theatre
- Recorded
- March & June 1969, 1 April 1971, London, England, UK
- Engineered by
- Bob Conduct, Pete Ritzema, Tony Wilson, Drew Griffiths
- Label
- Atlantic
- Length
- 2:33:04
Line-up
- John Bonham · drums (drum set), membranophone, tambourine
- John Paul Jones · Hammond organ, bass guitar, electric bass guitar, upright piano, synthesizer, bass pedals, mandolin
- Jimmy Page · guitar, electric guitar, theremin, acoustic guitar
- Robert Plant · harmonica, lead vocals
- John Peel · spoken vocals · guest
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 2016 | 3 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1997 | 12 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 2016 | 3 |
| Scottish Albums · 2016 | 6 |
| German Albums · 2016 | 7 |
| Hungarian Albums · 2016 | 11 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2016 | 12 |
| Italian Albums · 2016 | 14 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2016 | 15 |
| Portuguese Albums · 2016 | 18 |
All 24 charts
| Swiss Albums · 2016 | 18 |
| New Zealand Albums · 2016 | 21 |
| Italian Albums (Musica e Dischi) · 1997 | 24 |
| Finnish Albums · 1997 | 28 |
| Spanish Albums · 2016 | 28 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1997 | 30 |
| Austrian Albums · 2016 | 32 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard) · 2016 | 32 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2016 | 34 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1997 | 36 |
| French Albums · 1997 | 38 |
| Dutch Albums · 2016 | 41 |
| Swedish Albums · 1997 | 50 |
| Irish Albums · 2016 | 93 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Japan · 1997 | Gold |
| United Kingdom · 2013 | Gold |
| United States | 2× Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
42.2
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
44
ListenBrainz listeners
36k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
—
Deezer fans (all editions)
← The Complete Studio Recordings (1993)Early Days & Latter Days: The Best of Led Zeppelin, Volumes One and Two (1999) →
Released the same week
Also released on 17 November
Every year →
More from Led Zeppelin
Full discography →
Led Zeppelin
1969
Led Zeppelin II
1969
Whole Lotta Love
1970
Led Zeppelin III
1970
This Is Led Zeppelin
1971
![[Led Zeppelin IV] by Led Zeppelin, album cover](/img/2e61da88-39e9-3473-81d2-c964cb394952/300)
[Led Zeppelin IV]
1971
Acoustically
1972
Houses of the Holy
1973
Physical Graffiti
1975
Presence
1976
The Song Remains the Same
1976
In Through the Out Door
1979
Coda
1982
Remasters
1990
Led Zeppelin
1990
Boxed Set 2
1993
The Complete Studio Recordings
1993
Early Days & Latter Days: The Best of Led Zeppelin, Volumes One and Two
1999
How the West Was Won
2003
Mothership
2007
Definitive Collection
2008
Celebration Day
2012
Live EP
2025
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More on Atlantic
The label →[Led Zeppelin IV]
Led Zeppelin · 1971
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Led Zeppelin · 1969
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin · 1969
Led Zeppelin III
Led Zeppelin · 1970
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Led Zeppelin · 1975
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Led Zeppelin · 1973
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
AC/DC · 1976
Whole Lotta Love
Led Zeppelin · 1970
Acoustically
Led Zeppelin · 1972
Let There Be Rock
AC/DC · 1977
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 1997-11-17; musicbrainz + wikidata 1997-11-11 (6 days apart, likely another territory)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 11 November 1997 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 17 November 1997 | |
| Wikidata | 11 November 1997 | |
| US release | 11 November 1997 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 11 November 1997 | earliest UK or European date |
18 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | CA | Atlantic | other | |
| 1997 | CA | Atlantic | 075678306129 | other |
| 1997 | US | Atlantic | 075678306129 | other |
| 1997 | AU | Atlantic | 075678306129 | other |
| November 1997 | US | Atlantic | 075678307423 | other |
| November 1997 | US | Atlantic | 075678307423 | other |
| 11 November 1997 | GB | Atlantic | 075678306129 | original |
| 11 November 1997 | US | Atlantic | 075678306129 | original |
| 11 November 1997 | US | — | 075678306129 | original |
| 15 November 1997 | JP | Atlantic | 4988029240149 | other |
| 15 November 1997 | JP | Atlantic | 4988029245243 | other |
| 16 September 2016 | US | Atlantic | 081227943882 | deluxe |
| 16 September 2016 | XW | Rhino Atlantic | 603497872473 | other |
| 16 September 2016 | US | Atlantic | 081227943899 | deluxe |
| 16 September 2016 | XW | Rhino Atlantic | 603497872480 | other |
| 16 September 2016 | XW | Rhino Atlantic | 603497872466 | other |
| 16 September 2016 | XE | Atlantic | 081227943905 | deluxe |
| 16 September 2016 | XE | Atlantic | 081227943899 | deluxe |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · cropped: cropped from 1600x1597 to 1597x1597
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1600×1597 | cropped: cropped from 1600x1597 to 1597x1597 |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |