| No Quarter: Jimmy Page & Robert Plant Unledded | ||||
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| Live album by | ||||
| Released | 31 October 1994 | |||
| Recorded | August 1994 | |||
| Venue | Jemaa el-Fnaa inMarrakesh, Morocco; Slate quarry nearCorris andDolgoch Falls, Wales; London, England | |||
| Length | 79:32 | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Producer | Jimmy Page,Robert Plant | |||
| Page and Plant chronology | ||||
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| Robert Plant chronology | ||||
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| Jimmy Page chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
No Quarter is a live album byJimmy Page and Robert Plant, both formerly of English rock bandLed Zeppelin. It was released byAtlantic Records on 31 October 1994.[2] The long-awaited reunion betweenJimmy Page andRobert Plant occurred on a 90-minute "UnLedded"MTV project, recorded inMorocco,Wales and London.
The reunion event notably lacked the presence of bassist and keyboardist,John Paul Jones, thus deviating from a comprehensive band reunion.Jones remained uninformed of this reunion by his former bandmates. Subsequently, Jones conveyed his discontent regarding the decision of Plant and Page to christen the album after "No Quarter", a track predominantly attributed to his compositional prowess.
In addition to acoustic renditions, the album features a reworking of Led Zeppelin songs featuring aMoroccan string band andEgyptian orchestra supplementing a core group of rock and roll musicians, along with four Middle-Eastern and Moroccan-influenced songs: "City Don't Cry", "Yallah" (or "The Truth Explodes"), "Wonderful One", and "Wah Wah".
Several years later, Plant reflected on the collaboration very positively:
The will and the eagerness withUnledded were fantastic and [Page] was really creative. Jimmy and I went in a room and it was back. His riffs were spectacular. To take it as far as we did, and the tour we did – it's one of the most ambitious and mind-altering experiences.[3]
In July 2014,Guitar World placedNo Quarter on their "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994" list.[4]
All tracks are written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, except where noted. Track 10 "Wah Wah" is an extra track not included on the original US and Canada LP, CD, and Cassette 13 track releases, but is included on most other countries releases.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Nobody's Fault but Mine" | Presence (1976) | 4:06 | |
| 2. | "Thank You" | Led Zeppelin II (1969) | 5:47 | |
| 3. | "No Quarter" | John Paul Jones/Page/Plant | Houses of the Holy (1973) | 3:45 |
| 4. | "Friends" | Led Zeppelin III (1970) | 4:37 | |
| 5. | "Yallah" | New song | 4:59 | |
| 6. | "City Don't Cry" | New song | 6:08 | |
| 7. | "Since I've Been Loving You" | Jones/Page/Plant | Led Zeppelin III | 7:29 |
| 8. | "The Battle of Evermore" | Led Zeppelin IV (1971) | 6:41 | |
| 9. | "Wonderful One" | New song | 4:57 | |
| 10. | "Wah Wah" (not on the U.S. release) | New song | 3:59 | |
| 11. | "That's the Way" | Led Zeppelin III | 5:35 | |
| 12. | "Gallows Pole" | Traditional arr. Page/Plant | Led Zeppelin III | 4:09 |
| 13. | "Four Sticks" | Led Zeppelin IV | 4:52 | |
| 14. | "Kashmir" | John Bonham/Page/Plant | Physical Graffiti (1975) | 12:27 |
| Total length: | 79:32 | |||
For the tenth anniversary, the album was re-released with a different cover and altered track listing. "Thank You" was cut, "City Don't Cry" and "Wonderful One" appeared in substantially edited versions, and "The Rain Song" and "Wah Wah" were added. In addition, "Yallah" was retitled, and several other tracks had minor alterations to their running times. The new running order was as follows:
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It's Nobody's Fault but Mine" | Presence (1976) | 3:57 | |
| 2. | "No Quarter" | John Paul Jones/Page/Plant | Houses of the Holy (1973) | 3:47 |
| 3. | "Friends" | Led Zeppelin III (1970) | 4:35 | |
| 4. | "The Truth Explodes" (formerly known as "Yallah") | New song | 4:42 | |
| 5. | "The Rain Song" | Houses of the Holy (1973) | 7:29 | |
| 6. | "City Don't Cry" (edit) | New song | 3:15 | |
| 7. | "Since I've Been Loving You" | Jones/Page/Plant | Led Zeppelin III | 7:28 |
| 8. | "The Battle of Evermore" | Led Zeppelin IV (1971) | 6:40 | |
| 9. | "Wonderful One" (edit) | New song | 3:23 | |
| 10. | "Wah Wah" | New song | 5:24 | |
| 11. | "That's the Way" | Led Zeppelin III | 5:37 | |
| 12. | "Gallows Pole" | Traditional arr. Page/Plant | Led Zeppelin III | 4:17 |
| 13. | "Four Sticks" | Led Zeppelin IV | 4:57 | |
| 14. | "Kashmir" | Physical Graffiti (1975) | 12:36 | |
| Total length: | 75:38 | |||
"Gallows Pole" and "Wonderful One" were released as singles.
All songs recorded in London except "City Don't Cry", "Wah Wah" and "Yallah" recorded in Morocco; "No Quarter", "It's Nobody's Fault but Mine" and "When the Levee Breaks" recorded in Wales.
The tenth anniversary of the recording of the Unledded concerts was commemorated by a DVD release of additional songs, a bonus interview, a montage of images from Morocco, the band's performance of "Black Dog" forDick Clark'sAmerican Music Awards and the music video for "Most High" from theWalking into Clarksdale album. The songs included on the DVD release not included on either CD release were "What Is and What Should Never Be" and "When the Levee Breaks". To compensate for their absence from theLive Aid DVD release, Plant and Page donated a portion of their proceeds to the Band Aid Trust.
Bonus material
The songs were recorded in Marrakech, Morocco (spring 1994),[5] on top of a waste tip atAberllefenni quarries (17 August 1994),[6] in a forest in Wales and in front of an invited audience atLondon Weekend Television studios over two nights in August, 1994.[5]
Musicians in Marrakech (except on "Yallah")
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London and Wales band (except on "No Quarter", "Wonderful One")
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Egyptian Ensemble (London)
Percussion
| Strings
Also
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London Metropolitan Orchestra (London)
Violins
| Violas
Celli
Also
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| Publication | Country | Accolade | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metal Hammer | UK | Metal Hammer Albums of '94[7] | 1994 | 14 |
| Mojo | UK | The 25 Best Albums of 1994[8] | 1994 | 11 |
| Raw | UK | Raw Albums of the Year[9] | 1994 | 14 |
| Mojo | UK | Mojo 100 Modern Classics[10] | 2001 | 42 |
| Chart (1994–1996) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[11] | 2 |
| Austrian Albums Chart[12] | 27 |
| CanadianRPM Top 100 Chart[13] | 3 |
| Dutch Albums Chart[14] | 33 |
| French Albums Chart[15] | 8 |
| German Albums Chart[16] | 18 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Top 50 Albums Chart[17] | 13 |
| Swedish Albums Chart[18] | 10 |
| Swiss Albums Chart[19] | 16 |
| UK Albums Chart[20] | 7 |
| USBillboard The 200 Albums Chart[21] | 4 |
| Chart (1994) | Rank |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[22] | 54 |
| Chart (1994) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| USBillboard Comprehensive Music Video Chart[23] | 2 |
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
| USBillboard Top Music Video Chart[24] | 4 |
| USBillboard Top VHS Sales Chart[25] | 15 |
| Hungarian MAHASZ Top 20 DVDs Chart[26] | 3 |
| Australian ARIA Music DVD Chart |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[27] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[28] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
| Japan (RIAJ)[29] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[30] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[31] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina (CAPIF)[32] | Platinum | 60,000^ |
| Australia (ARIA)[33] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[34] | Gold | 25,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[35] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
