THIS WAS A REQUEST.
OK, so this is a first attempt at St Tristan's Sword and I decided to post it, even though I don't really know this one as well as most of the other studio recordings. The main reason being, this tune came out only a few years ago with the expanded Coda release ...so while I have listened to it many times, I haven't had 30+ years with it! This was an outtake from the LZ 3 sessions but wasn't ever heard til 2015. Also, back in the day, I used to obsessively listen and learn every tune off every record. I can't say I've done the same with the outtakes that were recently released. This tune is a standout because Bonham's drumming is so unique - the beat is so different than most any other tune ! Its a testament to his originality that he came up with this riff to perfectly compliment the bass and guitar riff. It is as funky as anything ever played, IMO. There is a lot of snare drum "ghosting" going on, and dynamic phrasing on the snare. It has similarities to the kind of beats he would play on live versions of Communication Breakdown and Sunshine Woman, but its unique in it's turned around kind of phrasing. The last couple minutes are basically the same groove for the bass and drums as Gallow's Pole, so maybe this tune inspired GP.
I am pretty much playing note for note what he played up til the guitar solo, then I just play in the spirit of the tune because I don't have all the snare hits and cymbal crashes memorized. Hope you enjoy.