The Jimmy Page "Number Two" Les Paul
From: DESIGNCRAVE.COM 2009.12.29
Allow us to shift our gaze from swanky hotels and towering buildings to the pure beauty that is the Les Paul. The 1959 Les Paul, more specifically. Known as "Number Two," the '59 was purchased by rock god/Les Paul enthusiast Jimmy Page in 1973. Now, with the efforts of Gibson's Custom Shop and Page himself, the famed "Number Two" Les Paul is available to rock n' roll warriors like myself. Produced in limited numbers, with two levels of aging, the new limited edition '59 captures the look, feel, sound, and versatility of one of the greatest artist-owned Les Pauls of all time.
The "Number Two" Les Paul was recreated with a complete examination of Page's original guitar. The process involved the production of a number of hand-built prototypes, each of which was checked and critiqued by Page himself. Approval of the final model was only offered after Page examined and extensively played this last prototype. Only 325 examples will be produced in total: 100 will be aged by vintage-reproduction master Tom Murphy; 25 more will be aged by Tom Murphy and signed by Jimmy Page; and 200 will be finished to Gibson's VOS specs. Seriously, to play one is to fall in love, over and over again.
Jimmy Page: New Record & Tour In 2010
From: RTTNEWS.COM 2009.12.24
Jimmy Page has confirmed that he will release a new solo record and head out on the road in 2010. According to Page, he has an entire album's worth of new material already completed and is excited to return to the stage.
The former Led Zeppelin guitarist has not yet confirmed any details regarding a possible release date, but Page has announced that he will perform live at the Show of Peace concert on April 17 at the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing.
"We're running up to Christmas now and next year I have every intention of playing music live and manifesting it," Page told Sky News. "I've got the music waiting, and that's what I'll be doing. It's been two years since the O2, so it's time to do that."
Page recently appeared alongside Jack White and U2's The Edge in a documentary about electric guitars, titled This Might Get Loud.
Jimmy Page To Play 'Show Of Peace' Concert In China
From: BILLBOARD.COM 2009.12.18
An array of artists, including Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, will take part in the first annual Show Of Peace Concert, a globally televised event that will take place April 17 before an expected crowd of 100,000 at the Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing, China.
More performers and other details will be announced at a Jan. 13 press conference in Beijing. The concert's official web site lists nearly five dozen target artists to be invited, including Prince, Green Day, Beyonce, Coldplay, Black Eyed Peas, Kenny Chesney, Mariah Carey, Justin Timberlake and many others.
The concert, which marks the 30th anniversary of the cultural exchange agreement between the United States and China, is billed in a statement as "a 'peace is green' awareness campaign designed to not only promote peace with each other but to promote peace with our planet." It's the brainchild of television and music producer Rick Garson, whose Las Vegas-based ZZYX Entertainment company is producing the show. Garson's co-producers include Live 8 and Live Earth principal Greg Sills and artists manager Trudy Green (Michael and Janet Jackson, Mick Jagger, Aerosmith). Other organizations involved in the concert include the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, the Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy, the United Nations' Pathways of Peace and the Captain Planet Foundation."
Garson is establishing the A Show Of Peace Foundation, whose board of directors will include environmental and peace-building experts. The foundation will distribute funds raised from the concert and other activities to organizations and initiatives. In a statement Garson said that "the passion and attitude of the Chinese people and the potential of this country made me realize that this was the right place to stage an event, as we watch the transformation of Red China to 'Green' China right before our eyes."
The concert's web site, showofpeace.com, will carry regular updates about the event.
Jason Bonham @ KLOS Mark and Brian Christmas Show
From: EXAMINER.COM 2009.12.17
Mark and Brian kept the show moving, catering to their audience with their brand of locker room, tongue-in-cheek humor. They introduced the All-Star Band, which was a potpourri of rock 'n' roll who's who. Steve Lukather, of Toto, started out with a Christmas song collaboration with no-holds-barred guitarist, Slash, "Broken Heart for Christmas." The rest of the All-Star Band included Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham's son), guitarist Mark Bania, Keith Emerson (of Emerson, Lake and Palmer), bassists Lee Sklar and Travis Davis, and drummer Gregg Bissonette. They played a strong set ending with a funktastic rock version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." Smoothmeister, Franky Perez, who heads up Slash's band, came out in all black, shades and a fedora, too-cool-for-school, and did justice to Led Zeppelin's "Black Dog," with Jason Bonham, the late John Bonham's son, blazing away on the drums. Perez swiveled his hips with the tenacity of a modern-day Elvis, exuding a cool sensuality not seen in many overly-packaged, current-day performers, with a raw voice ready for rock.
Led Zep almost didn't get on the BBC
From: TIMESONLINE.CO.UK 2009.12.17
"Unconvincing . . . derivative . . . distortion." They went on to become the world's greatest heavy rock band. But even Led Zeppelin were once forced to audition X Factor-style to win a coveted spot on the BBC.
Papers from the BBC Archive reveal how the fledgeling rockers left a panel of light entertainment experts dazed and confused when they applied to record a radio session in 1969.
Although Jimmy Page's guitar technique found favour, the panel said that the group were poor imitations of the blues legend Muddy Waters, played too loud and should not be allowed anywhere near daytime Radio 1.
Another heard "basically an old fashioned sound" and one said that a "touch of distortion hits my ear". However, it was "the sort of sound that turns me on - but not for daytime radio".
The BBC panel, more fearsome than Simon Cowell and Co, failed a 1965 David Bowie, dismissing him as "a singer devoid of personality" and called Marc Bolan's Tyrannosaurus Rex "crap and pretentious crap at that". An early version of the Rolling Stones was also sent packing.
The audition reports, the subject of a BBC Radio 6Music Christmas Day special with Page, reveal the corporation's cautious approach to the rock revolution. Radio 1 was set up in 1967 to lure the millions of pirate station listeners. But the BBC was determined to maintain the highest standards.
Led Zeppelin recorded a selection of signature tunes, including Communication Breakdown and Dazed and Confused, in an attempt to gain exposure on John Peel's Radio 1 programme, Top Gear. Seven BBC experts reviewed the tapes. One wrote: "English blues-group longing to sound like Muddy Waters, but failing necessarily through being derivative." Another heard "basically an old-fashioned sound" with a "touch of distortion". It was "the sort of sound that turns me on - but not for daytime radio".
Despite the reservations, the group was passed fit for broadcast and a session was aired on Top Gear.
Amanda Bruckshaw, who was given access to the BBC Archive, said: "The producers' language sounds ridiculously pompous to us, but they did the right thing in the end and passed Led Zeppelin. It was brave of the BBC to create a space for this sort of music, and for a group like Zeppelin, who didn't release singles, a radio session was a vital means of connecting with a mass audience."
Jimmy Grant, now 89, was on the audition panel. He was not impressed by the 1963 version of the Stones but passed Zeppelin, calling them an "excellent progressive blues group".
Speaking from his home in Bournemouth, Dorset, the former BBC producer said: "The system was quite tight in those days. Bands had to audition to see if they were suitable to make personal appearances and the producers would decide."
Recording a BBC session remains a rite of passage for new artists. Peel broadcast 4,000 sessions, giving early exposure to bands such as the Smiths and the White Stripes. Today presenters such as Zane Lowe, Radio 1's "indie" music guru, can grant a session after hearing an MP3 sent by e-mail.
Bob Harris, who joined Radio 1 in 1970 and presented The Old Grey Whistle Test on BBC Two, recalled: "In 1969 there was still a somewhat resentful attitude among some at the BBC that Radio 1 had been foisted upon them. Some of the old guard looked down their noses at rock. People like myself, John Peel and Pete Drummond were seen as the left-field musical rebels. Some BBC people were struggling to keep up."
Recalling the sessions, Page, 65, told 6Music: "It just gave us an opportunity to come in and do what we had on our albums. A number like Dazed and Confused was never gonna get played on any other programmes. It gave an opportunity for anyone who hadn't heard us to hear how we were moving the songs and making them take on a life of their own."
Zeppelin took revenge when they returned, now world stars, to record a live concert for Radio 1 in 1971. The band were furious with the poor quality of the recording and refused to allow the BBC to broadcast it until Page had personally remixed the tapes.
Jimmy Page and the BBC Sessions - 6Music, Christmas Day, Part One 12-1pm, Part Two 9pm-10pm.
BBC Audition Report
Led Zeppelin Trial broadcast, Top Gear
Heard by production panel April 22, 1969
Items I Can't Quit You Baby, Communication Breakdown, Dazed and Confused
Instrumentation Jimmy Page, guitar; Robert Plant, vocal/harmonica; John Paul Jones, bass guitar/piano/organ; John Bonham, drums
Panel verdicts
"English blues-group, longing to sound like Muddy Waters but failing necessarily through being derivative. Of its kind professional enough and certainly 'broadcastable' on the Top Gear kind of thing. But for me it's unconvincing and I'd rather hear the genuine article." Borderline yes
"A very good moody group, knockout 'lead' blues singer. Even though a touch of distortion hits my ear - it's the sort of sound that turns me on - but not for daytime radio - specialist listening only. It's a music for each other really scene! ... but I did like the up-tightness of it." Certain programmes - yes
"An effective performance of what is, basically, an old-fashioned sound. Certainly suitable for the specialist programmes." Yes
"An excellent group of musicians playing mainly a progressive blues type of material. The lead guitarist, Jimmy Page, is in my opinion one of the best guitarists in the country, and the group, as a whole, probably the best of the type available. Yes
"Contemporary style - all electric, all screaming soul/pop group. Strong vocal and lead guitar. They sound like they mean what they're doing. OK for specialist programming." Yes
"An extremely good blues group. Very specialist material. Excellent internal balance and feel for this aggressive idiom - only for specialised blues programmes." Yes
"Excellent progressive blues group." Yes
1. Introduction
2. No One Loves Me and Neither Do I
3. Dead End Friends
4. Scumbag Blues
5. Elephants
6. Highway 1
7. New Fang
8. Gunman
9. Bandoliers
10. Mind Eraser, No Chaser
11. Caligulove
12. Interlude With Ludes
13. Spinning In Daffodils
14. Reptiles
15. Warsaw Or The First Breath You Take After You Give Up
16. Interview
Jimmy Page On Stage with New Material in 2010
From: SKY.COM 2009.12.01
Led Zeppelin legend Jimmy Page has confirmed he is heading back to the stage in 2010.
The guitarist has told Sky News he has new material and can't wait to perform, even if it isn't with his former Led Zeppelin bandmates.
"We're running up to Christmas now and next year I have every intention of playing music live and manifesting it," he said.
"I've got the music waiting, and that's what i'll be doing. It's been two years since the 02, so it's time to do that."
Robert Plant and John Paul Jones, with whom he performed a sell-out one-off gig at the O2, are both off with seperate projects.
Plant is recording a second album with Alison Krauss, while Jones has joined Them Crooked Vultures with Dave Grohl and Josh Homme.
Page meanwhile is busy promoting his new documentary film, the excellent It Might Get Loud.
The film - directed by Oscar winner Davis Guggenheim - pits Page alongside U2's The Edge, and Jack White.
All three jam along to each other's songs, and discuss their love of the ever faithful six-string.
"If somebody shows you, and you start strumming, there's this bonding with this instrument," explains Page.
"It's as simple as that, they sort of speak with their own character. You can have this marvellous affair with a guitar, almost like a marriage. But at the end of the day it doesn't ask you for alimony."
Guggenheim previously directed An Inconvinent Truth, but he found himself in an entirely different environment.
"Even though they come from different generations, each found their voice," he explains of his three musical stars.
"They found a way to express themselves in a very unique way even though they share the same instrument."
Page of course famously played with Leona Lewis at the Olympic handover ceremony, yet he remains indifferent to the sort of pop acts the X-Factor is currently churning out.
Instead he prefers classic rock'n roll records like Link Wray that he's seen playing in one scene in the film.
"To me that's the essence of what music is about and that's what you need to capture.
"All that stuff can be laboured and tidied up and sanitised but that was never where I came from, or even wanted to go there, or still don't wanna go there."
Slash, Rob Halford, Jason Bonham To Perform At 'Mark And Brian Christmas Show'
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.12.10
Slash (Guns 'N' Roses, Velvet Revolver), Rob Halford (Judas Priest) and Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin) will perform at the 95.5 KLOS Mark And Brian Christmas Show at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Wednesday December 16. Joining them on stage will be Steve Lukather (Toto) and Keith Emerson to create an all-star band. Other artists performing that night will be Heart, Foreigner and Richie Sambora (Bon Jovi).
As top-rated syndicated morning show personalities, Mark Thompson and Brian Phelps of the Los Angeles-based "Mark And Brian Show" entertain audiences live with their dauntless comedy weekday mornings from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Jason Bonham Performs Led Zeppelin Classic With Chickenfoot
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.12.08
Drummer Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin) joined Chickenfoot on stage at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas on Saturday, December 5 to perform the Zeppelin classic "Rock And Roll". Watch fan-filmed video footage of the performance below.
Commented Bonham: "Went to Vegas on Saturday for the Chickenfoot gig. Jammed with them on Zepp's 'Rock And Roll'. Geat buch of guys, great gig and lots of fun!"
Chickenfoot's Sammy Hagar told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that it's a pleasure being in a band with Michael Anthony, Chad Smith and Joe Satriani.
"If Joe had an Eddie Van Halen personality, or a Jimmy Page personality, or like an Yngwie Malmsteen or something, it wouldn't have worked," he said. "There'd have been friction. We're a fun band.
"Joe isn't off on an ego trip saying, 'You guys can't act like that around me.' We get drunk and unruly, and Joe just sits there and laughs."
Raising Sand Amongst Top Country Albums of the Decade
From: THE9513.COM 2009.12.08
27. Raising Sand (2007) – Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
The combination of Led Zeppelin's front man with one of bluegrass' most recognized names seemed strange, but Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, along with producer T-Bone Burnett, made it a Chickenfoot-winning, platinum-selling success. The album, a collection of covers from the likes of Townes Van Zandt, The Everly Brothers and Gene Clark, featured minimal, moody instrumentation that took both artists out of their respective comfort zones. The album reached #2 on both the Billboard Country charts and the Top 200 charts. Along with its six Chickenfoots, Raising Sand made Plant one of the unlikeliest recipients of a CMA award. - Sam Gazdziak
It Might Get Loud - Win VIP Tickets to the London Premier!!
From: MEMORIESINMUSIC.COM 2009.12.07
The UK premier of the film "It Might Get Loud" will be held in London at the Hammersmith Apollo on December 15th, and you could win VIP tickets to attend, as well as a DVD of the movie! Memories in Music has been given VIP tickets to the screening, and our contest to win them will benefit Casa Jimmy, Jimmy Page's home for abandoned street children run by Task Brasil.
The first 50 entries received will also be entered into a special mystery prize draw to accompany the tickets. Contest winners will each receive a pair of VIP tickets and a DVD of the movie. Contest closes Saturday the 12th of December.
Before entering this contest, please check the complete contest rules by clicking here!
Winners will be chosen at random from the correct entries. Entry is £2.00 per entry but entrants should be aware that they may be subject to charges depending on their own individual arrangements for payment and Internet access.
Zep's quiet man meets Nirvana's powerhouse
From: CNN.COM 2009.12.07
Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Dave Grohl is furiously pounding on his drum kit, his shoulder-length hair flying in 16 directions. It's a scene straight out of 1993, except Kurt Cobain isn't at the mic.
It's Josh Homme, best known as the frontman for Queens of the Stone Age. At his side, a gentleman in a button-down shirt lays down fat bass lines with the quiet confidence of a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer with nothing left to prove except that he can still have fun.
The man is John Paul Jones from Led Zeppelin, and the band is Them Crooked Vultures.
The supergroup trio has just released its self-titled debut disc. When they hit the stage at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles, they're greeted with a hero's welcome.
Their current single, "New Fang," is indicative of the Vultures' sound: quirky time signatures in the vein of Queens of the Stone Age, anchored by chunky Zeppelin-influenced riffs, with enough stops-and-starts to keep a drummer on his toes.
"I think the idea was that it should sound like me playing drums and John playing bass and Josh playing guitar and singing," said Grohl, who is clearly relishing a more behind-the-scenes role in this band than he does as the leader of the Foo Fighters.
We caught up with the Vultures backstage in their first-ever television interview. Onstage, Grohl and Homme want to show that they can keep up with a world-class bass player. Offstage, the 63-year-old bass player more than keeps up with two world-class smart alecks.
CNN: How did this project come together? Who's the mastermind behind it?
Dave Grohl: I'd known Josh for a long time. We've been friends for years and years. Worked with John on a Foos record maybe five years ago. Josh and I talked about doing a project away from our other bands. Foo Fighters were taking a break; Queens of the Stone Age were taking a break. We thought we'd do something together, so we decided to invite the greatest bass player in the world.
Josh Homme: But he couldn't make it.
Grohl: So we got John Paul Jones. (Laughter)
CNN: Dave, didn't this come together at your 40th birthday party? Something about [the theme restaurant] Medieval Times?
Grohl: Yeah, I had my 40th birthday in January this year, and I thought it would be funny to have the party at Medieval Times.
John Paul Jones: Where you normally have your 14th.
Grohl: So I invited the guys to come to the party. John flew all the way from England to come to it.
Homme: Well, they already have Medieval Times.
Jones: Yeah, I left it behind to go to it -- 400 years ago, when my band started.
CNN: You had to figure out what to name the band.
Grohl: I have a band called Foo Fighters. John was in a band called Led Zeppelin. Josh's band is called Queens of the Stone Age. It was all relative. So Them Crooked Vultures didn't sound so ridiculous.
Homme: I think in these modern times, a little bad English -- we came up with the name after we'd done the music, and it felt like what someone would say once we left town. Like (goes into Jimmy Cagney voice) "Them Crooked Vultures."
CNN: Did it all come together at someone's house or at a studio?
Homme: I got a studio called Pink Duck.
Jones: A very macho sort of place.
Homme: It's a little bungalow hideaway. ... It was nice having that secret. It was nice knowing that we were going to surprise everyone.
CNN: We were watching your soundcheck -- and Dave, it looked like you were having a good time pounding on the drums once again.
Grohl: It hurts.
CNN: Do you have blisters?
Grohl: I have problems.
CNN: I know you were looking for aspirin after soundcheck.
Jones: I get blisters standing next to him. In my ears.
Grohl: It's great playing the drums. The drums aren't my first instrument, but it's the instrument I can play and not really have to think about what I'm doing. I just sort of do it off the top of my head.
CNN: What's it like playing in a band with John Paul Jones?
Homme: He's right here. Hello-o-o.
Jones: It's great. I'm really enjoying it.
CNN: Where do you want to take this project? Is it the first of many albums, many tours?
Homme: There's no need to Nostradamus your way through that. Just kind of let it do it's thing. We have a little Magic 8 Ball that we bought together -- our first gift -- so we might use that a little, too.
Grohl: I look at it like every day is one step closer to breaking up.
CNN: John, how do you deal with all this juvenile humor?
Jones: I hate it. The kids, you know?
Homme: You know what? We're never going to grow up. Ever.
CNN: But isn't that the point of being in a rock band?
Homme: I don't know. I'm such a child, I have no idea.
Grohl: Pssh, no -- the MONEY! What are you, crazy?! You know how rich we are? Whoo!
CNN: Well, that's just it; you guys don't really need to do this.
Jones: No, you're right. Bye! (They all walk away laughing)
John Paul Jones, from LZ to TCV
From: WSJ.COM 2009.12.05
Since anchoring Led Zeppelin, bass player John Paul Jones has played the role of journeyman artist. A multi-instrumentalist, his unpredictable resume includes composing a score for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, providing orchestration for R.E.M, and producing an album for the Butthole Surfers.
Capping these under-the-radar collaborations, Jones's latest project evokes the high-profile bombast of Zeppelin. Under the name Them Crooked Vultures, Jones has teamed up with Dave Grohl (former Nirvana drummer and current Foo Fighters frontman) and Josh Homme (leader of the stoner rock act Queens of the Stone Age). After a stealthy build-up, the group released a self-titled album last month, and is currently touring.
With titles like " Scumbag Blues" and "Dead End Friends," Them Crooked Vultures' songs feature Homme's furry guitar riffs and louche lyrics, often sung in falsetto. The music's scuzzy atmosphere and circular jams are offset by the lock-step barrage of the Grohl/Jones back end. From London, Jones spoke to Speakeasy about Googling band names, musicians who bow to him, and the odds on another Zep reunion.
The Wall Street Journal: Your solo album "The Thunderthief" also featured an ominous-looking bird-headed man on the cover. Is this a theme of yours?
It did, didn't it? I don't know what it is with strange carrion creatures. It's a complete coincidence, unless there's some guiding hand, perhaps.
Who came up with the name of the band and how?
The official line is, and it's true, every other name is taken. Think of a great band name and Google it, and you'll find a French Canadian jam band with a MySpace page. We had loads of names. We'd look them up between tracking and overdubs. The first one was Caligula. There were seven of those. And on it goes.
So you just worked Caligula into a song title instead?
Yes, "Caligulove" it ended up being.
How did you first meet Dave Grohl?
I first met him at one of the Grammy Award shows where they were presenting Zeppelin with a lifetime achievement award. One of those awards for achieving life. The next Grammys I conducted the orchestra for [Foo Fighters song] "The Pretender," and we got to know each other fairly well. Then he came to the GQ Awards in London, and at that one he mentioned he'd be doing something with his old mate Josh and would I be interested. I wasn't quite sure. Up until then I'd been working with Jimmy [Page] and Jason [Bohnham] in rehearsal. We were starting another band that wasn't Led Zeppelin with Robert Plant. We thought, let's just have a band, but it failed. We had new material and it was a great rock and roll band, and we were prepared to do some Led Zeppelin songs, because that's what people would expect. We couldn't agree on singers in the end. It more or less came to a halt. After it finished I called up Dave. I think he was quite surprised.
So you hadn't met Josh before?
We finally met at a medieval themed restaurant for Dave's 40th birthday. A particularly bizarre place to have a blind date with Josh. It went well. How cool can you be wearing a paper crown and eating dragon soup?
When you assemble with new musicians, in this case Josh and Dave, do you start with a blank page? Who makes the first move?
We first started off literally just jamming. Either I or Dave starts a beat or something. Which is great, but what do we do? Someone had to start something and Josh had some chords. It was really just something to get your teeth into. I was only there for a few days, then I came back for a couple weeks and we started seriously.
You're a multi instrumentalist. What are some less traditional instruments you played on the album or on stage with this band?
Out of the basses, apart from regular four string, I play a 10-string bass, and a 12-string bass. The song " Elephants" is all on bass mandolin, which I don't think exists anywhere else. Mine is actually tuned like a mandolin, only two octaves below. It's an interesting sound. What else did I use? Bass lap steel, another invention. And onstage, on "Interlude With Ludes," a keytar. I thought, where am I going to get one of those? Ebay! It's good for a laugh: Watch John Paul Jones strap on a keytar.
Many listeners have heard echoes of Led Zeppelin in some of the riffs. Was that inevitable?
I remember when I did a record with [avant-garde artist] Diamanda Galas. She was asked, do you think this music is Zeppelin influenced? And she said, don't you think Zeppelin was John Paul Jones influenced? And I think that's a good answer.
You have long been creatively involved with artists from later generations, from R.E.M. to the Butthole Surfers to bluegrass musician Sara Watkins. How do you stay connected to younger circles of musicians?
I just tend to pursue the music I like. The whole thing with Sara was that I really liked her band [neo-bluegrass act] Nickel Creek. In fact I toured with them a bit with Mutual Appreciation Society [including members of Nickel Creek and Toad the Wet Sprocket's Glen Phillips]. I just really liked what she was doing. Sara is the first musician I've gone and asked, can I work with you? I have a great interest in Americana and roots music and fiddle music. Uncle Earl [a female old-timey group whose album "Waterloo, Tennessee" he produced] also came out of that. The Butthole Surfers was entirely different. [He produced their album "Independent Worm Saloon."] I don't know how that came about, now that you mention it.
Any other collaborations on your calendar?
Nope. I rarely have a calendar or a plan. I think I used to have a plan, but it never worked out. I know something will come along. This year I did shows with Merce Cunningham. I've had this interest in contemporary classical music since the Zeppelin days. This stuff just seems to happen and I say yes or no.
How do you defuse the hero worship you encounter from young acts? Or do you just bask in it?
Yes. All of that. It's always nice when people say nice things about you, isn't it? With Josh and Dave, we always joked that they'd have to leave my presence in reverse and bowing. It's great that people appreciate what we did.
Has your taste for hard rock changed as you've gotten older?
I was never a huge fan of rock in the Zeppelin days. I was always much more into jazz and soul, as it was called in those days, and classical. It was only when I discovered Hendrix that I got into rock. My tastes haven't really changed. I suppose I've picked up on bands over the years. Radiohead, for instance. Josh played me the Mark Lanegan album "Bubblegum." It's beautiful. Rock has never been that much of a spectator sport for me, but playing it is another story.
Is it the rush of it?
I just like making that noise. Zeppelin was always like a rock band with a soul rhythm section. It all stems from the blues. There's a lot of parallels between [Zeppelin and Them Crooked Vultures.] The way they formed, the way they operate, the way they sound.
A practical question: How have you protected your hearing?
Kind of sporadically. I got some good earplugs and some nights I wear them. I try to stand further away from the drummer, but I like to feel the kick drum, and that's what does you in. I get my hearing tested regularly, and it's pretty good for a man my age, especially bass sounds, surprisingly. That little area where the cymbals live is a bit iffy. But you learn to hear around it. Sometimes [on stage] I feel a bit isolated, so I take the earplugs out. Oh well, there'll just be some ringing in the morning.
Will there be a second Them Crooked Vultures album?
I'm pretty happy with this band. It'a good music with good people. We've started to talk about another record. We had so many songs for the first that we didn't include. We said, we can't have a debut double album. We're keen to keep going. Eventually their bands will want them back, but they'll have to get past me first.
Here's the obligatory Led Zeppelin reunion question: Will the band play together again?
I shouldn't think so. Robert has stated that he doesn't want to do it anymore, and that's it really. At the 02 show [a 2007 tribute concert in London for late record executive Ahmet Ertegun], I remember thinking while I was playing something, "I'll change that for tomorrow night. Oh, there is no tomorrow night."
Deborah Bonham at Kirkby
From: CHAD.CO.UK 2009.12.04
Blues musician Deborah Bonham will be performing at Kirkby's Miller's Club on Thursday for a special evening of music.
Sister of legendary Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, Deborah has established herself as a prominent blues singer after recording her first demo with Robert Plant aged 17.
Since then the Deborah Bonham Band have gone on to peform at numerous Rock and Blues festivals throughout the UK before sellout crowds, playing an array of well known and original songs.
Tickets for the show are available on the door, priced £8.
Robert donates Handwritten Lyrics for Americana Music Assoc. Auction
From: LEDZEPPELINNEWS.COM 2009.12.03
Robert Plant has joined several other musicians in donating handwritten song lyrics to the Americana Music Association.
A two-page set of autographed and handwritten lyrics to "Please Read the Letter," one of the tracks from Plant's Raising Sand album with Alison Krauss, is now up for auction until Dec. 17.
It is currently the second most expensive item of its kind in the auction, just a shade behind the auction for John Prine's handwritten lyrics to "Angel from Montgomery."
With a week left to go before bidding closes for the lyrics Plant signed and dated Dec. 2 in Nashville, the leading bidder is set to shell out $650.
To bid on the handwritten lyrics from Robert Plant seen above, register at the auction site.
With a career in photography that started in high school and continues to the present, Neal Preston is clearly one of the most highly respected photographers in the history of rock-and-roll.
Preston is arguably best known for his photography of Led Zeppelin throughout the 1970's, when he enjoyed unparalleled access to the band, both on and off stage.
For Led Zeppelin: The Exhibition, Preston will be exhibiting a selection of rare Led Zeppelin photos that have never been shown in public, along with his classic photos of the band.
All of these beautiful limited-edition and hand-signed pieces are available for purchase at our galleries or on-line at http://www.morrisonhotelgallery.com/.
Opening Saturday, December 5, 2009
Morrison Hotel Gallery
Flower Hill Promenade
2670 Via de la Valle (2nd level)
Del Mar, CA
Led Zeppelin Featured On 'Atlantic Records Time Capsule' Box Set
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.12.01
Led Zeppelin's "Good Times Bad Times" is amongst the songs featured on Atlantic Records Time Capsule
, which celebrates the iconic label's past and present through music, images, and words. The most comprehensive project ever devoted to the Atlantic story, this numbered, limited edition collection spans the label's entire history, from its inception in 1947 to the present day. "Time Capsule" is housed in a custom-designed metallic box featuring:
* Nine CDs containing 165 tracks from 141 artists spanning more than six decades
* DVD of the acclaimed PBS "American Masters" documentary, "Atlantic Records: The House That Ahmet Built"
* 140-page book featuring over 200 rare and/or previously unseen photographs from the Atlantic archives; reflections and stories from artists and other key players in the company's history; and a complete Atlantic timeline
* Boxed set exclusive 45 rpm vinyl single reissue of Atlantic's first hit, "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee" by "Stick" McGhee and His Buddies (1949)
* Reproductions of memorabilia and vintage swag, including posters, handbills, ticket stubs, lyrics, backstage passes, and more
* Individually numbered certificate of authenticity
For more details, visit www.atlantictimecapsule.com.
Jimmy Page could not be coaxed into playing at Brazil fundraiser
From: LEDZEPPELINNEWS.COM 2009.11.30
Jimmy Page, despite appearing as scheduled at a fundraiser on Saturday for a shelter bearing his name, reportedly could not be coaxed to join the musicians for what would have been his first onstage appearance all year, outside of some brief jamming at a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony in April.
In this YouTube video, Page is seen making remarks at a microphone and playing "air guitar" in the absence of a real guitar.
Stiletto Group has provided one of the most complete event summaries so far. As translated from Portuguese, the Nov. 29 story says many young musicians played songs including Led Zeppelin's "Heartbreaker" during the event. Another translated report from O Globo says a 10-year-old drummer by the name of João Terra Santos was disappointed Page did not end up playing with him.
At one point, musician George Israel was jamming with some youth musicians on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by the Beatles when they encouraged Page to come up and play. Page declined their offer but did take the stage to encourage bidding on the auctioning of a guitar autographed by members of Iron Maiden.
With the crowd chanting "Jimmy" in hopes he would play, Page joked that since it was an Iron Maiden guitar, he would have to play something of theirs. The crowd laughed, and he went on to describe the guitar. Once the crowd erupted into chants of his first name again, he finally strapped on the electric guitar. With that, he played a single E chord, shook the guitar above his head, and handed it over.
This moment can be seen in two YouTube videos below. The first one is more complete and includes Page's words before strapping on the guitar but is shot from amid the crowd so the sound is very overloaded. The second video captures Page from a different angle from the strike of the chord onward.
O Globo is the same news source that, in breaking the story last week, insisted that Page would play. Word has it that tickets to the event were sold with the understanding that Page would at least appear at the event but not necessarily perform. Additionally, printed on the tickets were the words "Rock Fest in the presence of Rock Legend Jimmy Page." Proceeds from the auction and ticket sales are to benefit Casa Jimmy, founded in 1998 by Task Brazil as a shelter for abandoned street children in Rio de Janiero.
O Globo says Page followed instructions not to do any speaking, even if asked questions. He was reportedly friendly with the autograph seekers, particularly the females, yet smiling silently and stoically through it all. A YouTube video shows Page leaving the building and hopping directly into a waiting car while fans are lined up outside hoping to meet him.
Dave Grohl On Australia's 'Breakfast Show'
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.26
Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana, Them Crooked Vultures) was interviewed on the November 4, 2009 edition of Triple J's "Breakfast Show" in Australia. The chat is now available for streaming below.
Them Crooked Vultures' self-titled debut album sold 70,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 12 on The Billboard 200 chart.
Them Crooked Vultures consists of Grohl on drums, Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones.
"Them Crooked Vultures" was released on November 17 via DGC/Interscope Records.
Them Crooked Vultures recently shot a video for the song "New Fang" with director Paul Minor (Muse, Queens of the Stone Age, Scars On Broadway).
Grohl told the Toronto Star about Them Crooked Vultures, "Who's going to let that go to waste? None of us needs to be in this band, but none of us would want to be anywhere else, you know? No, that's not true. I need to be in this band because the feeling I get playing with the Vultures, I don't get anywhere else."
Grohl indicated that he wanted to get back to playing drums after more than 13 years fronting Foo Fighters. He explained, "I'm a drummer . . . I want a band to play the drums in. But I'm not just gonna go eke out with some band that doesn't matter, I wanna do something that's gonna make people's heads spin. And that's why I'm in a band with Josh and John."
Regarding the band's self-titled debut, Grohl said, "I think we knew within the first month or two that we were making something that had a lot more weight or depth to it than some side project."
Robert Plant addresses Tutwiler Blues marker unveiling
From: PRESSREGISTER.COM 2009.11.26
TUTWILER - Quintessential rock star Robert Plant emphasized the importance of this Delta railroad town in the history of blues music when a Mississippi Blues Trail marker was unveiled here yesterday.
Speaking at the dedication, the Led Zeppelin superstar and Chickenfoot winner said he has visited Tutwiler numerous times as an important pilgrimage site where W. C. Handy first heard blues played outside the depot in 1903.
A dedicated and passionate blues historian who pays tribute to Mississippi Delta bluesmen from concert stages around the world, Plants sponsored Wednesday's event with Tutwiler and state Blues Trail official.
"This is remarkable; I have lived here all my life and heard Tutwiler called the birthplace of the blues," remarks Mayor Genether Miller-Spurlock.
"This gives us recognition; we are very excited and have looked forward to greeting Mr. Plant and Heritage Trail officials," she continues.
Although Plant's role in the dedication was under wraps until his appearance in Tutwiler's Railroad Park, the mayor says town has been busy getting ready for the event.
Other volunteers were busy planning for a reception at the Tutwiler Community Education Center where the mayor is educational coordinator.
An affiliate of the Tutwiler Clinic headed by Dr. Anne Brooks and operated by Catholic sisters, the center sponsors a quilting cottage industry, and hosts family reunions, gospel concerts, after-school programs for teens and parents.
Among the special reception guests were 25 members of the Tutwiler Senior Citizens Club who delayed their usual 10 a.m. Wednesday meeting to join the 11:30 a.m. unveiling and after-party.
In addition to honoring W. C. Handy, the trail marker also honors famed Aleck Miller who performed under the name of Sonny Boy Williamson No. 2, and is buried one mile from the Tutwiler depot site.
Mayor Spurlock opened the program and remarks were made by Jerome Little, a member of the Tallahatchie County Board of Supervisors, state Sen. David Jordan, D-Greenwood, Leigh Portwood, assistant director of the Blues Trail program, Tutwiler native and blues journalist Panny Mayfield who introduced Robert Plant, and Jim O'Neal, Blues Trail research director.
Jimmy Page To Perform At Rio De Janeiro Benefit This Weekend
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.25
Steve Sauer of LedZeppelinNews.com reports that Led Zeppelin guitar legend Jimmy Page will play in a Rio de Janeiro, Brazil school auditorium this Saturday, November 28, at a benefit for one of his charities. According to Brazil's O Globo, tickets to a concert featuring Page and other acts are selling for upwards of $100. The article says Page will be performing along with some school bands and acts called Pepeu Gomes, George Israel and Kid Abelha.
If the intimate event materializes, it will mark Page's first concert appearance of the year. In 2008, Page played a much more high-profile event at the Olympics, and also joined John Paul Jones in sitting in with the Foo Fighters one night in London. Those have been his only onstage appearances since the Led Zeppelin reunion concert on December 10, 2007.
Casa Jimmy, a shelter for abandoned street children in Rio de Janiero, opened 11 years ago as a program of one of the charities Page supports, Task Brazil. A source familiar with Page's charity work tells LedZeppelinNews.com this fundraiser couldn't have come at a better time given a current need for financial support.
Them Crooked Vultures Cracks U.S. Top 15
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.25
Them Crooked Vultures' self-titled debut album sold 70,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 12 on The Billboard 200 chart.
Them Crooked Vultures consists of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums, Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones.
"Them Crooked Vultures" was released on November 17 via DGC/Interscope Records.
Them Crooked Vultures recently shot a video for the song "New Fang" with director Paul Minor (Muse, Queens of the Stone Age, Scars On Broadway).
Grohl told the Toronto Star about Them Crooked Vultures, "Who's going to let that go to waste? None of us needs to be in this band, but none of us would want to be anywhere else, you know? No, that's not true. I need to be in this band because the feeling I get playing with the Vultures, I don't get anywhere else."
Grohl indicated that he wanted to get back to playing drums after more than 13 years fronting Foo Fighters. He explained, "I'm a drummer . . . I want a band to play the drums in. But I'm not just gonna go eke out with some band that doesn't matter, I wanna do something that's gonna make people's heads spin. And that's why I'm in a band with Josh and John."
Regarding the band's self-titled debut, Grohl said, "I think we knew within the first month or two that we were making something that had a lot more weight or depth to it than some side project."
Them Crooked Vultures Film 'New Fang' Video
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.24
Them Crooked Vultures, which consists of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums, Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones, recently shot a video for the song "New Fang" with director Paul Minor (Muse, Queens of the Stone Age, Scars On Broadway).
Grohl told the Toronto Star about Them Crooked Vultures, "Who's going to let that go to waste? None of us needs to be in this band, but none of us would want to be anywhere else, you know? No, that's not true. I need to be in this band because the feeling I get playing with the Vultures, I don't get anywhere else."
Grohl indicated that he wanted to get back to playing drums after more than 13 years fronting Foo Fighters. He explained, "I'm a drummer . . . I want a band to play the drums in. But I'm not just gonna go eke out with some band that doesn't matter, I wanna do something that's gonna make people's heads spin. And that's why I'm in a band with Josh and John."
Regarding the band's self-titled debut, which arrived in stores last Tuesday (November 17), Grohl said, "I think we knew within the first month or two that we were making something that had a lot more weight or depth to it than some side project."
Grohl also spoke with Spinner.com about the current Foo Fighters break, which began in fall 2008 and is likely to last well into 2010 as he continues to tour with Them Crooked Vultures. Grohl said, "I think, to me, the most important thing was to give the audience a break from the band, not even that we need to stop playing. I feel like the world doesn't need another Foo Fighters record right now."
According to Hits Daily Double, the companion web site of music industry tip sheet HITS, Them Crooked Vultures' self-titled debut album is on track to sell between 70,000 and 75,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release.
The Led Zeppelin Guide to Creative World Domination
From: LATERALACTION.COM 2009.11.23
There has never been a bigger, badder or better rock band than Led Zeppelin. And there never will be.
Now we've got that straight, let's take a look at how they did it – and what you can learn from their example.
Joe Perry/Jimmy Page Collaboration?
From: AZCENTRAL.COM 2009.11.22
Aerosmith guitar master Joe Perry says it's been a challenge to escape distractions stemming from the uncertain future of his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band.
"With all the hubbub about Aerosmith, it's been a two-edged sword," Perry says.
He wrapped up his fifth solo album, "Have Guitar, Will Travel," after the band was forced to cancel the remainder of a summer tour with ZZ Top when Steven Tyler fell from the stage in Sturgis, S.D., in August and was taken to the hospital for treatment of a head injury.
As Perry ponders Aerosmith's future, he is enjoying his time front and center as he and the Joe Perry Project perform much of his latest album live, as well as a few Aerosmith songs such as "Walk This Way" and "Walkin' the Dog."
Perry's latest solo album is a mix of relentless rock ("Scare the Cat") and funk ("We've Got a Long Way to Go"), with a ballad co-written by Billie Perry ("Do You Wonder") thrown in for good measure.
Perry and his band have lined up some 2010 dates with Motley Crüe, and the guitarist says he has talked with such pals as Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin and Slash about collaborating down the road.
" 'Let the music do the talking,' is how I've put it in the past," Perry says, referring to the title of his first solo effort.
"All I'm doing is concentrating on this (latest) band. I plan to keep working, and we'll see what happens.
Them Crooked Vultures On Taking Flight
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.22
Toronto Star recently conducted an interview with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme about Them Crooked Vultures, their collaboration with Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones.
On the opportunity to play alongside a member of Led Zeppelin:
Grohl: "Who's going to let that go to waste? None of us needs to be in this band, but none of us would want to be anywhere else, you know? No, that's not true. I need to be in this band because the feeling I get playing with the VULTURES, I don't get anywhere else.
"I'm a drummer, goddammit. I want a band to play the drums in. But I'm not just gonna go eke out with some band that doesn't matter, I wanna do something that's gonna make people's heads spin. And that's why I'm in a band with Josh and John."
On the project's secretive beginnings:
"If we couldn't make something that we would like together, why would that be? So there was an instantaneous pressure that really drove us down into the underground. Our management didn't know, nobody knew. It would almost be damning if the three of us couldn't make something that you would enjoy. 'Oh, that's right: you guys suck.'"
On Them Crooked Vultures' self-titled debut:
Grohl: "I just wanted to try to get seven songs every two weeks, but it quickly went from being a haphazard, Desert Session, fly-by-night recording to trying to make an important album. And I think we knew within the first month or two that we were making something that had a lot more weight or depth to it than some side project."
Homme: "It felt like we could really smash you in the head with 'lovely.' That first jam was a baton pass between each person. The two guys would look at one guy and kinda say: 'Okay, go ahead and take the lead.' Everyone was sort of egolessly interested in what the other person had to play. And in that environment, you can actually do anything because there wasn't a musicianship or a language barrier.
"With this one, there was an extra hope that maybe isn't always there - that people understand it. I hope they listen with fresh ears and try to catch the excitement that we have, y'know?"
U2 Producer sneaks Robert Plant into L.A. studio for recording session
From: LEDZEPPELINNEWS.COM 2009.11.21
Robert Plant's presence in the Los Angeles area two months ago was apparently for more than just some sightseeing.
LedZeppelinNews.com has learned that the former Led Zeppelin frontman was also pulled into a recording session by famed producer Daniel Lanois, whose credits include some "unforgettable" U2 albums, a solo career and a current band project making waves in that area, Black Dub.
Update: Engineer Mark Howard has posted four photos of the recording sessions on MySpace, plus one of them all hanging out. Also pictured is Daryl Johnson, bassist for Black Dub.
Around early October, Plant and Lanois recorded some demos with Black Dub's lead vocalist, Trixie Whitley. At 22, she is a singer-songwriter who plays piano and drums. She has lived in New York and Belgium and has followings in both places.
Best of all, Whitley's Facebook page now confirms Plant as one of the musicians with whom she has worked, along with Vernon Reid, Me'Shell N'Degeocello and her late father, "Big Sky Country" singer Chris Whitley.
A session drummer involved in the recording says he isn't sure what plans Lanois and Plant may have in store. "I honestly don't have too much to say other than we're making some demos," Steven Nistor tells LedZeppelinNews.com.
Nistor is often the go-to guy for whatever drumming needs Lanois has. Among other things, he can be seen backing Lanois during an April 2008 appearance on "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson."
Last Night: Them Crooked Vultures at the Fox
From: SFWEEKLY.COM 2009.11.20
Better Than: Listening to Robert Plant shy away from the high notes at Led Zeppelin's 2007 reunion show.
It's no accident that the supergroup has, in recent years, gone the way of New Coke, the McRib, and Lindsay Lohan's career. For every Cream - the bluesy British trio Eric Clapton dissolved after listening to The Band's Music From Big Pink and determining that his own band had lost its soul - there are too many Oysterheads and Chickenfeet, much-hyped pretenders whose star-studded lineups add up to less than the sum of their parts.
Them Crooked Vultures, the power trio featuring Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age on vocals and lead guitar, Dave Grohl on drums, and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones rocking the bass, are no pretenders. Whether the collaboration will prove anything more than a titillating one-off is anyone's guess - these guys have well-paid day jobs, Jones included - but for one night at the Fox Theater, they delivered a tight, take-no-prisoners performance that left the capacity crowd hungry for an encore.
Strolling onto the stage shortly after 9 p.m., the newly anointed Vultures launched into a thunderous rendition of "No One Loves Me & Neither Do I," with Grohl pounding the skins in typically authoritative fashion and the rest of the band (including Queens contributor Alain Johannes on rhythm guitar) joining him a few beats in with a slippery groove backing Homme's forceful but rarely overpowering falsetto.
The band followed with blistering renditions of two up-tempo rockers, "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" and "Dead End Friends," that would have sounded right at home on Queens of the Stone Age's Era Vulgaris but benefit greatly from Jones' punchy bass riffs. Jones, conspicuously absent from Robert Plant and Jimmy Page's mid-'90s reunion tours (and none too pleased about it), remains a formidable performer, and on this evening dominated the proceedings with his nimble finger work and surprisingly smooth supporting vocals.
If anything, it's Jones, more than Homme, whose influence is most evident on the band's eponymous debut album, which often sounds like Physical Graffiti-era Zeppelin, and in their willingness to indulge heavy, free-flowing jams on stage. (Grohl, who attacks his drum kit with the same ferocity he once displayed with Nirvana, seems content to toil in the shadows; the Vultures are neither as polished nor as radio-friendly as his Foo Fighters, but every bit as aggressive.)
Those anticipating flights of nostalgia - an impromptu cover of "Trampled Under Foot," perhaps - were destined for disappointment, as the band stuck to original material culled from the seemingly informal jam sessions captured on Them Crooked Vultures. No matter. As the band tore through a feverish "Scumbag Blues," a funky, fist-pumping epic boasting a frenzied Clavinet solo from Jones and plenty of Homme's trademark guitar heroics, it was less tempting to romanticize the past than to envision a future in which these Vultures fly again.
Personal Bias: If some obsessive soul were to hold a fantasy draft with the express purpose of creating the perfect rock band, I would pick Josh Homme and Dave Grohl in the early rounds. Other picks would include Trent Reznor, David Bowie, and Prince.
Random Detail: John Paul Jones once set a hotel room ablaze by falling asleep with a lit joint in hand. He's remarkably well-preserved, much more so than his former bandmates.
By the Way: Grohl, a self-described Zeppelin disciple who coaxed Jones and Page into joining the Foo Fighters on stage at a Wembley Stadium show in June 2008, first suggested recruiting Jones for Them Crooked Vultures. Homme assumed he was joking.
Courtesy of Dustin Rabin
Whole lotta love brings Deborah into the light...
From: GULF-DAILY-NEWS.COM 2009.11.19
Living in the shadow of a certified rock icon isn't easy, but blues vocalist Deborah Bonham has finally stepped into the light. The British singer, is the younger sister of the legendary Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, and believes she has put the tragedies that have dogged her life behind her.
She has had to deal with the deaths of her father and two brothers, but her latest album, Duchess, is a musical story of survival.Deborah's love and respect for John is undying, but she believes she is now respected in the music industry for her own talents.
"It's been tough, it really has been tough," she told the GDN last night, as she prepared for her second concert in Bahrain, at Upstairs Downstairs, tomorrow. "You've got to understand the height that John has now come to. He was so very revered."Strangely enough, you know, when he was alive he never really knew it.
"He wasn't regarded as the greatest drummer when he was alive - not for a long time and then all of a sudden, people realised."It was about a year before he died, he got a Number One drummer accolade and he was so thrilled.
"Before that people like Karen Carpenter were beating him, what was that about? "He was so thrilled. Of course we all knew that he was destined for absolute greatness.
"But it's really just that they've (Led Zeppelin) become a phenomenon, as the years have gone by."It's been difficult because people judge you for being associated with the name and I had a very big choice to make years ago, do I renounce that name and invent myself as somebody else or do I actually stick it out ?" Deborah stuck it out, partly in recognition of the inspiration she drew from John, who died in 1980.
"I was so proud of my brother, why on earth would I ever renounce him ?" she said.
"He gave me the inspiration to sing. "He was my big brother and I loved him so much and I think that my decision was to make him proud, even though he's not here.
"My duty is to do the best that I possibly can." Duchess is named after her mother and focuses on moving on and celebrating the joys of life.
"I think it was more in the Old Hyde album that I was struggling with the death of my dad and my two brothers and it came out in that record, so there was a lot of pain in there," said Deborah.
"The Duchess album is really about survival.
"I didn't want to write deep, meaningful songs - there's a couple on there like Hold On, which is about holding on to what you've got because life is beautiful.
"I really wanted to write something that wasn't all about me and my tragedy.
"I wanted to break free from that and write uplifting music - rock n roll - so the theme was very much about family, life and getting on and finding peace.
"I think that's so important and it's a shame that we don't all do that, but I'm sort of getting there myself - I think." This is Deborah's second time in Bahrain and though she doesn't know when or if she will be back for a third concert, she wouldn't rule out a long holiday here. The Gulf region's vibrant music played a part in influencing Led Zeppelin and was a reminder of her own childhood.
"I think there's a very misguided preconception about the Middle East but I absolutely love it here," said Deborah.
"I love it so much and I've always loved it. "Again I think it goes back to Led Zeppelin, because they were big fans of the Middle East. "A lot of their songs used to take Middle Eastern rhythms and things.
"I know (Led Zeppelin vocalist) Robert (Plant) is very much into all of the musicality that comes from the region so I've sort of grown up with that and I've always had affection for it.
"I see it very romantically really, it probably is very far from that, but I've grown up with that kind of musicality.
"The fantastic rhythms and music that comes from here is amazing so I was desperate to get to the Middle East. "It's a lovely place but I don't get enough time to explore really. I'd like to come back, take a week here and stay maybe two, three weeks or months." She has already begun working on her new album, which has not yet been named and is looking forward to opening for rock band Bad Company at Wembley Stadium, in the UK, on April 1 next year.
Technology has changed the music industry dramatically since Zeppelin's day, but Deborah still prefers listening to LPs - and secretly hopes for a vinyl renaissance. "I think more people should listen to the old stuff," she said.
"I think if more people did, we'd be listening to a genre of music today that would be second to none. "There's a couple of good bands like Snow Patrol and Amy Winehouse.
"I think she's a great talent, I just hope she straightens herself out. "There is stuff coming through, but I end up listening to the old stuff. "I love vinyl - I love the fact that it's got only eight or 10 tracks. I love the artwork. I remember the feeling when you got your new album that you were waiting for and the artwork was as important, because it was on a grand scale.
"You'd put it into your plastic wallet and you'd spend ages looking through it.
"And then when you'd actually play the record, you'd play the A-side for about two to three weeks and then you'd turn it over and you'd play the B-side.
None of that really happens now. It was a ceremony to play vinyl. "I got into CDs, but they're sort of disposable and mp3 squashes the sound way too much for me. "I live in hope that we'll go back to vinyl." Deborah and her band are performing at a dinner concert at Upstairs Downstairs tomorrow and will take the stage at 9pm.
Dinner will be served at 6.30pm and a few seats were still available, said organisers.
Tickets are priced at BD30 and are inclusive of a three-course meal. Contact the restaurant on 17713093 for more information.
Jack White, The Edge, Jimmy Page film release date set
From: NME.COM 2009.11.19
'It Might Get Loud', the forthcoming documentary featuring Jack White, The Edge and Jimmy Page, has got a release date.
The 97-minute film, which trails how the guitarists developed their trademark styles by using different approaches to playing the electric guitar, will get its official theatrical release on January 8.
Directed by Oscar winner Davis Guggenheim, the documentary shows the trio jamming, swapping stories and sharing their passion for playing the guitar.
The film also shows rare footage of Page's first appearance on TV as a teenager, U2's first gig and White making a guitar with a piece of old wood and some rusty nails.
Each guitarist's music is played throughout the documentary, which features scenes filmed in London, Nashville and Dublin.
Live Review: Them Crooked Vultures in Los Angeles
From: LIVEDAILY.COM 2009.11.18
On paper, Them Crooked Vultures is a monster. The supergroup pairs the bassist/keyboardist from the most influential act of the '70s with the drummer of the most influential group of the '90s in Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones and Nirvana's Dave Grohl. Finding a singer/guitarist to front that rhythm section is a tall order that went to Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme.
At the Wiltern Theatre on Tuesday (11/17)--the date that also saw the release of the trio's self-titled debut--Homme wisely did not to attempt to mimic Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant or Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, but instead brought his own voice and persona to the proceedings, even taking along QOTSA sideman Alain Johannes as a second guitarist. Yet, despite their best intentions, Them Crooked Vultures failed to live up to the huge expectations spurred by the news of their formation.
That's not to say that TCV was not a force to reckon with live. Buoyed by the thundering, rock-solid rhythm section of Jones and Grohl, Homme and Johannes were free to lay down monstrous guitar riffs that threatened to peel the paint off the ornate theater's walls in barnburners like set-opener "No One Loves Me & Neither Do I," "Mind Eraser, No Chaser," and the band's first rock radio hit, "New Fang." While the instrumental assault is undoubtedly part of the band's appeal, it's also a limitation. At least at this point, TCV seems more about riffs and grooves than actual memorable songs, which may affect that band's long-term fortunes, but it didn't seem to dampen the enthusiasm of any one in attendance at the Wiltern.
Grohl, who's also the singer/guitarist of the Foo Fighters, could easily be resting on his laurels promoting that act's recently released greatest-hits set, but the formation of TCV gives him the chance to live out the next-best thing to his rock-and-roll fantasy of drumming in Led Zeppelin. The elder statesmen of the trio, Jones received the biggest ovation of the evening following his introduction. Left hanging after 2007's Led Zeppelin reunion ended up as a one-show gig, you certainly can't fault the versatile veteran for getting his groove on with some of rock's current generation.
Homme is a more than capable frontman in QOTSA, a band that rose from the ashes of desert-based stoner rockers Kyuss with minimal expectations. However, at the Wiltern, Homme didn't have the charisma or dynamism to front a band backed by the unprecedented teaming of Jones and Grohl. A better choice would have been Jack White, who at times in The White Stripes and The Raconteurs has showed he possesses the spirit of Plant, Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and Cobain.
Still, TCV had their moments. The band was most interesting when it veered from the full-throttle approach and threw a curveball, as was the case on the neo-soul rocker "Scumbag Blues," which had Homme singing in a falsetto with Jones and Grohl on backing vocals. On the trippy "Interlude with Ludes," Jones strapped on a keytar, Grohl added some of the evening's more interesting percussion textures, and Homme sang like a drugged-out Las Vegas crooner. During the non-album cut "Highway One," Jones donned an electric mandolin for a tune that featured a bit of the Middle Eastern-flavor that Led Zeppelin mined in "Kashmir."
The bulk of the set, however, consisted of balls-out rockers that highlighted the players' instrumental prowess. An extended take of "Spinning in the Daffodils" concluded with Jones adding some majestic keyboards. The 10-minute-plus encore of "Warsaw or the First Breath You Take After You Give Up" ended the evening with an extended jam.
While it might be premature to make such a proclamation, at this point, Them Crooked Vultures appears to be not another chapter in rock history, but merely a powerful footnote.
Live review: Them Crooked Vultures at the Roxy
From: LATIMES.COM 2009.11.17
On Monday night, the new hard-rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures played the coziest room of its very young career, charging through a semi-surprising 90-minute set at West Hollywood's Roxy, roughly 24 hours before the band was set to appear at the much larger Wiltern for a sold-out performance.
Yet if a 500-capacity club seems like a strange domain for these A-list heavy hitters - Vultures consists of Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones on bass, Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl on drums and, as frontman, Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age - they handily resolved the disconnect by treating the Roxy as they would a sports arena: At several points, it was hard to hear the music over the groan of a sound system pushed well beyond its limits.
On its self-titled debut, in stores this week, Them Crooked Vultures brandishes its muscular low end like a weapon; rhythm sections don't come much dream-teamier than Jones and Grohl, so the band's decision to build its songs around fat bass-and-drum grooves was a wise one.
Or at least a clever one: Nothing about the infectiously slapdash "Them Crooked Vultures" speaks especially of wisdom, least of all Homme's goofy lyrics, which gravitate toward stoner-dude wordplay like that in "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" and "Interlude With Ludes." That's a pleasant surprise on an album that might have bogged down with the collective weight of these players' impressive pedigrees.
At the Roxy, where guitarist-keyboardist Alain Johannes served as an auxiliary Vulture, the band was best when it re-created the record's lighthearted vibe, pummeling away in search of a cheap thrill.
In "New Fang," the album's lead single, Homme worked his carnival-barker croon over a repeating boogie-rock riff, while "Scumbag Blues," with a killer Clavinet solo from Johannes, answered a question that's long burned in the hearts of all ZZ Top fans: What would "Tres Hombres" have sounded like if Nile Rodgers of Chic had produced it?
Anchoring the music with a nimble assurance undimmed since the days of "Black Dog," Jones served as a visual indicator of the band's swing - the funkier the music, the cooler his cucumber act. When the bassist strapped on a keytar for "Interlude With Ludes," Homme couldn't resist pointing out that "he even makes that thing look good," and it wasn't just empty hero worship.
A few times, Them Crooked Vultures came down on the wrong side of the arty-party divide, as in "Highway 1," a spacey non-album track centered on Jones' electric mandolin, and "Spinning in Daffodils," in which the band got lost on its way to some kind of desert-metal epiphany. And the set-ending jam session that grew out of "Warsaw or the First Breath You Take After You Give Up" could definitely have been several degrees less epic: By the time Grohl finally re-instituted the song's beat after a lengthy Homme-Jones duel, the effect was one of relief, not payoff.
Mostly, though, Them Crooked Vultures performed Monday's show like a musical version of the new disaster flick "2012." They wanted to see how much destruction they could subject a tiny venue to, and how efficiently they could do it.
Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven 'owes its success to cigarettes'
From: GUARDIAN.CO.UK 2009.11.16
Was the secret to Stairway to Heaven's success the fact that it gave DJs the chance to nip out for a cigarette? That's the theory of Led Zeppelin biographer Charles R Cross, who claims that 100 radio presenters "literally ... swore" that they aired the now classic tune because it was the "perfect length" for a cigarette break.
"The song became successful by accident," Cross told the New York Post. "[I] had 100 DJs swear to me that they only played the song because they needed a long break to go and smoke a cigarette. If it had been a minute shorter, you couldn't have smoked a full cigarette. If it had been a minute longer, it would have been too long."
Although it was never released as a single, Stairway to Heaven is now one of radio's most broadcast songs. This is, Cross argues, a blessing and a curse for the now defunct band. While guitarist Jimmy Page loves playing the ballad's crescendo, singer Robert Plant now says he "loathes" it. "Page's love of the tune seemed to go in inverse proportion to Plant's hate," Cross said.
In fact, Plant's dislike of Stairway to Heaven may be one of the major obstacles for a Led Zeppelin reunion. Cross says Plant simply doesn't want to sing it every night. Before reuniting at New York's Madison Square Garden in 1988, the band had a row about whether it should appear on the set list. Almost two decades later, at Led Zeppelin's one-off concert at London's O2 Arena, Stairway to Heaven did make the cut – but Plant allegedly insisted that it appear in the middle of the set, not as a finale; and that Page restrain himself from turning the song into an even more epic solo-filled noodle.
Cross's new book, Led Zeppelin: Shadows Taller Than Our Souls, was published in October.
Dave Grohl Reveals Tales Behind His Trio of Led Zeppelin Tattoos
From: ROLLINGSTONE.COM 2009.11.16
Playing with Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones in the new supergroup Them Crooked Vultures is a dream come true for Foo Fighters' frontman Dave Grohl, the singer/dummer tells Rolling Stone in an exclusive Q&A in our next issue.
Grohl's Zeppelin worship goes all the way back to his teenage years, when he got the first of three Zep-inspired tattoos - he's got John Bonham's three-circle Led Zeppelin IV logo tattooed in three places. "I did the first one myself when I was 16," he says. "I tried to get different colored ink to make it seem pro, but now it looks like someone put a cigarette out on my fucking arm."
The second was slightly more professional: he got it done in an illegal squat in Amsterdam. "It was done by an Italian guy named Andrea whose tattoo gun was made out of a doorbell machine," he says. "When my mother saw it, she was like, "David!" I was like, "Mom, I've done a lot worse shit than this, believe me. Look at my other arm."
And the last one Grohl paid for with his first check - that would be $400 - from being in Nirvana. "Kurt and I were living with each other in Olympia. The place was so depressing," he says. "I took the $400 and bought a Nintendo, a BB gun - mind you, I was 21, not 12 - and got that tattoo. One of my fondest memories of living in that rat-shit-hole apartment was buying a dozen eggs at the A&P, bringing them to Kurt's backyard, and me and Kurt and Buzz [Osbourne] from the Melvins shooting at the eggs. Those were the days."
Learn more about Grohl's two bands, and why playing with Them Crooked Vultures is like "being in the most incredible luxury car, driving on the Autobahn, flying by the seat of my pants" in the next issue of Rolling Stone. For now, find out how you can hear the band's debut album - and read our review of the self-titled disc - right away.
Welsh EuroMillions winners all set to rock out in Robert Plant's old mansion
From: WALESONLINE.CO.UK 2009.11.16
The Welsh winners of £45.5m on the EuroMillions lottery draw could be moving into a mansion once owned by Led Zeppelin star Robert Plant.
Les Scadding, 58, grew up listening to Led Zeppelin.
At a press conference after winning the jackpot he and wife Samantha said they were in the market for a new home.
Mr Scadding is now reportedly delighted after finding a genuine rock star's home for sale right on his own doorstep.
A friend said: "Les is a real hard rock fan but until now he's never dreamed of living that lifestyle.
"But he was delighted to find Robert Plant's country pile is up for sale and he could buy it 20 times over."
Plant, 60, who co-wrote rock classic Stairway to Heaven – voted the third best rock song of all time – lived in the seven-bedroom house for four years.
The ivy-covered house called "The Argoed" near the village of Penallt, is just a dozen miles from Les and Sam's current home – a £120,000 modest semi in Caerleon.
Their friend said: "Les and Sam could live anywhere in the world but they value their family and friends so much they want to stay in this area.
"The house where Robert Plant lived really appeals to them – it's out of the way in the countryside but just a few miles from the M4 motorway."
Les' ex-wife Rose-Marie confirmed he was a huge rock fan during their 27 years together.
She said: "We liked Deep Purple, Genesis, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin – and we both liked dancing."
Les and Samantha plan to put their semi up for sale but want to stay in South Wales to be close to their family and friends.
Friends said they had set their hearts on The Grade II listed house, which dates back 450 years and boasts stables, a paddock and breathtaking views over the lush Monmouthshire countryside.
The property, which stands in 11 acres, has been on the market for three months.
A spokesman for estate agents Knight Frank said: "It's a stunning house – ideal for a lottery millionaire."
Les and Samantha picked up a record £45,570,835.50 with a EuroMillions lucky dip.
Within hours of realising they were multi-millionaires the pair had drawn up a shopping list: a new house in South Wales, a holiday home in Barbados and a black Range Rover Sport.
They have already made inquiries about a £1m beach home on the Caribbean island where they will renew their wedding vows in the New Year.
A spokesman for lottery operators Camelot said: "Les and Sam are having a few days to catch their breath and let it all sink in."
Robert Plant lived at the house from 1982/3 until 1987.
Them Crooked Vultures To Play 'Surprise' Show In Hollywood
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.16
According to a posting on the Led Zeppelin fan site Lemon Squeezings, Them Crooked Vultures - which consists of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums, Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones - will play a "surprise" show tonight (Monday, November 16) at the Roxy in Hollywood, California.
Tickets to today's show must be purchased on site; limit two per person. Customer must enter immediately after purchasing tickets, and there is no re-entry. It hasn't been stated what time tickets go on sale or what time the show is - just that you won't be allowed to line up before 2 p.m.
Them Crooked Vultures's self-titled debut album will be in stores on November 17 via DGC/Interscope Records.
Following their first North American tour of mostly East Coast cities in October, the group will next head west for four gigs this month. The band will perform on November 17 in Los Angeles, November 19 in Oakland, November 21 in Seattle, and November 22 in Portland, Oregon.
Epsom author recalls friends with Whole Lotta Love
From: SURREYCOMET.CO.UK 2009.11.13
A music fan has published a book about rubbing shoulders with rock legends from the 60s.
David Williams, from Epsom, is the author of The First Time We Met The Blues, where he tells about his friendship with music icons such as Jimmy Page and Mick Jagger.
Mr Williams and Led Zeppelin's guitar hero Jimmy Page grew up together in Miles Road, Epsom, in the late 1950s, where Page's first-ever paid gig happened at the Comrades' Club.
Mr Williams said: "We just grew up kicking a ball around and doing the things kids do, but when we got into our teens we started to get into music.
"We were liked-minded souls but Jim was the musician. He practised all the time and was like a sponge."
He later forged ties with Rollings Stones Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Brian Jones.
Mr Williams recalled in the book how he and Page used to loiter outside the fire escape of Ebbisham Hall, in the town centre, trying to listen to bands such as Chris Farlowe and the Thunderbirds without paying.
The retired cost consultant for constructions admitted he originally wrote the book for sons Gareth and Kieron, who are now both in their 30s.
He said: "My sons had always been into music and I guess I really wrote it for them.
"They had heard a few tales down the pub and I thought I'd write it to let them have an idea of what I used to get up to in those days.
"I wrote it down in rough about six or seven years ago when I was out fishing in South Africa and it sat there for ages.
"Then one or two friends suggested I ought to try and get it published because people might be interested in the tale."
With his wife Anna, 44, Mr Williams spent much of his working life abroad, from where he never followed Page's success with Led Zeppelin, and ended up losing interest in the Stones.
He said: "I last saw the Stones in about 63 in Richmond. By then they were getting followed by a load of screaming girls.
"I last saw Brian that same year when we had a drink together. I was very sad to hear of his death a few years later.
"I have heard from Jimmy now and again and he very kindly did the foreword to my book. I remember him popping round to see us in our last house many years ago in a Rolls Royce."
We've covered Les Pauls, Stratocasters, Rickenbackers, Flying Vs and Explorers. Now it's the turn of Clarence Leonidas Fender's pioneering debut solidbody; the Fender Telecaster. First entering production as the single-pickup Esquire and twin-pickup Broadcaster in 1950, for many guitarists, Leo got it right first time.
What follows is part one of a gallery of Telecaster and Esquire-toting gunslingers who have all shaped the face of rock 'n' roll and popular music through a blend of technique, passion and instinct. Oh, and a hell of a lot of great tunes. Without further ado, let's start the ball rolling with Jimmy Page.
Though widely associated with Gibsons (Les Pauls, EDS-1275 double necks), Jimmy Page has made extensive use of Fender Telecasters. The model that saw the most action was a '59 or '60 Tele gifted to Page by fellow Yardbird Jeff Beck in 1966. Originally painted white, Page added eight reflective circles to it in 1967. He then stripped it down and repainted it himself with a dragon motif - thus, it became his 'Dragon Tele.'
In the mid-'70s, Page acquired a brown '53 Tele outfitted with a B-string bender. Known as the 'Brown Bomber,' it was utilized on tracks like Hot Dog and Ten Years Gone. During much of the '80s, Page continued to play the Brown Bomber.
John Paul Jones Says Them Crooked Vultures Debut 'Rocks Like F**k'
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.10
Australia's Nova919.com.au recently conducted an interview with Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones about Them Crooked Vultures - his collaboration with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl on drums and Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.
On how Them Crooked Vultures tried to steer clear of press and promo through the creative process to avoid unnecessary hype surrounding their highly anticipated release.
"We kept it quiet so there wasn't all the speculation and the pressure. There was enough pressure between ourselves to do a really good record, and we did try to impress each other. We just didn't want everybody to go 'What's it like? What does it sound like? When's it going to be out? What are they doing?' There will be time for all that. We just wanted to get on and concentrate on the music."
On touring without an album release for fans to familiralize themselves with:
"Touring's been fantastic considering nobody really knows - apart from a few camera phone renditions on YouTube - what we're doing. It's 90 minutes now and it's all new stuff. To have an audience just stand there and listen, and take it all in - it's just amazing. They're reacting really, really well and it's new for them because normally they would have heard the record first and know the lyrics. It's a new experience which they look like they're enjoying and they sound like they're enjoying, certainly."
On what the album sounds like:
"Do you want me to hum something? It rocks like f**k. What can I tell you? When people ask what it sounds like, it sounds like me playing bass and Dave playing drums and Josh singing and playing guitar. It's very obvious. It's just us - it's straight-ahead, it's very honest and it really rocks. It's multi-layered and sounds fantastic. We love it. We play it and we're like 'Wow, this is really good.'"
On how the bandmembers' years of industry experience has proven to be invaluable through their creative process:
"We all listen to each other. With the experience (we have) nobody has to explain anything to anybody else. If something's not working, everybody knows it's not working. And also, when you're with experienced musicians, you can fail. You can try something out knowing that it might now work.
"There are so many parallels with the old Zeppelin days. Again, we're making music that we want to make. You're not thinking 'What's going to sell? What is everybody else going to like?' We're making music for ourselves and Zeppelin was exactly the same. We never thought 'What's the new record going to be like?' We just got the songs together. It's all an organic process. None of it's manufactured."
On how when they decided to get together they didn't realize the true extent of what their union has come to mean to the music world:
"We knew we would create some sort of splash and it would be noticed but you never really know the circumstances. It's the same as Zeppelin. People would say 'Did you realize when you were writing 'Stairway to Heaven' what a huge song it was going to be?' Well, not really. To my ears there's not much around that actually excites me, and this music that we're making excites me. So I assumed it might excite other people too. That's the only way you can think of it."
Led Zep to Round 2 of MSG's 100 Best
From: MSG.COM 2009.11.10
With over 1 million votes, the TOP 10 concerts of the '70s have been chosen and Led Zeppelin has made it! Click here to check out the rest of the top 10 and for more details on Round 2 Voting, which starts on Dec. 3rd!
Last week's poll accrued over 300 comments with top votes for The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. This week's polls for Round 1 feature the BEST of the '80s from Michael Jackson, Bon Jovi, Bruce Springsteen to Madonna, Whitney Houston, and many more! So far it looks like a tight race between Michael Jackson and Phil Collins with Springsteen close behind.
Polls for the '80s decade, Round 1 End on Monday, November 16th so get as many votes in as you can NOW and add a comment letting us know if you were at the show and to share your experiences with other readers!
Them Crooked Vultures' self-titled debut album won't be released until next Tuesday, November 17th, but you can listen to it right now. The supergroup of Josh Homme, Dave Grohl and John Paul Jones are streaming the hard-rocking, Zeppelin-inspired album in its entirety now over at TCV's official site. This gift comes just a week after the Vultures offered up their song "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" to fans as a free download.
Inspired by the Vultures' generosity, for your reading pleasure we're posting our review for Them Crooked Vultures now before it hits stands in our next issue. In his three-and-a-half star Rolling Stone review of TCV, Rob Sheffield writes, "The album sticks to the sort of low-end guitar boogie that Homme and Grohl were blasting in their Camaros when they bummed their first cigarettes." With Jones in tow, the supergroup sticks to their Zep roots, as the track "Elephants" "basically crunches every riff on Led Zeppelin II into seven dizzy minutes."
"Sometimes the music sounds exactly like Zeppelin, as on 'Reptiles,' a sly update of 'South Bound Suarez,'" Sheffield writes. "Other times it sounds like Queens of the Stone Age with a hot new bassist. But it's not desperately ambitious - the album sounds like the good-natured quickie it probably was."
As an added incentive to preorder Them Crooked Vultures on iTunes, the album will include live renditions of "No One Loves Me & Neither Do I" and "Gunman." Until next week when you can enjoy TCV on your iPod or home stereo, hit up the full stream at the band's official site now.
Robert Plant Performs with Francis Dunnery
From: FRANCISDUNNERY.COM 2009.11.07
Robert Plant took to the stage with Francis Dunnery last night at the Walls Restaurant in Oswestry, Shropshire, England. They performed the Robert Plant solo hit "Calling To You". See a video clip below.
Dunnery had originally toured with Plant in 1993 in support of Fate Of Nations.
Dunnery was performing to benefit the Charlie and Kathleen Dunnery Children's Fund.
Jason Bonham and Friends Perform Plant Tune
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.11.06
Video footage of Jason Bonham (LED ZEPPELIN) and his band performing "Like I've Never Been Gone", a song from ROBERT PLANT's first solo album, 1982's "Pictures at Eleven", on October 30, 2009 at The Canyon in Agoura Hills, California can be viewed below.
The musicians in the video are as follows:
Jason Bonham (drums) Ian Hatton (guitar) Doug Henthorn (vocals) Francesco DiCosmo (bass) Tony Catania (guitar)
According to Lemon Squeezings, Bonham had five dates scheduled this month, billing shows as "An Evening with Jason Bonham." During shows, his band played songs from his own past as well as from that of his father, the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham.
One song from Jason Bonham's own past is one that required a spoken introduction from the man behind the drum kit. Bonham spoke up before performing "Like I've Never Been Gone" to tell a story about his own life and how he came to be involved in Plant's post-Zeppelin career in those days.
To set the scene, the 44-year-old described the setting as "a period in my life which was a bit - quite sad, really.
"I was 14 years old and had just lost my father and really didn't know what to be doing in life, but Mr. Plant came along, picked me up from school one day. He said, 'Would you like to come and jam?'
"So I did, and we went to his house, and Robert was working on the first solo album, 'Pictures at Eleven'. And this, to me - I did all those demos, by the way, before Phil Collins came along...
"It was a great moment, and it was a great time where I could just forget about that Dad had gone and just be playing music. It really helped me through it.
"This song means a lot to me."
According to Classic Rock magazine, Bonham did these gigs by way of tribute to Daniel MacMaster, the Canadian frontman who sang on the two albums from Bonham (1989's "The Disregard Of Timekeeping" and 1992's "Mad Hatter"). MacMaster died on March 16, 2008, from a Group A streptococcal infection. He was 39 years old.
Jason explained: "Tragically, Daniel passed away and I always regretted the fact that I didn't do more for him during his lifetime. Just like myself, Daniel struggled with his addictions so that's something I know all about.
"2009 is the 20th anniversary of 'The Disregard Of Timekeeping', so I [wanted] to pay tribute to what was a great period in all our lives. Whether anything new will come out of it, I don't know. It's all about having fun."
Greatest Garden Show of All Time?
From: MSG.COM 2009.11.04
Recently announced is the "100 BEST: Vote Down to the Greatest Garden Show of All Time" where you and your readers can vote, interact with other Rock&Roll lovers, and play a role in deciding which Rock Legend put the greatest show on at the World's Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden!
Here's how it works:
Each week, you will get the chance to place your vote and advance your favorite artist/musical group from each decade to the next round of the competition! From rock legends Johnny Cash, Led Zeppelin, Elton John to today's top acts John Mayer, Alicia Keys, The White Stripes and tons more from the '70s, '80s, '90s, and '00s! Stay tuned each week to see what lineup is revealed for the next decade and if your favorite concert made it to the polls! Fans can vote every day, all day leading up to the February finale, in which MSG will reveal the WINNER of the the greatest Garden performance of all time!
Included is Led Zeppelin, July 1973. The band's three-night stand at The Garden was captured for the concert film "The Song Remains the Same."
Them Crooked Vultures releases free song via iTunes
From: BLOGS.COURANT.COM 2009.11.03
The term "supergroup" gets thrown around a little too much these days, but any band that includes a member of Led Zeppelin probably qualifies. (OK, maybe not The Firm.)
That makes Them Crooked Vultures a supergroup: It's Zep bassist John Paul Jones, along with Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age and Dave Grohl from the Foo Fighters (and, of course, Nirvana before that).
Though Grohl had mentioned the idea for the band a few years ago, most of us found out about the project when British music magazine NME reported in July that the three musicians were recording together.
After a handful of gigs over the summer and fall, Them Crooked Vultures releases its self-titled debut. Nov. 17. If you just can't wait, and you're not so good at finding leaked albums online, you're in luck: The band today is giving away, for free, "Mind Eraser, No Chaser," the second song on the album. Get it via iTunes.
It's trademark Homme/Grohl, with squelching guitar that lurches around over big pounding drums. Jones plays a steady, speedy bass line and adds his voice to the backing vocals.
Queen's Brian May: 'I'd Love To Play Glastonbury With Robert Plant'
From: GIGWISE.COM 2009.11.03
Last week, Led Zeppelin legend Plant revealed that he was in talks with Michael Eavis about performing at Worthy Farm but he wasn't sure who it would be with.
Speaking at last night's Classic Rock Awards at the Park Hotel in London, May ruled out a new guise of Queen performing at Glastonbury but said he'd be up for playing with Robert Plant.
He told BBC6music: "I'd play with Robert any time and when we have played together he's wonderful. Robert is a rock god and an inspiration to us all, always will be.
"There's some people that remain your heroes which I rather feel good about. And Clapton and Page, Jeff Beck, those guys will always be heroes to me and that will never change, so yeah, of course I'll go at the drop of a hat."
Them Crooked Vultures Announce North American Tour
From: MOG.COM 2009.11.03
Them Crooked Vultures are set to embark on a North American tour later this month.
The band, which features Queens Of The Stone Age's Josh Homme, Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones, will kick off the jaunt on November 17 in Los Angeles.
Among the dates announced are shows in Oakland, Seattle, and Portland.
The band have also announced a handful of U.K. and European shows.
The band are currently touring in support of their forthcoming self-titled debut album due out November 17.
Tour dates:
11-17 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern
11-19 – Oakland, CA – Fox Theater
11-21 – Seattle – Paramount
11-22 – Portland – Roseland Theater
12-6 Munich – Zenith
12-7 Berlin – Columbiahalle
12-6 Cologne – Palladium
12-10 Plymouth, England – Pavilions
12-11 Portsmouth, England – Guildhall
12-13 Blackpool, England – Empress Ballroom
12-14 Birmingham, England – O2 Academy
12-15 Edinburgh, Scotland – Corn Exchange
12-17 London, England – HMV Hammersmith Apollo
12-18 London, England – HMV Hammersmith Apollo
01-19 Perth – Challenge Stadium
01-22 Melbourne – Festival Hall
01-25 Brisbane – Riverstage
01-26 Sydney – Hodern Pavilion
01-29 Wellington – TSB Bank Arena
01-30 Auckland – Vector Arena
John Bonham Scoops Classic Rock Award
From: GIGWISE.COM 2009.10.01
The Rolling Stones' Ronnie Wood has been awarded the lifetime achievement award at this years Classic Rock Awards.
The star studded event took place last night (Nov 2) at London's Park Lane hotel and saw Iggy Pop picking up awards alongside Wood, John Bonham and Cream's Ginger Baker.
Wood was awarded for his contribution to The Rolling Stones as well as The Jeff Beck Group and The Faces.
John Bonham was posthumously awarded the Tommy Vance Inspiration Award with his wife and daughter collecting the award.
Wood was handed his accolade by The Who's Pete Townshend. Guitarists Slash and Brian May also attended the awards.
Elsewhere, Iron Maiden were declared Band Of The Year with AC/DC picking up Album of the Year for 'Black Ice'.
The Spirit of Prog Award was handed to Dream Theater, with Mike Portnoy paying tribute to Radiohead and The Mars Volta in his speech.
Led Zeppelin Hiring New Singer Idea 'Fell By Wayside'
From: ULTIMATE-GUITAR.COM 2009.10.30
Led Zeppelin's plan to find a replacement singer for Robert Plant "fell by the wayside", bassist John Paul Jones has explained.
The bassist, now playing in Them Crooked Vultures with Dave Grohl and Josh Homme, said that despite he and guitarist Jimmy Page auditioning potential frontmen, they couldn't agree on a new band member.
"Jimmy and I rehearsed a bit with [drummer] Jason Bonham and we couldn't really agree on singers and that fell by the wayside," he told BBC 6 Music. "Then this [Them Crooked Vultures] came along and, to be honest, I'm really happy."
Jones was keen to heap praise on Foo Fighters drummer Grohl, saying it was a pleasure to play with him in the new outfit. "I immediately recognised that this was a drummer that was a) really good, b) groovy and c) listened. All those nice things that bass players like in drummers," he explained.
Them Crooked Vultures release their self-titled debut album on November 17. Listen to the album's first single, "New Fang", by clicking on the video here.
Robert Plant has the X Factor for Belle Sorelle
From: EXPRESSANDSTAR.COM 2009.10.28
It's not every day an up-and-coming band gets to perform on the same bill as rock legend Robert Plant – but that is exactly what happened to Stourbridge and Kinver X Factor girl group Belle Sorelle.
The four girls, who made it through to the boot camp stage of this year's series of the hit television show, were among the music acts at a charity bash hosted by ELO star Bev Bevan at Birmingham's Jam House.
Bev and his band, Bev Bevan's Move, took to the stage along with soul singer Ruby Turner and Belle Sorelle for the fundraising gig for Birmingham's Children's Hospital in the Jewellery Quarter last night.
And the surprise of the evening was a special appearance by 61-year-old Led Zeppelin star Plant.
The musician, who lives near Kidderminster, wowed the crowd with an impromptu performance – and also delighted the girl band as he posed for a picture with the foursome. The girls, Gemma Parr, aged 24, and sister Patsy, 17, along with best friends Hannah Smith, 24 and Bella Bennewith, 17, were invited to take part in the charity concert after Bevan heard them perform live on a radio show. "We were so thrilled to be asked to take part and share the stage with some really big names," said Gemma.
The foursome performed two cover versions, Skunk Anansie's Weak and the Kings of Leon's hit Use Somebody, before returning to the stage for the finale with Bev and his band. "It was a great night – to perform alongside Bev was fantastic and be on the same bill as Robert Plant too was a fantastic experience," said Gemma. "We told Robert we'd take on board any advice he could offer us – he's such a rock legend."
Plant, a Wolverhampton Wanderers fanatic, opened his set last night by proclaiming: "We're in the Premiership now!" and joked with the audience: "Seeing how old you are I'm surprised you're out so late."
Last night's concert was a fundraiser for BBC WM Kidney Kids Appeal to buy a new renal unit for Birmingham Children's Hospital. So far more than £1million of the £1.5m target has been raised.
First Single from TCV Released Today
From: TWT.FM 2009.10.26
New Fang, the first single from Them Crooked Vultures, was released today to radio stations and an official preview was posted to http://twt.fm/315221 and Them Crooked Vultures' Official YouTube Channel.
The 3 minutes, 49 second tracks starts off with Dave Grohl pounding on the hi-hat and snare for the first 10 seconds then the guitar kicks in with a QOTSA-sounding poppy hooked riff. Maybe it's me but the bass guitar could be a lot higher in the mix. The last 14 seconds have an awesome steel guitar solo by John Paul Jones could have lasted longer, a'la the outro guitar solo in Led Zeppelin's song Gallows Pole - just a taste that leaves you wanting more.
Online responses to the track have been overwhelmingly favorable, with fans saying that they can't wait to hear the full release.
Robert Plant Wins Q Award
From: GIGWISE.COM 2009.10.26
Muse have been named Best Act In The World at the Q Awards in London.
The Devon three-piece fought off competition from Coldplay, Kings of Leon and the recently disbanded Oasis to claim the prize.
Arctic Monkeys, who were also shortlisted for the award, were named Best Live Act.
Kasabian won Best Album for 'West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum', while Lily Allen's 'The Fear' took home the award for Best Track.
White Lies were named Best New Act and Kanye West's protege Mr Hudson picked up the prize for Best Breakthrough.
The annual awards ceremony at the Grosvenor hotel also recognised a number of classic acts.
Led Zeppelin singer Robet Plant won the Outstanding Contribution prize, while The Specials picked up the Inspiration award.
Marianne Faithfull was presented with the Q Icon award by Jarvis Cocker and the recently reformed Spandau Ballet won Q Idol.
Robert Plant at Glastonbury 2010?
From: GIGWISE.COM 2009.10.26
Robert Plant says he has spoken to Michael Eavis about performing at Glastonbury 2010 – but he's not sure who it will be with.
Speaking before the Q Awards ceremony at Grosvenor House in London this afternoon, Plant told BBC6music: "I've just been talking to Michael (Eavis). There's place for me there, but I have no idea who with."
Asked if he's open to perform at Worthy Farm next year, the legend added: "There is a chance yeah, but I don't know with who."
Fans, of course, will be hoping that it's Led Zeppelin but in reality it's much more likely to be Robert Plant & Alison Krauss.
Plant picked up an Outstanding Contribution To Music gong at the Q Awards.
Justin Adams: the world music guitarist who says yes to everything
From: GUARDIAN.CO.UK 2009.10.22
Justin Adams's collaborations span the globe from the ritti virtuosos of Africa to Robert Plant. The important thing, he says, is to keep getting caught off guard.
Justin Adams agrees that his life has been getting a little complicated. "I do have a bit of a policy of saying yes to everything. So there's diary stress, but it's incredibly stimulating." After all, he's a guitarist, a producer who has worked with Tinariwen and Lo'Jo, and a serial collaborator who plays with a whole variety of other musicians. Right now, he's best known for his exhilarating and award-winning collaborations with Juldeh Camara, the virtuoso of the Gambian ritti (west Africa's one-stringed fiddle). But Adams is also a member of Robert Plant's band, and has just released an album with Les Triaboliques, in which he is joined by Lu Edmonds and Ben Mandelson, two other musicians with rock and punk roots, who have also played a key role in the British world music scene. When I meet him, he's in a studio producing an album by the Moroccan rock band Hoba Hoba Spirit, "who are close to me because they love the Clash – and have gnawa influences". But he is already planning his next collaboration, with the great Malian griot and n'goni player, Bassekou Kouyate.
Forty years ago today, Led Zeppelin released Led Zeppelin II just nine months after unleashing their historic debut. Produced by guitarist Jimmy Page, II laid the groundwork for heavy metal with its classic "Whole Lotta Love" and firmly established Zeppelin as one of the loudest and greatest bands in rock at the time. II also boasts Robert Plant's unparalleled vocal prowess on hits like "Ramble On" and "What Is and What Should Never Be" and John Bonham's still-unmatched drum solo on "Moby Dick."
Led Zeppelin live: photos from their legendary reunion show.
When the album came out 40 years ago, Rolling Stone critic John Mendelsohn wasn't exactly glowing in his 1969 review of the album, writing tongue-in-cheekily, "I'll concede that until you've listened to the album eight hundred times, as I have, it seems as if it's just one especially heavy song extended over the space of two whole sides. But, hey! You've got to admit that the Zeppelin has their distinctive and enchanting formula down stone-cold, man." Of course, Mendelsohn's opinion turned out to be the small, small minority, and Rolling Stone went on to place Led Zeppelin II on our 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide awarded Led Zeppelin II the five-star review it rightly deserves, adding that "Whole Lotta Love" "became a starting point for Aerosmith, Guns n' Roses and Van Halen, among others. It's an amazing song not just for its seismic riff and bingeing-on-lust vocal performance, but for its mind-bending midsection, in which Page orchestrates the aural equivalent of an orgasm (Theremin included.)"
So bust out your old II vinyl or eight-track or CD, crank up your stereo volume high and celebrate the album's fortieth birthday.
Them Crooked Vultures To Release Debut Album Nov. 17
From: BILLBOARD.COM 2009.10.22
After much speculation, rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures has announced Nov. 17 as the release date for its debut album.
Bandmates Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana), Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) and Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) will put the self-produced and self-titled release out on DGC/Interscope Records.
It is rumored that the first single from "Them Crooked Vultures" will be "New Fang," a song slated to hit radio on Monday (Oct. 26). The band's rep would not confirm or deny that report, however.
Them Crooked Vultures emerged as one of the year's most anticipated acts after a debut gig at Chicago's Metro in August. Though details on any recorded output have been scant until now, the band has been releasing small snippets of its studio sessions.
Earlier this month, Them Crooked Vultures played a small series of gigs in the U.S., including the opening night of Austin City Limits. NME has reported that the band will do a short in the U.K. Dec. 10-17, and January tour dates in Australia and New Zealand will be announced in the coming weeks.
Here is the tracklist for "Them Crooked Vultures":
"No One Loves Me & Neither Do I"
"Mind Eraser, No Chaser"
"New Fang"
"Dead End Friends"
"Elephants"
"Scumbag Blues"
"Bandoliers"
"Reptiles"
"Interlude with Ludes"
"Warsaw or the first Breath You Take After You Give Up"
"Caligulove"
"Gunman"
"Spinning in Daffodils"
Fans of British soul, blues and rock vocalist Deborah Bonham, will get a second chance to see her perform in Bahrain at the Upstairs Downstairs restaurant in Adliya next month.
The sister of the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, Deborah will perform at her second concert in the country on November 20.
Born in Worcestershire, the younger sister of the late John and Michael Bonham, Deborah was only five years old when John joined Led Zeppelin, and this powerful introduction gave her the desire to write and perform.
Whilst living at the family's Old Hyde farm, Deborah and John's son, Jason, started playing and recording their own songs. At the age of 17, at Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant's house, she recorded her first demos.
With some encouragement and advice from Robert, she sent out the songs anonymously and soon landed her first record deal with the major label Carerre Records, for whom she recorded the critically acclaimed album For You and the Moon.
The album reached the top 5 in the NME chart, was Simon Bates' Record of the Week on Radio 1 and was voted Record of the Year in Germany.
Deborah spent 1996 getting her new band together, writing new material and playing shows including headlining the Belfast Festival and a sell out show at the Bottom Line, Shepherd's Bush to excellent reviews. The beginning of 1997 saw two extremely successful trips to the US.
Firstly, she performed live on LA's Rockline radio to three million listeners throughout North America and Canada.
This was followed by a special appearance with Jason Bonham and his band in Los Angeles.
The success of the first trip led to another visit to the US with her band to open for Jason Bonham Band's shows in Los Angeles, Houston, New York and Chicago. Subsequently, two more tours across the US were secured.
Deborah has toured and performed with Van Halen, Alannah Myles, Uli Jon Roth, Paul Weller, Donovan, Jools Holland, Foreigner and Paul Rodgers. She has also played festivals including Glastonbury and Donnington, and twice at Fairport Convention's Cropredy Festival.
Tickets for the dinner concert are priced at BD30 and are inclusive of a three-course meal. More details will be announced closer to the date. Go to www.deborahbonham.com or contact the restaurant on 17713093 for more information.
Led Zep Chills, Stones Sneer in London Exhibit on Swinging 60s
From: BLOOMBERG.COM 2009.10.20
Oct. 20 (Bloomberg) -- The Beatles flee from crowds of screaming fans on a 1964 tour to pose at a Scottish country hotel, carrying umbrellas and looking pensive under a gray sky.
The Rolling Stones, with less good grace, sneer through hangovers and lack of sleep for an early-morning photo shoot in the fog of Primrose Hill. On the opposite wall, David Bowie perfects his "alien spaceman" look with a gold jumpsuit and Led Zeppelin members sport the impassive stares of rock gods.
Around them at the National Portrait Gallery, some 150 other images capture the essence of "swinging London," when the U.K. capital became the center of the pop world. The show is accurately called "Beatles to Bowie," yet bears a misleading subtitle "The 60s Exposed."
Anyone expecting surprising revelations, with telephoto paparazzi shots through bedroom windows, will be disappointed. Singer Marianne Faithfull, wearing white socks, looks impossibly innocent as she reclines in the Salisbury pub on St. Martin's Lane. Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix look boyish and angelic: The only hint of drug culture is in the dazzling psychedelic colors and swirling kaleidoscope images.
There are references to "icons" and "iconic" in the exhibition notes. If this means the stars were worshiped in their time, that's certainly true. Some of the pictures, of the Beatles in particular, are still endlessly recycled on bedroom walls, screen savers, T-shirts and computer games.
Even the most casual fan will recognize some images, such as Bruce Fleming's Hendrix studio pose that ended up on the cover of the "Are You Experienced?" album.
It's more interesting to see the images that didn't make it. Fiona Adams photographed the Beatles in 1963, dancing on a wall off Euston Road in London like dervishes. The exhibition adds her Rolleiflex contact sheet, showing how that perfect shot beat out four others in mid-jump.
While a few photos on display look little better than Box- Brownie snaps -- a moody Eden Kane (remember him?) leaning on a Ford Zodiac car in 1962 -- there are many masterpieces. Tony Frank's landscape of the Welsh town of Pontypridd, with a black- clad Tom Jones surveying the sweep of river and railway line, is breathtaking and far from the normal rock portrait.
It's often hard, of course, to take a bad picture of a famous person: Capture them doing something unposed, such as putting on a pair of shoes (Bob Dylan), falling asleep (the Springfields) or lighting a surreptitious cigarette (Paul McCartney) and you probably have a memorable image.
For my money, the best pictures are those the stars probably would prefer to forget: Bowie's advertising shot for the Stylophone (a hideously bad toy piano) or a young Rod Stewart in a stay-pressed mod suit that looks like it's made out of cardboard. Then you come around a corner and face the Colin Jones picture of the Who's Pete Townshend in a union-jack coat and pinhead stare. They don't make them like that any more.
"Beatles to Bowie: The 60s Exposed" is at the National Portrait Gallery through Jan. 24, 2010. The show is sponsored by BNY Mellon. For more information, see http://www.npg.org.uk.
Untitled on Royal Mail Stamp
From: NME.COM 2009.10.15
Pink Floyd, Blur, The Clash and Led Zeppelin are among the acts set to feature on a new range of Royal Mail stamps.
A set of 10 stamps featuring classic British album sleeves will enter circulation on January 7 next year, according to stamp collecting website Norvic Philatelics.
Albums in the collection include 'The Division Bell' by Pink Floyd, 'Parklife', 'London Calling', 'Led Zeppelin IV', 'Power, Corruption & Lies' by New Order, Primal Scream's 'Screamadelica', 'Let It Bleed' by The Rolling Stones, Coldplay's 'A Rush Of Blood To The Head', 'The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars' by David Bowie and Mike Oldfield's 'Tubular Bells'.
Royal Mail are said to have assembled a shortlist of classic albums, though initially some were deemed unusable due to the darkness of the image.
First Date on Bonham Tour Cancelled
From: LIVENATION.COM 2009.10.15
LiveNation.com is reporting that the first date in Jason Bonham's short October 2009 tour has been cancelled.
Refunds will be available at point of purchase.
Webmaster Sam Rapallo is reporting on the official Led Zeppelin forums that the reason for the cancellation is that singer Kelly Keeling is sick.
In addition to singer Keeling, Bonham is taking guitarists Ian Hatton and Tony Catania as well as bassist Francesco DiCosmo out on the road to "pay tribute to what was a great period in all our lives".
Amazing: Them Crooked Vultures Live 9/14/09
From: NPR.ORG 2009.10.15
It's been a while since I've been to a show that I'd call "balls to the wall," but Them Crooked Vultures aren't holding back. From their first song, "Elephant," to the song playing right now, called "Highway 1," nuance has left the building. Granted, I'm only four songs into the show, but good lord, this rocks.
Dave Grohl's (Foo Fighters, Nirvana) drumming has the intensity of John Bonham, but it's Grohl's fierce playing for sure. And John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin), at 63, is just amazing on bass and at the moment rocking on electric mandolin.
The riffs are reminiscent of Zeppelin, but the sound is their own. Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) is fine in the lead role, both as guitarist and as the singer. Alain Johannes played some fine rhythm guitar and more.
In some ways, it's hard to be at a show where I know none of the songs; on the other hand, it's seriously fun hearing stuff for the first time and hearing it live. Every song on the set list is a new song, no covers.
We're recording the show. The band will mix it and, if they like what they did, we'll have it online soon. Stay tuned.
Robert Plant Campaigns For Cancer Treatment
From: LOOKTOTHESTARS.ORG 2009.10.15
Former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant has given his support to a cancer charity campaigning for a new type of treatment to be made available in Britian.
Killing Cancer is a charity that is aiming to raise £50m to fund further trials into Photodynamic Therapy, a treatment that can help cure some forms of cancer by killing cells through a combination of drugs and light.
"It really is an injustice that this form of treatment is not available to everyone in the UK," said Plant. "I have friends currently receiving PDT, but only because we pushed to get it."
Plant is not alone in his support - he has been joined by a host of other celebrities such as The Who's Roger Daltrey, Alex Fergusson, Chris Tarrant and Sir David Frost, among others.
"Both my mother and father died of cancer," said Sir Alex Fergusson, manager of Manchester United. "I think PDT is an amazing first-step option before resorting to surgery. More patients should have access to it in our hospitals and the NHS should accept the charity's offer of equipment and training without delay."
To find out more about the therapy and how you can help, visit the Killing Cancer website.
Jason Bonham joins Slash for Rockstar Karaoke
From: THEPAINTEDTURTLE.ORG 2009.10.13
Jason Bonham joined guitarist Slash and singer/songwriter Frankie Perez last night at Rockstar Karaoke, an event to benefit The Painted Turtle, a Hole in the Wall Camp.
They played two Led Zeppelin songs, including Black Dog, in which Jason's sister Zoe sang the vocals and "killed it" according to a tweet from Slash.
Also, on the bill was Mark McGrath, Kelly Hansen, Lemmy, Jeff Pilson, Trevor Rabin, Rudy Sarzo, Slim Jim Phantom and Austin Winkler, along with host Dee Snider.
Looks Like 'It Might Get Loud' on Blu-ray
From: HIGHDEFDIGEST.COM 2009.10.01
The documentary on the electric guitar is coming to high-definition this winter.
Sony has revealed 'It Might Get Loud' featuring guitar heroes Jimmy Page, The Edge, and Jack White will be available on Blu-ray on December 22.
The Blu-ray will feature 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 video, a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack, and the only supplements will be a Toronto Film Festival Press Conference and probably BD-Live.
Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $37.95.
You can find the latest specs for 'It Might Get Loud' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under December 22.
Vultures supergroup gets into a jam
From: BOSTON.COM 2009.10.13
Led Zeppelin may not be embarking on a reunion tour, but it's not because John Paul Jones isn't ready.
Sunday night at the House of Blues the 63-year-old Zep bassist proved more than fit for duty, stepping lively with the new supergroup Them Crooked Vultures through a dynamic 82-minute set.Jones is clearly jazzed to be joining another thunderous rhythm section, as Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters held down the drum seat with the same combination of skill and mania he exhibited during his tenure with Nirvana. One of the night's great pleasures was watching Grohl pound away with a Cheshire cat grin, free from frontman pressures. Queens of the Stone Age singer-guitarist Josh Homme led the way with courtly charm and a full arsenal of blistering riffs and dynamic vocals, darting from stoner drone to funky falsetto.
In terms of sheer hard rocking power, the trio, augmented by guitarist Alain Johannes, lived up to the pre-show buzz. This was no mean feat considering the band has yet to release an album - it's due later this year - and the erratic track record of supergroups in general.
Sensibly, given the personnel, each tune was built on a sturdy guitar lick and anchored by a taut groove. Sometimes the vibe was fast and furious, as on opener "Elephants". A giddy disco energy infected "Gunman". "Spinning in Daffodils" was a low-down, grunge-encrusted rocker that gave way to an elegiac Jones piano solo. Several tunes evolved into epic jams spiraling up and down in energy, from short bursts of riffage to longer solos. The expansive yet stomping improv seemed fitting for a band reportedly formed in a medieval-themed restaurant.
As the show progressed, the fatigue of the unfamiliar began to set in - no songs from the musicians' original groups were performed - but the playing remained top-notch.
The ovation that Jones received from the rapt and heavily male sold-out crowd was shared by his bandmates onstage, who seemed to vibrate with excitement about their good fortune to play with a legend, and one still so nimble at that.
Supergroups almost always sound better on paper than on stage. The concept usually trumps the actual performance. There are exceptions, however (That would be you, Raconteurs). After Sunday's show at House of Blues, the jury is still out on Them Crooked Vultures.The Vultures combine two prominent alt-rock personalities - Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana) and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) - and a classic rock icon - Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones. The results of this mash-up, though undeniably loud, were mixed.
Borrowing from a host of sub-genres, Them Crooked Vultures dabbled in stoner rock, psychedelic rock, hard rock and even prog rock, but the songs too often leaned heavily on thunderous riffs and nothing more. At times, the trio sounded like a band jamming in its rehearsal space; melodies were scant and forgettable.
That said, the actual playing was top notch. Hommes' guitar shredding would satisfy even the geekiest of guitar nerds; Jones' bass playing was a study in precision and virtuosity. And Grohl might have outdone them both: His ferocious drumming captured the crowd's attention throughout the set. Homme may be the songwriter and ringleader and Jones may have the pedigree, but Grohl has visceral energy and charisma to go with his gargantuan talent.The crowd, a fairly homogeneous collection of under-40 males, didn't seem to mind the melodically challenged tunes. Without a record or songs on the radio, everyone in the audience had come to the show based on the reputation of the artists.
Perhaps Homme realized the dilemma. "If you start not to like it," he advised the capacity throng, "just drink some more and it'll all sound OK."
While beer may or may not make songs sound better, there were plenty of tunes that didn't need any improvement by way of intoxication. The slightly funky yet menacing "Scumbag Blues," with its falsetto verses and propulsive drums, proved an early set highlight, as did the alt-rock crunch of "Daffodils," Them Crooked Vulture's most accessible and complete song.
The set ended with the deliciously sludgy riff rock of "Warsaw," a 12-minute prog epic that showcased the band's dynamic abilities and decibel-soaring muscle. Them Crooked Vultures is clearly a side project that won't replace any of its members' main gigs, but it does provide ear-bludgeoning entertainment.
Jason Bonham Launches Official Website
From: JASONBONHAM.NET 2009.10.12
Jason Bonham, son of legendary Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, has launched his official website this week at http://www.jasonbonham.net.
After a television set shows a video of various home movies of Jason Bonham over the years behind the drumkit, starting with him at age 7 behind a mini version of his father's Ludwig Vistalite kit up through the 2007 Led Zeppelin reunion concert, the website advanced to a current picture with Jason and his 2007 Led Zeppelin reunion kit.
In the website, you can find current news, Jason's biography, complete discography, picture gallery, multimedia section with videos and an official merchandise section.
You can also find link to Jason Bonham's official Facebook page, Youtube channel as well as a link to his current tour dates.
Drummer Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin, UFO, Foreigner) - son of the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham - was interviewed this morning (Monday, October 12) on the "Mark And Brian" show on the Southern California rock station 95.5 KLOS. The chat is available for streaming using the audio player below.
Bonham has scheduled the following "An Evening With Jason Bonham" dates in October:
Oct. 14 - Revolution Live - Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Oct. 15 - House of Blues - Orlando, FL
Oct. 16 - State Theatre - St. Petersburg, FL
Oct. 29 - Coach House - San Juan Capistrano, CA
Oct. 30 - The Canyon - Agoura Hills, CA
According to the Led Zeppelin fan site Lemon Squeezings, Bonham's band will consist of two guitarists: Ian Hatton, who played for the original Bonham band (1989-1991) and took part in the post-Bonham project named Motherland (1994); and Tony Catania, who played in the Jason Bonham Band (1995-1997). Two new recruits for the band are singer Kelly Keeling (Baton Rouge, Michael Schenker) and bassist Francesco DiCosmo. They'll be playing songs from Led Zeppelin and all of the other bands Jason has toured and recorded with, such as UFO and Foreigner, plus his own bands. Also featured on the setlist will be some songs that Robert Plant included on his first solo album. Bonham explained that he played on demo versions of Plant's "Like I've Never Been Gone" and "Burning Down on One Side". "I did all the demos for that," Bonham said. "I used to be picked up from school when I was, like, 13 [or] 14, just after Dad died. ... [I'd] go into Robert's house, and all the guys in the band would be there."
According to Classic Rock magazine, Bonham is doing these gigs by way of tribute to Daniel MacMaster, the Canadian frontman who sang on the two albums from Bonham (1989's "The Disregard Of Timekeeping" and 1992's "Mad Hatter"). MacMaster died on March 16, 2008, from a Group A streptococcal infection. He was 39 years old.
Jason explained: "Tragically, Daniel passed away and I always regretted the fact that I didn't do more for him during his lifetime. Just like myself, Daniel struggled with his addictions so that's something I know all about.
"2009 is the 20th anniversary of 'The Disregard Of Timekeeping', so I [wanted] to pay tribute to what was a great period in all our lives. Whether anything new will come out of it, I don't know. It's all about having fun."
Jason Bonham interviewed on "Mark And Brian" show (click on player below to launch audio):
Them Crooked Vultures: Sound Academy in Toronto
From: JAM.CANOE.CA 2009.10.10
TORONTO - If the future of rock and roll includes one part Foo Fighters, one part Led Zeppelin and one part Queens Of The Stone Age, then it is still in good and incredibly capable hands.
Them Crooked Vultures - consisting of Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, Queens Of The Stone Age front man Josh Homme and guitarist Alain Johannes and drummer Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters - shone during a near flawless 80-minute set before a sold-out crowd Friday night at Toronto's Sound Academy.
And fortunately, this wasn't an exercise in rehashing their hits. Instead it was an interesting and at times spectacular display of musicianship, with Jones sometimes pulling his band mates into '70s heavy blues-tinged rock while Homme and Grohl pulled Jones into a more contemporary rock realm.
With no new album out - although one expected by year's end - Them Crooked Vultures opened with Elephants, a boogie-cum-bluesy nugget which set the path the quartet sailed down quite easily.
"I feel good," Homme said following the song, quickly kicking into the somewhat relentless Dead End Friends, a tune similar to Queens Of The Stone Age's Go With The Flow which Grohl rounded off nicely with rapid fills and rolls.
While Homme was lead singer for all of the 13 songs, his vocals often played second fiddle to the chemistry Jones and Grohl seemed to have from start to finish, especially evident on Scumbag Blues with Jones playing like a man 36 and not 63 years young. Jones also effortlessly played off Homme's fine guitar work during the tune's homestretch.
After Homme stated they had a lot of new music to get through, Them Crooked Vultures were again extremely tight and polished during the dance-rock tinted Gunman. Sadly, they had a slight hiccup with Caligulove which sounded unfocused and left Jones trying to salvage the number with a Doors-ian keyboard solo to little effect.
Thankfully the last miscue was a brief but bizarre Interlude With Ludes as Homme went without a guitar for this set breather.
All was forgiven though when Them Crooked Vultures launched into a new, well, newer song Reptiles that garnered one of the louder cheers of the night, the sum far greater than the talented parts performing it onstage.
Yet that basically paled in comparison to the evening's two show stoppers, the first being a lengthy Daffodils, a punishing and intense effort comparable to material from Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti. And Homme, Grohl and Jones went to town on the lengthy jam before Jones tenderly rounded it off with a short but sweet keyboard solo which the crowd loved.
A groove-saturated Nobody Loves Me (And Neither Do I) was highlighted by Jones playing some mean slide guitar and could've been extended. But the band was correct to close with Warsaw, initially a swinging kind of ditty that morphed into a long and beautiful, garage-like rave up as Homme and Grohl embody a bit of Jimmy Page and John Bonham, respectively.
No encore was presented, but none was needed as Queens Of The Led Fighters, oops, Them Crooked Vultures earned their keep on this night.
Sun Rating: 4 out of 5
Rock's latest supergroup takes a few twists and turns
From: ABCLOCAL.GO.COM 2009.10.10
REVIEW (WJRT) -- As the line wound around sidewalk beside The Fillmore Detroit in a light drizzle, a buzz was evident. Kristina Guthrie got into town from Windsor with her friends at 3 p.m. and was first in line for the general-admission floor to see Them Crooked Vultures Thursday night.
"It's John Paul Jones. That's why we're here," she exclaimed, speaking of the former Led Zeppelin bassist. "They're all amazing musicians. It should be a great show, I'm really excited."
All walks of life filed through the doors just after 7 p.m. From twentysomethings wearing Led Zeppelin t-shirts to sixtysomethings wearing Nirvana garb, everyone shared the same anticipation and curiosity.
When the lights dimmed and the background music stopped at 8:30 p.m., a brief silence fell over the nearly 2,000 people in attendance, which was quickly interrupted by a raucous as Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana) and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) walked onto the stage and began settling in.
Another half minute would pass and Jones entered. The already wild crowd erupted with applause for the 63-year-old Englishman.
Grohl started pounding out a vicious drum beat, and Jones and Homme kicked in a deep, rich riff on bass and guitar respectively. After four bars, they doubled the speed and "Elephants" was off and running.
The simple light setup on the small, cramped looking stage was flashing and swaying along with the beat and the crowd was at a fever pitch. Grohl was a flurry of arms and hair flailing behind the lone Vulture on his bass drum.
Homme stood behind the mic with a stranglehold on his guitar, strumming riffs and squeezing searing leads out as Jones' thundering bass line sent vibrations through the floor and into the legs of the drowd.
"Detroit, how ya doin?" Homme asked as Grohl looked up from him drum kit, a big grin on his face. "It's very good to see you tonight."
Moments later the stage went dark except for a soft blue hue coming from above on the curtain behind the band. They jumped into "Dead End Friends" and kept the energy driving.
The crowd really started moving for "Scumbag Blues," a funkier song that featured an extended bass solo from Jones, who riled the audience up even more.
"About a month ago I came here to Detroit for a wedding of a friend of mine," Homme said following the next song, as Jones moved over to his keyboard. "I've always liked this place, but I never really got it. But after I spent five days here I've fallen in love with Detroit."
The band then launched into the crunching riff of "Caligulove" while Jones played haunting chords on the keys. "Caligulove" is one of many Vultures songs with several drastic turns and changes of pace. The tune in ended with a flurry, and after a brief "How you doin, sound good so far?" the band was off and running into "Langoliers."
The first crowd surfer of the night was rolled above the audience, and the band fed off the crowd's energy.
Both Jones -- back on his bass -- and Homme wandered toward the drum kit and exchanged grins with each other and Grohl during the instrumental break.
"Langoliers" is a bit less complex than the rest of the set, but at the end of the break, it slowed to a near halt and the crowd cheered the end just as the band charge into the final verse.
Once the song was over, Homme introduced Grohl, guitarist Alain Johannes, and Jones, who earned another round of rousing applause. "I feel the same way," Homme said.
"New Fang" followed, providing another bit of change of pace to the show. It didn't boast the same heavy, thick riff behind it as the previous songs, and a wah pedal was put to the test.
But that change of pace had nothing on what came next. Homme put his guitar over his head, handed it to the tech and took the mic off the stand as Jones donned a handheld synthesizer.
"Interlude w/ludes" was easily the most interesting song of the night. Bare-bones and raw, the rhythm was driven by the synth. Grohl toned down the drum beat and Johannes added licks as Homme wanderd the stage, swaying his hips and singing his heart out.
The subdued atmosphere didn't last long, though, as Homme strapped up his guitar and squealed out some feedback. Stacks exploded with a loud, grinding "Daffodils."
Picking up the pace gave the crowd a massive release. A section of the floor turned into a mosh pit and another crowd surfer rode the waves.
Homme slipped a slide on his finger and made his strings sing as the song wound down to just Homme's slide and Jones, who snuck back over to the keyboard. The pair then played back and forth off each other.
Jones soon took over and played an extended solo, while Grohl, Homme and everyone else in the building just staring at him, in awe of what they are witnessing.
This would prove to be the last mellow moment of the set. "Reptiles" brought back the deep, heavy riffs and the moshing. "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" started out with another funky lick from Homme, and another migraine-inducing light show fired on all cylinders.
Jones then set his bass aside and strapped on an eight string slide guitar for "Nobody Loves Me And Neither Do I." The interplay between Homme's riffs and Jones' fills on the slide were impeccable, but Grohl stole the show at the close with an absolutely blistering drum breakdown.
Homme bade the crowd goodnight and the band broke into "warsaw."
After the last flurry, Homme grabbed a drink from on top of his amp and raised it to the crowd as he put his arm around Jones and walked offstage.
Grohl came to the front, handed out a few drum sticks to some lucky fans and blew kisses as the house lights came up and Roy Orbison's classic "It's Over" blared.
Vultures was 82 minutes of music most people had never heard before, and it seemed likely those who showed up were going to engage in some more exlporing.
Them Crooked Vultures a musical treat
From: TORONTOSUN.COM 2009.10.10
If the future of rock and roll includes one part Foo Fighters, one part Led Zeppelin and one part Queens Of The Stone Age, then it is still in good and incredibly capable hands.
Them Crooked Vultures - consisting of Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, Queens Of The Stone Age front man Josh Homme and guitarist Alain Johannes and drummer Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters - shone during a near flawless 80-minute set before a sold-out crowd Friday night at Toronto's Sound Academy.
And fortunately, this wasn't an exercise in rehashing their hits. Instead it was an interesting and at times spectacular display of musicianship, with Jones sometimes pulling his band mates into '70s heavy blues-tinged rock while Homme and Grohl pulled Jones into a more contemporary rock realm.
With no new album out - although one expected by year's end - Them Crooked Vultures opened with Elephants, a boogie-cum-bluesy nugget which set the path the quartet sailed down quite easily.
"I feel good," Homme said following the song, quickly kicking into the somewhat relentless Dead End Friends, a tune similar to Queens Of The Stone Age's Go With The Flow which Grohl rounded off nicely with rapid fills and rolls.
While Homme was lead singer for all of the 13 songs, his vocals often played second fiddle to the chemistry Jones and Grohl seemed to have from start to finish, especially evident on Scumbag Blues with Jones playing like a man 36 and not 63 years young. Jones also effortlessly played off Homme's fine guitar work during the tune's homestretch.
After Homme stated they had a lot of new music to get through, Them Crooked Vultures were again extremely tight and polished during the dance-rock tinted Gunman. Sadly, they had a slight hiccup with Caligulove which sounded unfocused and left Jones trying to salvage the number with a Doors-ian keyboard solo to little effect.
Thankfully the last miscue was a brief but bizarre Interlude With Ludes as Homme went without a guitar for this set breather.
All was forgiven though when Them Crooked Vultures launched into a new, well, newer song Reptiles that garnered one of the louder cheers of the night, the sum far greater than the talented parts performing it onstage.
Yet that basically paled in comparison to the evening's two show stoppers, the first being a lengthy Daffodils, a punishing and intense effort comparable to material from Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti. And Homme, Grohl and Jones went to town on the lengthy jam before Jones tenderly rounded it off with a short but sweet keyboard solo which the crowd loved.
A groove-saturated Nobody Loves Me (And Neither Do I) was highlighted by Jones playing some mean slide guitar and could've been extended. But the band was correct to close with Warsaw, initially a swinging kind of ditty that morphed into a long and beautiful, garage-like rave up as Homme and Grohl embody a bit of Jimmy Page and John Bonham, respectively.
No encore was presented, but none was needed as Queens Of The Led Fighters, oops, Them Crooked Vultures earned their keep on this night.
Them Crooked Vultures unveils itself at Fillmore
From: DETNEWS.COM 2009.10.09
When Dave Grohl, John Paul Jones and Josh Homme hit the stage at the Fillmore Detroit Thursday night, Grohl did something a lot of rockers wouldn't do before sitting down to play: He smiled.
Turns out he had good reason to: He, unlike the rest of the audience, knew what was in store for the evening. By the end of the band's crushing, hypnotic 80-minute set, most of the audience was smiling, as well.
Individually they're members of an exceptional roster of bands (Led Zeppelin, Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age speak for themselves) but together, Grohl, Jones and Homme are Them Crooked Vultures, and they came to town Thursday without an album or a single to their credit. Heck, even photos of the band are difficult to come by.
Since playing its first show together in August, the band has been shrouded in secrecy, and in order to preserve that secrecy, cameras were not allowed in to the Fillmore. Those caught taking photos on their cell phones were asked politely to put their cameras away, and second-time offenders were told they would be asked somewhat less politely.
In these days of media over-saturation -- OMG, Miley Cyrus quit Twitter? -- such mystery is hard to come by, and in a sense it's refreshing. Still, it takes a leap of faith to ask an audience to sit through more than an hour of songs they've never heard before, and the 2,100 or so fans who showed up Thursday came strictly out of curiosity for the project and respect for the musicians.
But with a pedigree like Them Crooked Vultures has, it was a respect that was earned, and it turned out to be a splendid treat to see these three monsters of rock share a stage together.
The set opened with an intoxicating two-minute intro at the front end of "Elephants," one of several elongated jams that unfolded throughout the evening. Homme, the sneering, hip-swiveling Queen of the Stone Age, dutifully took on frontman duties, though eyes kept drifting back to the interplay between Jones and Grohl.
Many in the audience -- a heavily male crowd aged late 20s to early 40s -- had likely never seen Jones and had probably never seen Grohl behind a drum kit, so watching the two masters was like rock geek nirvana (pardon the pun). With Homme -- no slouch himself with his robotic, psychedelic stoner riffs shooting from his guitar like lasers -- the third mixer in the band's cocktail, the band's bludgeoning yet melodic rock (think Queens of the Stone Age multiplied by 1,000) was nothing short of mesmerizing.
The band's songs were expansive; "Elephants" stretched past the six-minute mark, "Reptiles" weighed in at more than eight minutes, and the closing "Warsaw" easily drifted past the 11-minute marker. Meanwhile, the transfixing "Nobody Loves Me and Neither Do I" seemed to literally breathe, rising and falling and rising again, like deep breaths taken after an exhaustive workout. These are smart, muscular songs, and the three principal players -- they were joined on stage by utility man Alain Johannes -- have compromised nothing in coming together. In fact, Them Crooked Vultures appears to be the rare supergoup that is more than the sum of its parts.
Homme played a jovial host, explaining to the audience he spent five days in town for a wedding about a month ago, and that he never truly understood Detroit until his trip. "I love this city -- I don't care what Time magazine says," he told the crowd.
Grohl, meanwhile, was a Tazmanian Devil behind his kit, a whir of limbs, hair and jackhammering fills.
But it was Jones who was the star of the show, and drove the band with his propulsive rhythms. When introduced by Homme, he received the loudest applause of any of the players, and not only the fans but his bandmates, too, seemed to be in awe of Led Zep bassist's presence.
Jones played keyboad on a pair of songs and even brought out a keytar during "Interlude with Ludes," which became a bit of a strolling western-flavored number, and felt like the byproduct of one of Homme's experimental "Desert Sessions." During "Nobody Loves Me," meanwhile, he played some sort of puzzling slide bass guitar that only he and his tech crew probably fully understand.
If nobody knew quite what they were in for when they arrived Thursday, they left knowing what they assumed to be true: Them Crooked Vultures is one of the most exciting new bands in years. Now all they have to do is release an album.
It was a four hour trip between my home in Pennsylvania and the venue I was headed to in Columbus, Ohio - and while I knew that I had work bright and early the next morning, it was no more than an afterthought as I made the journey to see what I knew to be a rock concert of epic proportions - one of only ten gigs in the US on this new superband's first tour. The band, who calls themselves Them Crooked Vultures, is the most exciting combination of musical talent in years. I couldn't let something like work obligations get in the way.
It all began on the fortieth birthday of the coolest guy in rock, Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, which in unsurprising and amusing Grohl fashion, was held at a Medieval Times. There, Grohl conveniently sat the legendary Led Zeppelin bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones next to Queens of the Stone Age founder Josh Homme, two musicians that had never met, but by the end of the night had agreed to Grohl's proposition that they join him for a little musical side-project. It was there, among the jousting knights in shining armor, that Them Crooked Vultures was born - Homme on lead vocals and guitar, Jones doing his thing on the bass and keyboard, and Grohl taking a step out of the spotlight to go back to his first love, the drums.
I recognized that this was a concert experience that I shouldn't pass up.. The band had yet to release their album or even a single. Their sound was still a mystery and their entire set would be unknown to the entire audience. It seemed like we would be experiencing a concert much like before the digital age of MP3 downloading and MySpace band profiles afforded one the ability to memorize every lyric before ever attending a concert. There would be no crowd sing-a-longs here, but after experiencing it, I assure you, it wasn't necessary.
We arrived at the venue two hours before the doors opened. Eager to secure our spot next to the stage we hopped into the already forming line, geeking out a bit with those in line next to us as the anticipation built. When the doors finally opened, the venue was flooded with the sold-out crowd of three-thousand. I was surprised by the small size of the venue's interior, but pleased with the intimate atmosphere it provided and more pleased with securing that coveted spot immediately front and center.
When the band finally took stage amidst the roar of the crowd, they ripped their way through a head-banging song fit for a single titled "Elephants," followed by Homme introducing the band one by one with much applause and cheers, before pointing towards the man holding the bass guitar. "And this is..." he began, but before he could finish, the crowd was deafening. Despite how low profile he has been since Led Zeppelin's demise, John Paul Jones needed no introduction.
The trio (along with a fourth concert-only guitarist) continued to jam through their set and despite the fact that the crowd did not know these songs, it did not stop the crowd from head-banging, dancing, clapping, or throwing their hands in the air. The music is hard to define, but it is certainly loud, big, and both back to the basics yet deceptively intricate. It is adventurous hard rock, blending riffs very reminiscent of Queens of the Stone Age with the bluesy thunderous rock of Led Zeppelin.
I've never been shy to admit my man crush on Dave Grohl and it was great to see him smile throughout the entirety of the show as he absolutely smashed on the drums brilliantly as if he were Animal from The Muppets. I'm still wondering how he did not manage to break his drumset or his nose. I appreciated how he took his role as the drummer with modesty, using his microphone only for backup vocals, never once uttering a word into it, despite knowing that if he said absolutely anything, the crowd would have got berserk. He was having plenty of fun though and winked and smiled his way through the show, at one point even giving my friend standing next to me a thumbs up, and another time jokingly shaking his head and giving a thumbs down when Homme was talking about how much fun they had playing together.
Still, it wasn't Dave that had most of my attention. It was John Paul Jones that left me in awe from the moment he took the stage. He thumped and slid on an array of bass guitars, then busted out a keytar (which had Homme drop his guitar and dance around stage in goofy-fasion as he sang), and then finally what I was anticipating most, in the midst of a song, the lights dimmed, and like rays from heaven, a single spotlight focused on Jones as he set down his bass to perform a beautiful, classically inspired keyboard solo that gave me chills and left the crowd mesmerized. Words cannot explain.
These guys were there to rock out, to have a good time, and to put on one hell of a show - and they succeeded on all fronts. Despite Homme not being the most charismatic frontman and his disinterest in crowd interaction, and despite the audience being unfamiliar with the music, in my eyes (as well as those I discussed it with after), none of that was needed. It was ninety minutes straight of mind-blowing hard old-school jamming that ended with an epic five-minute odyssey of astonishing fingerwork on the strings accompanied by insanely wild percussion. Them Crooked Vultures may not be break into mainstream radio, but you can tell that this unlikely combination of musicians don't mind. They're having too damn good of a time.
Them Crooked Vultures rock LC Pavilion
From: EXAMINER.COM 2009.10.08
The next supergroup has arrived. Them Crooked Vultures delighted and rocked the curious audience Tuesday night at the LC Pavilion in Columbus. Comprised of Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age, Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters, and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, Them Crooked Vultures has been garnering buzz since rumors of this project started floating around years ago. Without an album release date announced, and not even a single to get acquainted with, they are drawing big crowds on this tour due to the fact that they each already have big fanbases from their previous projects.
With no opening act, TCV got right down to it. Comfortable in his role as frontman, Josh Homme engaged the crowd immediately. While in many cases it may have been awkward attending the live show of a band that you practically know nothing about, TCV definitely made up for the mystery by offering a great live performance. Only introducing a few songs before playing them, "Caligulove" definitely stood out. "Nobody Loves Me And Neither Do I" was great as well, but it was "Warsaw" that Homme dedicated to the crowd. TCV played as if they have been together for years. Jamming quite a bit after each song, they were comfortable with each other and it definitely showed. Dave Grohl is arguably one of the best drummers in rock and roll history and watching him play from mere feet away was nothing short of incredible. And to look to the left and see John Paul Jones playing bass, well it just doesn't get much better than that. Playing for about an hour and a half they still had everyone's attention and had them wanting more when they left the stage. If this concert was any indication of the album that is hopefully soon to come, I would say that we are all in for quite a treat from these musical marvels.
Led Zeppelin Houses Of The Holy Photo Shoot
From: FEELNUMB.COM 2009.10.07
The cover art for Led Zeppelin Houses of the Holy album was inspired by the ending of Arthur C. Clarke’s novel Childhood’s End.
The ending involves several hundred million naked children, only slightly and physically resembling the human race in basic forms. It is a collage of several photographs which were taken at the Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland, by Aubrey Powell.
The two children who modelled for the cover were siblings Stefan and Samanatha Gates.
The photoshoot was a frustrating affair over the course of ten days. Shooting was done first thing in the morning and at sunset in order to capture the light at dawn and dusk, but the desired effect was never achieved due to constant rain and clouds. The photos of the two children were taken in black and white and were multi-printed to create the effect of 11 individuals that can be seen on the album cover. The results of the shoot were less than satisfactory, but some accidental tinting effects in post-production created an unexpectedly striking album cover.
The inner sleeve photograph was taken below at Dunluce Castle near the Causeway.
Like Led Zeppelin’s fourth album, neither the band’s name nor the album title was printed on the sleeve. However, manager Peter Grant did allow Atlantic Records to add a wrap-around band to UK copies of the sleeve that had to be broken or slid off to access the record. This hid the children’s buttocks from general display, but still the album was either banned or unavailable in some parts of the Southern United States for several years.
New E-Book "J.J. Jackson Remembers Led Zeppelin"
From: LED-ZEPPELIN.ORG 2009.10.06
Frank Reddon, author of the critically acclaimed 736-page hardcover book Sonic Boom: The Impact of Led Zeppelin Volume 1 - Break & Enter, has a new E-Book entitled J.J. Jackson Remembers Led Zeppelin: The Music and the Guys Who Made It.
It includes over 80 pages of exclusive material from Frank Reddon's interviews with the late J.J. Jackson, close friend and professional associate of Led Zeppelin's musicians. As a deejay at Boston's WBCN, J.J. Jackson was instrumental to Zeppelin's early success.
Of the six interviews in this new E-Book, five have never been published in their entirety anywhere before!
In this e-book, he analyzes the music of the official debut Led Zeppelin album PLUS he compares live concert recordings to the four gigs he himself attended at The Boston Tea Party (Jan 23-26, 1969) for an unprecedented eyewitness account of the early Led Zeppelin improvising on stage.
Renowned Led Zeppelin author and expert Dave Lewis gives a forward.
New Interviews with Page and Plant on Led Zeppelin II
From: INTHESTUDIO.NET 2009.10.06
Jimmy Page and Robert Plant are being interviewed for a website/radio show called "In the Studio" later this month (October 12) about the making of 'Led Zeppelin II' which will be turning 40 years old. The interviews can be heard at http://www.inthestudio.net.
The interviews of Jimmy Page & Robert Plant were many: Jimmy at Abbey Road Studios in London and again at host Redbeard's Dallas radio station, then in L.A. during the Coverdale / Page project. Robert was in rehearsal in Dallas, then in London at Bill Curbishley's office . Redbeard interviewed each separately about Led Zeppelin II, each several times, from 1985 through 1993.
Then he interviewed them together on the 1995 "No Quarter" tour backstage in Dallas.
At the site you can preview this LZ II show or listen to the earlier interviews with Page and Plant about Led Zeppelin I.
For over 20 years "In the Studio" has been dedicated to telling the stories behind rock and roll's greatest albums.
Them Crooked Vultures at War Memorial Auditorium, 10/5/09
From: NASHVILLESCENE.COM 2009.10.06
It takes a lot to get us out to a show by 8 p.m., especially to see a supergroup, of all things. So there must have been a good reason, right? Well, this supergroup has Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones in it. If you need us to name the bands those guys were/are in, then immediately stop reading this, go to your local record shop and ask the first person you see to tell you about life (or just click here). Figuring it was enough to ask the audience to sit through an hour-and-a-half of songs "no one knows," the band found it best to forgo an opening act. Thank God.
By the time we made our way inside, the auditorium was packed to the gills. Not since the debut of Oysterhead have this many garden-variety rock fans come together with such high hopes. Them Crooked Vultures have not even so much as released a single--the only thing people have to go on are some YouTube clips that'll make you seasick--so the only way to truly hear the band is to see them live. And as they took the stage at what Homme proclaimed as their 10th show, the place went nuts.
So what did they sound like? Not a whole lot different from what you'd expect: fuckin' balls-out rockin', brah. More like a cross between Queens of the Stone Age, Nirvana and Led Zeppelin than Eagles of Death Metal, Foo Fighters and Donovan, if that's what you're wondering. Since Homme is steering the ship as lead singer and guitarist, it basically sounds like he's found his dream rhythm section to comprise the new incarnation of QOTSA. (QOTSA rhythm-guitarist Alain Johannes was also on hand to fill out the sound.) Homme is one of hard rock's last innovators, and he's got enough smart-alecky swagger and good ideas to get away with not being named Robert, Jimmy or Kurt in his present company. The songs we heard typified what Homme is good at: writing music that's smart, yet will sound great blaring out the windows of a mud-covered pickup truck.
And of course TCV were more than a little Zeppelin-y, which, even without JPJ, is par for the course considering that Led Zeppelin made the stoner-rock template of pentatonic riffs, fat drums, odd meters and sex-laden rock 'n' roll attitude with which this band molested and mutilated our ear drums over the course of their 90-minute set. Just when something would start to sound predictable, the band would throw in a rhythmic curve ball or left-field melodic flourish to keep us on our toes. While the majority of the show consisted of riff-heavy, groove-suffused hard rock, there were plenty of proggy, climb-mountain-see-aging-wizard moments of jamminess that made us think that Homme's urge to whip out a bow--and Grohl's to deep-six his sticks in favor of bare hands--must have been killing them.
As made evident by the house lights-cuing ovation he received during the mid-show band introductions, the biggest star of the night was John Paul Jones. Jones, however, did not spend the show displaying the giddy, "Hey, I'm onstage and back in the game" blush that would overtake most aged rockers in his position. Instead, he looked serious and played with a determination to let people know they weren't just there to see some fossilized veteran, but to hear something fantastic. Throughout the night--whether on bass, piano, synths, keytar or other instruments we weren't even able to identify--Jones displayed his ever-vital prowess--so much so that we were willing to forgive the use of a 12-string bass with a light-up fret-board--and that's saying something.
Dave Grohl was all smiles. Forget the fact that he can still headline Wembley Stadium and sell millions in his own band. Despite having turned us off by comfortably slipping into torch-rock territory on the last few Foo Fighters records, Grohl is still "our hero" when it comes to poundin' the skins. Throughout the night he grinned away while doing his best Animal impression--never losing a beat or letting the intensity drop. The argument over whether or not he is this generation's John Bonham is now officially over.
What was most striking was the band's chemistry. At no point in the show did they ever lose the full undivided attention of the audience--quite a feat in a town full of musicians and with a set of songs that were brand new. There is no doubt that they exceeded expectations. All in all, it was easily the best 10th show by a band we've ever seen.
Robert Plant Performs at Hardly Strictly
From: SFGATE.COM 2009.10.04
The few hundred people that made the effort to show up early Saturday to the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 9 festival in Golden Gate Park were rewarded lavishly.
Breaking in the new Towers of Gold Stage at the far end of Lindley Meadow just before noon, Nashville guitarist Buddy Miller brought out a couple of special guests - Emmylou Harris to sing devastating harmonies on his song "Wide River to Cross" and Robert Plant to unleash his leather lung wail on the Hank Snow standard "I'm Movin' On."
"This is like going to school for me," said the Led Zeppelin frontman, who minutes earlier had been taking pictures of gophers digging in the lawn backstage.
The free festival, which closes its three-day run tonight with a headlining set by Harris, drew record crowds for its ninth year despite fierce winds and heavy traffic.
Organizers didn't have an exact number but enough people showed up to force the closure of 19th Avenue, knock out AT&T cell phone service and fill just about every available patch of grass, dirt and asphalt from Speedway Meadow on west.
"There's more people than the park can hold," said one onsite police officer.
Hardly Strictly booker Dawn Holliday, general manager of Slim's and the Great American Music Hall, said they expected about 750,000 to attend over the weekend. With more than 80 acts spread across six stages, there was certainly more than enough going on to keep them all entertained.
Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder offered traditional bluegrass on the Banjo Stage. Okkervil River did indie rock back at the Towers of Gold Stage. Old school country outlaw Billy Joe Shaver impressed himself on the Arrow Stage audience by declaring, "If you don't love Jesus, go to hell."
But it felt like most of the attendees turned out to see comic actor Steve Martin perform songs from his instrumental banjo album, "The Crow: New Songs for the Five-String Banjo," along with the Steep Canyon Rangers.
Martin mixed some unexpected finger-picking mastery with the expected comedic quips. "A lot of people say, 'Steve, why a music career now?' " Martin said. "I say, 'Hey, you guys are my band.' "
After his set he was greeted by fellow amateur banjoist Warren Hellman, the billionaire investment banker who finances Hardly Strictly as a gift to the city.
Even though Hellman's right arm was wrapped in a sling after a recent bout of shingles, he still managed to make it through his bluegrass group the Wronglers' traditional morning set and sit in with the Dry Branch Fire Squad later in the day.
After saying hello to Martin, he jumped into a waiting golf cart to be transported to the next act on his personal schedule. "Have you seen Natalie MacMaster?" Hellman said. "She can play that fast and dance while she's doing it."
"He's having the time of his life," Holliday said after Hellman sped off.
Watching the families basking in the sun, music fans racing from stage to stage, and dogs lying on the grass, it was clear he wasn't the only one.
John Paul Jones Jams With Sara Watkins at Austin City Limits
From: SPINNER.COM 2009.10.03
As accurately predicted by Spinner earlier this week, Led Zeppelin/Them Crooked Vultures bassist John Paul Jones joined Nickel Creek alum Sara Watkins for her Austin City Limits set, early on Friday afternoon. Jones worked with Watkins on her self-titled, Nonesuch debut and for this occasion didn't put on the bass, but instead opted for the mandolin.
He adapted well during the ballad 'All This Time,' complimenting her tender voice as she played the part of crooner. During 'Hold What Ya Got,' they broke it down bluegrass style, with Watkins and Jones culminating in a quick fiddle/mandolin duel, while the barn-stomper 'Long Hot Summer Days' showcased Jones in more of a country light. While this was clearly quite a departure from the hard rock leanings of Them Crooked Vultures, Watkins and Jones make quite a team. She was clearly enamored with his willingness to join her, approaching him afterward with an ear-to-ear grin.
It had been a busy week for Jones already with Them Crooked Vultures, as he taped an episode with the band for the upcoming season of Austin City Limits as well as played Stubbs on Thursday night to kickoff the weekend. The band is on tour through Oct. 15.
John Paul Jones, David Garza and Sara Watkins Courtesy of Craig Hlavaty
Jason Bonham a No Show at Slash and Friends
From: LASVEGASSUN.COM 2009.10.03
The allure of these rollicking Slash & Friends concerts brings to mind the imperious message from old late-night TV pitchmen: "How do we do it? Volume, volume, volume!"
Quality, quantity, high spirits and jacked-up amperage made for a late-night carnival at Bare Pool Lounge at The Mirage late last night, a showcase that spilled into the morning with an after-party at Jet. The all-star rock 'n' roll exercise hosted by the former lead guitarist of Guns N' Roses summoned the old (dueling iconic guitarists Rick Nielsen and Joe Perry), bold (Courtney Love, tossing aside typical stage protocol to read lyrics to the gender-unspecific "20th Century Boy") and beautiful (the wholly captivating Nicole Scherzinger, the leather-and-lace encased frontwoman for Pussycat Dolls).
The show was part of The Mirage's lengthy 20th anniversary celebration, a point in time that will be marked officially on Nov. 22 and will be trumpeted in earnest on that weekend. I am led to believe there will be cake and punch.
As for the latest SlashFest, it hardly mattered that over the past few weeks, the event's lineup experienced more drops than Terrell Owens during last Sunday's Bills-Saints game (Rob Zombie, Jason Bonham, Tommy Lee and announced emcee Kiefer Sutherland were among the fall-out boys). The show drew ample star power anyway, and of course the requisite oddities, such as an onstage visit from Slash's wife, Perla. The stormy spouse and Slash's apparent voice of reason strode onstage in a beaded black corset adorned with long tassels over each side of her chest, snug black shorts and lace stockings. All dolled up, in other words. She then quoted a dead woman, Anna Nicole Smith, by asking, "How do you like my BAH-dee?"
We like it just enough! But not so much to offend Slash, the evening's BFF.
Following are more "hooky" riffs from a crisp and loud evening in VegasVille:
*The vocalist for much of the evening was Las Vegas native Franky Perez, whose look has matured to the point where he looks like the father of the guy who released the promising "Poor Man's Son" in 2003. The last time I'd seen Perez perform was that year when he opened for Lynyrd Skynyrd at The Orleans Arena. He roared through "Whipping Post" that night, and again last night, along with AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" and Black Sabbath's "War Pigs." Dressed entirely in black, shedding the shades and jacket in favor of a tank top late in the show, Perez obviously relished performing with the high-level stars like Perry, Nielsen, Slash, Matt Sorum and Duff McKagan, who swapped spots on the stage over the two-hour show. At one point, he asked if anyone was from Las Vegas (a few among the crowd of about 650 cheered) and then he gave a call-out to his alma mater, Bonanza High School. Not your typical rock-show moment, eh? In the late stages, Perez also wore what appeared to be an old red-and-blue Las Vegas Stars hat from about 20 years ago.
It was fun watching Perez work it out onstage again. There was a time when he was at least as promising an artist as The Killers. It'll be interesting to see if he can, as we say, parlay this fortuitous gig into something he can sustain.
*The Joe Perry Project opened the show and performed a song Aerosmith ignored during its visit to the MGM Grand Garden Arena a couple of months ago, a reggae version of "Dream On." Perry said that version of the song was requested by an individual who booked the band to perform during a cruise, and Perry's response was something like, "Forget you, cruise boy," but it was a pretty cool rendition.
*Jot down Scherzinger's name on that list of performers you don't want to follow. She's an exotically beautiful, easy-on-the-eyes, hard-on-the-ears performer able to share the stage with anyone (just in the past month, she's appeared with both Gossy-Goss and Slash). By the time she finished with a full-force take on "Whole Lotta Love," Love walked to the mic and said, "I just got my a** handed to me. I've gotta follow that?" Give Love credit for conveying that revelation, at least. She's no dummy.
*Anyone clamoring for a meltdown by Love came away disappointed. She sipped from a glass filled with orange fluid and produced a lyric sheet to make it through "20th Century Boy," a move I'd seen only once before, when Pink unfolded sheets of lyrics for "Rock and Roll" during the opening-night party at Empire Ballroom four years ago. But Love still has that haggard-sexy act pretty much perfected. She might not look or sound great each time out, but no one looks or sounds quite like her. At least, no one famous.
*Notable jams: Nielsen, who should be our next mayor, played on the full-group effort of Cheap Trick's "Surrender." Perry returned for "Toys in the Attic." Sen Dog of Cypress Hill joined Perez on a blistering "Walk This Way." McKagan and Sorum (who seemed to be in full, stroppy revelry by the time he hit the stage late in the show) joined Slash in a mini-Guns 'N Roses reunion for "It's So Easy" (which I've always felt would make a great ballad) and an everyone-in-the-pool "Paradise City" to finish the show.
*Captured in the audience: Famed Vegas real estate magnates Jim and Glynda Rhodes, the embattled but unfailingly spirited couple who have had a rough year, laden with a bankruptcy filing and a scuffle with Nevada Cancer Institute over donations promised but not delivered. But the two looked fine last night, tanned and trimmed and chatty. They've been to Wimbledon and the Australian Open this year, and rock fan Glynda has seen Kid Rock four times in 12 months. Also spotted, Jeff Beacher (who is bringing a version of "Madhouse" to The Mirage in January) and prominent Las Vegas attorney John Momot, who defended Sandra Murphy in the Ted Binion murder trial, among many notorious Vegas cases.
The night ended with Momot, actually, as we happened to be walking out of the hotel together. I loudly asked, "What have you been up to, John?" and he said, "I cannot hear you!" Understood. I'll catch him later, post-ringing.
My first ACL show was Them Crooked Vultures, featuring none other than Dave Grohl, Josh Homme, and...John Paul Jones.
You know. Some lightweights.(TOTALLY kidding.)
OK, I know I'm behind, but when I heard about this set, I didn't realize JPJ was a part of it- si went simply for the Grohl/Homme factor.
But as TCV rocked it, I kept thinking, "Man, their bass player is REALLY AMAZING!"
Yes, Lindsay. Maybe because he was in (sic)LED ZEPPLIN?
They're touring after ACL, if they're near you, RUN. It's really fun to watch musicians at the top of their game just playing, and obviously enjoying themselves.
I've read some reviews saying they could gel more, but from what I saw, they're close to hard-set, with just enough jiggle for a super-funky groove and tempo changes that I found it difficult to predict- something I appreciate after all these years of tuning into a bassline first. (It's how I'm wired.)
Them Crooked Vultures Draw Biggest Crowd at Austin City Limits
From: SPINNER.COM 2009.10.03
Day One of Austin City Limits belonged to Them Crooked Vultures -- the supergroup consisting of Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme, Dave Grohl and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones.
"We'd like to play Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' right now," Homme said at the beginning of the set, "but we're not going to."
After running through a few tunes, including 'Mind Eraser,' Homme thought he'd let the crowd in on what exactly the band had in store. "I'm gonna tell you what these songs are called so you know what's going on for once," he joked. Before fans hopes got too high, he announced sarcastically, "This song is called 'I Love You Austin.'"
"This next song is real good, I promise," Homme said. "If not, you can blame Dave." We're not sure who's responsible for the dirty grit rock, like that found on the Vultures' tune 'Scumbag Blues,' but thank you.
Them Crooked Vultures Jolt Austin City Limits
From: ROLLINGSTONE.COM 2009.10.03
The Austin City Limits Festival, held in Austin's Zilker Park and currently in its seventh year, boasts a bill that roams the stylistic spectrum, but its first day proved a fine opportunity to get a good, long look at the changing face of country.
Cool breezes won out against the blazing sun on Friday, which was the perfect complement to the afternoon's more tranquil music, like fiddler Sara Watkins, late of Nickel Creek, who played an early afternoon set as long on charm and good manners as it was on winsome, airy country. She sounded positively bereft singing "I didn't lie, but I withheld the truth," on the quietly aching "Same Mistakes." This wasn't music for singing along - it was music for sighing along.
If Watkins was reserved and traditional, the Avett Brothers were a thrilling study in contrasts, pitting spare and simple instrumentation - acoustic guitar, banjo - against brothers Scott and Seth's hoarse, violent hollering. Their aggression wasn't just vocal: the band pogo'd like young punks during "Paranoia in Bb Major" while "Salina" built to a panicky conclusion. If Scott is the sturdy frontman, Seth is the jack-of-all-trades. He moved effortlessly from guitar to piano to drums, and attacked his vocals on "Distraction #74"? with an actor's intensity, miming out the lyrics with his hands.
Oregon's Blitzen Trapper mostly tended toward the traditional. Their oaky folk songs were as loaded with literary allusions as they were musical accoutrements: harmonica, tambourine and melodica filled in the spaces between Eric Early's clean strumming and hoarse, wheezing vocals. At the other end of the park, the Walkmen were aiming for expansion. The group significantly toned down their typically echo-drenched assault, opting instead for tiny pinpricks of sound, leaving big empty spaces for Hamilton Leithauser's barreling baritone. They brought out a small horn section for "Canadian Girl," turning a tiny rock song into full-blown mariachi.
Friday was rife with other stylistic pleasures: The Knux - who have gradually emerged as one of the more thrilling live hip-hop acts around - turned out an electric early afternoon performance, Krispy Kreme repeatedly ordering the crowd to "get crazy." If the Knux were wild and ragged, Phoenix took the opposite tack. Their songs were built from clean lines and precise rhythms - every piece exactly in place - but that didn't stop them from delivering one of the afternoon's more propulsive sets. Opening with the tidy thrum of "Lisztomania," the group delivered an envigorating set of dance music for people with good manners.
Raphael Saadiq delivered a new spin on the classic sound of R&B. He turned out tight, punchy guitar chords and slick, slippery vocals while his band - in three-piece suits - punctuated every phrase with a bright blast of brass. Later in the evening, John Legend delivered a more polished version of the same. His songs are more mannered and polite than Saadiq's, and he delivers them with the suave assurance of an experienced Casanova. By the time he got to "Green Light," he'd stripped down to a black tank top and leapt off the stage to sing directly into the front row.
But the afternoon belonged to Them Crooked Vultures, who took the stage as the sun was beginning to set in early evening. For anyone who hasn't seen one of their handful of live shows, they're still essentially the stuff of legend: Dave Grohl on drums, Josh Homme on guitar and vocals and John Paul Jones on bass. What's most surprising about the live experience is just how nasty the songs are. Far from boilerplate modern rock, the music instead coils and snaps like a rattlesnake, a mile-high stack of filthy riffs powered by Grohl's whipcrack percussion.
"We'd like to play Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' right now," Homme announced early in the set, "but we're not going to." Instead, they played "Mind Eraser," a hard-charging thunderclap of a song constructed from a squall of guitar. "Scumbag Blues" opened with a whine and then plummeted suddenly into a fit of grinding riffs, Homme adopting an eerie, unsettling falsetto.
The Vultures' set didn't end so much as unravel, petering out in a weird, wonky and slightly aimless jazz odyssey that found Jones working a single walking bassline while Homme noodled over top. That kind of heady jamming is clearly not their strong suit, but it conveys the group's single guiding ethos: In this operation, we do what we want.
Jimmy Page Attends Mott The Hoople Concert
From: LEDZEPPELIN.COM 2009.10.03
Mott The Hoople, with former Bad Company guitarist and Swan Song label mate Mick Ralphs on guitar, has reunited for five performances at the Hammersmith Apollo this week. At the end of their second show, on Friday night, singer Ian Hunter gave a special mention to a couple of people in the audience - Jimmy Page and Mick Jones (of Foreigner).
The show Jimmy attended was originally meant to be the first of two gigs, but popular demand led to three additional dates.
Josh Homme Interview at ACL
From: ANTIQUIET.COM 2009.10.02
Before we bring you the full coverage, we have an exclusive treat for you: A few hours ago we talked to Them Crooked Vultures' Josh Homme. We've been following the group for awhile now, but as long as the biggest questions being asked about the new group have continued to go unanswered, with rumors and hoaxes clouding the facts, we've been hunting down the elusive frontman to get the truth, right from the beak.
Antiquiet: We've got some basic questions here, since not too many people know what the hell's going on...
Josh Homme: I have extremely complex and secretive answers.
Antiquiet: I heard this came together at a renaissance-themed birthday party?
Josh Homme: Yeah, well Dave, he mentioned this idea, and we're always looking for a chance to do stuff together, Dave and I. So he said, "you know what, maybe I should ask John Paul Jones!" And I was like, "that'd be awesome. And I'll ask... The President. And we can put it all together."
And then all of a sudden he starts sending me emails, of correspondence between him and Jones, and I was like... 'uhhhh... well shit. What do I do?'
I hadn't played guitar for five months, and I was gonna maybe take a break for a second, for my first time in a long time. But then [Dave] has his birthday party at Medieval Times, and of course he sat us right next to each other. That was the blind date. But he sat in the next row behind us, like looking over (laughing)...
But you know, I think it's fairly common to meet someone from Zeppelin at Medieval Times.
Antiquiet: What's going on with the album?
Josh Homme: Well, we just finished figuring out what songs we're going to put on it, which took a little bit of time. We couldn't decide what [we wanted] to do. Do you make a triple album? An EP? How many songs is too much?
I tend to think that even if you've got a bunch of good songs, maybe you should err on the side of brevity, and keep it tight. But we really enjoy lots of songs, so we couldn't decide.
Antiquiet: And they're long songs...
Josh Homme: Some are, yeah. We call them battleships when they're big. There's about four battleships. And like, do you put 'em all on? I dunno, it's a tough call.
Antiquiet: Any name for it yet?
Josh Homme: It's a self-titled.
Antiquiet: How about a release?
Josh Homme: We've been doing a lot of stuff real kind of secretive, and we actually made a pact to not know when it's coming out, the band guys. I'm betting... Well it's going to be before the end of the year... We kind of have a little running bet on what the date is. And I intend to win that bet, because I'm going to cheat.
Antiquiet: In terms of songwriting, and getting down and playing together, how quick did that come to be?
Josh Homme: Well it actually happened pretty fast after that meeting. Both John and I told equally dry and sort of scathing jokes to each other at Medieval Times, and so it sort of stamped the 'let's do this.'
What's funny is once you agree to do it, I realized this after the first time we played, once you agree to jam together, it has to work. Or it's like saying... 'Why couldn't it work between the three of you? Why wouldn't you be able to do something that would be... that you would at least want to listen to?' So it's no pressure...
Antiquiet: What was the first song you guys wrote?
Josh Homme: Well, there was one called Reptiles... [But] we didn't end up doing it until almost the very end, I had to sort of convince those guys that it was the right sort of angular thing to do. Because it's a little bit hard to understand at first, I think, the way I delivered it. 'Hey, check this out!' (spastic convulsions) 'Watch this broken robot clean your house!'
And then there was a song called Spinning In Daffodils that was the first thing we really recorded.
Antiquiet: Any idea as far as an agreement on a label, or how that's all going to work out distribution wise?
Josh Homme: Yeah... It's going to come out on Interscope in the states, and Sony/BMG internationally.
Antiquiet: How do you feel about that? You've been pretty outspoken in the past about not feeling so hot about Interscope anymore...
Josh Homme: Well, you know... If it was up to me, I'd just get a real big hot air balloon, and put 'em all in the basket of that, and just (miming) pull the cord and let it drop over places, you know?
But, you know, it's not up to me always.
Antiquiet: Foo Fighters bassist Nate Mendel was asked about [Them Crooked Vultures]. He said that what's most interesting to him is that he's watching Dave in a band where he's not in charge, and he's not calling all the shots. (over laughter) Any reaction to that comment?
Josh Homme: Well he's giving all the shots. All the B12s, and all the flu shots...
Well, I think by nature of it, this is three people interested in hearing what the other person's opinion is. So there's no need to run anything. If we're not careful, it just runs itself. And you just gotta play catch-up anyhow.
Robert Plant at Great American Music Hall Tonight
From: 7x7.COM 2009.10.02
This just in: Robert Plant will perform a song with opener Buddy Miller tonight at GAMH as part of the Boz Scaggs & the Blue Velvet Band benefit show. Tickets are NOT SOLD OUT. Proceeds will go to the Richard de Lone Special Housing Project, a nonprofit that provides state-of-the-art facilities and care for children and adults with Prader-Willi Syndrome.
Then, be on the lookout this weekend at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. Robert Plant flew in just to watch the festival this year and will be roaming around Golden Gate Park with the rest of us.
Courtesy of stax
Loudest Taping Ever: Them Crooked Vultures Rock Austin City Limits
From: AUSTINIST.COM 2009.10.02
There was a definite buzz in the air. And the excitement was palpable. You don't get too many opportunities to witness legends from bands like The Beatles, The Doors, or in this case Led Zeppelin, live in concert and it wasn't surprising that the eager crowd included a good chunk of our city's media personnel. Plus there were a handful of local luminaries in attendance -- Spoon's Jim Eno sat directly behind us while Lance Armstrong, in the section to our left, seemed to enjoy himself throughout. But the star power tonight was undoubtedly on stage.
John Paul Jones -- an essential ingredient of one of the biggest rock 'n' roll acts of all time, a living legend, and of course, an amazing musician -- was the main draw at last night's Austin City Limits taping but the informed audience knew that he was just one component of this special new band called Them Crooked Vultures. David Grohl and Josh Homme, who had both emerged from their vehicle to loud cheers outside earlier in the evening, received an even louder ovation on taking the stage and for good reason. Grohl continues to take his career to lofty heights with Foo Fighters; of course his sizable contributions to the history of rock began with that one band called Nirvana. Homme has proved his mettle in the rock circuit via numerous well respected projects such as Screaming Trees, Kyuss, and Queens Of The Stone Age.
TCV started with the blistering "Elephants" and Grohl immediately brought back memories of those Nirvana days, his hair flailing around uncontrollably as he pounded away relentlessly, hammering each instrument in his drum kit like he meant it. Homme and former QOTSA guitarist Alain Johannes set the tone early with some huge riffs and it was heartening to see Jones keeping up with his younger counterparts as TCV tore through one bludgeoning rock song after another. Homme's vocal style, the shifting tempos, and the squawking guitars all played a part in evoking QOTSA -- no disrespect at all to the other members from that band, but this was QOTSA+. Jones showcased his skills on a variety of bass guitars, including a slightly mysterious slide bass. He took time to purge the haze of psychedelia produced during "Daffodils" with a soft piano coda and chimed in on the organ to embellish "Caligulove" which also gave us a taste of Homme's falsetto. The scorching jam session that concluded the last song "Warsaw" was an impressive and appropriate finale to the set, which lasted just about an hour. Thoroughly satisfied, we left hoping that an album, or even a proper single, arrives at our doorstep sooner than later.
Aftermath: Them Crooked Vultures at Stubb's in Austin
From: HOUSTONPRESS.COM 2009.10.02
Just a few short hours ago Aftermath saw the rock world's newest supergroup in action as Queens of The Stone Age's Josh Homme, ex-Nirvana drummer/current Foo Fighters helmer Dave Grohl, and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones took the stage at Stubb's in Austin for a warm-up gig before this afternoon's Austin City Limits festival appearance. Thursday night's show was only the second US date for Them Crooked Vultures since their inception this past summer.
It's hard to exactly explain what the conglomeration between those three men and bonus guitarist Alain Johannes sounds like, other than using excessive comparisons to freight trains and the like. One massive parallel we did hear throughout the band's nearly two-hour set was somewhat of a demonic Cream, with Grohl playing drums like Ginger Baker on biker speed. He simply has not hit this hard since the days of his former band' s In Utero and maybe his one-off metal project Probot. Even his work on QOTSA's landmark Songs For The Deaf paled in contrast to his work behind the kit last night. Grohl was little more than a mass of hair and arms in the back of the Homme and Jones-induced sprawl.
Which brings us to Jones who is honestly the backbone of this project for all intents and purposes to Them Crooked Vultures. The man pulled out a keytar, a slide bass, and even played keys on a handful of tracks, with one bass lighting up with blue LED lights. People will prattle on about Jimmy Page being some sort of evil guitar god who sold his soul to craft "Stairway To Heaven", but anyone watching TCV last night would realize that he had a touch of old Pitch himself all along.
All in all the sound of TCV is tight as hell, with the only complaint being that we wish we could have heard more interplay between Grohl and Jones, who together comprise one of rock's best rhythm sections. After all they played behind Page and Plant and Cobain respectively. Homme stayed sturdy the entire night, turning his hip-swiveling red-haired sex menace on full blast.
This evening the band helps close out the daily festivities playing before the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Kings Of Leon over at Zilker Park, so we see ourselves now having to make some serious ass Sophie's Choice-style decisions. We are actually quite interested now to see what a largely outsider festival crowd will think of TCV's extended punishingly intricate jams. Projects like this don't last long and go poof just as soon as they bloom. Let's hope these guys stick around for a touring cycle or two.
Live review: Them Crooked Vultures ACL taping
From: AUSTIN360.COM 2009.10.01
You have to hand it to Dave Grohl. His post-Nirvana career has turned into one long game of doing whatever cool musical thing pops into his head.
He leads, sings, plays guitar and song-writes for his full-time band, Foo Fighters, which is nearing the 15 year mark. He's guest drummed on full-albums by bands he likes (Queens of the Stone Age, Killing Joke) and played fantasty heavy metal camp on the Dave + a-whole lot-of-extreme- music-dudes album Probot. Now he's playing in a Cream-esque "supergroup" called Them Crooked Vultures with Queens guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones.
Jones is an interesting case - he's the one member of Led Zeppelin who didn't make questionable career moves post-Zep by, for examples, dying tragically (John Bonham), playing in the Firm (Jimmy Page) or naming an album "Now & Zen" (Robert Plant).
Jones became a producer, making records with interesting bands (Butthole Surfers, Diamanda Galas) and generally keeping a comparatively lowish profile.
So seeing these three guys play together, two of them doing things in public they don't do much anymore (Grohl drumming, Jones playing bass) was thrilling apart from the music they made. It also lent a buit of weight to the taping itself, the first time an unsigned band has recorded an Austin City Limits set, which they did Wednesday night. It was certainly the first time a band was playing its ninth-ever gig for the program.
Oh, the songs? Well, they sounded like the sum of their parts - essentially Queens of the Stone Age style riffs blended with a large helping of everything loud Led Zeppelin did well - blues here, art-rock there, rolling thunder everywhere.
Notably, they don't sound like more than the sum of their parts - Featuring Queens bassist Alain Johannes on second guitar, TCV still feels very much like a project band, or at least a band who are still feeling out their strengths and weaknesses of their songs. The hour-long set's opener, "Elephants," I believe, rolodexed the band's skill set -Grohl's Bonhamy stomp mixed with punk speed, Jone's hard-swinging, yet almost casual bass and Homme's ovoid riffs and the bits of prog rock Zep loved the most (i.e. songs with lots of parts and movements).
"Mind Eraser, No Chaser" overcame its terrible title with lots of wah-wah. Jones hit the synths and Grohl found a nasty double-bass drum run for "Caligulove." "Scumbag Blues" was all swing and drive, while "Daffodils" seemed to cut the "Immigrant Song" riff, only to loop into the sort of queasy ovoid shape Homme is so good at. ("Nobody Loves Me and Neither Do I" similarly repeated a dirty Zep-style buzz while Jones played a massive, lap-slide-looking thing that produced some vibrant drone.) And I may be the only person for whom "New Fang" recalled Aerosmith's Ragdoll," but, well here we are.
The closer, "Warsaw," started with a chunky, brick-laying riff and ended with the sort of faux-jazzy, goofing-solos coda you just don't see anymore. No wonder the word Homme kept using the word "classic" to describe the set. We're not likely to see TCV songs replace Led Zeppelin on classic rock radio any time soon, but those two crazy kids and the guy who looked like a kind uncle sure seemed to have fun trying.
Update on the 1969 Led Zep Central Park Footage
From: LED-ZEPPELIN.ORG 2009.09.23
Exclusive from led-zeppelin.org's Adam Vickery and courtesy of film archivist Bill Shelley.
With the recent announcement and unearthing of a rare Led Zeppelin film I inquired to Mr. Bill Shelley about his find.
When asked details of his Central Park footage he responded with the following statement.
"Yes, my company Shelley Archives Inc does have film materials of Led Zeppelin in Central Park 1969. We own approximately 40 minutes of color 16mm film (negative and positive) that have to be match edited and sound sync'd. The sound is on 16mm full coat mag track. For the moment there are possible plans for restoration through several record companies I'm involved with. As you may know, copyrights, publishing rights and image licensing from the artists have to be cleared in order to do anything with this film footage and this amounts often to a legal and long standing nightmare. My company is currently being licensed by Eagle Rock Entertainment for DVD releases of concert materials in the vault."
Best Wishes,
Bill Shelley
Shelley Archives Inc
Rock And Roll Hall of Fame DVD set to be released
From: CLEVESCENE.COM 2009.09.23
Just in time for the wallet-busting, gift-giving season, Time Life will release a nine-DVD box called Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Live on October 20.
The set - one part of the HOF's 25th-anniversary celebration, which also includes a mega-cool concert that's happening in NYC rather than in Cleveland - includes 125 live performances from a quarter-century of Rock Hall induction ceremonies.
In addition to all the usual suspects - Bono, Bruce Springsteen and Paul Simon are all here - the collection features performances by R.E.M. with Eddie Vedder and 1995's Concert for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which did take place in Cleveland. Plus, there's tons of John Fogerty.
Highlight for local fans has gotta be "The Train Kept A-Rollin'," featuring Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Ron Wood, Joe Perry, Flea and Metallica from April's bash in Cleveland.
The DVDs will set you back $119.96 (it's available here). But think of the joy you'll bring to that aging rock fan in your life as they watch Sheryl Crow pop up onstage about a zillion times. -Michael Gallucci
Jimmy Page Attends Jeff Beck Performance
From: WHARF.CO.UK 2009.09.22
What a show, and not a silver lining in sight, as one of the genuine guitar greats wowed an Indigo2 audience, which included Ronnie Wood and Jimmy Page, with a homage to the music that inspired him in the 1950s and 60s.
The premise, as introduced by promoter Harvey Goldsmith, was for Beck and the band to bring to life records, perhaps overlooked by modern audiences, from the likes of Johnny Burnette, Booker T and the Shadows.
Not quite what all the audience was expecting but it turned out to be an inspired evening's entertainment, with Beck - dressed in black save for white boots and scarf - on blistering form.
He was ably backed by Imelda May, who deserves to be a big star, and her band, featuring guitarist Darrell Higham, bass player Al Gare and drummer Steve Rushton.
While it's all too easy to label people with the genius tag Beck is one of the few who truly deserve to be considered as such. He it proved last night, producing sounds one would never imagine could be discovered on a guitar.
Beck, to the uninitiated, was one of a clutch of British guitar superstars to emerge from the vibrant London music scene of the late 1960s, the most famous of whom are Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and Peter Green.
Despite early chart success with Hi Ho Silver Lining, still a radio staple, Beck set about carving a career for himself pushing the boundaries of what it's possible to do with the electric guitar.
Beck's virtuosity was evident from the first note and he proceeded to rip through a catalogue of songs, which included tracks by Elvis or Howlin' Wolf and even Judy Garland.
There were many highlights, but a stunning version of Lilac Wine, with Beck's fluid guitar lines perfectly complementing May's impassioned vocals was a genuine showstopper - emotional without being overblown.
He dedicated a vibrant vibrato version of The Shadows' Apache to Hank Marvin, the man he claimed inspired every kid to "go out and steal a Fender Strat", while an excellent cover of Booker T and the MG's Green Onions put the groove into proceedings.
>strong>Towards the end of the show Beck invited Wood and Page to join him on stage. The fact they were sitting in the balcony might have prevented them joining in, although Beck had a bit of fun at their expense, claiming they were "too chicken".
After a rousing Rock Around The Clock, with Darrell Higham taking the vocal duties, the show closed with an instrumental rendition of Somewhere Over The Rainbow which highlighted Beck's mastery of tone and phrasing.
It could be argued that Beck should be a far bigger star than he already is but his diffident stage manner, mumbled anecdotes and half-told jokes, probably precludes that.
But who needs repartee when the guitar can do all the talking in such style.
Despite having just over 24 hours to put the show together Beck was delighted with how it turned out and afterwards he told The Wharf he is keen to take the show to the West End.
He said: "All respect to these guys, they really live this music. They look like they have just stepped out from a 1950s catalogue.
"I really want people to hear more of the stuff from the 1950s, not just Elvis but things from before him, and I'd love to take the show to the West End.
"If Mama Mia can be a success then I don't see why a show like this wouldn't be as well."
Whether that's possible without Beck's electrifying presence is a moot point but the first of the American Express-sponsored showcases was excellent.
Blues rock vocalist Deborah Bonham at the Excelsior
From: INDEPENDENT.COM.MT 2009.09.20
A gourmet dinner and live stage show featuring Blues rock royalty singer Deborah "the Duchess" Bonham will be held at the Grand Hotel Excelsior in Valletta,Malta on the evening of 2 October. Deborah is the young sister of the late John Bonham, the drummer from Led Zeppelin, although she has never made that claim in making her own path to recognition for her singing and song-writing talent. Deborah's sweet, raspy, gypsy voice is reminiscent of Janis Joplin, Stevie Nicks and her idol, Scottish Blues vocalist, Maggie Bell.
"I think the blues is whatever has happened in your life that you need to get through," says Deborah. "It's exorcism - a form of therapy, really."
Deborah began to break out on her own performing live and recording demos at the age of 17 at Robert Plant's house in a nearby Worcestershire village. She cut her first critically acclaimed album For You And The Moon in 1985. The album reached the Top 5 in the NME chart, and sold well in Europe, being voted Record of the Year by Musik Mart magazine in Germany. Then came the album The Old Hyde where she started writing and playing music with her nephew Jason Bonham (John Bonham's son) who has also played drums on her two most recent studio releases. Her third and most recent album, Duchess, is a reference to her mother, the strongest woman she's ever known and is her debut album for the American market. One of the most powerful songs, Hold On is an open letter to the world-weary and heavy-hearted. Bonham has toured and performed with Van Halen, Alannah Myles, Tim Rose, Uli Jon Roth, Humble Pie, Donovan, Lonnie Donegan, Jools Holland, Foreigner and Paul Rodgers.
Tickets are €35 for dinner and the show at the Grand Hotel Excelsior in Floriana.
Jason Bonham takes Bonham on tour
From: LIVENATION.COM 2009.09.19
Livenation.com is reporting that metal band Bonham will be on tour mid-October in various clubs in Florida.
It is unknown who exactly the touring members will be, however Jason Bonham hasn't toured under the Bonham band name since 1997.
Only two dates have been announced on Livenation.com and more date will be announced soon.
New Led Zeppelin video footage found
From: NEWSDAY.COM 2009.09.18
Sometime in the early 1980s, Bill Shelley was working at a sound studio in Manhattan's legendary Brill Building when he was instructed to throw away dozens of old film canisters. Some had intriguing labels, like "Beach Boys." Shelley decided to keep them.
Smart move: He wound up with footage of the Beatles at the Cavern Club, Led Zeppelin playing Central Park in 1969, the Turtles, the Yardbirds, the Doors and others.
For Shelley, 48, it was another addition to his ever-growing collection. Over the decades, the Freeport-based independent archivist has amassed more than 100,000 films and videos of rock musicians from Elvis Presley to Talking Heads. During the coming months at Huntington's Cinema Arts Centre, he'll host a series of screenings. Tomorrow's program, "Motown Revue," features two hours of the Supremes, Smokey Robinson, the Jackson 5 and others.
Shelley's collection includes promotional videos, concert films, reel-to-reel tapes and old television broadcasts. (Tomorrow's show features Martha Reeves and the Vandellas singing "Wishin' and Hopin' " with Dusty Springfield on a 1966 episode of the British pop show "Ready Steady Go!")
Not everyone sees the value in such ephemera: Shelley once worked at a record company that was tossing out films of Janis Joplin, the Byrds, and Simon and Garfunkel. "They said, 'Disco is in, and rock is dead, so just take this.' "
Estate sales and auctions can also be gold mines, but Shelley says he finds many gems just by striking up conversations. "You ask the right question, and people say, 'Yeah! I have a film in my basement.' "
Old films tend to dry out and shrink, Shelley says. "They have a vinegar smell, and you can't project them." There are chemicals made for restoring film, but Shelly found them lacking. Then he read that Edison Studios used camphor oil to soften its films, and that Walt Disney packed his negatives with mothballs to kill mildew.
"It worked," Shelley says. "I figured if it was good enough for Edison and Disney, it's good enough for me."
Shelley still hasn't found anything on the Grateful Dead performances that reportedly took place in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park in 1966. "I keep hearing about footage," Shelley says. "I'm always looking for that."WHAT "Motown Revue"
Jason Bonham joins Slash again
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.09.18
Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin), Tommy Lee (Mötley Crüe), Joe Perry (Aerosmith) and Rob Zombie are among the musicians who will join Velvet Revolver/ex-Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash for Mirage hotel's 20th anniversary concert bash on Friday, October 2 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show, which is being billed as "Slash & Friends", will feature appearances by the following artists:
Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin)
Rocco Deluca (The Burden)
Tommy Lee (Mötley Crüe)
Courtney Love (Hole)
Rick Nielsen (Cheap Trick)
Joe Perry (Aerosmith)
Nicole Scherzinger (Pussycat Dolls)
Matt Sorum (Velvet Revolver)
Rob Zombie
Opening act: Billy Boy On Poison
Hosted by: Kiefer Sutherland
For tickets, click here or call 1.800.963.9634 or 1.702.792.7777.
Buddy Miller wins AMA Awards
From: CMT.COM 2009.09.18
Buddy Miller was the top winner Thursday night (Sept. 17) at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium during the Americana Music Association Honors and Awards show, an event that's always more about the celebration of music than it is about stars and egos. Miller won in four of the six member-voted categories during the ceremony that featured performances by musician-songwriter recipients of the organization's lifetime achievement awards -- John Fogerty, Asleep at the Wheel and Sam Bush.
Miller, who again served as the show's bandleader, was named artist of the year. He and wife Julie Miller were voted duo/group of the year, and their latest CD, Written in Chalk, was named album of the year. "Chalk," written by Julie Miller and recorded by her husband and Patty Griffin, received honors as song of the year.
A record label set up with the help of Led Zeppelin rock legend Robert Plant in Kidderminster has won a national music award.
M.A.S Records based at Kidderminster College will be presented with the Access to Music award at a ceremony in London on September 21.
The coveted prize, sponsored by Rockschool which runs music exams, recognises the "tremendous commitment" from creative director and course leader Kevyn Gammond and his team.
M.A.S, which stands for Mighty Atom Smasher, helps to promote the latest up and coming bands in the West Midlands. The label provides training and advice for nearly 160 musicians, helping bands to land all important record deal.
He said: "Receiving the Access To Music award this year is very gratifying. The M.A.S. Records team consistently strives to offer good service and works hard to do so. In March we received a Grade 1 from Ofstead, recognising outstanding achievement, standards, and quality of provision. So this year has been thrilling."
Head of lifelong learning at Kidderminster College Anna Place, said: "Gaining this award is even more exceptional given that it is our first year working with Rockschool. The team have worked tirelessly, frequently in the evenings and at weekends, to provide an outstanding learning experience and thoroughly deserve the recognition."
Plant, who lives near Kidderminster, was honoured by the Prince of Wales when he received a CBE earlier this year.
The Wolverhampton Wanderers fanatic has had a successful and diverse solo career since the band split in 1980 following the death of drummer John Bonham. He recently refused to join a mooted Led Zeppelin reunion so he could concentrate on his collaboration with American bluegrass singer Alison Krauss.
Robert Plant "Brings The House Down" at O2
From: LED-ZEPPELIN.ORG 2009.09.11
Robert Plant was a little hesitant at the beginning of his 3-song set last night at the O2 Arena in London, England tonight.
"It's a little experimental. Maybe, you might find something to get stuck into. Let's see what happens. It's, at least, out on the edge."
And then Juldeh Camara started plucking away on his kologo (two-stringed Ghanian fiddle). Almost unrecognizeable to the Western ear until Robert Plant came in with "Hey hey mama, said the way you move, gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove..."
Camara switched over to ritti (one-stringed African fiddle) and Plant introduced Funny In My Mind (I Believe I'm Fixin' To Die) "Here is a song from 19 and 32. Its a little changed for 2000 and whatever it is."
A little humble, yet ever-sarcastic, Plant introduced Whole Lotta Love as "...a little chestnut, speaking about variety shows."
Plant and Camara were joined on stage this evening by guitarist Justin Adams, who released a new CD "Tell No Lies" on June 16, 2009 with Camara and is in the middle of a small UK Tour, Billy Fuller on bass, Clive Deamer on drums and three bendir players.
Plant and company took the stage as part of the O2 Rockwell concert to benefit the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy charity.
@rsctim tweeted "just saw Robert Plant play Led Zep songs at the o2. Amazing." Indeed.
Courtesy of Paul Hide
Courtesy of Paul Hide
Black Dog
Funny In My Mind (I Believe I'm Fixin' To Die)
Whole Lotta Love
Led Zep: Rare Collection Being Auctioned For Charity
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.09.09
Toronto, Ontario, Canada's Mount Sinai Hospital has announced a special addition to its online charity auction, a rare collection of items of the legendary group LED ZEPPELIN.
Among the assortment of rare collectibles, vintage photographs, concert footage, CDs and books is a hard-cover program from the group's 2007 reunion concert at London's O2 Arena, autographed by Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones.
Jimmy Page, David Gilmour Guests At Spandau Ballet Book Launch
From: UNCUT.CO.UK 2009.09.09
Led Zep's Jimmy Page and Pink Floyd's David Gilmour were just two of the music legends who turned up to Spandau Ballet frontman Gary Kemp's book launch in London earlier this week.
Jimmy Page, who shares a guitar tech with Gary Kemp, helped his peer celebrate the publication of the autobiography "I Know This Much: From Soho To Spandau" (Fourth Estate).
The party at London's private member's bar the Groucho was also attended by friends David Gilmour and Chas Smash as well as Spandau bandmates Martin Kemp and John Keeble.
Spandau Ballet are set to play their first shows together in 20 years, with reunion concert dates starting in the UK in October.
Jimmy Page snubs autobiography plans
From: THAINDIAN.COM 2009.09.09
London, September 9 (ANI): Rock legend Jimmy Page has left many fans disappointed after snubbing plans to pen an autobiography.
The Led Zeppelin star recently made the revelation at friend Gary Kemp's book launch.
"I've had so many offers over the years but I'm not interested," the Daily Express quoted him as saying.
"I wouldn't know how to go about it," the 65-year-old guitarist added.
Page further tagged most books on the Seventies rock group as "a load of old rubbish". (ANI)
Them Crooked Vultures To Tour Australia In January
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.09.09
Them Crooked Vultures - the new supergroup consisting of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, Queens Of The Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones - will tour Australia in January. The dates are as follows:
Jan. 19 - Perth, Australia - Challenge Stadium
Jan. 22 - Melbourne, Australia - Festival Hall
Jan. 25 - Brisbane, Australia - Riverstage
Jan. 26 - Sydney, Australia - Hordern Pavilion
A 52-second instrumental preview video of the Them Crooked Vultures track "Scumbag Blues" can be viewed below.
Them Crooked Vultures have announced the dates and venues for their first North American tour, which will begin on October 1 at the kick-off party for the Austin City Limits festival in Austin, Texas. The trio will tape a performance for the "Austin City Limits" TV program one day earlier on September 30, with an airdate to be determined. Tickets for the tour go on sale this Saturday (September 5) at 10:00 a.m. local time. Them Crooked Vultures have played only one show in the U.S. so far, on August 9 at a Lollapalooza afterparty in Chicago.
The band has just finished a short run of European festival dates.
Although a debut album has been completed, reports of an October 27 release are said by the group's publicist to be just rumors, according to The Pulse of Radio.
Several short clips of both live and studio performances by the trio have already surfaced on YouTube.
Them Crooked Vultures Post Scumbag Blues online
From: NME.COM 2009.09.02
Them Crooked Vultures have posted a snippet of one of their songs online in a video – watch it by clicking below.
The track is expected to feature on their debut album 'Never Deserved The Future', which is due in late October.
The band - featuring Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, Queens Of The Stone Age's Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones - posted 'Scumbag Blues' online yesterday (September 1). It follows the announcement of the supergroup's first UK tour, set for December.
Volume 3 of The Crooked Times has now been released. It gives the long-awaited news of the US and UK tour in Fall 2009, with dates and locations.
As an added bonus, it also gives a link to a little instrumental video snippet of Scumbag Blues as well as a link to their online Store with the ever-changing t-shirt.
Descending on Austin for Festival & TV appearances
The tour kicks off with an October 2 performance at the Austin City Limits music festival, to be preceded by a September 30 Austin City Limits TV taping to air at a later date TBD, as well as an appearance at the October 1 Austin City Limits festival pre-party.
North America Fall Tour 2009
Thu, 1st October / Austin TX / Stubb's
Fri, 2nd October / Austin TX / Austin City Limits
Mon, 5th October / Nashville TN / War Memorial
Tue, 6th October / Columbus OH / LC Pavilion
Thu, 8th October / Detroit MI / The Fillmore
Fri, 9th October / Toronto ONT / Sound Academy
Sun, 11th October / Boston MA / House of Blues
Mon, 12th October / Philadelphia PA / Electric Factory
Wed, 14th October / Washington DC / 930 Club
Europe Winter 2009
Thu, 10th December / Plymouth / Plymouth Pavilions
Fri, 11th December / Portsmouth / Portsmouth Guildhall
Sun, 13th December / Blackpool / Empress Ballroom
Mon, 14th December / Birmingham / O2 Academy Birmingham
Tue, 15th December / Edinburgh / Edinburgh Corn Exchange
Thu, 17th December / London / Hammersmith Apollo
Robert Plant Honoured by Wolverhampton Wolves
From: GOAL.COM 2009.08.17
Robert Plant, the rock star who fronted the legendary Led Zeppelin, has revealed that Wolverhampton Wanderers' decision to make him an honorary vice-president has left him feeling a little strange.
Plant, 60, has been watching Wolves for 55 years, and received his honour on the pitch during half-time in Saturday's game against West Ham United at Molineux from chairman Steve Morgan.
"First of all, I'm flattered, but I'm embarrassed to be honest," the singer told The Express & Star.
"There are so many other people who are so important and relevant to the club, especially the people I sit next to at Molineux in the Steve Bull Stand.
"They've seen so many more games than me and they're able to keep a closer eye on what's going on."
Plant is a West Midlander through and through, having been born in West Bromwich and now living near Kidderminster in Worcestershire. He was linked with a director's position twice before.
In the 70's he ruled out a move into the boardroom because he felt that the atmosphere was a little stuffy for him. He was also linked with launching a takeover for the club in 1982, along with former ELO drummer Bev Bevan.
A home and away season ticket holder, Plant has reportedly ruled out changing his seat at Molineux and sitting in the director's box.
Them Crooked Vultures destination: Amsterdam
From: LEMONSQUEEZINGS.COM 2009.08.16
Tickets to an Aug. 19 performance by Them Crooked Vultures in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, are going on sale one day in advance.
Tickets are to be sold exclusively at the Melkweg box office beginning at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 18. To prevent scalping, there is a limit of one ticket per customer, and a photo ID is necessary for the purchase. The ticket and wristband issued at the point of sale must be brought back to the venue the following day for entry to the concert. Tickets are nontransferable.
The concert is scheduled to take place on Wednesday at 9 p.m. Doors to the show open at 7 p.m. Cameras and recording devices are prohibited.
For fans who did not attend the debut performance in Chicago, there is little to go on as to what the new music sounds like. The band is acting as its own gatekeeper, releasing elusive tidbits one at a time through online networking sites.
Not only that, but the poster for the Amsterdam show explicitly prohibits recording devices and cameras inside the venue. Likewise, security inside the Metro in Chicago on Aug. 10 kept many fans from taking pictures or video during the debut performance, and the few quality videos taken at that show have been removed from YouTube, apparently following a request from singer Josh Homme.
What if Led Zeppelin played Woodstock?
From: EXAMINER.COM 2009.08.14
Woodstock, the famous 1969 music festival devoted to peace and love, occurred this month exactly 40 years ago. The concert took place August 15 through August 18, revolutionizing the music scene forever.
The Desert Sun, a publication in California, recently published a short snippet of famous bands that never made it out to the original Woodstock. The list is quite remarkable and makes you wonder what the festival would have been like if these giants of rock made an appearance.
Outside of Led Zeppelin, the four other bands mentioned were: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Doors and Bob Dylan. One could definitely make the argument that these five Woodstock no-shows are the five greatest bands in history - an argument I would listen to.
But what if Led Zeppelin and these other musicians graced that stage in New York? It would have been pretty close to the end of The Beatles, while Led Zeppelin, The Stones and the others would have been in their prime. Dylan was probably the voice of that entire decade.
Rumor has it that the members of Led Zeppelin (especially Jimmy Page) did not want to be part of an event in which many other artists were featured. It is reasonable, especially when you consider the fact that Led Zeppelin usually toured as the big-name artists throughout its history. Plus, nobody knew how big the festival would actually become.
However, the festival itself was a rousing success, spawning two more similar events in the 90s and claiming its spot in music lore. Popular bands that actually did play at the event include: Richie Havens, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Santana, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, The Who and Creedence Clearwater Revival, among others.
Hopefully, the future holds a similar Woodstock-type event. Peace and music is what this world is all about, and here's to wishing for its return.
Les Paul, the guitarist and inventor who changed the course of music with the electric guitar and multitrack recording and had a string of hits, many with wife Mary Ford, died on Thursday. He was 94.
According to Gibson Guitar, Paul died of complications from pneumonia at White Plains Hospital. His family and friends were by his side.
As an inventor, Paul helped bring about the rise of rock 'n' roll and multitrack recording, which enables artists to record different instruments at different times, sing harmony with themselves, and then carefully balance the "tracks" in the finished recording.
Them Crooked Vultures - Pukkelpop Surprise Act?
From: PUKKELPOP.BE 2009.08.12
One of the hottest rumors at this year's Pukkelpop Festival in Kiewet, Belgium is that Them Crooked Vultures will make an appearance at the Marquee on Thursday, August 20, 2009.
On Pukkelpop's website, at the 20:55 time slot, it lists Suprise Act as performing. Several entries in the Comments section mention that it might be Them Crooked Vultures.
Nothing has been confirmed on the official Them Crooked Vultures website and other possible rumored dates are starting to float around on the internet.
New Them Crooked Vultures Youtube clip
From: YOUTUBE.COM 2009.08.11
14 seconds of aural pleasure of a song entitled Nobody Loves Me and Neither Do I was posted to the official YouTube channel of Them Crooked Vultures today.
It featured the mysterious and unnamed part-vulture, part-man in black-and-white in front of a crimson background while vultures fly above.
It ends with a quick plug for their website.
This song was the last song played at their premiere performance at Chicago's Metro on August 9, 2009.
Them Crooked Vultures Hit of Lolla Weekend
From: LED-ZEPPELIN.ORG 2009.08.10
Josh Homme, Dave Grohl and John Paul Jones, a.k.a. Them Crooked Vultures took the stage at midnight last night at the Metro in Chicago to a packed crowd of more than 1100. This was their debut performance.
Their set lasted approximated 80 minutes and contained the following new tunes:
Elephants
New Fang
Scumbag Blues
Dead End Friends
Bandoliers
Mind Eraser (No Chaser)
Gunman
Daffodils
Interlude w/ Ludes
Caligulove
Warsaw
Nobody Loves Me
John Paul Jones employed a 8-string Manson bass mandolin and 4-string Manson bass guitar (used heavily at the 2007 O2 Reunion concert), a Korg Oasys keyboard and a Keytar.
Joining Homme, Grohl and Jones was fellow Queens of the Stone Age collaborator, Alain Johannes, who played guitar on some of the songs. All four members shared the vocalist role, with Homme taking primary duties
Additional information can be found at the following websites:
Scarlet Page and Tom Brown tied the knot yesterday at 30 St Mary Axe, a.k.a. Ther Gherkin, in London.
They have one daughter, Martha Alice, who was born on October 8, 2007.
Her father, Jimmy Page, was in attendance.
Them Crooked Vultures Sell-Out In 3 Minutes
From: GIBSON.COM 2009.08.08
Tickets for the live debut of Them Crooked Vultures – the supergroup featuring Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones – reportedly sold out in three-minutes after they went on sale in Chicago on Thursday morning.
The all-star band, which has apparently been in the works for four years, is set to play a post-Lollapalooza gig at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday at the Metro.
Rolling Stone is reporting that Them Crooked Vultures will release an album called "Never Deserved the Future" on Oct. 23, but other details about the group remain slim. The band's MySpace, Twitter and Facebook pages directs visitors back to the main site, which in turn directs visitors to its MySpace, Twitter and Facebook pages.
Even the credibility of a promo clip that popped up on YouTube was questioned (and removed from the site). Either way, the members of Chickenfoot must be shaking in their boots.
Additional rumored have Them Crooked Vultures to be the surprise act at the Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium on August 20 and the Lowlands Festival in the Netherlands on August 22, but no official confirmation for either have been made.
It's official: Them Crooked Vultures will be debuting this weekend!
The supergroup including John Paul Jones, Dave Grohl and Josh Homme has been scheduled to perform Sunday night after the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago has concluded.
The aftershow concert is scheduled for a midnight start time, and tickets are to go on sale Thursday morning exclusively online.
The concert will be a midnight show taking place after a full day's lineup closing the Lollapalooza festival this Sunday, Aug. 9. Doors are open at 10 p.m.
The appearance was officially confirmed when an e-mail from themcrookedvultures.com, the band's official site, linked to the official ticketing page. An image in that e-mail also contained the same three symbols -- the Foo Fighters symbol, the John Paul Jones symbol and the Queens of the Stone Age symbol -- that bloggers had earlier noticed were together on by an unnamed act.
Soon afterward, Brent DiCrescenzo wrote in another blog about the rumor and pointed to a page on Etix.com with tickets to be sold exclusively online beginning this Thursday at 10 a.m. Central.
Over the past few days, the group's name has been floating around the Internet as Them Crooked Vultures. It is this name that both bloggers use in their postings today.
DeRogatis points out the festival's management has not confirmed the booking. If it happens, he says the Grohl-Homme-Jones appearance would "provide the much-needed icing on the cake largely missing from this year's festival lineup by closing things out with a special intimate after-show Sunday night at Metro."
DiCrescenzo calls this event "one of the biggest 'secret' shows to grace our Chicago stages in a while."
Interview: Deborah Bonham
From: CHORLEYCITIZEN.CO.UK 2009.07.31
Rock nobillty comes to Colne in the form of Deborah Bonham - sister of the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham.
Deborah will play the International Stage at 20th anniversary Great British Blues Festival with her band - and she can hardly wait.
"I'm really excited about it," said the singer/songwriter, who lives in West Sussex.
"I've not done the festival before, but this year they invited me and I'm thrilled. It's going to be excellent."
The Bonham family tree is firmly rooted in musical tradition.
Deborah was just six when brother John joined Led Zeppelin, but this powerful introduction to blues rock sparked in her an overwhelming desire to write and perform.
"I first saw Led Zeppelin play at Birmingham Town Hall with an audience of about 2,500 and I remember thinking: 'Oh wow, that's what I want to do.'
"Their music was very much rooted in the blues, but they took it to another level. I'm sure that's where my love of that style of music comes from, though."
It wasn't until after John's untimely death in 1980 that Deborah decided to take the plunge and enter the world of music.
"The reason being there was no way on this planet he would have wanted me to do it," said Deborah.
"I studied very hard at school so I think he just wanted me to go and be a blinkin' doctor or something. It took me a long time to work out why he wasn't keen on me doing it, but now I've been in the business myself I know exactly what he was talking about.
"You've got to remember I was still at school when John died and he was just trying to protect me. It was the '70s and they were very heady days. Everything was very hedonistic and John saw things he probably didn't want his little sister to see. He saw people like Janis Joplin die of heroin. He used to say: 'No, you've got to stop at school'."
But Deborah couldn't fight what was natural to her and it was John's bandmate Robert Plant who gave her a helping hand into the industry.
"I'd always sort of been writing songs and playing around, but a year or so after John died I phoned Robert Plant - he'd got a little studio in the next village - and I said: 'Can I come and have a little go and see what it sounds like?'
"So I went round and Jason (John's son - now a rock drummer who has gained success with various bands including Foreigner and Bonham) played the drums. He was so young, I remember him sitting in the corner eating Jelly Tots, but he was a great drummer even then.
"I did a few demos and Robert said: 'You've got to get out and pay your dues on the stage'. Twenty-five years later we're still doing that. But it was the best advice I could've been given though because that's what our band is all about, the live show. It's where we're most comfortable. It's raw and powerful and it's what we do best."
Deborah has opened shows in the Los Angeles 'House of Blues' with guests Slash and Terry Reid, as well as done two tours of her own.
Back in the UK and Europe, she has toured and performed with Van Halen, Paul Weller, Humble Pie, Donovan, Lonnie Donnegan, Foreigner and Paul Rodgers. She's also played festivals from Glastonbury to Donnington and twice at Fairport Convention's Cropredy Festival.
Her new album Duchess is her third and, impressively, her band is the same group of musicians she's been with since she started out.
"It's like going on tour with family," said Deborah.
"It makes it great because we all know each other so well and we know how to be around each other. It's all very natural and we love each other very much. There's a real good vibe. I know it's rare in the music industry and people are always asking 'How have you stayed together so long?' I always say: 'Because we're nice to each other, that's why, and we actually treat each other with a bit of respect'."
Deborah believes her brother would be eventually have come around to the idea of her career as a musician.
"I think he'd be very proud of what I've achieved musically. I know he would have got up and played with us, because it's the style of music that John would have loved."
l See the Deborah Bonham Band at the Great British R&B Festival, Colne, on Saturday, August 29, at 3.30pm on the International Stage.
JPJ, Grohl and Homme are Them Crooked Vultures
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.07.31
According to Antiquiet, Jesse Hughes of Eagles of Death Metal let it slip in an obscure interview with Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada's Power 97 radio station last week that Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme's new project with John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) and Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) is going by the name Them Crooked Vultures.
Hughes dropped the bomb around the one-minute, 20-second mark of the interview, which can be streamed using the player below.
The trio is said to be currently holed up in a Los Angeles recording studio working on an album that's been the biggest secret in rock for what seems like years now.
Star's death threats for Led Zep 'slur'
From: EADT.CO.UK 2009.07.28
SUFFOLK-based music legend Jack Bruce has revealed how he received "death threats" after daring to criticise rock giants Led Zeppelin.
The 66-year-old former Cream bassist made headlines across the world in May after describing the band who reunited for a one-off concert in 2007 as "crap".
Speaking to the press at an awards ceremony, Bruce described Led Zeppelin reunion gig at the 02 Arena as "lame" and chided them: "You're crap and you'll never be anything else. Cream is 10 times the band Led Zeppelin is."
Bruce, who lives near the Suffolk-Essex border, said he could not believe the furore his comments caused.
"It was just a bit of fun and it was blown out of all proportion," he said.
"Some Led Zeppelin fans were really angry at me and I had a few death threats - they're not likely to find me out here though!
"People like me tend to forget that with YouTube and Twitter, you can't say anything without it getting around the world.
"We always used to have a pop at other bands in the old days and that was all it was. It was like I had spoken out against the Queen or something. You obviously can't say anything against Led Zeppelin."
Bruce said Cream - made up by guitar legend Eric Clapton and drummer Ginger Baker - were originally lined up to play the Ahmet Ertegun memorial concert that ended up as Led Zeppelin's comeback but had pulled out when the event became too commercial.
Robert Plant Walks Away From London Crash
From: SPINNER.COM 2009.07.28
Robert Plant was involved in a serious car accident in northwest London earlier this month. Although the Led Zeppelin frontman walked away from the scene of the accident on the evening of July 2, his Audi A8 was reportedly unable to be driven after it collided with a Mercedes SL 300.
Although it's unclear whether Plant or the other driver, drug counselor Richard Grant, was at fault, the latter told the Telegraph, "I was unconscious for a little while and then I saw him standing there. I was pretty groggy when I saw him, but later on the officers told me who it was. I went to hospital for five hours and luckily there were no broken bones, but I was badly bruised on the arm and had whiplash."
According to a police spokesman said: "At approximately 7.45pm on July 2, police were called to a minor road traffic collision in Harrow Road, W10. There were no arrests and reports of very minor injuries." Meanwhile, Plant's spokesman declined to comment.
Grant's profession as a drug counselor seems ironic considering Plant was a notorious fan of illicit substances during Zeppelin's 1970s heyday and once supposedly hired a "coke lady" to get cocaine for the band. Of course, these days Plant has calmed considerably, dismissing recent lucrative opportunities to reunite with his former bandmates and even turning down offers to alternate with Abba as a replacement for Michael Jackson's 50-gig stint at London's O2 arena.
It seems that Plant is instead content continuing his collaboration with bluegrass favorite Alison Krauss. In fact, Krauss says that she and Plant have already started plotting the follow up to their Grammy winning album 'Raising Sand', telling the paper in a different report, "It'll be different, as if we hadn't made the first. I love being in the world of the unknown."
Robert Plant Returns to O2 Arena
From: UNCUT.CO.UK 2009.07.26
Former Led Zep legend Robert Plant is to perform at a charity concert at London's O2 Arena on September 11, 2009.
The Rockwell concert - a night of 'unique collaborations'- will raise money for Nordoff-Robbins and will also see appearances from a host of musicians including Tom jones, David Gray, Supergrass, Razorlight and Joss Stone
A ticket pre-sale begins at 8am on August 3, all proceeds go to the Nordoff-Robbins Trust.
It Might Get Loud Release Schedule
From: ROYAL-ORLEANS.COM 2009.07.24 It Might Get Loud is set to be shown in theaters in New York City and the Los Angeles area on August 14, 2009. Subsequent dates in the US for showings have just been announced.
No word on any dates of showings outside of the US have been announced.
AMC Empire - New York, NY 8/14/09
Arclight Hollywood - Hollywood, CA 8/14/09
Laemmle's Playhouse - Pasadena, CA 8/14/09
Sunshine Cinema - New York, NY 8/14/09
The Landmark - Los Angeles, CA 8/14/09
Town Center 5 - Encino, CA 8/14/09
University Town - Irvine, CA 8/14/09
Aquarius Twin - Palo Alto, CA 8/28/09
Camera 12 - San Jose, CA 8/28/09
Century Centre - Chicago, IL 8/28/09
Century Five - Pleasant Hill, CA 8/28/09
Cinearts 6 - Evanston, IL 8/28/09
Embarcadero Center - San Francisco, CA 8/28/09
Embassy Cinema - Waltham, MA 8/28/09
Harvard Exit Twin - Seattle, WA 8/28/09
Hillcrest Cinem - San Diego, CA 8/28/09
Kendall Square - Cambridge, MA 8/28/09
Renaissance - Highland Park, IL 8/28/09
Sequoia Twin - Mill Valley, CA 8/28/09
Shattuck 8 - Berkeley, CA 8/28/09
Angelika Theatre - Houston, TX 9/4/09
Angelika(Plano) - Plano, TX 9/4/09
Bethesda - Bethesda, MD 9/4/09
E-Street Cinema - Washington, DC 9/4/09
Lagoon Theatre - Minneapolis, MN 9/4/09
Ritz East - Philadelphia, PA 9/4/09
Shirlington 7 T - Arlington, VA 9/4/09
The Magnolia - Dallas, TX 9/4/09
UA Stonestown T - San Francisco, CA 9/4/09
Arbor Cinemas - Austin, TX 9/11/09
Century 14 - Albuquerque, NM 9/11/09
Century Downtown - Ventura, CA 9/11/09
Dobie Four - Austin, TX 9/11/09
Fox Tower 10 - Portland, OR 9/11/09
Harbor East - Baltimore, MD 9/11/09
Luxury Shea 14 - Scottsdale, AZ 9/11/09
Mayan Three - Denver, CO 9/11/09
Osio - Monterrey, CA 9/11/09
Palm Theatre 2 - San Luis Obispo, CA 9/11/09
Palme D'or - Palm Desert, CA 9/11/09
Promenade Stadium - Rolling Hills Estates, CA 9/11/09
Rialto - Santa Rosa, CA 9/11/09
Shadowood Square - Boca Raton, FL 9/11/09
South Beach 18 - Miami Beach, FL 9/11/09
Stadium 9 - Palm Springs, CA 9/11/09
Tower Angelika - Sacramento, CA 9/11/09
UA Devargas Center - Santa Fe, NM 9/11/09
UA Tara Cinema - Atlanta, GA 9/11/09
Bijou Twin - Eugene, OR 9/18/09
Century 16 - Boulder, CO 9/18/09
Main Art Theater - Royal Oak, MI 9/18/09
Modern Art - Ft Worth, TX 9/18/09
Nickelodeon Four - Santa Cruz, CA 9/18/09
Oriental 3 - Milwaukee, WI 9/18/09
Tivoli Theatre - St Louis, MO 9/18/09
Village Square - Las Vegas, NV 9/18/09
AMC Quail Spring - Oklahoma City, OK 9/25/09
AMC Studio 30 - Olathe, KS 9/25/09
Broadway Centre - Salt Lake City, UT 9/25/09
Canal Place Cinema - New Orleans, LA 9/25/09
Cinemark Palace - Kansas City, MO 9/25/09
City Center Cinema - Vancouver, WA 9/25/09
Darkside Cinema - Corvallis, OR 9/25/09
Fiesta 16 - San Antonio, TX 9/25/09
Fleur 4 Theatre - Des Moines, IA 9/25/09
Flicks Four - Boise, ID 9/25/09
Gainesville 14 - Gainesville, FL 9/25/09
Gateway Theatre - Columbus, OH 9/25/09
Green Hills Com - Nashville, TN 9/25/09
Hollywood 20 - Sarasota FL, 9/25/09
Jupiter Mall 18 - Jupiter, FL 9/25/09
Kahala Mall 8 - Honolulu, HI 9/25/09
Keystone Art - Indianapolis, IN 9/25/09
Loft Cinema 2 - Tucson, AZ 9/25/09
Miracle Five - Tallahassee, FL 9/25/09
Nickelodeon 5 North - Falmouth, MA 9/25/09
Ridgeway Quarter - Memphis, TN 9/25/09
Riverside - Reno, NV 9/25/09
The Westhampton - Richmond, VA 9/25/09
AMC Indian River - Vero Beach, FL 10/2/09
AMC Oakview 24 - Omaha, NE 10/2/09
AMC Southroads - Tulsa, OK 10/2/09
Beach Blvd Cinema - Jacksonville, FL 10/2/09
Fiesta Square - Fayetteville, AR 10/2/09
Fireweed Seven - Anchorage, AK 10/2/09
Manor Twin - Charlotte, NC 10/2/09
Pilot Butte 6 P - Bend, OR 10/2/09
Regal Downtown - Knoxville, TN 10/2/09
River Park Square - Spokane, WA 10/2/09
Trussville Cinema - Trussville, AL 10/2/09
Mindframe - Dubuque, IA 10/9/09
Browning Cinema - Notre Dame, IN 10/15/09
Cinema - Athens, GA 10/16/09
Ragtag Cinema - Columbia, MO 10/16/09
Wilma Four - Missoula, MT 10/16/09
Next Krauss & Plant Collaboration Will Be 'Different'
From: GIBSON.COM 2009.07.24
The follow-up to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss's Raising Sand album is still in the formative stages, but Krauss is already certain the second disc will not be a carbon copy of the duo's Grammy winning debut.
In an interview with the U.K.'s Telegraph, Krauss said, "It'll be different, as if we hadn't made the first. I love being in the world of the unknown."
Krauss, who recently began sessions for the next Union Station album, said she's always seen a strong connection between rock and bluegrass, especially with regard to vocals. Citing Paul Rodgers and Scottish rock singer Frankie Miller as people who "reminded [her] of a Ralph Stanley type of singing … blue collar, hardworking," Krauss went on to say her feelings about that connection were reciprocated by Plant.
"When I first met him, at a Leadbelly tribute, I saw that big hairdo," she said. "I said 'Robert,' he turns around, he's got these glasses on, and he goes 'There you are.' And the first thing he starts talking about is Ralph Stanley."
Revealing that she and Plant have had listening meetings about potential material for the next disc, Krauss said the Led Zeppelin frontman remains wildly passionate about music.
"We were riding around making the [first] record," she said, "and he goes, 'Do you think something's wrong with me? My kids say, 'We want a real dad, can't you be a normal dad?' I'm like, 'They're going to be waiting a long time.' He's like [she speaks at double speed], 'Listen to this, this Egyptian singer, can you believe it, blaaaah…' Just crazy. That's a really infectious, wonderful thing to be around."
Jimmy says no to Zeppelin video game
From: INDIATIMES.COM 2009.07.22
Rock legend Jimmy Page has clearly said that no Led Zeppelin-based video game will be made, insisting that the band's musical compositions are impossible to replicate.
He says that he does not have any plans to follow in the footsteps of bands like Aerosmith, Metallica and The Beatles who have allowed the makers of computer games, such as Guitar Hero and Rock Band, to use their songs in the software, giving fans the chance to recreate the music.
"Obviously, there have been overtures made to Led Zeppelin, but if you start with the first track on the first album, Good Times Bad Times , and you think of the drum part that John Bonham did there, how many drummers in the world can actually play that, let alone dabble on a Christmas morning? There could be a lot of alcohol consumed over Christmas, and you still aren't going to get it," Contactmusic quoted him as having told Starpulse.
Page suggested that wannabe rockers better pick up a real musical instrument if they actually wish to master the art.
"You'll see if you've got a passion to want to play the instrument, and that is a good initiation. From my experience, once I got a guitar that was relatively user-friendly, but not super-duper easy, I really came on as a guitarist, at that point. It helped. It wasn't a super-expensive guitar either, but something needs to steer you a bit, if you''re playing an instrument that is really hard," he said.
It Might Get Loud To Be Released on Aug. 14
From: SONYCLASSICS.COM 2009.07.15
Rarely can a film penetrate the glamorous surface of rock legends. It Might Get Loud tells the personal stories, in their own words, of three generations of electric guitar virtuosos – The Edge (U2), Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), and Jack White (The White Stripes). It reveals how each developed his unique sound and style of playing favorite instruments, guitars both found and invented. Concentrating on the artist's musical rebellion, traveling with him to influential locations, provoking rare discussion as to how and why he writes and plays, this film lets you witness intimate moments and hear new music from each artist. The movie revolves around a day when Jimmy Page, Jack White, and The Edge first met and sat down together to share their stories, teach and play.
Unreleased Rod Stewart Track features JPJ
From: LEMONSQUEEZINGS.BLOGSPOT.COM 2009.07.10
A song recorded in the summer of 1992 by Rod Stewart, David Gilmour and John Paul Jones will finally be released this September after more than 17 years of collecting dust.
The track is called "In a Broken Dream," and it's a remake of the song Stewart first recorded in 1969 as a special guest vocalist for a band called Python Lee Jackson, which had crossed over from Australia to England.
The story goes that in April 1969, Python Lee Jackson's regular singer, David Bentley, told his bandmates somebody else's voice would suit the song better. Somehow, they reached Stewart, who was then singing regularly for Jeff Beck, and he sat in on this and two other songs during the London sessions that month.
Despite the song's special guest star, multiple releases of "In a Broken Dream" eluded the charts for three years. In 1972, it finally became recognized and entered the charts internationally.
As we fast-forward well beyond Rod Stewart's years fronting the Faces and into his third decade of solo stardom, we emerge at the aforementioned year 1992.
He'd just experienced a comeback of sorts with a series of successful singles in 1989 and 1990, namely "This Old Heart of Mine" with Ronald Isley, "Downtown Train," "Rhythm of My Heart," and "The Motown Song" with the Temptations. Stewart was entering into a period of collaborations with other vocalists and musicians.
Having famously reunited with Jeff Beck in the studio to sing "People Get Ready" on the guitarist's 1984 album Flash, Stewart was now making a habit of recording with all sorts of people: Tina Turner, the band Glass Tiger, and pretty soon it would be Sting and Bryan Adams for the Robin Hood soundtrack. Even Stewart's own Unplugged ... and Seated album and TV appearance would feature Ron Wood as a special guest on guitar, a reunion with his Faces bandmate.
In the middle of all that collaborative work is when Stewart got together in the studio with John Paul Jones and David Gilmour over the summer of 1992, in what appears to be a previously unreported recording session!
The Pink Floyd guitarist had worked with Jones longer than a decade and a half earlier. They'd met up when recording a 17-minute song featured on Roy Harper's rock album HQ, which Jones and Gilmour were happy to play out live on one occasion. (Sincee we've been talking about supergroups involving Jones, allow me to mention that their drummer was Bill Bruford!)
Jones had also worked with Stewart long before that. Toward the end of his days as an in-demand session musician, Jones sat in with the Jeff Beck Group on the recording sessions for Truth. Consequently, Jones plays organ on that album's version of "You Shook Me," only a few months before he did the same -- plus bass and electric piano -- for Led Zeppelin's debut album.
Jones had also played as a hired session musician on two blues covers Stewart recorded in 1964, before the singer was anybody. These versions of "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" and "I'm Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town" were originally released as Stewart's first single, in October 1964, and are now available as some of the earliest tracks on his double-disc set 1964-1969.
Again, this brings us to the 1992 meeting of all three musicians, including Gilmour, who was leading Pink Floyd sans Roger Waters. Stewart had just about given up on creating new songs and decided to record some covers. This superstar edition of "In a Broken Dream" has Stewart on vocals, Jones on a steady yet intense organ, Pete Thomas on drums, (Nick Lowe on bass?), and Gilmour on an electric guitar lead that could have been on any Floyd album from Wish You Were Here or after. This was one of six songs Stewart recorded in the summer of 1992 but chose to put on the backburner.
All six of these will be included on the final disc of the 4-CD box set The Rod Stewart Sessions 1971-1998, offered by Warner and Rhino. The set is scheduled for a Sept. 22 release, but preorders are being taken.
Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant awarded CBE by Prince of Wales
From: TELEGRAPH.CO.UK 2009.07.10
Plant said the experience was humbling to take part in a ceremony alongside "very selfless" military heroes and community volunteers.
With his long hair tied into a ponytail and wearing a simple blue suit and a handful of heavy silver rings giving away his rock roots, he denied that the award meant he was now part of the establishment.
"The diversity of people who have moved through here this morning prove there is no real establishment here," he added.
Plant last year decided not to take part in a Led Zeppelin reunion tour, choosing instead to concentrate on his collaboration with American bluegrass singer Alison Krauss.
Asked today if he would ever return to the stage with his old band-mates, he said: "Sometimes I go a bit deaf in either ear, especially when people are talking nonsense."
He said that he owed "everything to the musicians I work with", adding: "From the UK to Africa to Tennessee, it is their brilliance that I bounce off. Alone I'm nothing."
He also joked that he and former Zeppelin band-mate Jimmy Page - who has an OBE - would not be fighting over rank.
"If we can remember each other's phone number at this time in life it's a miracle. We're still good friends, we both enjoy a rather dark sense of humour that comes I think from being from rather the wrong side of the tracks for all those wild years."
World-record breaking Olympic cycle champions also collected their MBEs.
Ed Clancy, 24, and Paul Manning, 34, were part of the pursuit team which broke the world record twice on their way to a winning gold at the Beijing Games.
And Royle Family star Liz Smith, 87, who played the ailing Nana was also awarded an MBE.
Led Zep offered O2 Slots
From: THESUN.CO.UK 2009.07.04
Music bosses hope Led Zeppelin will play some of Jacko's O2 arena gigs.
AEG Live, the team behind the King of Pop's 50-night stint, want the rock supergroup to alternate shows with Abba.
Both bands - who have sold 600million albums between them - have been offered big money to reform.
Led Zep stars Jimmy Page, 65, Robert Plant, 60, and bassist John Paul Jones, 63, have been approached.
They played their only concert in 19 years at the O2 in 2007 and are seen as one of the few acts who could rival Jacko. His This Is It tour was due to start at the London venue on July 13.
AEG face multi-million pound losses if they cannot fill the slots. A source said: "Only Michael Jackson could sell out 50 nights at such a big arena, but Led Zeppelin and Abba combined might just rival him. There is huge money on the table."
Jimmy Page and Jack White Express Disapproval of Guitar Hero
From: GAMEGURU.IN 2009.06.26
Two renowned musicians have also now joined few other artists in lashing out against the musically inclined video game. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and member of The White Stripes band Jack White have lashed out against the Guitar Hero video game.
According to NME, the two talented musicians believe that by simply playing a video game, people are not ideally exposed to real music. They are also upset to know that youngsters are turning to these games to play instruments. The guitarists expressed their ill feelings towards the game during a press conference held on June 19 in Los Angeles. The conference was for their forthcoming documentary film called 'It Might Get Loud' which focuses on their musical careers.
Jack White commented, "It's depressing to have a label come and tell you that ('Guitar Hero') is how kids are learning about music and experiencing music. Which format people should get their music in…if you have to be in a video game to get in front of them, that's a little sad."
Jimmy Page echoed his sentiments by saying, "You think of the drum part that John Bonahm did on Led Zeppelin's first track on the first album, 'Good Times Bad Times'. How many drummers in the world can play that part, let alone on Christmas morning?"
Although Jack White criticizes the music oriented game, some of the White Stripes band tracks will apparently feature in the Guitar Hero 5 game.
Plant's guitar raises £1,000
From: KIDDERMINSTERSHUTTLE.CO.UK 2009.06.24
WYRE Forest rock legend, Robert Plant, has raised £1,000 for the Worcester and District branch of the Parkinson's Disease Society after donating a signed guitar to a charity auction.
More than 150 guests attended the fund-raising gala dinner at the Chateau Impney Hotel, Droitwich last Friday, where the charity auction was conducted by Fellows & Sons.
Telephone bids for the "star attraction" - the guitar provided by the former Led Zeppelin frontman - came from as far afield as Ireland but the gavel eventually fell to a mystery buyer from Wolverhampton.
More than £8,000 was raised from the evening and the funds will be used to offer support to sufferers of the disease who live in Worcestershire.
Robin Hancox, an organiser of the event, said: "The success of the evening was, as ever, due to the generosity of the community in attending the dinner and bidding so freely, even in these times of recession.
"The generosity of both individuals and companies who supplied prizes is much appreciated."
Robert Plant Campaigns against Windfarm Plans
From: BLOGSPOT.COM 2009.06.24
We didn't mention this earlier, when reporting on the walk, to respect his privacy, but as it is now headline news in the local Press, we can report that Robert Plant, the famous singer from Rock Band Led Zeppelin, like Wyck Lohman, lives in the Artists Valley.
There was a public exhibition held by the developers, and it was reported in the Cambrian News that he attended the meeting and joined protesters in opposing the plans which they say "will devastate the landscape and have no significant effect on climate change or carbon emissions."
There is a good article about the protest at Nant-y-Moch in the Cambrian News today. In it, Ann West, Chairman of the Cambrian Mountains Society, said "We are very pleased to have people like that on board, and it is very important in getting us noticed on a larger scale. The protest was all about getting our voices heard and to show what a vast area will be destroyed by this wind farm as well as to make people aware of the importance of preserving our countryside."
JPJ, Dave Grohl, Josh Homme Project
From: LEMONSQUEEZINGS.BLOGSPOT.COM 2009.06.21
"The next project that I'm trying to initiate," Dave Grohl once said, "involves me on drums, Josh Homme on guitar, and John Paul Jones playing bass. That's the next album. That wouldn't suck."
Right, it probably wouldn't suck, but it would just take a while -- years -- to come to fruition from when he first said it.
If indeed it has! I'm getting ahead of myself. But it's looking like, uh, it has.
Fronting the Foo Fighters only scrapes the surface as to who this guy is and what Grohl has been capable of. Once known only as the drummer throughout all of Nirvana's major success, this guy has revealed himself to be a primo singer and guitarist, savvy songwriter and ambitious collaborator.
Grohl never did make a secret of his desire to take John Bonham's place in a reunited Led Zeppelin, and when given the chance to work with -- or even just hang with -- anybody from that group, he has repeatedly taken it.
(Right, who wouldn't? Maybe the emphasis is more on the fact that he has been given those chances more often than just about anybody else in recent memory. Some would say this guy deserves it.)
And now that the name Dave Grohl has been blurted out online as one of two people working with Jones on a project that would see them releasing an album and going on tour, it seems to be a perfectly logical conclusion -- if not a convenient one.
A couple of months ago, Jones spoke out and said he'd been "working on some other music, which is more rock based, with a couple of other people." He said he couldn't reveal who they were as it was all "secret."
"Top secret" perhaps? This two-word turn of phrase was invoked less than a week ago, when Greg Werckman of Ipecac Recordings revealed to Rock-A-Rolla magazine that singer and multi-instrumentalist Josh Homme "has got a new top secret project that he's working on now."
Homme is the other guy mentioned as having been recording with Jones and Grohl, and it brings to fruition a dream Grohl expressed in the above quotation. That remark of his comes from an interview given to Stevie Chick for Mojo magazine back in 2005.
Yes, 2005. That dream of his first went public four years ago.
At that time, the Foo Fighters released the double album, In Your Honor, for which Jones met up with the Foo Fighters at their recording studio that was designed to look like the Stockholm facility where Led Zeppelin's In Through the Out Door was born as the brainchild of Jones, foremost among the members of that band.
Grohl may have wanted his next album to be with Jones and Homme, but it didn't happen in 2006. Sessions the following year yielded the album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. The band spent a while touring in support of its new disc, the highlight of which came on June 7, 2008, when Jones rounded up Jimmy Page to show 86,000 people -- and however many have bought the live DVD since its release last November -- at the Foo Fighters' Wembley Stadium finale just how well they could still play the Zep songs "Rock and Roll" and "Ramble On" in their 60s, as well as how eager they were to do it!
Since this, the Foo Fighters have gone on hiatus, and the hopes for some kind of a continued Led Zeppelin reunion beyond just one single show were dashed. Ever since things have settled down, it seems all too probable that Grohl has finally gotten his way as far as his wish to bring Jones in to help him write and play with Josh Homme.
We await official confirmation, and we also await the dates of an album release and a tour.
L.A. Premiere of "It Might Get Loud"
From: NME.COM 2009.06.19
Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and The White Stripes frontman Jack White discussed their involvement in the forthcoming documentary, 'It Might Get Loud', at a press conference in Los Angeles this morning (June 19).
The legendary axe men, whose personal musical evolutions are chronicled in the film along with that of U2 guitarist The Edge, talked about what it was like to work with each other for the first time, and why they decided to become involved in the film.
"These days people are getting famous for being famous," White said when asked why he chose to take part in the documentary. "You have to battle against the media to create something soulful. This film lets people dig deeper into the music."
The film, which was directed by Academy Award-winning director Davis Guggenheim ('An Inconvenient Truth'), chronicles the master guitarists' evolution as musicians and illustrates how each one became enamoured of the instrument at a very young age.
"What we all have in common is that we are all self-taught guitarists," said Page. "That's what so fascinating about it. All guitarists have a very different character so there was a lot to learn from each other."
"We were all coming from similar spots where music is generated," added White.
The White Stripes man, who is pictured in the film creating his own stringed instruments and teaching a fictionalised 9-year-old version of himself to play guitar, advised young aspiring musicians to grab whatever instruments they can get their hands on. "Start with whatever you can afford and struggle to find your own relationship with the instrument," he said. "Take (children) to see live music. Put them in a position where they physically can't get away," he laughed.
White, who is currently involved in three bands -- The White Stripes, The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather -- is also rumoured to be working on a solo album. When asked if Page might make a guest appearance on the album, White quipped, "Jimmy needs to practice a little more first."
'It Might Get Loud' makes its US debut at the Los Angeles Film Festival tonight (June 19), before being widely released on August 14.
Led Zep Legend Supports Local Charity
From: PRESS.NET 2009.06.18
Robert Plant, frontman of rock band Led Zeppelin, has donated a signed acoustic guitar to the Worcester and District branch of the Parkinson's Disease Society (PDS) via his neighbour.
The guitar is expected to fetch about £700 at a fundraising dinner to mark the 40th anniversary of the PDS at Chateau Impney Hotel, Droitwich Spa on Friday.
Robin Hancox has had Parkinson's Disease for six years and is chairman of the Worcester and district branch of the PDS.
Robert Plant lives "a couple of fields away" from Mr Hancox, who secured the guitar after bumping into the rock legend in the village shop they share in Wolverley, Worcestershire.
He said: "Both Robert Plant's ex-wife and sister are customers of my health and nutrition business, and I had talked to his sister about the possibility of Mr Plant donating a guitar.
"Then one day I bumped into him in the village shop and decided to ask him myself.
"He brought the guitar to our house, signed it, and my wife took some photos.
"We are incredibly grateful to have such a well-known local legend like Robert Plant donate such a unique prize to our cause."
The Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy has also donated a day's sailing to the auction, and Sir David Jones, JJB chief executive, will be speaking about Parkinson's on the night.
Funds raised from the evening will go towards the Branch Welfare Fund, which aims to support local people living with Parkinson's and their families through its friendship groups in Droitwich, Evesham, Kidderminster and Worcester.
Mr Hancox said: "It's vitally important that we are able to offer support to local people with Parkinson's. We rely on charitable giving, so I hope that many will join us on what promises to be a very special evening."
The PDS, which is this year celebrating 40 years of support for people with Parkinson's, has invested more than £40 million in research over the past 40 years.
To buy tickets for the event, which begins at 7pm, contact Robin Hancox on 01562 851713.
People who cannot attend but would still like to bid for the guitar, can contact Mary Long at Fellows and Sons Auctioneers on 0121 212 5500.
The Parkinson's helpline can be reached by calling 0808 800 0303.
JP watches Jack White's The Dead Weather make LA debut
From: NME.COM 2009.06.18
Jack White's new band The Dead Weather made their Los Angeles debut at an intimate, star-studded show at the Roxy Theatre last night (June 17).
The band, which also features Alison Mosshart of The Kills, Dean Fertita of Queens Of The Stone Age and Jack Lawrence of The Raconteurs, took the stage five minutes ahead of their scheduled 9:00pm start time to a packed house that included Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, Josh Homme of Queens Of The Stone Age, Danger Mouse, Boom Bip, Har Mar Superstar and actor Benicio del Toro.
Two days later, at a press conference for the "It Might Get Loud" LA premiere, Jimmy Page had the following to say: "To be honest with you, to go and hear Jack was such a treat. I really got the whole thing of what he was doing. What they were doing and how well they were playing." - http://blogs.laweekly.com/westcoastsound/last-night/jimmy-page-and-jack-white-talk/
Kashmir Visuals from O2 Concert
From: VIMEO.COM 2009.06.13
Here's an animation for the song Kashmir, used as a performance backdrop by Led Zeppelin for their reunion concert. Animation by Steve Scott.
It was created with Maya for 3D objects and After Effects for compositing.
Led Zeppelin's Final UK gigs to be Chronicled in New Book
From: THEROCKRADIO.COM 2009.06.12
Coming in August will be the limited-edition book Then As It Was: Led Zeppelin At Knebworth 1979 -- 30 Years Gone. Lemonsqueezings.blogspot.com reports that the book by Dave Lewis will feature previously unpublished photos and fan recollections of Zeppelin's final UK performances on August 4th and 11th 1979 at the legendary festival.
Then As It Was: Led Zeppelin At Knebworth 1979 -- 30 Years Gone will be released on August 8th.
Footage of Zeppelin's 1979 Knebworth appearances was featured on the 2003 DVD Led Zeppelin.
Jimmy Page says that he's extremely proud that Led Zeppelin's music is still held in as high regard now as it was during the band's heyday: "You know, it's the most rewarding part of it, having, you know, been part of music like that which has stood up to the test of time. I think every musician hopes that their music will hold up, and it's wonderful."
Happy 94th Birthday Les Paul
From: GIBSON.COM 2009.06.09
Any way you look at it, Les Paul is a living legend.
Better yet, Lester William Polsfuss (later changed to Lester Polsfuss, and then Les Paul) is a national treasure like no other. He's a rare, class-act-of-a man that comes around once in a lifetime, and anyone who has the pleasure of being in his presence is a better person for it.
At the tender, young age of 94 - which he celebrates today - the incomparable Les Paul is still as amazing as the legacy he continues to grow with every passing year. Of course, he is best known for inventing the modern solid body electric guitar - a glorious instrument that still bears his name today. And he was also the first person to utilize multi-track recording in a studio. Can anyone even begin to imagine where our industry would be today if it wasn't for these two genius inventions? We sure can't, and we don't think you can either.
He still holds court every Monday night at the Iridium Jazz Club in New York City, a tradition he started back in 1995. It's a ceremony of sorts that become somewhat of a pilgrimage for guitar players from all walks of life, from every corner of the world. And he (thankfully) shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.
In a world filled with tons of fool-headed, flaky superstars, Les Paul stands as a shining example of what a real role model should be like. And so, it is with great pride that everyone here at Gibson Guitars wishes you, Les Paul, a very Happy Birthday. May your 94th birthday be the grandest one yet.
It Might Get Loud Screening @ LA Film Fest
From: LAFILMFEST.COM 2009.05.30
The documentary "It Might get Loud" will be screened at the LA Film Fest in June. It will be shown the following dates: Friday, 6/19/2009 7pm Mann Festival theatre in Westwood and Monday, 6/22/09 2pm Landmark Theatres in West LA. Tickets @ Mann Festival are $12 plus $2.50 on call = $14.50 Tickets are on sale now! go to http://www.lafilmfest.com/2009/
Sammy Hagar "We Could Rival Zep"
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.05.28
According to The Pulse of Radio, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith has joined the new "supergroup" started by former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar. The band, tentatively called Chickenfoot, also features ex-Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony and guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani and will enter the studio to begin recording its debut album this summer. Smith told The Pulse of Radio he got involved in the project by owning a home near Hagar's place in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. "If you're in Cabo, of course you know Sammy 'cause he's, you know, he rules the joint," he said. "And he's a really nice man, he's a great guy actually. Somehow he's taken a liking to me, and we played in Vegas, and we played some cover songs - we're a good cover band now. He got pretty excited about it and it actually sounded really good. Him and Joe got together up at his place and they wrote like five things together, and we'll see."
Hagar himself spoke about the project in a recent interview, explaining, "We've written eight, nine songs...When people hear the music, it's Led Zeppelin. It's as good as that. I know that's a mighty bold statement...We could rival Zep."
Hagar sang with Van Halen from 1986 to 1996, and again on a 2004 reunion tour, but left both times after feuding with guitarist Eddie Van Halen. Hagar said recently about his relationship with the troubled guitar hero, "I love Eddie, but we don't love each other. I heard that he got cleaned up again. Hopefully he stays that way and doesn't die, because before we both die we have to be friends again."
Chad Smith has been playing with former Deep Purple bassist/singer Glenn Hughes as well as his own jazz combo since the Chili Peppers came off the road last year after touring in support of 2006's "Stadium Arcadium" CD.
John Bonham's Led Zeppelin Gong Up For Auction
From: BIRMINGHAMPOST.NET 2009.05.28
A brass Chinese gong once owned and used by Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham is set to fetch up to £76,000 at an auction in America.
John Bonham, with his gong in the background, performing with Led Zeppelin.
The gong, which is 29.5 inches wide and features two painted Chinese characters - has been put up for sale by Redditch-born Bonham's younger sister Deborah and his mother Joan - and appropriately it will be auctioned at Bonhams in Los Angeles on June 14.
'Bonzo' Bonham used gongs for dramatic effect by having them set alight in Led Zeppelin performances.
Led Zep guitarist John Paul Jones confirmed: "He did that more or less every night. His roadie Mick Hinton had to set it alight. I think he used lighter fuel and it was quite dangerous. John got the gong idea from Carmine Appice when we supported Vanilla Fudge in the early days."
Bonham was aged just thirty two when he died on September 25,1980. An inquest heard that in the 24 hours before he died of a pulmonary oedema, he had had drunk forty measures of vodka. A verdict of accidental death was recorded. He was cremated and his ashes were interred at Rushock parish church, Worcestershire. Next Sunday would have been his 61st birthday.
Educated at Lodge Farm secondary modern school, Redditch, his headmaster famously remarked that Bonham would "either end up a dustman or a millionaire."
In 1964, he joined his first semi professional band, Terry Webb and The Spiders,and met his future wife, Pat Phillips, at a dance in Kidderminster. He also played in other Birmingham bands, including The Nicky James Movement and The Senators.
Bonham needed some persuading to join the newly-formed Led Zeppelin. Robert Plant had to send eight telegrams to Bonham's favourite pub, the Three Men In A Boat, at Walsall, while the band's manager, Peter Grant, reputedly followed this with a further 40 telegrams to the pub.
The drummer was famed for his hard-hitting style - he used the largest drum stick on the market - and was famed for his drum solo Moby Dick which could last for half an hour.
Bonham's son, Jason Bonham, 42, is also a drummer and played with Led Zeppelin in their reunion show in December 2007. Bonham's daughter, Zoe, 33, is a singer-songwriter. Thanks to KPE6zep
Jimmy Page Amp Sells on eBay for $30K
From: GIBSON.COM 2009.05.22
Turns out just one Led Zeppelin fan had the means - or perhaps the inclination - to buy one of the coolest pieces of Led Zep-associated memorabilia to surface in some time.
This morning at 9 a.m. Pacific time, a sole eBay bidder coughed up a whopping $30,000 for a 1971 200-watt Orange MATAMP purportedly owned and played by Jimmy Page during the band's glory years. The amp, which appears to be authentic and is apparently in the hands of a private collector, was advertised as "used on the 1971 world tour and subsequent recordings, and can be seen in various stage photos as late as October 1973." The user-ID of the winning bidder was not disclosed.
Kidderminster Rock Legend Plant Boosts Charity
From: KIDDERMINSTERSHUTTLE.CO.UK 2009.05.21
A painting of Kidderminster's rock superstar, Robert Plant, has raised £1,500 for Acorns Children's Hospice.
Painted by Sue Verity, of Tamworth and autographed by the rock legend, the portrait has been snapped up by Led Zeppelin fan, Catharine Zelinski, living in Ontario, Canada.
All of the funds from the sale of the painting have been donated to Acorns.
Ms Verity met Robert Plant at a Wolverhampton Wanderers' game at Molineux,and got the painting signed.
Speaking about her wish for the painting to help Acorns, she said: "I saw Children in Need raising massive sums and I wanted to do something to help our local children's hospice, so I created the painting of the Led Zeppelin star.
"Wolves helped me get in touch with Robert at the game and I was thrilled when he signed it. I was so delighted that it raised so much and I know that the money is desperately needed to help Acorns and its Fragile Lives appeal."
Acorns care for children who have life-limiting and life-threatening conditions, supporting them and their families at every stage.
It is currently offering its services to 600 life-limited children and their families living in the West Midlands, with support of three children's hospices and in the community.
Earlier this year, Acorns was forced to launch a major new appeal to help see it through the current recession and protect its vital services for years to come.
The Acorns Fragile Lives appeal sees supporters doing all they can to help raise funds and awareness.
Nazama Azmat, Acorns' Black Country community fund-raiser and Led Zeppelin fan, said: "We're so excited that such a fantastic musician has given his support to help Acorns Children's Hospice.
"The painting has raised £1,500 to support Acorns' care, helping us to continue making a big difference to the lives of local children and their families."
To find out more about Acorns and the Fragile Lives appeal, visit www.acorns.org.uk or email fragilelives@acorns.org.uk.
To make an instant donation, call 01564 825000.
Opening day set for former Hard Rock Park
From: CHARLOTTEOBSERVER.COM 2009.05.04
Freestyle Music Park, formerly called Hard Rock Park, will open its doors on Saturday, May 23 at 11 a.m. for its second season, according to a count-down clock posted on the park's Web site.
Also Monday, the park announced that the park's premier roller coaster, which dropped the Led Zeppelin brand several weeks ago, would now be called "The Time Machine." A worker was seen on Monday afternoon painting pink a portion of the giant zeppelin where riders initially board the coaster.
One of five different songs from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s will be played during each run of the roller coaster, which the park said in a statement would provide "five unique ride experiences." The park said the coaster is the tallest and fastest in the Carolinas, reaching speeds of 65 mph and going as high as 155 feet.
The park's new owner, FPI MB Entertainment, have said they planned for a Memorial Day weekend opening. The company bought the $400 million park out of bankruptcy for $25 million in February after the park's original owners had to close shop due to a lackluster first season.
A worker paints a portion of the giant zeppelin where riders initially board the "The Time Machine" roller-coaster at Freestyle Music Park.
Robert Plant At The Races
From: BBC.CO.UK 2009.04.27
A day after taking the stage at WOMAD, Robert Plant attended the Formula One racing in Bahrain, as guest of the Prince.
Also, in attendance was Eric Clapton, Nick Mason & Richard Branson.
From the live coemmntary: 1237: Led Zep frontman Robert Plant is on the grid but doesn't fancy speaking to Martin Brundle. But Eric Clapton isn't so shy. "I love Ferrari," says the guitar-playing legend. "I've loved F1 since the day I was born. Ferrari will be alright in a couple of races..."
Robert Plant wows WOMAD
From: THENATIONAL.AE 2009.04.26
As a young performer he belted out some of music's hardest blues rock. Now 61, the former Led Zeppelin singer, Robert Plant, proved last night he remains a crowd pleaser with a performance full of mystical energy.
Accompanied by Justin Adams and Juldeh Camara, the singer performed to packed crowds on the Corniche last night as a headline act for the capital's first Womad international music festival.
Plant had been rehearsing for the concert in the heart of the English countryside since he was signed as a last-minute surprise just days ago, putting together a melodic and mystical show for the grand finale: violin melodies mixed with African drum beats to be topped off with Plant's unique vocal sound.
Before the set Paulo Silva, a banker who has lived in Abu Dhabi for two years, said he had been looking forward to hearing some new material from Plant.
"I've always known Led Zeppelin's classic tracks like Stairway to Heaven but don't really know Plant's solo stuff so it'll be fun to see him here," he said.
Organisers estimated between 25,000 and 30,000 people attended the final day of the festival.
Plant says he became interested in non-western music long before the term "world music" was even coined, incorporating the rhythms and scales of India and North Africa into his songwriting with Jimmy Page in Led Zeppelin.
Since then, Moroccan traditional music has frequently been cited by the world-famous singer as a particular source of inspiration.
Also performing at last night's event were Trilok Gurtu from India, famous for his fusion of eastern and western beats, and Los De Abajo from Mexico mixing reggae and Latin sounds. Reggae-inspired Nubian-Egyptian musician Mohamed Mounir closed the evening's festivities.
Set List:
1. Win My Train Fare Home (If I Ever Get Lucky)
2. Four Sticks
3. Funny In My Mind (I Believe I'm Fixin' To Die)
4. Black Girl
5. Corrina, Corrina
6. Black Dog
7. Let The Four Winds Blow
8. Rock And Roll
9. Whole Lotta Love
Betts Blasts Trucks Over Zeppelin Remarks
From: CONTACTMUSIC.COM 2009.04.22
Former Allman Brothers guitarist Dickey Betts has blasted the band's drummer Butch Trucks - accusing him of fabricating a clash between late rock legend Duane Allman and Robert Plant.
In a recent interview with Relix magazine, Trucks recalled Allman's alleged fury over seeing Led Zeppelin rocker Plant prancing around on stage in velvet trousers during a concert in 1969. He claimed his former bandmate had to be held back from attacking Plant after the stage antics, and had lost all respect for his idol.
Trucks said: "Robert Plant starts running all over the stage with his velvet pants on, and we were all looking at each other, (like) 'What the f**k is this?'
"It was as much about the ballet and the costumes as about the music, if not more so... Duane got up and said, 'I'm either going to go up there and kick the f**k out of that guy or we're leaving.' And we all got up and left. It just infuriated Duane. He was so let down by one of his gods."
But Betts, who left the Allman Brothers Band in 2000, is standing up for Allman - insisting the rocker wasn't "narrow-minded".
He tells the New York Post, "I know Duane didn't feel that way and never said that. We loved (Led Zeppelin guitarist, Jimmy) Page and those guys. It's ludicrous. And it's not fair to Duane Allman, who has passed away and can't speak for himself. He had velvet pants himself."
Allman died in 1971.
Ed Robinson's Music Explosion Exhibition
From: EDROBINSONPHOTOGRAPHY.COM 2009.04.21
Ed Robinson will be exhibiting a collection of some of his most exciting music photography to date, featuring iconic never seen before images from the much coveted Led Zeppelin reunion/Ahmet Ertegun Tribute concert in 2007.
This was Led Zeppelin's first full length concert for over 20 years and possibly their last ever performance together. Limited edition fine art prints will be on sale, with a percentage of print sales going to the Ahmet Ertegun Education Fund.
The exhibition will also feature shots from the U.N.K.L.E tour, and an eclectic mix of images including artists Marner Brown, Jeff Beck, Alabama 3, Jamie Cullum, Foreigner, Carl Cox, Paolo Nutini and Sting, as well as photographs from the Pavarotti tribute concert in Jordan last year and portraits of the the newly reformed Spandau Ballet.
Location: Exposure Gallery, Little Portland Street, London, W1W 1BU, UK
Exhibition runs until 1st May 2009.
Limited edition Led Zeppelin prints all priced around £950.00.
Robert Plant's Rehearsals for WOMAD
From: THENATIONAL.AE 2009.04.19
A light breeze of mellifluous music wafts from behind the half-open door of a long, low, bunker-like building nestled deep in the English countryside. Inside this unassuming rehearsal space at Peter Gabriel's Real World recording studio, the legendary rocker Robert Plant is laying down bluesy vocals over a hypnotic, circular and gently insistent groove.
Ten minutes later, Plant emerges into the watery spring sunshine flanked by his latest musical collaborators, Justin Adams and Juldeh Camara. With his crumpled features and greying golden mane, the 60-year-old singer looks more like the Lion King nowadays than the lithe young rock prince of his Led Zeppelin prime. But he seems relaxed and in a friendly mood as he swaps jokes with the bass guitarist Billy Fuller and the drummer Martyn Baker during a break from rehearsals for their performance in Abu Dhabi next weekend, a headline-grabbing late addition to the Gulf's inaugural Womad festival.
Justin Adams, Billy Fuller, Robert Plant, Juldeh Camara and Martyn Barker, pictured during rehearsals at Peter Gabriel's Real World recording studios, will open this year's Womad festival. Matt Crossick / The National
Plant-Krauss Finalists for 2009 CMT Video Awards
From: CYBERGRASS.COM 2009.04.18
Rounder Records is pleased to announce that Robert Plant & Alison Krauss are finalists for three 2009 CMT Video Awards in support of their Grammy Award winning album Raising Sand. They were nominated in the following categories:
Performance of the Year - "Gone, Gone, Gone" (from their 2008 CMT Crossroads special) Wide Open Video of the Year - "Please Read The Letter" Collaborative Video of the Year - "Please Read The Letter"
The awards ceremony will be televised on CMT on June 17th at 8:00 PM ET and the first round of voting is from April 13th to May 11th. Click on this link to vote now - www.cmt.com/cmt-music-awards/vote.jhtml. The final four nominees in each category will be announced May 19th. Fans can vote again through June 15 to determine the overall winners.
At this year's 2009 Grammy® Awards, the artists won highest honors - Album of the Year for Raising Sand and Record of the Year for "Please Read the Letter." The duo also took home awards for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for "Rich Woman," Best Country Collaboration with Vocals for "Killing the Blues" and Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album for Raising Sand.
Plant and Krauss also received a Grammy in 2008 for their single 'Gone Gone Gone' (the sole category for which they were eligible last year). They completed an extensive and successful worldwide tour last summer and have made appearances on CBS Sunday Morning, The Today Show and the Charlie Rose Show.
Raising Sand debuted at #2 on the Billboard top 200 chart and was certified platinum by the RIAA. Internationally the album has garnered multiplatinum awards, and was nominated for the prestigious British Mercury Prize. Raising Sand received a chorus of praise from outlets across the board including Time, Rolling Stone, USA Today, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Sunday Times (UK), Mojo (UK) and Uncut (UK).
Dance Review - "Nearly Ninety"
From: NYTIMES.COM 2009.04.17
It is not unusual these days to hear Merce Cunningham called the world's greatest living choreographer. I go further: I have long thought that he is the greatest living artist since the death of Samuel Beckett, almost 20 years ago.
His latest world premiere, "Nearly Ninety," presented at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Thursday (his 90th birthday), is not a perfect work of art. The music is undistinguished, the décor is expensively and intrusively foolish, and the choreographic endings of both halves (there is an intermission), though eloquent, are relatively weak. Each empties the stage with a memorable exit, but both feel tacked on, as if Mr. Cunningham just didn't want to stop.
The music, composed and performed by John Paul Jones, Takehisa Kosugi and Sonic Youth (Kim Gordon, Thurston Moore, Lee Ranaldo, Steve Shelley), sounds now like a rock musician's worst hangover, as if the pot and the kettle were calling each other every color under the sun before settling down and breeding a whole tribe of tintinnabulations. One powerful guitar chord out of the blue happened on Thursday to coincide with the most electrifying gear change in the Goggans-Squire duet, but even such moments are mere effects.
"Nearly Ninety" continues through Sunday at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Howard Gilman Opera House and then from April 30 through May 9, 2009 in Madrid, Spain (with other future dates to follow at other locations).
Robert Plant At WOMAD Abu Dhabi
From: AMEINFO.COM 2009.04.15
The raw and gutsy Afro Blues from the UK's Justin Adams and West African Master Musician Juldeh Camara, with special guest appearance from rock legend Robert Plant.
'We are absolutely thrilled that the inaugural WOMAD Abu Dhabi Festival will be graced by the great Robert Plant. Even more exciting though, is the fact that he is in rehearsal as we speak with exceptional Afro Blues duo Justin and Juldeh to create a whole new performance, especially for Abu Dhabi. This festival is above all a celebration of World music and Robert Plant, ever inventive with his musical journeys over the years, is playing in the WOMAD spirit, a very special gift for music lovers everywhere.' Isadora Papadrakakis, Performing Arts Advisor, ADACH
Adams, Camara & Plant are set to start a 50-minute set at 9:00PM on the North Stage on Saturday, 25th April, 2009.
The full festival programme, with timings of the performances and children's and family workshops is now live on the Festival Website
John Paul Jones Has A Secret
From: WWD.COM 2009.04.14
In a recent interview with WWD Lifestyle about the upcoming Merce Cunningham, John Paul partially revealed a secret.
WWD: What are you working on next? J.P.J.: I've got an album that I produced for an artist called Sara Watkins, who used to be with Nickel Creek. And I'm working on some other music, which is more rock based, with a couple of other people. We hope to be everywhere this summer.
WWD: With whom? J.P.J.: It's a secret, actually. I shouldn't have even said that, you know? There are some exciting projects coming up, let's put it that way.
Black Dogs: A Fictional Take On Classic Rock's Biggest Heist
From: GIBSON.COM 2009.04.14
In July 1973, Led Zeppelin played three shows in New York City at the legendary Madison Square Garden. The night before their final performance, over $200,000 of the band's cash was stolen from their safe deposit box and never recovered in what would become the largest safe deposit theft in the history of NYC. That's where the story ended, until now.
Over three decades later, Inked's editor Jason Buhrmester has crafted a brilliantly constructed novel called Black Dogs, which is a fictional explanation for what easily could have transpired on that fateful night. Whether you're a Zeppelin fanatic or just a fan of music-based literature in general you need to check out this book.
The story's protagonist is 19-year-old Patrick Sullivan, a troubled teenager who cobbles together his crew of delinquent friends to try to pull off one of rock and roll's most famous capers. However our favorite part of the tome is the way they actually get their foot in the door of the Drake Hotel. That's right, they attract Jimmy Page's attention via a '58 Les Paul that they stole from a pawn shop - and once they're inside, they use this incredibly rare guitar as their vehicle to find out where Zeppelin keep their show money, learn how to access it and, most importantly, figure out a feasible way to get away with the goods. While the stakes are undoubtedly high, from the very first page of Black Dogs Buhrmester creates complex characters that are likable even when they're pulling off something illegal.
We don't want to ruin the storyline for you, but we will say that in the course of trying to pull off this monumental theft, this tight-knit group of friends encounter everyone from ferocious tour managers to grizzled, Jesus-fearing bikers to weave together a story that will appeal to fans of movies like Detroit Rock City and Almost Famous. Speaking of which, we're hoping that there's a film adaptation of Black Dogs in the works because we think this thing would translate beautifully to the silver screen - and we'd also relish the opportunity to cast all of these characters (as well as the members of Zep). Oh, and Black Sabbath fans should also take notice of Black Dogs because in addition to being Patrick's favorite band they're the authors', too - and references to the Master(s) Of Reality abound in this 240-plus page tome.
Jimmy Page Amongst Most Expensive Autographs
From: WALESONLINE.CO.UK 2009.04.13
1. Many believe the signature of the playwright William Shakespeare is the most expensive autograph in the world. Only six authentic signatures exist and each one would be expected to fetch around £2.5m
2. The highest price ever paid on the open market for a single signed autograph letter was $748,000 in 1991 for a letter written by US President Abraham Lincoln on January 8, 1863, defending the Emancipation Proclamation.
3. Double Fantasy was John Lennon's last album released during his lifetime and is a collaboration with Yoko Ono. In 2003, the last copy autographed by Lennon before he was killed by Mark Chapman was sold for $525,000, becoming the most valuable record ever.
4. Jimmy Page's signed guitar is one of the most prized signed possessions on sale at £49,000. The Led Zeppelin star began his career as a studio session guitarist in London and has been inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame twice.
5. A piece of paper signed by Jimmy Hendrix has a starting price of £41,000. The rocker, who died aged 27, is widely considered to be the greatest guitarist in the history of rock music.
Allman Drummer Disgusted By Robert Plant
From: NYPOST.COM 2009.04.13
Robert Plant nearly got beaten up the first time he played in the US with Led Zeppelin -- and by none other than Allman Brothers legend Duane Allman. "Robert Plant starts running all over the stage with his velvet pants on, and we were all looking at each other, [like] 'What the [bleep] is this?' " Allman drummer Butch Trucks tells next month's Relix, "It was as much about the ballet and the costumes as about the music, if not more so . . . Duane got up and said, 'I'm either going to go up there and kick the [bleep] out of that guy or we're leaving.' And we all got up and left. It just infuriated Duane. He was so let down by one of his gods."
HOF Induction Ceremony Replay on FUSE
From: FUSE.TV 2009.4.11
If you missed last weekend's Rock and Roll Induction Ceremony on FUSE you will be able to watch it again this Saturday April 11th at 5PM!!! Check out Jeff Beck's performance of "Beck's Bolero," and "Peter Gunn Theme" and Jeff Beck and & Jimmy Page performance of "The Immigrant Song," plus much more!!!
Sara Watkins & JPJ on Jimmy Fallon
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.04.07
Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones will perform with American singer-songwriter and fiddler Sara Watkins on the "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" show on Monday, April 13.
"Late Night with Jimmy Fallon", with house band The Roots, is an all-new late night television show that started in March on NBC.
Watkins released her self-titled debut solo album on April 7 via Nonesuch Records. The CD was produced by John Paul Jones, who first performed with Watkins on a Mutual Admiration Society tour in 2004.
Jimmy Page Onstage
From: BILLBOARD.COM 2009.04.05
Jimmy Page appearances are rare, but the Led Zeppelin guitarist was happy to come to Cleveland on Saturday to induct his longtime friend and former Yardbirds bandmate Jeff Beck into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist.
"He's been instrumental in pioneering a whole blueprint that was totally unique to him and...has been such a blueprint for everyone else to learn from," Page told Billboard.com before the ceremony. "No one's ever equaled what Jeff's done. He really shifted the whole sound and face of electric guitar music."
Asked after Beck's induction -- during which the two guitarists combined "Beck's Bolero" and Zeppelin''s "Immigrant Song" -- about their enduring friendship, Page noted that "we've known each other since we were...11 years old. We've vibed on the same things, and music's been the main common denominator of us meeting in the first place. So that's always been there. We're respectful of each other's playing and solo endeavors and all the rest of it. Mutual respect, man."
The two did joke around about Beck's ouster from the Yardbirds in 1966. "I was thrown out," he said, to which Page replied, "Not by me."
Beck: "It was your fault! (Page) didn't like me on the stage with him."
Page: "Oh, bollocks..."
Audio of Jimmy Page's Speech
Beck's Bolero/Immigrant Song/Beck's Bolero
Train Kept A-Rollin'
Theme Park To Shed Band Names
From: 2009.04.02
The two roller coasters named after Led Zeppelin and The Eagles at Hard Rock Park will be renamed for the 2009 season, an official with the park's new owners said Thursday, though he declined to say whether new names have been picked out for the rides, among the park's largest attractions.
The park's new owners also appeared to be backing away from a solely rock-'n'-roll theme for the park. John Stine, the director of sales and marketing for FPI MB Entertainment, the company that purchased the park out of bankruptcy in February for $25 million, said the park will be music-themed, with only an emphasis on rock 'n' roll.
"We want to get the park right," Stine said. "We want to enhance a number of areas and create more fun, more value for guests coming into the park."
A federal bankruptcy judge in Delaware ruled Monday that some of the park's previous owners still had intellectual property rights to the park's overall theme, design and layout. Steven Goodwin, the park's former CEO, had asked the new owners for licensing fees and a small cut of the profits.
Regardless of Monday's ruling, Stine said the park's owners had already decided to rebrand portions of the park. Since the new owners did not have any rights to the brand names of either The Eagles or Led Zeppelin, Monday's ruling did not impact the decision to change the names of those rides, Stine said.
"There were a number of things that we had in the works with our rebrand and the new creative direction we were taking it before the ruling," Stine said. "All this does is we continue to work harder, and we accelerate some things."
Stine, though, was mum on whether the park's themed areas, including a section devoted to British rock, would remain the same or would go through a massive overhaul. He also declined to say whether the park's two other big rides, a water ride named Slippery When Wet and another coaster called Maximum RPM!, would retain their names.
The new owners are especially focusing on making the park more family oriented, Stine said, but he declined to provide more details on which children's rides would be added to the park. The park's new owners have said they plan to add some children's rides.
"The rides will offer the opportunity for both parents and grandparents to enjoy the ride with their children," Stine said. "We want it to be more engaging. We want it to be more of a participatory ride so that grandparents are not sitting on a bench watching their kids ride."
Still up in the air is whether the park can retain the Hard Rock brand. The previous owners leased the brand from Hard Rock International for $2.5 million a year, but the new owners are still negotiating whether the name can be kept.
The park's Web site that sported the Hard Rock brand, www.hardrockpark.com, was recently taken down and now links to Hard Rock's main site.
Bjork New Lead Singer of Led Zep
From: NME.COM 2009.04.01
In the spirit of April Fools' Day, Bjork announced on her website today (April 1) that she will be replacing Robert Plant as lead vocalist in Led Zeppelin.
The Icelandic singer said that the legendary rockers' world tour was "in turmoil after original singer Robert Plant decided to concentrate on live work with Allison Krauss," so she decided to step in and fill the position.
The legendarily eccentric singer noted, however, that she only intends to perform songs from the band's first and fourth albums, including Good Times Bad Times, You Shook Me, Dazed And Confused, Communication Breakdown, Black Dog, Rock and Roll, and Stairway to Heaven.
Jason Bonham Onstage With Led Zepagain
From: CONTACTMUSIC.COM 2009.03.26
Led Zeppelin's on/off drummer Jason Bonham wowed fans at the House of Blues in Hollywood on Saturday (21Mar09), when he stepped up to perform with tribute act Led Zepagain.
The son of original Led Zep drummer John Bonham, Jason jammed with the band during their encore.
He performed Rock And Roll with the rockers.
The last time Bonham played Led Zeppelin songs for an audience was behind the real thing at the group's 2007 reunion show in London.
Jimmy Page to present Rock Hall Induction
From: CLEVELAND.COM 2009.03.20
Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page, Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones and Eminem will be among the celebrity presenters coming to Cleveland for the sold-out Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony Saturday, April 4, at Public Auditorium.
Page will induct Jeff Beck, Wood will induct Cleveland native Bobby Womack, and Eminem will induct Run-D.M.C.
Smokey Robinson will do the honors for Little Anthony and the Imperials, and Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers will induct Metallica.
Two members of Elvis Presley's band, drummer DJ Fontana and the late bass player Bill Black, are set be enshrined in the sidemen category by their counterparts from Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, Max Weinberg and Garry Tallent, respectively. Fellow sidemen honoree Spooner Oldham will be inducted by David Letterman's bandleader, Paul Shaffer.
A presenter for early-influence inductee Wanda Jackson has not been announced.
Slash Covers Led Zep with All-Female String Quartet
From: GIBSON.COM 2009.03.19
One of the great things about Slash is that he'll play with just about anyone - Michael Jackson, Lenny Kravtiz, P. Diddy, Daughtry. Bob Dylan, Iggy Pop, even Scott Weiland. Seriously, the dude doesn't discriminate.
So we're not really surprised to hear that the former Guns N' Roses guitarist is heading into the studio with Escala, an all-female string quartet that finished fifth place on Simon Cowell's television competition Britain's Got Talent. According to the group's website, they will be collaborating with Slash next week on a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir."
The session was reportedly orchestrated by Cowell after he met Slash at Elton John's Oscars party. British tabloid The Sun reported the pair "got on like a house on fire."
The Escala album, which Cowell is releasing on his Syco Music label, will also feature covers of Snow Patrol's "Run" (sung by Leona Lewis), Robert Miles's "Children" and Wings' "Live and Let Die."
JPJ Confirms No Zeppelin Tour (Involving Him)
From: DRUMFORUM.ORG 2009.03.17
John Paul Jones confirmed to an employee of a music store in LA that there would be no further Led Zeppelin reunions - at least not with him.
Take that for what you and read between the lines, if you will.
Jimmy Page Costume On Display at Gallery
From: VAM.AC.UK 2009.03.17
A stage costume worn by Jimmy Page will be on display at Victoria and Albert Museum's new Theatre and Performance Galleries, set to open on March 18, 2009.
The costume description is labeled as having "ancient Hebrew and Egyptian symbols, reflects his personal interest in esoteric religions and mysticism".
V&A's Theatre and Performance Galleries explore all performance types from theatre and ballet to pantomime and rock music. More than 250 objects from V&A's collections will be on display including a first folio of Shakespeare's plays compiled in 1623 to a guitar Pete Townshend smashed during a performance with The Who.
Posters and programmes from productions spanning over 200 years will include an early playbill from a 1759 production of The Earl of Essex and the original artwork by Jamie Reid for a Sex Pistols promotional poster, 1977.
Admission to the Theatre and Performance Galleries will be FREE and they are situated on the first floor of the V&A Museum, located on Cromwell Road, London SW7 2R
World's Largest Zep Collection Acquired By Rockaway Records
From: TOP40-CHARTS.COM 2009.03.12
Rockaway Records is thrilled to announce its recent purchase of one of the world's largest Led Zeppelin collections. The collection includes more than one ton - 2,500 pounds - of Led Zeppelin records (LPs and 45s), CDs, books, magazines, concert programs and tickets, T-shirts and memorabilia. A small part of the collection is on sale at Rockaway's online store, www.rockaway.com, while the bulk of the collection is available at the Rockaway Records retail store in Los Angeles.
Zeppelin fans, collectors and others interested in owning a piece of rock history must hurry - the collection is selling fast.
The new inventory of Led Zeppelin vinyl and memorabilia is only a fraction of the wide ranging items available from Rockaway Records. For more than 30 years, the store has sold CDs, DVDs, posters and other items to fans and collectors worldwide. Rockaway's inventory is constantly changing. The store's buyers travel around the world looking for music memorabilia and are seldom outbid on high quality collections.
Rockaway's retail store is probably best known for having one of the greatest selections of used CDs and DVDs in Los Angeles, with the average price of a CD or DVD around $5. The online store, www.rockaway.com, is known worldwide for having the best selection of rare and collectible vinyl (LPs and 45s), posters, awards and memorabilia. Rockaway.com sells all types of music from the 1950s to the present, but its specialty is classic rock, featuring an incredible selection of rarities by the Beatles, Beach Boys, Led Zeppelin, Alice Cooper and Frank Zappa.
Since its inception, Rockaway has sold some of the world's rarest records and memorabilia, including the 2008 sale of a Beatles record for $80,000. The record was a 1966 sealed mint-condition original first state stereo "butcher cover" that came from the collection of Alan Livingston, president of Capitol Records in 1966.
Records, concert programs and other memorabilia and items from the recently acquired Led Zeppelin collection are available at the Rockaway Records' retail store at 2395 Glendale Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90039 in the Silverlake area. Rockaway Records is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, visit www.rockaway.com.
John Paul Jones, Sonic Youth Compose Dance Piece
From: BILLBOARD.COM 2009.03.10
As reported last October, Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones and alternative rock legends Sonic Youth have collaborated on an original musical piece for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, and will perform together in Brooklyn, N.Y. in April. "Nearly Ninety," a new full length work composed by Sonic Youth, Jones and mixed-media sound composer Takehisa Kosugi, will debut at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on April 16, Merce Cunningham's 90th birthday.
The piece and its debut performances are part of "Merce Cunningham at 90," a four day festival celebrating the choreographer's work and influence. After its world premiere at BAM, "Nearly Ninety" will travel to Madrid, Champaign-Urbana, Paris, Berkeley, and London.
A long-time champion of improvisation and collaboration in dance, Cunningham and his dance company have worked with a number of musicians for past performances, including Radiohead, John Cage, and Sigur Ros.
Jones first performed with Merce Cunningham Dance Company in 2005, when he appeared as a guest musician with the Companys in London. Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore performed with the Company in the late 1990's.
John Paul Jones and Sonic Youth perform with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, April 16-19. More info is available at bam.org.
Signed Jimmy Page, Slash Items Up For Auction
From: NME.COM 2009.03.10
Musicians including Jimmy Page, Slash, Jack Bruce and Eric Burdon have signed guitars (and other items) to be sold in an eBay auction to raise money for Task Brazil.
Fans can bid on the items now, with the auctions set to end on Sunday (March 15).
Page first became aware of the Task Brazil charity when he played a gig in Rio in 1994. The Led Zeppelin star donated money to the charity, enabling them to build a home for abandoned children.
Iron Maiden and members of The Eagles, The Turtles and Badfinger have also signed items in the auction.
Robert Plant guest vocal on Buddy & Julie Miller album
From: LEDZEPPELINNEWS.COM 2009.03.03
Robert Plant's guest vocal on Buddy and Julie Miller's song "What You Gonna Do Leroy" is now available for listening and for purchase.
The song, which can be heard in the embedded video above, is available not only on the Millers' album, Written in Chalk, but also as a $0.99 MP3 download.
Buddy Miller, who is recuperating from open heart surgery after a recent heart attack, conducted an interview that is used in an electronic press kit issued by his record label, New West Records (see below).
Miller and Plant trade vocals on the track, sharing and trading off lines and verses. They are joined by fellow touring mates Jay Bellerose on drums, Dennis Crouch on bass, and Stuart Duncan on fiddle. Adding lap steel to the track is Gurf Morlix.
This track was recorded in a dressing room while on Robert Plant's tour with Alison Krauss.
Play What You Gonna Do Leroy
Sons Of Albion Make U.S. Debut at SXSW
From: SXSW.COM 2009.03.02
Logan Plant, son of Robert Plant, and his band, Sons Of Albion, are set to make their U.S. debut at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, playing a total of 3 shows.
They will perform two shows on Thursday, Mar. 19, 2009, the first at Red Bull Moon Tower party at 1:00AM and then later that day at 12:30PM at Maggie Mae's.
They will perform an hour set as part of the British Embassy Showcase, beginning at 1:00AM on Saturday, Mar. 21, 2009 at Latitude 30.
The Sons Of Albion are currently finishing up their first album and their debut single "Take A Look" will drop on March 30, 2009.
Judas Priest + Robert Plant?
From: EXPRESSANDSTAR.NET 2009.02.24
Al Atkins has a lot of tales to tell - from his humble beginnings in Stone Cross through his early friendship with the legendary Robert Plant to the setting up of Judas Priest.
And next month his colourful life will be opened up for all to see when he spills the beans in his long-awaited book Dawn of the Rock Gods.
It talks about the heyday of rock music in the Black Country and Birmingham and the scoresof music venues in West Bromwich, which attracted world-class performers.
Al grew up in Stone Cross and attended Charlemont School, before getting a job in a motorbike garage at 15.
It was while working at Prestige Motorbikes, near the Birmingham Road, that he got friendly with Robert Plant, who has contributed a photograph to the book and wished his old pal all the best with its success.
"That was in around 1968 I was in band called The Bitta Sweet and Robert was in The Band of Joy, before his Led Zeppelin days."
Zep Tribute Honored At Mavric Awards
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.02.23
Frankie Banali and Friends's "24/7/365 - The Tribute to Led Zeppelin" was honored in the "Tribute CD Of The Year" category at this year's Mavric Independent Music Awards, which celebrates the music community of Ventura County, California. The awards ceremony was held last night (Sunday, February 22) at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Center.
"24/7/365 - The Tribute to Led Zeppelin" is former Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali's labor of love. Frankie invited many of his friends to join him on making a heartfelt tribute to his favorite drummer John Bonham and his band Led Zeppelin.
Robert Plant blanked at BRITs
From: REUTERS.COM 2009.02.18
As the BRITs music awards got underway at Earls Court in London, one name stood out as a major absentee from the nominations announced last month - Robert Plant.
The ex-Led Zeppelin frontman was the big winner at the Grammys 10 days ago, scooping five prizes for his collaboration with bluegrass queen Alison Krauss. And yet the Englishman notched precisely zero nominations at the BRITs, the showcase for British music.
Surely some mistake? Could this be the British music establishment's way of punishing the 60-year-old for scuppering a Led Zeppelin reunion tour? Any other conspiracy theories out there?
Raising Sand Sales Way Up
From: USATODAY.COM 2009.02.18
The 14% ratings spike was just the beginning. Now the afterburners kick in. Performers and winners are seeing sales leaps after appearing on the Feb. 8 Grammy Awards, chart fuel given greater thrust by this year's increase of 2 million viewers.
Best album Raising Sand by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, who swept five awards, enjoyed the biggest gain, selling 77,000 copies, up 715% over the week before, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The duo jumps to No. 2 from No. 69.
Plant, Krauss Record Again
From: COUNTRYSTANDARDTIME.COM 2009.02.13
With the tremendous success of "Raising Sand" under their belts, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are back at it. The two, who won five Grammys Sunday, started new recording sessions, according to Ken Irwin of Rounder Records.
"Alison and Robert have been in the studio for about two weeks and although we haven't heard any of the music, we've been hearing good things from the musicians," said Irwin in an email.
Like "Raising Sand," T Bone Burnett is producing once again. He also was the band leader during their 2008 tour.
Rumors had floated that a live CD/DVD would be released of their tour last year. But that is not apparently the plan. "There are no plans for a DVD at this point," Irwin said.
Since the album is first being recorded, the label has no release date at this point. "We set our release dates when we get all the pieces in place and at this point, we don't have any yet," said Irwin.
Plant / Krauss Perform At Grammys
From: 2009.02.09 Rich Woman / Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)
Plant / Krauss Grammy Photos
From: GRAMMY.COM 2009.02.09
Plant / Krauss Big Winners At Grammys
From: GRAMMY.COM 2009.02.09
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss picked up five Grammy Awards last night, the most by any one person or group this year.
They won the Best Contemporary/Folk Americana Album Award for "Raising Sand", the Best Country Collaboration With Vocals Award, Pop Collaboration With Vocals Award for "Rich Woman", the Record Of The Year Award for "Please Read The Letter" and the Album Of The Year Award for "Raising Sand".
Plant said "Please Read The Letter" was "an old song that me and Jimmy Page wrote together post Led Zeppelin, and it's been given that Nashville touch, and it feels pretty good."
'Fear Of Disappointment Quashed Led Zeppelin Reunion'
From: GIGWISE.COM 2009.02.04
Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant has revealed that he decided against performing again with the band over fears a full reunion might disappoint fans.
Plant ruled himself out of more shows last November following endless calls from fans for the band to return to the road.
The singer's former bandmates - Jimmy Page, Jason Bonham and John Paul Jones - later abandoned plans to tour without him after attempts to find a replacement singer fell through.
"The disappointment that could be there once you commit to that and the comparisons to something that was basically fired by youth and a different kind of exuberance to now, its very hard to go back and meet that head on and do it justice," he said.
"The reason that it stopped was because we were incomplete, and we've been incomplete now for 28 years."
Plant added that it was important to "guard the discretion" of the band's past material and "make sure that you have all the reasons in the right place to be able to do something with absolute, total conviction."
"I mean, if my great award is to do this, then I don't want to do anything where we challenge what we did in the first place by just going back and visiting it without having a new, fresh makeover start."
Calls for a Led Zeppelin reunion tour were instigated by their reunion show at the O2 Arena in 2007, which attracted 1 million applicants for just 9,000 pairs of tickets.
JPJ Joins Julie Felix On New CD
From: UMBRELLORECORDS.COM 2009.01.30
New York, January 30, 2009
'Masters of War: The Music of Bob Dylan sung by Julie Felix' featuring special guest musician John Paul Jones (of Led Zeppelin)
Umbrello Records is very proud to present the new album from legendary folk singer Julie Felix featuring John Paul Jones on mandolin and octave mandola.
Julie Felix, a stunningly beautiful woman with an equally beautiful voice, was a star of the magnitude of Joan Baez in the UK in the 1960s and has been associated with some of the world's most important musicians including Paul McCartney, Leonard Cohen and Jimmy Page.
In 1966, Julie played with Bob Dylan at the immortal Isle of Wight concert. Now, over 4 decades later, she presents her first American album of Dylan songs.
Entitled Masters of War, the album includes Julie's stirring interpretations of eight Dylan classics including Mr. Tambourine Man, Subterranean Homesick Blues, Hard Rain, and I Shall Be Released.
Joining Julie Felix and John Paul Jones on Masters of War are some of the finest musicians in the UK, including Kiki Dee (additional vocals), Danny Thompson (bass guitar, featured guitars), and the John Renbourn String Quartet.
A complete track and musician listing can be found at: http://umbrellorecords.com/artists/felix/
Julie has always been passionate on the subject of war and remains so up to the present day, stating: "War is ugly. War is cruel. War claims the lives of thousands of innocent children and leaves in its wake broken dreams and broken lives including those of thousands of refugees. It deals devastating blows to Mother earth causing ecological disaster. It leaves deadly poisons in the soil and in the lungs of both soldiers and civilians."
All songs on the album Masters of War were composed by Bob Dylan and were produced by Julie Felix.
Available as both a CD and mp3 download on Amazon.com
The Tracks:
01 Masters of War 4:13
02 Mr. Tambourine Man 6:17
03 Sad Eyed Lady 8:11
04 Subteranean Blues 3:11
05 It's Alright 7:15
06 Hard Rain 8:14
07 The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll 5:00
08 Gates of Eden 6:26
09 I Shall Be Released 4:02
The Band:
Julie Felix - vocals, acoustic guitar
John Paul Jones - Mandolin, Octave Mandola
Noreen Brokke - Piano and Hammond organ
Danny Thompson - Featured guitars - Bass
Edd Frost - Drums
Ian James - Percussion
Kiki Dee - Additional vocals
John Renbourn String Quartet
The Sam Pearler Orchestra
11 July 2002 - at Cat Music
John Paul Jones added his mandolin to Mr Tambourine Man, Hard Rain and Subterreanean Homesick Blues.
Plant & Krauss To Perform At Grammys
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.01.29
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss have been added to be the list of performers at the 51st annual Grammy Awards which will be held February 8 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Plant and Krauss told Billboard.com in June that they are hoping to turn their platinum-certified, Grammy Award-winning "Raising Sand" album into a going concern.
"I'm in no hurry to go anywhere," Plant told Billboard.com. "I want to stay very close. This is a font of knowledge, and I'm sticking as close to it as I can."
Krauss concurred: "We're all having a wonderful time, and I hope and I think all three of us are hoping to continue this and that it go on and on." But she added that the duo's association shouldn't bring the curtain down on any of their other projects.
Singer Says Jamming With Zeppelin Members Was 'Surreal'
From: BLABBERMOUTH.NET 2009.01.20
Vocalist Myles Kennedy of Alter Bridge has confirmed that he played several tracks with the instrumental members of Led Zeppelin as part of an audition process for a proposed world tour.
Although names such as Jack White, Chris Cornell, Dave Grohl, and Steven Tyler had surfaced as possible vocalists for the new project, rumors have been rampant for months that Page, Jones, and Bonham have been rehearsing with Kennedy, with tentative plans to record and tour without Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant.
Speaking to Eric Blair of "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" at this past weekend's (Jan. 15-18) NAMM (National Association Of Music Merchants) show, which was held in Anaheim, California, Kennedy said, "I am not singing in Led Zeppelin or any offshoot of Led Zeppelin, but I did have a great opportunity and it was something that I'm very grateful for. But Alter Bridge will go on, and that's that." When asked what it was like jamming with his childhood heroes, Kennedy replied, "Surreal. It was great." On what songs he ended up performing with guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist John Paul Jones, and drummer Jason Bonham, Myles said, "I'll tell that story some day. But for now, it was a good experience, and I'm still pinching myself, let's put it that way."
"The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show"'s interview with Myles Kennedy can be viewed below.
Jimmy Page #2 reissue at NAMM
From: LESPAULFORUM.COM 2009.01.15
Thanks to Dealer's boulevard Matt's Music Center
"Led Zeppelin are over!" says Jimmy Page's manager
From: MUSICRADAR.COM 2009.01.07
Despite published reports indicating otherwise, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham have abandoned plans to record and tour together.
MusicRadar spoke exclusively with Peter Mensch, Jimmy Page's manager, who stated categorically, "Led Zeppelin are over! If you didn't see them in 2007 [when they played a one-off reunion at London's O2 Arena], you missed them. It's done. I can't be any clearer than that."
Mensch confirmed that last fall, when singer Robert Plant made it known he was continuing his partnership with bluegrass artist Alison Krauss and had no intention of returning to Led Zeppelin, replacement vocalists were auditioned to possibly record and tour with Page, Jones and Bonham.
"They tried out a few singers, but no one worked out," says Mensch. "That was it. The whole thing is completely over now. There are absolutely no plans for them to continue. Zero. Frankly, I wish everybody would stop talking about it."
When asked what new projects Jimmy Page was going to be involved with in 2009, Mensch said, "Fuck if I know. I'm waiting to hear."
Plant-less Zep To Tour And Record
From: XFM.CO.UK 2009.01.07
Peter Mensch, Led Zeppelin's manager, has said that Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham are likely to record and tour with a new singer. Mensch told the BBC's 6music,
"People don't really understand it. Jimmy Page has been playing guitar professionally since he was 16 years old. Jimmy Page likes being a musician. That's what he does! He doesn't want to be a race car driver or a solicitor.
"They decided that if they could find a singer that they thought would fit their bill - whatever their bill was at this stage in their career - that they'd make a record and go on tour... That's what Jimmy Page does".
Peter Mensch, who's Q Prime stable also includes Red Hot Chili Peppers and Metallica, refused to comment on the rumours surrounding a replacement for singer Robert Plant. Soundgarden's Chris Cornell, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and Alterbridge's Myles Kennedy were thought to be in the frame
"I can't comment on any rumours right now," said the manager, "It's gonna be a long and difficult process. And we're not soliciting people! So don't call me about it!"
As previously reported, Q Prime have already stated that the band, without Robert Plant, would not be working under the Led Zeppelin moniker.
Robert Plant Wins Queen's Honours
From: UK.REUTERS.COM 2009.01.01
LONDON (Reuters) - Rock singer Robert Plant, fantasy author Terry Pratchett and Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton were all honoured by the Queen on Wednesday.
The Queen also granted awards to members of Britain's Beijing Olympics team, including a knighthood for triple cycling gold medallist Chris Hoy, the country's most successful Olympian at a single games for 100 years.
The credit crunch even made an appearance in the traditional New Year's honours list, with a knighthood for Nick Macpherson, the most senior civil servant at the government's Treasury, for his "extraordinary work" on tackling the financial crisis.
Plant, 60, most famous for fronting rock band Led Zeppelin in the 1970s, becomes a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) under the ancient and complex system of honorary titles.
Robert Anthony PLANT, of Brighton, Sussex, Singer and Songwriter, was awarded For services to Music.
Plant has forged a successful career since Led Zeppelin's demise in 1980, recently collaborating with singer Alison Krauss on the acclaimed album "Raising Sand."
The UK Honours System says tha thte CBE is awarded for: a prominent national role of a lesser degree; or a conspicuous leading role in regional affairs, through achievement or service to the community; or making a highly distinguished, innovative contribution in his or her area of activity.
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, which celebrates the iconic label's past and present through music, images, and words. The most comprehensive project ever devoted to the Atlantic story, this numbered, limited edition collection spans the label's entire history, from its inception in 1947 to the present day. "Time Capsule" is housed in a custom-designed metallic box featuring:
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is published by Music Mentor Books.
on November 3, 2009 and the full album will be 
on November 17, 2009 (Nov. 16, 2009 in the UK).)
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