Video: Led Zeppelin playing together tonight for the first time in 20 years
posted at 1:15 pm on December 10, 2007 by Bryan
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There’s just something about hearing a Ministry of Truth presenter stoically reciting Led Zeppelin lyrics on air that makes me laugh. The band is reuniting tonight in London for a two-hour gig. Add your own witty or snarky Zep references in the comments.
Hopefully tonight’s show will go better than the 1985 and 1988 reunions.
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Somehow, I think that references to “watch[ing] your honey drip” would not be appropriate.
Ali-Bubba on December 10, 2007 at 1:22 PM
One of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time, IMHO!!
Nolamom67 on December 10, 2007 at 1:22 PM
They will never be as good live as they sound on their albums. Watch the song remains the same and you realize how much music is layered on. Led Zeppelin’s music was so much more interesting than they are giving credit.
Bill C on December 10, 2007 at 1:22 PM
Good call. My fault on the suggestion, I suppose.
Bryan on December 10, 2007 at 1:23 PM
They sounded like a wall of mush when I saw them in 1977, but I’m not sure if it was the acoustics or them. I still love listening to their first 5 albums. Can we still call them albums?
Listen to ‘Since I’ve been loving you’ under headphones and you’ll have to ask why they didn’t give Bonham some WD-40 for his bass drum pedal. Squeak Squeak Squeak. Still a great song, though.
pistolero on December 10, 2007 at 1:26 PM
OK. The Lemon Song is out too, then.
pistolero on December 10, 2007 at 1:28 PM
Sorry, but this can be said about many groups. I saw Page and Plant together when they toured ten years ago. They were absolutely amazing. I’m a huge Led-Head and I’ve seen Robert Plant many times in concert. I’ve seen lots of bands that were terrible live and lots of groups that totally surprised me. You can keep the Beatles and the Stones–I’ll take Zep over any of them any day of the week. I hope they come to Nashville.
robblefarian on December 10, 2007 at 1:28 PM
“Ministry of Truth” – lol. The BBC manages to creep me out even with their fluff pieces.
forest on December 10, 2007 at 1:32 PM
RIAA files motion for all HA reader IP addresses.
Limerick on December 10, 2007 at 1:35 PM
Hello Cleveland?
I love Spinal Tap as much as the next guy, but why do they get a reference in this context?
TexasDan on December 10, 2007 at 1:35 PM
Plant doesn’t even sing some of the songs the same way live as on the studio albums, which is very obvious on Rock And Roll. If you want to hear Led Zep’s music performed the way they recorded it, the best way might be to listed to Heart, who have performed Rock And Roll, The Rover and Misty Mountain Hop, and who proudly claim Zep as one of their main influences.
With Bonzo gone to Rock & Roll Heaven, who will be drumming for this concert? His son Jason?
Bigfoot on December 10, 2007 at 1:39 PM
Led Zeppelin 2007 – So Very Tired
Robert Plant’s diary: “Had trouble sleeping last night; my hiatal hernia is acting up. The tour bus is drafty and damp. I complain, but nobody listens…”
Lehuster on December 10, 2007 at 1:40 PM
The first concert I ever attended was Zeppelin’s ‘77 tour when they came to the now demolished Capital Center. Blew me away! Like another commenter, I saw them about 12 years ago when Page & Plant toured, but was a little disappointed when they did not play Stairway to Heaven (I’m sure they’re sick of it, but hey!).
If it were possible for a band to be both, underrated and very influential, that would describe Zeppelin best, as far as I’m concerned. Recently I finally supplemented my vinyl with all 166 I Tunes downloads. So, now my 12-year-old is digging them.
doufree on December 10, 2007 at 1:43 PM
Opening Act: Enya!
thejackal on December 10, 2007 at 1:44 PM
Music began & ended with Abba
Ochlan on December 10, 2007 at 1:44 PM
HAHAHAHAHAHAA!!! YER KILLIN’ ME!!!!
Talon on December 10, 2007 at 1:49 PM
I have to respectfully disagree. Some of those songs suffer from overproduction and are much better live (No Quarter, anyone?).
You need to watch the DVD set from 2003 to really appreciate their live show.
crazy_legs on December 10, 2007 at 1:51 PM
This is the Led Zeppelin I’m looking forward to.
KelliD on December 10, 2007 at 1:53 PM
The alumni from The Yardbirds – Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page!
Hilts on December 10, 2007 at 1:56 PM
XM 59 is nothing but Zeppelin. Whenever they play the live stuff with Plant croaking through the high notes he can’t hit without multiple takes in the studio and Page donking and dwinking through drug-addled solos, it makes me glad I grew out of listening to this crap at 17.
ScottMcC on December 10, 2007 at 1:57 PM
…they look pretty good for a bunch o’ corpses.
locomotivebreath1901 on December 10, 2007 at 1:58 PM
Yes.
I daresay that Zep’s post-Bonham mini-sets (I’m not counting the ones with all of the Egyptian backup musicians here) were… uneven at best — the Altlantic Records anniversary being the only one that struck me as really good (and this gig is a for a charity honoring label founder Ahmet Ertegun, which is a good portent). But Plant has been on a roll lately. If Page is sufficiently clean, who knows what might come of it?
Karl on December 10, 2007 at 2:02 PM
Watch Jimmy Page rock this song (from 1966 with the Yardbirds)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTO7WVxjz3A
Hilts on December 10, 2007 at 2:03 PM
It depends on the song.
I would agree with you on something like ‘The Song Remains The Same’, where you have a number of different guitar parts (all awesome) overdubbed, and thus would require 3 or 4 guitarists on stage to play them all at the same time.
On the other hand, I suggest you pick up the Led Zeppelin DVD and watch some of the performance at the Knebworth fesitval in 1979 – ‘Rock and Roll’ and several other songs in that came off very well.
On another note, I’m glad they broke up after Bonham died, and didn’t continue on to become a self-parody like a lot of other bands did (e.g., The Stones).
thirteen28 on December 10, 2007 at 2:03 PM
No Stairway — Denied!
The Ugly American on December 10, 2007 at 2:04 PM
Jimmy Page is still alive? What is it about him, and say Keith Richards? How the heck did they ever survive all that…well…ya know?
More power to ‘em!
JetBoy on December 10, 2007 at 2:12 PM
Awesome! I have XM but wasn’t aware of this. I’m so thankful for the info I’ll even overlook your subsequent blasphemies.
Blacklake on December 10, 2007 at 2:24 PM
A bit OT but out of the few live shows I’ve seen, 2 bands stuck out as sounding great live:
U2 on their Joshua Tree tour –’97 at the now gone Omni in Atlanta
Metalica on the Snakepit Tour [the one without G'nR] ‘91 or ‘92 somewhere in Richmond, VA (I was in college and saw many concerts back then so I can’t remember specifics!)
geckomon on December 10, 2007 at 2:26 PM
Yeah, calling it quits without Bonzo was one of the smartest decisions ever made in the history of rock.
Blacklake on December 10, 2007 at 2:26 PM
I love all of the comments about how tired, old, out dated, sad, and worn out Led Zepplin is. This is coming from the generation that gave us…Britney Spears.
Who do you compare to Led? Perhaps Green Day, maybe Maroon 5? I know, The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Sorry, the old bands continue to play to sell out crowds because no one from the 80’s on compares.
Led Zeppelin, the Stones, The Doors, Aerosmith, and the real rock and roll groups will continue to sell albums long after today’s sorry groups are forgotten.
Rode Werk on December 10, 2007 at 2:29 PM
Although through Good times Bad Times, I thought Babe Im gonna Leave You. Even after you shook me and left me Dazed and Confused. I can tell you Your Time is gonna come. As I sit on a Black Mountain Side, experiencing a Communication Breakdown. I realize I can’t quit you Baby and I wonder How Many more times. This was written with a Whole Lota Love, while singing my Immigrant Song, while Climbing my Stairway to Heaven.
Zelsdorf Ragshaft on December 10, 2007 at 2:32 PM
Rode Work, every see Sammy live. The Red Rocker is from the 80’s. He is as good in person as on record.
Zelsdorf Ragshaft on December 10, 2007 at 2:34 PM
As they say, dying young is a good career move.
Largely agree with these sentiments. There are some decent bands out there these days, but they are largely obscure and you have to do a lot of digging to find them. And a lot of the popular acts today just plain suck.
thirteen28 on December 10, 2007 at 2:35 PM
Well, well! Break out the Maalox and Metamucil and let’s celebrate!
MrC_5150 on December 10, 2007 at 2:35 PM
Again, gotta disagree. Page’s solo on the live version of Song Remains the Same is AMAZING. And it’s on 12-string, to boot!
And yes, Jimmy Page is alive, and looks healthier at 65 than he did at 35. Robert Plant, OTHO, is morphing into someone’s grandmother.
crazy_legs on December 10, 2007 at 2:45 PM
Getting even older: it was ‘87
sweeper on December 10, 2007 at 2:46 PM
When they released their 1st album Page had engineered it so hot that only pro-quality turntables could play it,the needle would jump out of the groves when played on typical home turntables.
There’s your Zep trivia for the day :D
Jason’s a good drummer,but even he admits he ain’t his Daddy.
as a young lad it took me forever to learn the bass drum part on “Good Times,Bad Times”.I can still pull it off
Frantic Freddie on December 10, 2007 at 2:49 PM
The BBC footage is about thirty years ago with John Bonham.
What a commentary on the music industry that you need to drag out a band from the 60’s and 70’s to make big news.
“Playing guitar is for old people”
Eric Cartman
Hening on December 10, 2007 at 3:22 PM
They need to get him on that website with men that look like old lesbians…..
Hening on December 10, 2007 at 3:23 PM
I love all of the comments about how tired, old, out dated, sad, and worn out Led Zepplin is. This is coming from the generation that gave us…Britney Spears.
Their music isn’t old and tired, but they sure are.
Lehuster on December 10, 2007 at 3:23 PM
Come to think of it, it has been a long time since I rock and rolled.
I tried for a long time to hate the Zep, but anyone who doesn’t agree that “In My Time of Dying” rocks out loud isn’t to be trusted as an analyst.
At least I can sleep easy knowing that heavy metal is in good hands.
saint kansas on December 10, 2007 at 3:51 PM
To Robert Plant’s credit, he did a good job on that collaboration album with Allison Kraus.
mram on December 10, 2007 at 3:51 PM
Those 2 guys the Beeb interviewed in the clip are like Bob & Doug MacKenzie.
Mindcrime on December 10, 2007 at 4:32 PM
They will never be as good live as they sound on their albums.
Dunno man… I kinda liked that LIVE version of Stairway(you know the one where Plant does the “does anyone remember the laughter”) better than the studio version. Guess it depends on whether they’re having a good or an off night. Think I remember a pretty decent version of In The Evening too… jeez, the 80’s are a little foggy (is that fog?) for me.
By the way… which member is Mr. Zepplin? I never could figure out who Mr. Tull was either.
It really is a shame Zepplin will never come to Texas because of Hot Dog, so very… sad, but what a catchy tune.
christophercube on December 10, 2007 at 4:39 PM
Rode Werk: My 25 year old daughter and my 23 year old son listen to the Doors, CCR, Stones and so on more than any rap, hip hop or what we used to call bubble gum music. That is, imho, because the older music is timeless and the newer is just crap. That said, one of my all time favorite songs is one by Page and Puff Daddy (b4 he became PDiddy) however the name escapes me right now (getting too frickin old eh:)!
oilbertan on December 10, 2007 at 4:45 PM
Unlike the Who. After Keith Moon left us, the Who should have hung it up. Can anyone name anything memorable they recorded (sorry I can’t resist) on the dark side of the Moon? And then they still go on after John Entwistle dies! Do you guys really need the money that badly?
Ah, after Pete was caught doing “research” on child porn sites I haven’t had much desire to even listen to their original stuff. Sigh……
Mallard T. Drake on December 10, 2007 at 5:00 PM
True Story…
When MTV first came on the air, I was in high school and was glued to the set for 12 hours straight watching this “music television” thing and my Dad, who was an officer with the Seattle Police Department, comes downstairs. They were playing concert footage of Led Zeppelin, my favorite band then, my favorite band now, my now 8 year olds favorite band.
So my Dad sees the footage and says, hey, I recognize those guys and then starts telling story after story of when he was security for the band at the Edgewater Inn. He told stories about being called into Bonham’s room because John and another police officer had been fishing out the window and had managed to catch a small octopus. The claim is they had ordered a bunch of food from room service for bait. They decided to put the octopus in the bathtub but it crawled out and was currently hiding in the toilet.
As my Dad said, I can still hear the guy yelling, constable, constable, we need help.
AndrewsDad on December 10, 2007 at 5:31 PM
they didn’t call their publishing company Superhype Music for nothing. (and i’m a fan.)
Good rhythm section, though.
JazzBass on December 10, 2007 at 6:38 PM
oops! — lol. Yeah, but I was in HS then! It was ‘87! The BoDeans opened. (I think others saw The Pixies on other legs.)
geckomon on December 10, 2007 at 6:43 PM
And don’t forget about the mud shark!
Mallard T. Drake on December 10, 2007 at 7:42 PM
I wonder if they can find the bridge? (now to see who the real Zep fans are with that one!)
William Teach on December 10, 2007 at 8:58 PM
Oh come on… my kid could answer that one and Houses of the Holy is not even his favorite album.
AndrewsDad on December 10, 2007 at 9:40 PM
One of those two dudes looks like Pete Townsend.
The other one has a cool accent.
Tzetzes on December 10, 2007 at 10:12 PM
Best Albums:
3
2
4
1
HoH
Tzetzes on December 10, 2007 at 10:13 PM
Led Zeppelin first got me turned on to the Blues.
Love ‘em!
(Best current singer/musician by far: Beck!)
Tzetzes on December 10, 2007 at 10:14 PM
Haven’t got time to read all of the comments.
All I can say is, : Beena long time beena long time beena long lonely lonely lonely time. …..Yes it has. haaaay yeay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hillbillyjim on December 11, 2007 at 2:25 AM
Walkin’ in thuh park just thuh other day baybuh,
Whaddaya, whaddaya think I saa-uua aawww?
Crowds of people …….
I really don’t know?!
Cool. Best band evah.
plus 1= started heavy metal
hillbillyjim on December 11, 2007 at 2:34 AM
So they aren’t teenagers anymore. Still, the most innovative, influential band EVAH!!
And they rock.
hillbillyjim on December 11, 2007 at 2:40 AM
To me, *Gallows Pole* should be subliminally implanted in every unwilling soul from now until at least the year 2342.
Why? Because it should, damnit.
Because it makes you think.
hillbillyjim on December 11, 2007 at 2:49 AM
Two seasons ago I watched some American Idol when my daughter told me there was an “old-school” rocker among the contestants. Well, Daughtry is close, but not quite. What caught my attention then, and was repeated regularly this last season, was that when they were given the choice, the singers picked music from the 70’s far more often than the current noise.
The 70’s defined rock, and nothing has shown up to change the definition. On the contrary, how many recent hits are half-baked covers of original tunes by the following:
Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Cream, Floyd, Tull, BOC, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Average White Band, Alan Parsons Project, Eagles, ARS, Heart, Chicago, BS&T, Yes, Foghat, Three Dog Night, 38 Special, REO Speedwagon, ELO, ELP, America, Earth Wind & Fire, Santana, Doobie Brothers, Bread, J. Geils, Z. Z. Top
Just for a starter sample. And how many years in a row was the list of the 100 all-time favorite rock songs topped by Kashmir?
Freelancer on December 11, 2007 at 3:59 AM
Brock Sampson approves.
Nonfactor on December 11, 2007 at 5:00 AM
I sometimes say that the last oil refinery built in the US was when Led Zepplin was on tour. Maybe if they go on tour again, we will build another refinery?
Random Numbers (Brian Epps) on December 11, 2007 at 5:16 AM
Well, well! Break out the Maalox and Metamucil and let’s celebrate!
MrC_5150 on December 10, 2007 at 2:35 PM
LEAVE THE LED HEDS ALONE………wimper, wimper………….I MEAN IT…………
oakpack on December 11, 2007 at 6:52 AM
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