Showing posts with label John Paul Jones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Paul Jones. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 3, 2017

Fake news is no news: Led Zeppelin reunion

I have a lot of trouble with fake news. "Fake" is too nice a word. Fiction is what it is, but when the "news" is presented as fact then what we have is lies.

Lies.

But what's more troubling to me is how so many people have lost their marbles -- excuse me, I mean their critical reasoning ability -- and gulp up fake news as truth. And then, like a flu, they spread it.

Let's talk about a Led Zeppelin "reunion"

First, what is a reunion? It's a regathering of people who have gathered before. So... a true Led Zeppelin reunion would require that John Bonham be sitting at the drum kit. Sorry, I'm not one of those folks who accepts Bonzo's son as a real member of the band. Yes, Jason's a great drummer... but he's not his father. He hasn't worked with the other three gentlemen to create new music. The music that he drums to is his father's music. Jason is a cover drummer. I love the man, but there it is.

Let's talk about "facts"

No, let's not. There are no cold facts. Videos that supposedly prove Jimmy Page intends to do Desert Trip 2017 are from years ago, before there even was a Desert Trip. Use your brains, people. No one who counts has made a definitive statement about a reunion in Nevada, in 2017, or anyplace/anytime.

Now let's talk about Desert Trip 2017 itself

A Led Zeppelin reunion would trash Desert Trip. How many million people tried for tickets for the last time Led Zeppelin got together? Over 20 million. There would be that many and more for another try to see the gentlemen on stage. So let's think about what happened to the Ahmet Ertegon Tribute (the actual name for the 2007 event at O2). Quickly now, who can tell us what other headliner bands were there - raise your hands. Um... I'm not seeing hands. Why? Because the Tribute is usually called the Led Zeppelin Reunion for a reason. When the gentlemen in question get together, that's all there is in the world. Back in 2007 Pete Townshend famously refused to show up, saying that with Led Zeppelin there, they didn't need him. What headliner band would want to be reduced to a supporting act that nobody came to listen to?

Some kind of festival that would be.

This is all stupid talk anyway. It's not like the the rumors that Led Zeppelin are reuniting to perform at Desert Trip 2017 could possibly be anything but fake news. These news articles that announce "insider sources" are reporting that Robert Plant has agreed to a reunion in 2017 because of the band's upcoming 50th anniversary.

Um. Do the math, people. Led Zeppelin was formed and first performed in 1968. So Desert Trip 2017 would be... the 49th anniversary.

But more logic

So let's suppose that Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, and John Paul Jones have agreed to a reunion and Jason Bonham has accepted an invitation to join them. And let's suppose that they decide to do this in 2017 instead of 2018. We know very well that the boys are perfectly capable of being sneaky about such decisions, and are perfectly capable of meeting for practice sessions without the slightest hint of a rumor getting out.

We know this. But suddenly these rumors. And not one bit of confirmation from the gentlemen in question. So what does this tell us?

It tells us that Desert Trip probably put an absolutely baseless rumor out there to begin with, because what this has done is created incredible publicity for them. But... do we see any announcement of dates in 2017? No. Do we see any confirmation of a lineup for 2017? No.

Uh huh. Sure Led Zeppelin's going to show up. Because if it's on the internet it must be true. And hey -- I've got a confounded bridge to sell you.

Friday, July 15, 2016

Armageddon

1993 still from Pride and Joy video, Coverdale/Page
People tend to dismiss Coverdale/Page as a Robert Plant substitute effort. I've always thought that doing so is not only a mistake, but that such a viewpoint alters the listening experience enough to make it impossible to really hear what's going on. They're missing out on an extraordinary opportunity to appreciate some first-class music.

Both Jimmy Page and David Coverdale were, by 1993, seasoned musicians and no longer in the flower of their youth. While some would say they were past their prime, when it comes to creativity there may never be a prime -- there may be just one masterpiece after another.

Make no mistake. Coverdale/Page is nothing but a masterpiece.

Jimmy Page and David Coverdale nail it. These two musicians have a nitty-gritty, tarnished depth to them that is different than Led Zeppelin, mostly because David Coverdale is not, in fact, Robert Plant. 

Coverdale delivers something entirely new to the music: Life experience.  In the years when Led Zeppelin was recording and touring, Page, Plant, Jones and Bonham simply weren't old enough to deliver the perspective that sheer number of years lived gives to the music. That's why the music of Led Zeppelin is, in a weird way, pure and sometimes even innocent.

The Coverdale and Page of 1993 can not pretend to innocence.

Beyond the difference between Coverdale and Plant, there is another interesting aspect to the Coverdale/Page album, namely that it contains a lament about the tragedy and destruction of war. As far as I know, Whisper a Prayer for the Dying is the only time Jimmy Page ever put out a song even remotely political, and this one is amazing. 

This is music of grown-ups who now look beyond their own needs and out to the world where there is so much suffering. This is the music of those who have known of sorrow and loss in their own lives. True, Robert Plant sang of the loss of his beloved son, Karac, and it stabbed us in the heart.  But David Coverdale sings of of the pointless loss of beloved strangers, and it stabs us in the soul.  


♪ Whisper a Prayer for the Dying (Coverdale Page, 1993) YouTube
Check out the lyrics.

♪ Coverdale/Page playlist (YouTube)







Friday, June 17, 2016

Stairway to Heaven trial

The trial we've all been waiting for and dreading at the same time. I'm posting running updates over on Facebook, which also show up on Twitter. Judge Gary Klausner has banned electronic devices in the courtroom, so there are no as-it-happens reports and no photos. Spectators - including reporters - cannot reserve seating. Meaning if they leave their seats for any reason, the next person in the long line to get into the courtroom can take any seat that a butt has risen from for any reason except standing when the judge enters the courtroom.

A tough way to get timely info on this trial that we all are intensely interested in.

Jimmy Page has provided his testimony.  It is said - but not yet confirmed - that Robert Plant (who is attending the trial) and John Paul Jones (who has not been seen there) may yet take the hot seat on the witness stand.

It is also speculated that there are grounds for a mistrial. Makes you wonder.

I am prejudiced as you know, but I don't care what the jury's decision ends up being. A loss for Led Zeppelin would be a hit on their bank accounts but it would not impact my feelings about Stairway To Heaven. Even a win wouldn't matter much to me. I already know that the Led Zeppelin song is fully theirs, always and forever.

Jimmy Page on the stand being grilled by Spirit attorney Francis Malofiy
Mona Shafer Edwards sketch
Sketch artist Mona Shafer Edwards has been working hard at capturing images from the trial - many of them are posted on the Mage Music Facebook page. Los Angeles based journalist Pamela Chelin (@PamelaChelin) has been providing updates as she can Twitter. Pamela writes for  LA Weekly, LA Times, Spin, Rolling Stone, Village Voice, Forbes, TheWrap, and more. Many thanks for her dedication.  Hollywood Reporter's Ashley Cullins (@AshleyCullins) has also provided great observations that I've reposted on Facebook.


♪ Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, Sunset Sound Mix/Remaster 2014) YouTube

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

On This Day 01 June

The last Yardbird show in LA but not the last time Jimmy Page played music in L.A., that's for sure.
1968 The Yardbirds - Los Angeles, CA at Shrine Auditorium
  • 1967 The Yardbirds - Canterbury, Kent, England at University of Kent
  • 1968 The Yardbirds - Los Angeles, CA at Shrine Auditorium
  • 1998 Page & Plant - Birmingham, AL at Civic Center
1968 The Yardbirds
It might appear that Jimmy Page wasn't doing all that much on this day over the years but that wouldn't be true. There's more to a rock star's life than standing on a stage and weaving musical magic.
2014 remasters graffiti
In early June of various years there was down time for Jimmy Page of course, but often the time was spent preparing stage sets for various tours, attending promo events, rehearsing, or traveling to shows. Plus the business of being in the music business had to be dealt with. And in recent years, the remasters. So yeah, it's not just fun and games in front of an audience. Speaking of which: I've gathered a number of photos of Jimmy Page and put them together at The Sporting Life (just for fun).

Oh, and meanwhile, here are links to Sporting Life, an album by Diamanda Galas and John Paul Jones:
♪ The Sporting Life (Track 7 from the album of the same name) YouTube [Warning - language]
♫ Sporting Life (Diamanda Galas & John Paul Jones, 1994)) Amazon

Saturday, May 28, 2016

On This Day 28 May

Jimmy Page:  Always has meant business.  Always has known what he wanted to do and did it.

1986  28 May On This Day The Firm - Seattle,WA at Seattle Center Coliseum

  • 1969 Led Zeppelin - Boston,MA at Boston Tea Party
  • 1972 Led Zeppelin - Brussels,Belgium at Vorst Nationaal
  • 1973 Led Zeppelin - San Diego,CA at San Diego Sports Arena
  • 1977 Led Zeppelin - Landover,MD at Capital Centre
  • 1986  28 May On This Day The Firm - Seattle,WA at Seattle Center Coliseum

1971 John Paul Jones at Association of Professional Recording Studios exhibition, London

1972  Led Zeppelin Brussels

1973 Jimmy Page/Led Zeppelin, San Diego

1977 Led Zeppelin, Landover MD

Jimmy Page & Tony Franklin exit The Firm jet
The Firm promo photo



♪ Mage Music 1 playlist at YouTube
♪ Mage Music 2 playlist at YouTube
♪ Page & Plant playlist at YouTube

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

On This Day 22 March


1985 22 March On This Day soundtrack for Scream for Help released
AUDIO: Spaghetti Junction, Crack Back

  • 1969 Led Zeppelin - Erdington England at Mothers Club
  • 1970 Led Zeppelin - Seattle WA at Seattle Center Arena
  • 1973 Led Zeppelin - Essen Germany at Grugahalle
  • 1986 The Firm - New Haven CT at New Haven Veterans Memorial Coliseum
  • 1995 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Largo MD at USAir Arena (day 1 of 2)


1970 Led Zeppelin, Seattle

1973 Led Zeppelin, Essen Germany
1982 Michael Winner & Jimmy Page
on the street in front of their houses in London

1985:
Michael Winner (1935 - 2013) was an English film director and producer, a restaurant critic an art collector, and Jimmy Page's next door neighbor. He edited his own movies using the pseudonym Arnold Crust. Over his film career, he worked with many big name actors including, of course, Charles Bronson for the Death Wish movies. Jimmy Page created the soundtrack for 1982's Death Wish II.

Winner's 1984 movie Scream For Help is about a teenage girl who suspects that her cruel step-father is plotting to kill her and her mother, and who is unable to get anyone to believe her.  It didn't do well in the box office in spite of male frontal nudity and a soundtrack (released in 1985) that was composed by John Paul Jones, featuring Jimmy Page on two of the tracks. The movie has garnered a cult following since then.



1995 Page & Plant, Largo MD

2013 Jimmy Page backstage at Du Bellows show, London



♪  Full set (Led Zeppelin, Essen Germany 1973) YouTube
♪  Spaghetti Junction  (Scream for Help soundtrack, Jimmy Page & John Paul Jones 1985) YouTube
♪  Crack Back (Scream for Help soundtrack, Jimmy Page & John Paul Jones 1985) YouTube

♪ Mage Music 1 playlist at YouTube
♪ Mage Music 2 playlist at YouTube
♪ Page & Plant playlist at YouTube




Monday, March 21, 2016

On This Day 21 March

The once and future god of music
1969 21 March On This Day Led Zeppelin at BBC's Lime Grove Studio
2013 21 March On This Day Led Zeppelin receives Echo award
  • 1969 Led Zeppelin – London at BBC's Lime Groove Studio
  • 1970 Led Zeppelin - Vancouver Canada at Pacific Coliseum
  • 1971 Led Zeppelin - Nottingham England at Nottingham Boat Club
  • 1973 Led Zeppelin – Hamburg Germany at Hamburg Musikhalle
  • 1975 Led Zeppelin – Seattle WA at Seattle Center Coliseum
  • 1985 The Firm – Houston TX at The Summit
  • 1986 The Firm – Providence RI at Providence Civic Center
  • 2013 Led Zeppelin International Lifetime Achievement Award

1969:
Can you imagine how you'd feel today knowing you wiped an early tape of Led Zeppelin?

1970:
By this point in time, Led Zeppelin had made it.  Led Zeppelin II was outselling the Rolling Stones and the Beatles. This, their first show of the spring 1970 US tour, drew a crowd of 19,000 in a building with a capacity rated at just over 17,000.

1970 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Vancouver 
1971:
They were so big that the Back to the Clubs tour experience was as crazed as playing at the big venues would have been.  Everyone wanted to get in to see Led Zeppelin and the small clubs just were too small.
1971 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Nottingham England
1973 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Hamburg
1975:
Jimmy Page was given a gift of a Les Paul guitar by a fan, but it turned out that the guitar had been stolen. From the accounts of the show, Mr. Page was less than happy when notified during the show that Sea-Tac Airport authorities had confiscated the guitar.
1975 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Seattle

1985 Jimmy Page /The Firm, Houston


2013 John Paul Jones & Jimmy Page, Echo Awards 

2013 Jimmy Page, Echo Awards, Berlin




♪  Partial set (Led Zeppelin, Vancouver 1970) YouTube
♪  Baby, I Don’t Care (Led Zeppelin, Hamburg 1973) YouTube
♪  The Song Remains The Same (Led Zeppelin, Seattle 1975) YouTube

♪ Mage Music 1 playlist at YouTube
♪ Mage Music 2 playlist at YouTube
♪ Page & Plant playlist at YouTube





Thursday, March 10, 2016

On This Day 10 March

Please Mr. Page: let it be instrumental, let it be all you!
1967 10 March On This Day Jeff Beck released Hi Ho Silver Lining & Beck's Bolero
AUDIO: Beck's Bolero

  • 1968 The Yardbirds - Paris at L'Olympia Music Hall and at a private party for the head of Barclay Records, Eddie Barclay
  • 1970 Led Zeppelin - Hamburg, Germany at Hamburg Musikhalle
  • 1971 Led Zeppelin - Canterbury, England at Rutherford College
  • 1975 Led Zeppelin - San Diego, CA at San Diego Sports Arena
  • 1981 Jimmy Page with Jeff Beck - London, at Hammersmith Odeon, encore
  • 1985 The Firm - Denver, CO at McNichols Sports Arena
  • 1995 Page & Plant - New Orleans, LA at U.N.O. Lakefront Arena

1967:
I've always wanted to hear a version of Beck's Bolero that was Jimmy Page solely. I think he could put even more majesty into a work that is already majestic. Jimmy Page wrote the piece for Jeff Beck's first solo release and no doubt Mr. Page meant it to showcase what Jeff Beck could do, but we know who could do better because we've heard Mr. Page play snippets of it here and there over the years. The 1967 recording includes John Paul Jones on bass.

Read more about Beck's Bolero in a Mage Music post from 2012

1971 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Canterbury


1975 John Paul Jones & Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, San Diego
(Gary Morgan photo)
1981:

On this day Jimmy Page stepped onstage with a guitar for the first time since John Bonham's death to join his friend, Jeff Beck, in an encore number at Beck's show at the Hammersmith Odeon. If there is a recording of the song he played, I'm Going Down, I haven't come across it, but someone must have recorded it and I wanna hear it!
1985 Jimmy Page / The Firm, Denver


1995 Jimmy Page / Page & Plant, New Orleans

2005 Jimmy Page at Jeff Buckley photo exhibit, Proud Gallery, London




♪ Becks Bolero (Jeff Beck Group 1967) YouTube
♪ How Many More Times medley (Led Zeppelin, Hamburg 10 March 1970) YouTube
♪ Dazed and Confused (Led Zeppelin, San Diego 1975) YouTube
♪ Full Set (Page & Plant, New Orleans 10 March 1995) YouTube

♪ Mage Music 1 playlist at YouTube
♪ Mage Music 2 playlist at YouTube
♪ Page & Plant playlist at YouTube




Saturday, February 13, 2016

On This Day 13 February

Another day, another award and glorious music
1972 13 February On This Day Led Zeppelin tourist stopover in Bombay
Jimmy Page's VIDEO (YouTube) 
  • 1975 Led Zeppelin - Uniondale, NY at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
  • 1992 Jimmy Page with Harry Connick Jr. for encore at James L. Knight Center, Miami
  • 1996 Page & Plant Unledded Tour – Tokyo a Nippon Budokan
  • 2005 Led Zeppelin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award

1975:
An exciting show with some surprises:  an epic, 42 minute length Dazed and Confused, and a bit of theremin between Whole Lotta Love and Black Dog. Ron Wood joined Led Zeppelin for an encore of Communication Breakdown and Robert Plant sang a few lines from Roll Over Beethoven while the guitars got sorted out.

1975 Jimmy Page, Ron Wood, Peter Grant, Uniondale NY
(I always first think Ron is in handcuffs when I see this photo)

1992:
It's uncertain whether Jimmy Page, who was reportedly living on Florida's exclusive Jupiter Island at this time, attended  Harry Connick Jr's gig at the James L. Knight Center in Miami on 13 or 14 February - but it was definitely one of those two days.
"I'd been listening to his music, and I was keen to see what his concert would be like," says Page, 48, who was in Miami working on a new album. "We met before the concert, and Harry said, 'You should come up and play,' and I laughed. But I was sitting in the audience, and he suddenly said, 'We've got a really good friend here.... C'mon, Jimmy, come up and play with us.' I went up, and he put a guitar in my hands and said, 'Go ahead, it's your band.' So I did an improvised blues in B flat. I was so nervous! And he went over to the brass section and started singing these licks and cued them in." Would Page consider an encore? "Oh, yes, but I'll bring my own guitar the next time."
~ Jimmy Page interview
2002:
The Grammy Lifetime Achievement is a Special Merit Award, presented by vote of The Recording Academy's National Trustees to performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording. John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page, Zoe Bonham and Jason Bonham accepted the award for Led Zeppelin.

2005 John Paul Jones & Jimmy Page at Grammy Awards

2005 John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page, Zoe Bonham and Jason Bonham
accept Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award from Neil Portnow,
president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences



♪  Dazed and Confused (Led Zeppelin, Uniondale 13 February 1975) YouTube
♪  Whole Lotta Love/Black Dog ( (Led Zeppelin, Uniondale 13 February 1975) YouTube
♪  Communication Breakdown (Led Zeppelin, with Ron Wood 1975) YouTube
♪  Rain Song (Page & Plant, 13 February 1996, Japan) YouTube
(Just a cute brief clip of a funny moment)

♪ Mage Music 1 playlist at YouTube
♪ Mage Music 2 playlist at YouTube




Monday, January 25, 2016

On This Day 25 January

Should the song remain the same? Or should it change?

On This Day 25 January 1996 (published 2021)


  • 1967 The Yardbirds - Adelaide, Australia at Centennial Hall
  • 1969 Led Zeppelin - Boston, MA at Boston Tea Party (day 3 of 4)
  • 1973 Led Zeppelin - Aberdeen, Scotland at Aberdeen Music Hall
  • 1975 Led Zeppelin - Indianapolis, IN at Market Square Arena 
  • 1995 Page & Plant – record Black Dog at The Depot Studios in London for later broadcast at the American Music Awards
  • 1996 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Buenos Aires, Argentina at Estadio Ricardo Etcheverry 

Jimmy Page & Robert Plant onstage in Aberdeen Scotland 1973
1973    Aberdeen Scotland

1975 Led Zeppelin at Indianapolis (Neil Preston photo)
1995:
On this day Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, with Michael Lee, Charlie Jones and didgeridoo players recorded Black Dog in London's Depot Studios to be broadcast at the American Music Awards on 30 January in Los Angeles. John Paul Jones would accept the International Artist Award for Led Zeppelin in person.

1996 Page & Plant, Buenos Aires



♪  Rock And Roll (Led Zeppelin, Aberdeen 1973) YouTube
♪  The Song Remains The Same  (Led Zeppelin, Aberdeen 1973) YouTube
♪  Rock And Roll (Led Zeppelin, Indianapolis 1975) YouTube
♪  The Song Remains the Same  (Led Zeppelin, Indianapolis 1975) YouTube
♪  Full set (Page & Plant, Buenos Aires 1996) YouTube

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

On This Day 20 January

What a voice.
1964 20 January On This Day Rocks The House by Etta James
Audio: Baby What You Want Me To Do SoundCloud
  • 1969 Led Zeppelin - Wheaton, MD at Wheaton Youth Center (unconfirmed rumor)
  • 1975 Led Zeppelin - Chicago, IL at Chicago Stadium
  • 1996 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - San Paulo, Brazil at Pacaembu Stadium

2012:
Before there was Janis, there was Etta.

The legendary Etta James was a musician Jimmy Page could admire for many reasons.  A hell-raiser who wasn't afraid to sing about sex in a period when the Beatles were still just wanting to hold hands, Ms. James wasn't afraid to tackle music and life in its fullest.

"The bad girls ... had the look that I liked," she wrote in her 1995 autobiography, Rage to Survive. ''I wanted to be rare, I wanted to be noticed, I wanted to be exotic as a Cotton Club chorus girl, and I wanted to be obvious as the most flamboyant hooker on the street. I just wanted to be."

She is remembered as a blues singer, but Etta James wasn't afraid to work in many musical genres, from gospel to R&B, and from jazz to ballads. She might have been a "bad girl", but her At Last has been used by many a bride walking down the aisle.

Brian Ray (a session musician and Paul McCartney's bass player) recalls Etta James at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1975.
"When I get there the band they got together was Rick Wakeman [Yes] on keyboards, John Paul Jones [Led Zeppelin] on bass, David “Fathead” Newman and “Pony” Poindexter on horns. I go to rehearsal and I’m just a kid, I didn’t know what I needed to do. I knew the material so I’m teaching them what I know and it’s coming together well, and in walks Jimmy Page and Robert Plant [Led Zeppelin]. They listened to a few songs and then Jimmy Page says “I feel like I’ve known you before, man. Like maybe in another life,” so I’m having an Aleister Crowley discussion with Jimmy Page, and they took me out to dinner in a chalet up in the Alps near Montreux."
~ Brian Ray, interview 2009


In 1984, coming back from hard times due to heroin abuse, Ms. James sang the national anthem at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, boosting her return to music. She was inducted into the Rock Hall in 1993, was awarded Grammys in 2003 and 2004.  She has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Etta James died on this day in 2012.

1975 Led Zeppelin at Chicago Stadium

1975 Led Zeppelin at Chicago Stadium
1996 Page & Plant,  São Paulo Brazil




♪  Baby What You Want Me To Do (Etta James, Rocks the House 1964) YouTube
♪  I'd Rather Be Blind (Etta James feat. John Paul Jones bass, Montreux 1975) DailyMotion
♪  When the Levee Breaks (Led Zeppelin Chicago 1975) YouTube
♪  Full set (Page & Plant, Hollywood Rock São Paulo, 1996) YouTube

♪ Mage Music 1 playlist at YouTube
♪ Mage Music 2 playlist at YouTube