On This Day 03 April

It started long ago. It's not over yet.

1968 03 April On This Day The Yardbirds' last studio recording session

• 1970 Led Zeppelin - Macon GA at Macon Coliseum
• 1977 Led Zeppelin - Oklahoma City at The Myriad
• 1979 Bonham, Page & Plant encore with Bad Company - Birmingham England at Odeon at Theatre 
• 1986 The Firm - Uniondale NY at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
• 1995 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Philadelphia PA at The Spectrum (day 1 of 2) 

1968:
The five tracks recorded by The Yardbirds on this day were not released immediately. Avron Knows, Hold On Me, Spanish Blood, and My Baby appeared on The Yardbirds' 2000 album, Cumular Limit, while Knowing That I'm Losing You reappeared as Tangerine on Led Zeppelin III.

If you don't listen to anything else linked below, listen to Jimmy Page's guitar work in Spanish Blood.  Um... PG rated at the end, but that's not why I'm recommending it.

1977 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Oklahoma City

1977 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Oklahoma City

1979:
John Bonham, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant jammed with Bad Company at Bad Company's Birmingham Odeon gig on this day for the encore numbers, Long Tall Sally (featuring Page and Bonham) and Going Down (featuring Plant, Page and Bonham). You would think that someone would have recorded this, but apparently not.

1995 Jimmy Page / Page & Plant, Philadelphia

2013:
Gene Simmons, his wife Shannon and son Nick happened to be at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York when Ross Halfin walked over to say hello. When Gene saw that Jimmy Page was with Ross he grabbed his phone to take photos.  When the photos were posted by Gene, his comment was, "Hail the RiffMaster of them all"

2013 Jimmy Page with Gene Simmons & Nick Simmons, NYC

♪

♪  Avron Knows (The Yardbirds, Cumular Limit 1968/2000) YouTube
♪  Taking A Hold On Me (The Yardbirds, Cumular Limit 1968/2000) YouTube
♪  Spanish Blood (The Yardbirds, Cumular Limit 1968/2000) YouTube
♪  My Baby (The Yardbirds, Cumular Limit 1968/2000) YouTube
♪  Tangerine (Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin III 1970) YouTube
♪  Full set (Led Zeppelin, Oklahoma City 1977) YouTube
♪  Since I've Been Loving You  (Page & Plant, Philadelphia 1995) YouTube

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

NOTICE: April 11 will be the last daily On This Day post as that will be a full year's worth.  I won't post any more unless Jimmy Page's website offers some new ones. Stay tuned for new posts here on the Mage Music blog about the music and Magick of  JIMMY PAGE and previews of new Mage Music projects!

On This Day 02 April

Did those journalists really think Led Zeppelin needed to play France?

1973 02 April On This Day Led Zeppelin, Paris (day 2 of 2)

• 1969 Led Zeppelin - Cardiff Wales atTop Rank Ballroom
• 1970 Led Zeppelin - Charleston WV at Charleston Civic Center Coliseum
• 1973 Led Zeppelin - Paris at Centre Sportif (day 2 of 2)
• 1986 The Firm- Mean Business album released

1969:

This show was a benefit in for the Biafran Relief Organisation. Led Zeppelin did their part, but in the middle of How Many More Times the revolving stage was engaged and cables suddenly were jerked out of the amps' sockets, some broken off. That was the end of that.

1973:

The band had already cancelled two shows in France because of the audiences. They came back to Paris (actually a suburb to the north of the city) to play the Palais des Sports de Saint Ouen. Roy Hollingworth of Melody Maker reported:  "Zeppelin kicked a great hole in the night..."  But it was too late for France. Led Zeppelin was done with that country.

1973 Led Zeppelin get more gold discs

1973 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Paris

1986 Mean Business, by The Firm

1986:

You're probably tired of my whining about The Firm, but tough. It's my blog and I'll whine if I want to. And here I go:

The problem with The Firm is there's too much of Paul Rodgers and not enough Jimmy Page. Hey, I'm not putting down Mr. Rodgers. He's a great singer. But, as I've described elsewhere in this blog probably too many time, Paul Rodgers isn't giving it up to the muse that Jimmy Page answers to. Unfortunate for The Firm, because Jimmy Page is the one channeling the magick.

Cadillac, from The Firm's 1986 Mean Business, is a good example of when Jimmy Page gets to open to that channel and let it flow. Paul Rodgers comes through in this one to deliver lyrics and melody that match the setting Jimmy Page has provided. But then on the same album we get Free To Live, which doesn't come up to those standards. 

Cadillac roils with Jimmy Page's dark twisty tones, gasping pauses, and shocking thrusts of high notes. Free To Live starts out with promise: Slade's thumping and the growly guitar in the intro really work nicely together to hint of... well, we never find out, because Paul Rodgers starts singing and the other members of the band just back off and support him. At 2:00 Jimmy Page comes back in and takes over and we get some good stuff working - and then the song recedes to that old band-supports-the-vocalist format, where the singer is making lyrics the music instead of letting words serve the music. That's traditional but it's also boring. And unfortunately, as good as the quartet was, traditional was too typical of The Firm's work. The band was very good, but it was not innovative. We had already heard it all before. And what a shame. It didn't have to be that way.

So I, for one, don't love The Firm as much as I might. That's why I'm hoping that Jimmy Page will soon put out new music that leaves him free of the anchor of a traditional vocalist and rather lets his guitar do the singing.

♪

♪  Dancing Days (Led Zeppelin, Paris 02 April 1973) YouTube
♪  Cadillac (The Firm, Mean Business 1986) YouTube
♪  Free To Live (The Firm, Mean Business 1986) YouTube
♫  Mean Business MTV promo 1986usiness 1986) YouTube

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

NOTICE: April 11 will be the last daily On This Day post as that will be a full year's worth.  I won't post any more unless Jimmy Page's website offers some new ones. Stay tuned for new posts here on the Mage Music blog about the music and Magick of  JIMMY PAGE and previews of new Mage Music projects!

On This Day 01 April

Remembering Ronnie

1947-1997 On This Day Ronnie Lane's birthday

• 1969 Led Zeppelin - London at Klooks Kleek
• 1971 Led Zeppelin - John Peel’s BBC Radio One, London at Paris Theatre
• 1973 Led Zeppelin - Paris at Centre Sportif (day 1 of 2)
• 1977 Led Zeppelin - Dallas TX at Dallas Memorial Auditorium
• 1986 The Firm - Boston MA at Boston Garden
• 1995 Page & Plant  Unledded Tour - Auburn Hills MI at The Palace Of Auburn Hills 

Ronnie Lane (1947-1997) was an English musician, songwriter, producer, and founding member of the bands, Small Faces and the Faces. Taking up a solo career, in 1977 he toured the UK with The Passing Show, a wandering carnival complete with Gypsy costumes and tents. He worked on musical projects with Pete Townshend, Ronnie Wood and Eric Clapton, continuing his musical career in the US even after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1976. Jimmy Page, Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood helped to pay for Lane's medical expenses because Lane was not receiving royalties from the Small Faces' albums.

A two-night benefit concert and subsequent US tour in 1983 raised money for Action for Research into Multiple Sclerosis (ARMS) for MS research. The ARMS Charity Concerts marked Jimmy Page's return to the world of music.

1971:
The BBC recording of Led Zeppelin, filmed on this day and aired on 04 April 1971, is one of the most bootlegged BBC recordings ever.  It marked the first time Stairway To Heaven was broadcast on the radio. Two months later, on 11 May, Jimmy Page returned to the BBC studios to remix the recording for stereo with a different lineup of songs, including the encore song Communication Breakdown that wasn't in the performance aired on 04 April.  In 1997 Jimmy Page remixed the original tapes of the show and this came out as Disc 2 of the Led Zeppelin BBC Sessions.

1971 Led Zeppelin at John Peel's BBC Radio One, London

1973 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Paris.  Jimmy's helping Robert out with Bron Yr Aur Stomp

1977 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Dallas TX

1977:
The Dallas show on this day marked the return of Led Zeppelin to live performing after the layoff due to Robert Plant's car accident.  Many wondered if they'd be as good as before.  They were.

2004 April Guitar World

♪

♪  Stairway To Heaven (Led Zeppelin, John Peel’s Radio One 1971) YouTube

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

NOTICE: April 11 will be the last daily On This Day post as that will be a full year's worth.  I won't post any more unless Jimmy Page's website offers some new ones. Stay tuned for new posts here on the Mage Music blog about the music and Magick of  JIMMY PAGE and previews of new Mage Music projects!

On This Day 31 March

Solo in shades of blue....

1975 31 March On This Day Maggie Bell's Suicide Sal released feat. Jimmy Page guitar

• 1969 Led Zeppelin - London England at Cooks Ferry Inn
• 1970 Led Zeppelin - Philadelphia PA at The Spectrum
• 1976  Presence album released
• 1986 The Firm - Philadelphia PA at The Spectrum
• 1995 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Auburn Hills MI at The Palace of Auburn Hills

1970 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Philadelphia PA

1970 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Philadelphia PA

1975:
Margaret (Maggie) Bell is a Scottish rock vocalist who, in the mid 1960s, was discovered by The Yardbirds' manager Peter Grant, who agreed to produce and manage Bell's then band, The Power.  Grant renamed the band Stone the Crows.  Bell signed on with Swan Song label in 1974 and put out her solo album, Suicide Sal, with Jimmy Page on guitar for two of the tracks in 1975.

1976:
Led Zeppelin's seventh album, Presence, was released on this day. Six of the songs on the original album are credited to Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, with the seventh, Royal Orleans, credited to all four. Robert Plant had been seriously injured in a car accident on the Greek island of Rhodes on 5 August 1975, forcing the band to cancel a planned US tour. In October they regrouped in the US for a month of rehearsals at SIR Studios in Hollywood CA, and the album was recorded in just 18 days at Musicland Studios in Munich, West German, with Plant singing from his wheelchair. The rush was because the Rolling Stones were booked for the studio after Led Zeppelin. Jimmy Page reportedly just gave up sleeping to get the album mixed in the time available to them. 

♪

♪  If You Don't Know (Maggie Bell, feat Jimmy Page 1975) YouTube
♪  Comin' On Strong (Maggie Bell, feat Jimmy Page 1975) YouTube
♪  Achilles Last Stand (Led Zeppelin, Presence 1976) YouTube
♪  Nobody's Fault But Mine (Led Zeppelin, Presence 1976) YouTube

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

On This Day 30 March

Ooh la la!

1968 30 March On This Day The Yardbirds at Anderson Theatre, NYC

• 1968 The Yardbirds - New York NY at Anderson Theatre
• 1969 Led Zeppelin - Southall England at Northcote Arms Farx Club
• 1970 Led Zeppelin - Pittsburgh PA at Pittsburgh Civic Arena
• 1998 Page & Plant - Paris France at La Cigale

1968:

Unfortunately for us today, The Yardbirds' shows weren't officially recorded by the band, and what there is out there of audience recordings is usually terrible quality. On this day in 1968 The Yardbirds did two shows at the Anderson Theatre, and Train Kept A-Rollin was recorded for Epic Records. The video link is below.  You won't want to look at it - the video part is not only not synced with the audio, but the video is at a faster speed. Unfortunately also there is fake audience applause dubbed onto the audio. Ewwwww.

1968 Jimmy Page / The Yardbirds, NYC

1968 Jimmy Page / The Yardbirds, NYC

1969:
As reported by Dave Lewis in his amazing reference book, Led Zeppelin: The Concert File, the band's contract for the Farx Club gig included a fee of £75 or 60% of the door, whichever was greater.  Those bargain days didn't last long.

1998 Ooh La La bootleg from Page & Plant at La Cigale, Paris 

♪

♪  Train Kept A-Rollin (The Yardbirds, New York Anderson Theater 1968) YouTube
♪  When I Was A Child (Page & Plant, La Cigale Paris 1998) YouTube
♪  How Many More Times (Page & Plant, La Cigale Paris 1998) YouTub
♪  Whole Lotta Love (Page & Plant, La Cigale Paris 1998) YouTube

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

On This Day 29 March

Whole lotta is still not enough.

1965 & 1975 29 March On This Day Whole Lotta Page

• 1968 The Yardbirds - West Hartford CT at Conard High School, Senior Class Concert
• 1969 Led Zeppelin - London at Bromley School Of Technology
• 1970 Led Zeppelin - Houston TX at Holfheinz Pavillion
• 1986 The Firm – Rochester NY at Rochester Community War Memorial

1986 Jimmy Page / The Firm, Rochester NY

♪

♪  How Many More Times (Led Zeppelin, Houston 1970) YouTube
♪  Partial set (The Firm, Rochester 1986) YouTube

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

On This Day 28 March

Puddletown on the River Piddle.  Just sayin'.

1973 28 March Houses of the Holy released

• 1968 The Yardbirds - Schenectady NY at The Aerodome
• 1969 Led Zeppelin - London at Marquee Club
• 1970 Led Zeppelin - Dallas at Dallas Memorial Auditorium
• 1973 Houses Of The Holy released
• 1995 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Cleveland OH at Gund Arena 

1969:

"Jimmy Page, bent over his guitar and straining for unknown notes, listening hard because he’s right there in the middle of that Led Zeppelin wall of sound, sweat oozing torrential down his face, and dripping off the ends of that long wavy hair down onto the guitar and one expects that guitar to fizz and steam because it’s so near boiling point."
~ Record Mirror, April 1969

1972:

Houses of the Holy was recorded in several locations, including Mick Jagger's Stargroves, using the Rolling Stones' mobile recording unit. Jagger had purchased the estate two years prior. Besides the Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Who and other bands recording at Stargroves, the estate was used to film several Dr. Who episodes.

1972 Jimmy Page recording at Stargroves (Eddie Kramer photo)

1972 John Bonham and jimmy Page at Stargroves

1973:
Houses of the Holy's cover photo was taken at the Giant's Causeway on the northeastern coast of Ireland. Multiple photos of siblings Stefan and Samantha Gates were used to create a composite image. Arthur Clarke's 1953 science fiction novel, Childhood's End, may have provided inspiration for the cover. At the end of that novel, the only remnants of humanity left are children who have evolved to serve a cosmic intelligence, the Overmind, and who are no longer shackled to merely physical existence. Coincidentally, or maybe not, Clarke has said that the aliens' ships in Childhood's End were inspired by barrage balloons he saw over London during World War II. Barrage balloons, of course, look very much like zeppelins.

Barrage balloons over London during World War II

1995 Robert Plant & Jimmy Page (Terry O'Neill/Getty Images)

♪

♪  We’re Gonna Groove (Led Zeppelin, Dallas 1970) YouTube
♪  Since I've Been Loving You (Led Zeppelin, Dallas 1970) YouTube
♪  The Song Remains The Same (Led Zeppelin, Houses of the Holy 1973) YouTube
♪  The Rain Song (Led Zeppelin, Houses of the Holy 1973) YouTube
♪  The Ocean (Led Zeppelin, Houses of the Holy 1973) YouTube

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

NOTICE: April 11 will be the last daily On This Day post as that will be a full year's worth.  I won't post any more unless Jimmy Page's website offers some new ones. Stay tuned for new posts here on the Mage Music blog about the music and Magick of  JIMMY PAGE and previews of new Mage Music projects!