On this day 03 February

UNDER CONSTRUCTION - working on another (time consuming) project that takes precedence. Note that info on this page has not been updated yet and links may not work. Thank you for your patience.

I wonder if Joe Walsh ever inquires about the health and happiness of Jimmy Page's #1?

2001 03 February On This Day Jimmy Page went to Joe Walsh show in Miami FL

• 1975 Led Zeppelin - New York City at Madison Square Garden
• 1986 The Firm - Mean Business released 

1969:

Four shows in New York City were cancelled when John Bonham flew back to England because Bonham's three year old son, Jason, was ill.  The shows weren't rescheduled.  Jason, as we all know, recovered quite nicely.

1975:

Jimmy Page's smashed finger (he slammed his ring finger in a train door in England prior to leaving for the US Tour, breaking the tip) was well enough for the band to return Dazed and Confused to the set list, dropping How Many More Times.  

Madison Square Garden had the fastest sellout in their history with this show. People magazine declared: "Led Zeppelin are bigger than the Beatles".

Well yes. Yes, they were. And are.

1975 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden

1975 Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden

1986:

The Firm's Mean Business didn't shake the music world, but it's a solid album. Paul Rodgers is a great singer, but if you've been reading this blog all along, you know I've never felt he was right for Jimmy Page's music. According to Jimmy Page, The Firm had never been meant to stay together forever and that was just fine with me.

2001:

There are all kinds of stories out there about how the Gibson Les Paul guitar went from Joe Walsh's possession to Jimmy Page's. I'll say this, if the two men have been friends this long, whatever the details of the exchange it is fine with both of them today.  

"I like to give people equipment and stuff,” Walsh said in a 2012 Guitar World interview. “For me, it’s a kind of payback. Anyone who is an influence or hero for me, I’m always concerned with how I can balance the karma.”

♪

♪ Led Zeppelin (New York City at Madison Square Garden, 03 Feb 1975)

♪  Rocky Mountain Way (Joe Walsh 1973) 
♪  Tear Down The Walls (The Firm, Mean Business 1986) 

On this day 08 October

 Jimmy Page never goes out of fashion

1999 08 October On This Day Jimmy Page – NetAid sound check at Giants Stadium, NJ

• 1966 The Yardbirds - Cardiff, Wales at Capitol Theater
• 1988 Jimmy Page Outrider Tour - San Diego, CA at SDSU Open Air Amphitheatre
• 1999 Jimmy Page – NetAid sound check at Giants Stadium, NJ
• 2012 Jimmy Page photo shoot with Ross Halfin, also attending Joe Walsh show at the Iridium Club in NYC 

1999:

Jimmy Page worked with Chris Robinson (vocals), Rich Robinson (guitar), Guy Pratt (bass) and Michael Lee (drums) for the NetAid concert. (More on NetAid tomorrow).

Brothers Chris and Rich Robinson were the founding members of The Black Crowes, an American band formed 10 years before NetAid, with five albums already released at that point. Jimmy Page joined up with the Black Crowes shortly after the NetAid concert for a tour, from which came the album Live at the Greek. The Black Crowes have broken up a few times over the years, most recently in January of 2015. They are currently together and on tour.

Guy Pratt is an English session bassist, who has worked with Pink Floyd, Gary Moore, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Robbie Robertson and others, and who had already worked with Jimmy Page on the Coverdale-Page album and tour.

Michael Lee (1969 – 2008) was an English drummer, who, like John Bonham, used large drum sizes, from which he, like Bonzo, got big sound. Lee was Robert Plant's drummer for the 1993 Fate of Nations album and tour and stayed on for the Unledded and Walking Into Clarksdale Page & Plant collaborations and tours.

2012:

Jimmy Page and Ross Halfin had flown to New York on 05 October 2012 for promotion of the Celebration Day concert movie.  On this day Ross did a photo shoot with Jimmy Page at the Armani Store in New York City and later on the building's roof - the only place they could be outdoors where people would not mob them.  

Later that Monday evening the two went to see Joe Walsh at the  Iridium Club where from 1996-2009 Les Paul was a regular performer. The club now puts on Les Paul Mondays, reserved for guest guitarists to honor Les and perform on the same stage.  A portion of the clubs sales go to The Les Paul Foundation. 

2012 Jimmy Page at Armani Store in NYC (Ross Halfin photo)

2012 Jimmy Page in NYC (Ross Halfin photo)

2012 Joe Walsh & Jimmy Page after Walsh's show at Iridium Club (Ross Halfin photo)

2018

It had been 50 years since Led Zeppelin had formed. Jimmy Page was busy working on Led Zeppelin by Led Zeppelin, and promoting the book.

♪

On This Day 03 February

I wonder if Joe Walsh ever inquires about the health and happiness of Jimmy Page's #1?

2001 03 February On This Day Jimmy Page went to Joe Walsh show in Miami FL

• 1975 Led Zeppelin - New York City at Madison Square Garden
• 1986 The Firm - Mean Business released 

1969:

Four shows in New York City were cancelled when John Bonham flew back to England because Bonham's three year old son, Jason, was ill.  The shows weren't rescheduled.  Jason, as we all know, recovered quite nicely.

1975:

Jimmy Page's smashed finger (he slammed his ring finger in a train door in England prior to leaving for the US Tour, breaking the tip) was well enough for the band to return Dazed and Confused to the set list, dropping How Many More Times.  

1975 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden

1975 Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden

1986:

The Firm's Mean Business didn't shake the music world, but it's a solid album. Paul Rodgers is a great singer, but if you've been reading this blog all along, you know I've never felt he was right for Jimmy Page's music. According to Jimmy Page, The Firm had never been meant to stay together forever and that was just fine with me.

2001:

There are all kinds of stories out there about how the Gibson Les Paul guitar went from Joe Walsh's possession to Jimmy Page's. I'll say this, if the two men have been friends this long, whatever the details of the exchange it is fine with both of them today.  

"I like to give people equipment and stuff,” Walsh said in a 2012 Guitar World interview. “For me, it’s a kind of payback. Anyone who is an influence or hero for me, I’m always concerned with how I can balance the karma.”

2012 Joe Walsh & Jimmy Page in NYC (Ross Halfin photo)

♪

♪  Rocky Mountain Way (Joe Walsh 1973) YouTube
♪  Tear Down The Walls (The Firm, Mean Business 1986) YouTube

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

On This Day 29 October

The stairway goes far beyond a glittery heaven

1988 29 October On This Day Jimmy Page/Outrider, Worcester at Centrum
♪ In My Time of Dying (Soundcloud)

• 1966 The Yardbirds Dick Clark Caravan of Stars tour - Dallas Memorial Auditorium 
• 1967 The Yardbirds - Chicago, IL at The Cheetah Club
• 1969 Jimmy Page & Robert Plant with Joe Walsh- Kent, OH at JB’s
• 1972 Led Zeppelin - Montreux, Switzerland at Pavilion Montreux
• 1988 Jimmy Page Outrider Tour - Worcester, MA at The Centrum
• 2014 Jimmy Page interviewed on French TV, plays a few seconds of acoustic

1968:

Chris Dreja is an excellent photographer as well as a musician. He knew Jimmy Page from the Yardbirds, but in fact had performed on stage years before then with Yardbirds co-founder, Top Topham, and British blues musician, Duster Bennett - along with a young Jimmy Page on guitar. (Jimmy Page signed Bennett to the Swan Song label in 1975).  Dreja was with Jimmy Page and Peter Grant in 1968 when they were auditioning prospects - including Robert Plant and John Bonham - for the new band that would become Led Zeppelin. In 2010 Dreja told Carol Miller on her show Get The Led Out, "John Bonham was an absolute must-have. A little iffy about Robert". 

Dreja took the photo of Led Zeppelin that is on the back cover of the band's first album and a few other photos that you've no doubt come across over the years. Check out his website and click on the link "People" to see a few of them.

1968 Chris Dreja photograph of Led Zeppelin for the back cover of their first album

1969:

Joe Walsh had given Jimmy Page (or Jimmy Page had bought from Joe Walsh) the 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard 'Number One' in April of 1969. By October Number One had already taken the place of Jimmy Page's 1959 Fender Telecaster as his primary guitar on stage.  

If there are photos or any recordings of the jam that night with half of Led Zeppelin and Joe Walsh at the bar in Kent, Ohio, I haven't come across them. (If you have, dear reader, please share!).  Led Zeppelin was in that part of the country, having played in Boston on the 25th and being scheduled to play in Buffalo the 30th, so it's not unlikely that the jam did take place. It would be interesting to know what guitar Jimmy Page might have jammed on that night.

Oh, for a time machine.

1972 Led Zeppelin at Montreux

1972 Jimmy Page/Led Zeppelin at Montreux (photo Gilles Chateau)

1988:

1988 review of Outrider show

2013:

2013 Jimmy Page with fans, London

2014:
Jimmy Page did an interview on French TV, Le Grand Journal, during which he played an acoustic guitar for a few minutes, reportedly Ramble On. The clip and the full interview are not available in the US but I'd sure like to see them (hint hint).

♪

♪  Stairway To Heaven (Jimmy Page, Worcester 1988) YouTube

On This Day 8 October

A model in so many ways

1999 08 October On This Day Jimmy Page – NetAid sound check at Giants Stadium, NJ

• 1966 The Yardbirds - Cardiff, Wales at Capitol Theater
• 1988 Jimmy Page Outrider Tour - San Diego, CA at SDSU Open Air Amphitheatre
• 1999 Jimmy Page – NetAid sound check at Giants Stadium, NJ
• 2012 Jimmy Page photo shoot with Ross Halfin, also attending Joe Walsh show at the Iridium Club in NYC 

1999:

Jimmy Page worked with Chris Robinson (vocals), Rich Robinson (guitar), Guy Pratt (bass) and Michael Lee (drums) for the NetAid concert. (More on NetAid tomorrow).

Brothers Chris and Rich Robinson were the founding members of The Black Crowes, an American band formed 10 years before NetAid, but with five albums already released. The Black Crowes joined up shortly after the NetAid concert for a tour and put out Live at the Greek.  The band has broken up three times over the years, the most recent (and possibly final) time in January of 2015.

Guy Pratt is an English session bassist, who has worked with Pink Floyd, Gary Moore, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Robbie Robertson and others, and who had already worked with Jimmy Page in 1991 for the Coverdale-Page album and tour.

Michael Lee (1969 – 2008) was an English drummer, who, like John Bonham, used large drum sizes, from which he, like Bonzo, got big sound. Lee was Robert Plant's drummer for the 1993 Fate of Nations album and tour and stayed on for the Unledded and Walking Into Clarksdale Page & Plant collaborations and tours.

2012:

Jimmy Page and Ross Halfin had flown to New York on 05 October 2012 for promotion of the Celebration Day concert movie.  On this day Ross did a photo shoot with Jimmy Page at the Armani Store in New York City and later on the building's roof - the only place they could be outdoors where people would not mob them.  

Later that Monday evening the two went to see Joe Walsh at the  Iridium Club where from 1996-2009 Les Paul was a regular performer. The club now puts on Les Paul Mondays, reserved for guest guitarists to honor Les and perform on the same stage.  A portion of the clubs sales go to The Les Paul Foundation. 

2012 Jimmy Page at Armani Store in NYC (Ross Halfin photo)

2012 Jimmy Page in NYC (Ross Halfin photo)

2012 Joe Walsh & Jimmy Page after Walsh's show at Iridium Club (Ross Halfin photo)

♪

No playlist today, sorry!