On This Day 17 May

"Robert Plant... a jester at the wheel of some fearsome juggernaut, offering sly asides and poetic ruminations between moments of terrible power."

~ Chris Welch

1975 17 May On This Day Earls Court Day One

• 1968 Yardbirds - Tacoma WA at University of Puget Sound
• 1969 Led Zeppelin - Athens OH at O. U. Convocation Center
• 1975 Led Zeppelin - London, Day 1 of 5 at Earls Court Exhibition Centre
• 1986 The Firm - Dallas TX at Reunion Arena
• 1995 Page & Plant - Inglewood CA at The Forum
• 2003 the double DVD set ‘Led Zeppelin’ was released with six tracks from Earls Court May 24 and 25 shows.

1975:
Interestingly, the photo for the On This Day image for Earls Court (above) is from Knebworth, not Earls Court. The band had transported their whole 40-ton stage and light show from the US and a huge screen was installed above the stage for Earls Court. While there were laser effects it wasn't until 1977 that the pyramid effect was used and 1979 that the the bow itself had a laser as in this photo [read more on Led Zeppelin use of lasers].   

Earl's Court, 1975: Three shows sold out in just a few hours (May 23, 24 and 25) before two additional shows were added (May 17 and 18).

1975 19 April NME announcement of two additional shows

Five nights of Led Zeppelin, with each show clocking in at over three hours. Talk about endurance. Many still consider these shows to be Led Zeppelin's best ever performances.

1975 May Earls Court stage set

1975 May Earls Court stage set

1975 May Earls Court - Jimmy Page playing Black Dog

1975 May Earls Court Jimmy Page acoustical set

1975 Earls Court

1975 May Earls Court "...moments of terrible power" (Chris Welch quote)

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♪  Bron-Y-Aur Stomp (Led Zeppelin, Earls Court 1975) YouTube
♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, Earls Court 17 May 1975) YouTube
♪  Soundcheck / Kashmir - no guitar (Page & Plant, Inglewood Forum 1995) YouTube
♪  Full set (Page & Plant, Inglewood Forum 1995) YouTube playlist

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

On This Day 16 May

Page & Plant at LA Forum just a few months into their world tour.

1995 16 May On This Day Page - Plant at LA Forum day 1 of 2

• 1969 Led Zeppelin - Detroit MI at The Grande Ballroom
• 1973 Led Zeppelin - Houston TX at Sam Houston Coliseum
• 1986 The Firm - Oklahoma City OK at Oklahoma City Fairgrounds
• 1995 Page & Plant - Inglewood CA at The Forum

1986:
A thunderstorm was raging outside and Jimmy Page's guitar was raging inside in Oklahoma City on this day. The power went out in the middle of a cover of You've Lost That Loving Feeling and the audience finished singing the melody under the emergency lighting.

1995 16 May Page - Plant at LA Forum day 1 of 2 setlist

1995 16 May Page - Plant at LA Forum day 1 of 2 ticket

1995 16 May Page - Plant at LA Forum day 1 of 2 tour book

1995 16 May Page - Plant at LA Forum day 1 of 2 review

♪

♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, Houston 1973) YouTube
♪  Medley (The Firm, Oklahoma City 1986) YouTube

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

His stairway all the way to the bank

On This Day 11 April

The never ending Magick...

2010 11 April On This Day Jimmy Page went to a Bad Company concert at Wembley

2010 Paul Rodgers & Jimmy Page, Bad Company at Wembley (Ross Halfin photo)

• 1968 The Yardbirds-Boston,MA  at Boston Tea Party
• 1970 Led Zeppelin - St. Louis MO at Kiel Auditorium

Today is Mage Music's last daily On This Day post!  Last year I committed to providing a full year's worth, and now that it's done I won't post any more unless Jimmy Page's website offers some new ones. You can view each of them by clicking on the date in the right-hand navigation column.

Stay tuned for new posts here on the Mage Music blog about the music and Magick of Jimmy Page, as well as previews of new Mage Music projects. In the meantime, enjoy a few magazine covers featuring Jimmy Page over the years plus more of the best music in the world.

♪

♪  Baby Who's Driving Your Car (Jimmy Page, John Williams 1970) YouTube
♪  Asylum (Box of Frogs feat. Jimmy Page 1986) YouTube
♪  Writes of Winter (Jimmy Page, Outrider 1988) YouTube
♪  Absolution Blues (Coverdale/Page 1993) YouTube
♪  Depot Studio Session/Domino (Soundcloud)
♪  Domino (Jimmy Page, Net Aid East Rutherford NJ 1999) YouTube
♪  Kashmir (Page/Plant/Jones/Jason Bonham, O2 2007) YouTube
♪  Ramble On (Jimmy Page, It Might Get Loud 2008) YouTube
♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, Sunset Sound Mix/Remaster 2014) YouTube

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

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 19 March

Over the years and far away

1969 19 March On This Day Led Zeppelin recorded at BBC Maida Vale
AUDIO Country Line Special (Cyril Davies R&B Allstars)

• 1969 Led Zeppelin - London at Maida Vale,Studio 4
• 1971 Led Zeppelin - Manchester England at University of Manchester
• 1973 Led Zeppelin - Berlin at Deutschlandhalle
• 1975 Led Zeppelin - Vancouver Canada at Pacific Coliseum (day 1 of 2)
• 1986 The Firm - Largo MD at Capital Centre 

1969 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, BBC Maida Vale 

1969:
Although this was a BBC recording of Alexis Korner's Rhythm and Blues Show, it wasn't included in the Led Zeppelin BBC CDs.

1971 Led Zeppelin, Manchester

1973 Led Zeppelin, Berlin

1975:
Jimmy Page "... has always been an innovator going back to his Yardbird days and enjoys skirting the peripheries of accepted sounds and forms."
~Press review, CMS, March 1975

1975 Led Zeppelin, Vancouver Canada

1985:
“The main aim is to play some rock ‘n’ roll and have some fun.”
~ Jimmy Page, Page On Stage '85. Interview by Chris Welch, Creem, April 1985

♪

♪  Sunshine Woman (Led Zeppelin, Maida Vale BBC session 1969) YouTube
♪  I Can’t Quit You Baby (Led Zeppelin, Maida Vale BBC session 1969) YouTube
♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin Berlin 1973) YouTube
♪  Over The Hills And Far Away (Led Zeppelin, Vancouver 1975) YouTube
♫  Jimmy Page & Paul Rodgers - Entertainment Tonight interview 1985

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

On This Day 14 March

Break and make

1969 14 March On This Day Led Zeppelin ham it up on Swedish TV
VIDEO

• 1969 Led Zeppelin - Stockholm at Sveriges Radio TV Studios & at Stockholm Konserthuset; Uppsala, Sweden at Uppsala University
• 1971 Led Zeppelin - Henley, England at Trentham Gardens Ballroom
• 1973 Led Zeppelin - Nuremberg, Germany at Nuremberg Messehalle
• 1975 Led Zeppelin - San Diego, CA at San Diego Sports Arena
• 1985 The Firm - Inglewood, CA at The Forum
• 1986 The Firm - Tampa, FL at USF Sun Dome
• 1995 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Houston, TX at The Summit 

1969:
A marathon of three performances in one day. The first was at the Swedish TV studio, to be filmed miming Communication Breakdown, and this was the first of a number of TV and radio appearances over the next few weeks. The boys appeared to have a good time hamming it up for the camera.

Jimmy Page broke a string at the second gig at the Stockholm Konserthuset, and while it was being replaced the others performed I Got To Move, attributed by Robert Plant to Otis Rush. They sound pretty nice as a trio, though it lacks a certain something. Oh yeah. Guitar.

The second and third gigs' billings were shared with Country Joe and the Fish. Led Zeppelin hit the stage at 11 PM. They were probably tired puppies by the time they were done.

1969 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Stockholm Konserthuset 

1973 Led Zeppelin, Nuremberg

1985 Jimmy Page / The Firm Inglewood, CA at The Forum

1986:
"...if it's a good band, I think very musician is bound to be a strong person in their own right. But it's the way they come together on stage..."
~ Jimmy Page, WYNF Tampa radio interview

I'm not sure why Jimmy Page picked Spirit of Love as his favorite from Mean Business.  He sounded tired and bored and almost seemed to pick the song at random. It does have a great guitar solo in it, though.

1986 Jimmy Page with staff of WYNF Tampa Radio

♪

♪  Communication Breakdown (Led Zeppelin, Sveriges Radio TV Studios, Sweden 1969) YouTube
♪  I Gotta Move (Led Zeppelin, Stockholm Konserthuset 1969) YouTube
♪  The Rain Song (Led Zeppelin, Nuremberg 1973) YouTube
♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, San Diego 1975) YouTube
♪  No Quarter (Led Zeppelin, San Diego 1975) YouTube
♪  Make or Break (The Firm, Inglewood 1985) YouTube
♪  Spirit of Love (The Firm, Mean Business 1986) YouTube
♫  WYNF Tampa radio spot recordings & interview 1986

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

On This Day 06 March

1975 06 March On This Day Physical Graffiti reaches Gold in the US

• 1971 Led Zeppelin -Dublin, Ireland at National Boxing Stadium
• 1973 Led Zeppelin -Stockholm, Sweden at Kungliga Tennishallen
• 1995 Page & Plant Unledded Tour - Miami, FL at Miami Arena
• 1998 Page & Plant - Istanbul, Turkey

1968 06 March On This Day The Yardbirds on BBC's Saturday Club

1971 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Dublin

1973 Jimmy Page / Led Zeppelin, Stockholm

♪

♪  Goodnight Sweet Josephine (The Yardbirds, BBC 1968) YouTube
♪  Think About It (The Yardbirds, BBC 1968) YouTube

♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, Dublin 1971) YouTube

♪  Full set (Led Zeppelin, Stockholm 1973) YouTube
♪  Trampled Underfoot (Led Zeppelin 1975) YouTube

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

On This Day 05 March

1998 05 March On This Day Page & Plant in Istanbul

1968  Yardbirds -- BBC Radio 6
1969  Led Zeppelin -- Cardiff, Wales
1971  Led Zeppelin -- Belfast Ireland (performed Stairway to Heaven for the first time)
1975  Led Zeppelin -- Dallas TX
1998  Page & Plant -- Istanbul Turkey

♪

♪  Stairway to Heaven (Led Zeppelin, Belfast 1971) YouTube

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