Plant & The Strange Sensations

Plant & The Strange Sensations

Plant & The Strange Sensations

”We’ll call this gig Bonzo’s birthday … Bonzo’s Birthday party”
Those were the first words spoken onstage by Robert Plant at the Inglewood Forum on the night of May 31 1973 that came out from my record player around six months on from that gig on as I eagerly listened to my latest Led Zeppelin underground LP acquisition – a double album set on the Trade Mark Of Quality label titled Bonzo’s Birthday Party.
That is some 33 years ago – sadly longer than John Henry Bonham lived in his lifetime.
For today …

Three enjoyable days out in the last couple of weeks. Two weeks ago it was to the Esquires Club in Bedford to attend ex Free / Bad Co drummer Simon Kirke’s gig. The show was excellent with Simon on acoustic guitar and keyboards and very soulful vocals backed by Larry Oakes and doing absolute justice to a clutch of Free / Bad Co faves – amongst them My Brother Jake , Weep No More and Shooting Star. Later he played drums on the climax of the well impressive Free tribute …

30 years ago this weekend, Led Zeppelin performed a pair of memorable shows at the Richfield Coliseum on their 1977 US tour – later to be immortalised on the Destroyer box sets.
To commemorate this Zep milestone all roads lead to the Knights Templar pub in London on Saturday for a special fan gathering. These events are always great social occasions as we emerge from our respective dens to communicate with like minded enthusiasts on the subject that continues to inspire us.
So was this 1977 US tour better than 1975?…what exactly …

And the 1977 tapes keep rolling. As part of my research for the extensive coverage of the 1977 US tour in the next Tight But Loose, I’ve been wading through a crop of live CD’s from that celebrated period. One performance that always stands out is the version of Over The Hills And Far Away as captured on the last night of their six show Los Angeles Forum stint.
It commences with a series of tantalising warm up runs from Jimmy before he embarks on that revolving intro which is guaranteed …

30 years ago this month, Led Zeppelin were about to embark on their most ambitious tour of America. 49 concerts spanning five months with a total projected audience of over one million. Three decades later, perhaps more than any other – that 1977 tour holds a deep fascination for fans old and new. Over the coming months I’ll be marking the 30th anniversary of what would be their final American jaunt with various Tight But Loose activity. Over the last week here there’s been regular trips to the loft to …

For Tight But Loose 18 I’m planning a major special 30th Anniversary feature on the 1977 Led Zeppelin USA tour.
I am keen to enlist the assistance of anyone out there who attended any of the gigs on that tour.
I am looking for fans to share their memories for publication in TBL 18. If you were lucky enough to see any of the ’77 gigs email your thoughts to the usual address davelewis.tbl@vigin.net

As part of the 30th Anniversary Led Zeppelin 1977 USA Tour Tight But Loose activity, I am conducting a survey surrounding the various aspects of that celebrated final American jaunt. If you would like to contribute click below – fill in your answers and return to  Davelewis.tbl1@ntlworld.com
The results will form part of the extensive 1977 retro coverage in the next Tight But Loose and will also be revealed at the April 28 Tight But Loose / Return Of The Destroyer London gathering
1977 USA Tour Survey
When assessing the set lists overall …