Photo: Copyright 2010 CelebrityLIFE/PSmylie
Move over Gordon Ramsey tell Jamie Oliver the news – what’s all this then? Robert Plant caught readying an appearance on Celebrity Masterchef or Hells Kitchen? Will he be squeezing those lemons till the juice runs down Gordon’s pan? Alas all is not what it might appear  and before Jamie gets into a chorus of ‘Save me a slice of  your custard pie’’ let me explain – this candid photo found Robert in jovial mood before his appearance on the BBC One Show a couple of weeks …

35 years ago this weekend Led Zeppelin were finally back on stage in England. During that first weekend of the Earls Court run they set the standard for a memorable series of performances.
In this second part of the TBL Earls Court Archive Special, Dave Lewis offers an overview of those five glorious days of May 1975……..
Finally London was ready for Led Zeppelin…and just after 8pm on Saturday May 17th the lights dimmed, the band walked onstage and the long wait was over. However after all the build up…it was all …

35 years ago this month, Led Zeppelin performed what would be their last indoor performances in England.
When the band undertook the series of five shows at London’s Earls Court Arena in May of 1975 they were at the very peak of their creative powers. Spurred on by the critical and commercial success of their sixth album, the double set Physical Graffiti, each show they played took on event-like proportions. The 17,000 capacity Earls Court afforded them the luxury to showcase in the best possible setting, the sheer enormity of their …

Another missing link in the saga of Led Zeppelin’s TV appearances in 1969 has recently surfaced on You Tube.
It had long been speculated that Zep made an appearance on the famous German Beat Club TV show recorded in Bremen in 1969.
Clear evidence that they had recorded a slot first came to light with the emergence of a story in the Hearts & Essex Observer edition of April 4th 1969. This story reported that the band were on board a British Airways Comet plane on Friday March 28th returning from Bremen …

May is here and in my calander, it’s always an important month. Not least of course because it triggers memories of former May Days and in particular the May Daze of 1975 – it’s the 35th anniversary of Led Zeppelin at Earls Court and I’ll be duly commemorating this milestone with a series of retro features on the TBL site – as you can see from today’s first TBL Archive post.
Being such an auspicious anniversary is also reason enough for me to commence a daily ritual of playing at least …

Robert Plant made a surprise appearance on the popular BBC 1  The One Show last night. It was Robert’s second appearance on the hit show – he appeared as the special guest for host  Adrian Chiles final show – he is leaving the show to move to GMTV  after three years. Adrian, an ardent West Bromwich Albion football fan, who are the local rivals to Roberts beloved Wolves, is a good friend of  Robert. Rather bizarrely, Robert was carried on to the set on a ottoman chair, wearing a crown …

Stairway To Heaven has been voted Britain’s favourite rock song by listeners of the digital radio station Absolute Classic Rock.  The classic track from Led Zeppelins fourth album beat the likes of The Who, Queen and The Beatles – whose tracks were all included in the top ten. One fan of the band who voted in the poll said, “I love The Beatles but their songs are so short and happy. For the best song of all time you want something epic, and Led Zeppelin capture it all — grand …

Them Crooked Vultures kicked off their US tour last night with an appearance at Los Angeles Club Nokia, as soon as we get a review we will post it up in the Tour Watch Section. On Monday and Tuesday night the Vultures appeared on the highly rated Jimmy Kimmel show in the US performing Mind Eraser, No Chaser and Gunman on Monday and New Fang and Dead End Friends on Tuesday.

The Vultures have also added two more dates in Canada, those being Quebec City, Pavillion De La Jeunesse (May 11) …

Now this one is a bit of an epic.  This was first published in TBL 13 – It’s an on  the road chronicle of the TBL crew’s adventures in pursuit of Jimmy Page and Robert Plant across the month of March 1998. This took in two dates in Istanbul – something of a zenith in my own ‘’Crazy things I’ve done in the name of Zep’’ portfolio, followed by the superb Shepherds Bush Empire gig which in turn was followed by successive TV recordings at Top Of The Pops in Elstree …

Above – The way they were : Zep filled window at Our Price Record Shop Bedford October 1990. 
This Saturday April 17th is World Record Store Day. This is the day independent record shops the world over celebrate their importance as key outlets for the distribution and selling of music.  Much has been written in recent times about the diminishing role of record shops (not least Graham Jones book ‘’Last Shop Standing’’) – hundreds of stores have closed their doors in the last few years buckling under the threat of downloading, …