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IT’S THE 02 REUNION TEN YEARS GONE WEEK ON TBL WEB – MORE DECEMBER 10 2007 MEMORIES/02 REUNION TBL EVENT LATEST/ROBERT PLANT & SSS ROYAL ALBERT HALL PRE GIG TBL MEET DETAILS

6 December 2017 733 views One Comment

IT’S THE 02 REUNION TEN YEARS GONE WEEK ON TBL WEB – TODAY’S POST – TBL ARCHIVE, MORE I WAS THERE MEMORIES…

I Was There…

One of the most remarkable aspects of the Led Zeppelin O2 Reunion concert was that fans had travelled from all corners of the globe to be there. One such fan was long time TBL supporter, Jose Manuel Parada who travelled from Ecuador and met a fair few of us when he was over. Here is just one example of the unforgettable life affirming experiences that those lucky enough to be there experienced. I am sure there will be similar tales to be told amongst those present today.

Above pic by Ian Avey

This is Jose’s story…

What an incredible journey it has been for me, going to London to such a historical event. It’s hard to realize what I just have been part of. Since September 12th all my thoughts were about the Zeppelin show. By October 2nd the ballot came, with no luck for me. So, I turned to eBay’s buy it now and got my ticket with tears in my eyes. There then followed some very uncertain days when it was stated that tickets purchased this way would be invalid. I made frantic calls to Harvey Goldsmith’s office. Finally on October 18th came the good news telling me that we could keep our tickets. What a relief.

Fast forward to 10 days before the show and all I was thinking of was getting to London, with no sleep and having some outrageous thoughts – the likes of “I hope I don’t die before the show, car crash, plane crash, heart attack, etc”. I know this sounds bizarre but that’s how it was.

By Saturday December 8th I was already checking in at The Newham Hotel (thank God the plane arrived just fine!). All I was thinking was, ‘Well, this looks real, here I am in London (freezing by the way) and I will be seeing Led Zeppelin next Monday’. Then it was The Pilot Inn on Sunday and Monday afternoon. What a really great time in there, getting to meet some fellow travelers from around the world and so many local people, such as: Dave Lewis, Gary Davies, Graeme and Pam, JR, Terry, Mike, Mark, Brian, Steven, Tatan A, Gary F and Julian, plus so many others who made me feel as if I was in a local pub and for that eye thank yew. Meeting all of you was as important to me as the show itself.

The vibe at The O2 was just something else – the huge Mothership blimp, that billboard with some Kashmir lyrics, all the people there. Amazing.

As for the show? All I can say is that I am still shocked by it. I was lucky enough to be some 20 metres from the stage, dead centre. I was simply in awe.

It was a night that I won’t ever forget. A dream came true. Acapulco Gold.

José Manuel Parada. Guayaquil, Ecuador, December 14, 2007. First published in TBL, issue 20.

 

………………………….

Krys Jantzen’s view

An extraordinary night.

Arrive at the 02 and the atmosphere is unlike anything I’ve seen before. People travelling from the four corners of the earth to be in London tonight. The queue for merchandise is 1,000 people deep. The guy from Tokyo in front of me is about to buy 15 t-shirts for himself, in front of him a guy who’s flown in from New Zealand who wants 20 hardback programmes. It’s that type of night. Behind me, a guy from New York paid $6,000 for his one ticket, behind him a guy from LA paying $7,500. Its madness. None of us could quite believe we were here or that is was actually about to happen.

But it did. And as the intro video clip ended, I quickly looked down at my watch. I had to. For over half my lifetime, I had wondered where and when they’d be back. And now the moment was here. At 9.04pm GMT, there they were on stage…Page, Plant, Jones and Bonham…LED-fucking-ZEPPELIN. 20,000 fans roared their return as thousands of glowing videophones captured the momentous occasion.

Highlights? Many. The ‘Oh my Jesus’ refrain on In My Time Of Dying. The black and white crunch of For Your Life. The technicolor swirl of Trampled Underfoot and that howl Robert lets loose at the start and end of Jonesy’s keyboard solo. Jimmy, Jason and John on The Song Remains The Samelistening to the four of them, it’s difficult to believe this is a band that have barely played together in 27 years. They were lean and very, very tight. And everyone was simply outstanding. Robert, in a consciously understated performance was in superb voice, looking and sounding fantastic, Jimmy’s amazing playing throughout his sweaty, guitar workout, John gluing everything down and locking into the other three with his concentrated gaze…and Jason, doing himself, his dad and everyone else here tonight fucking proud.

With Kashmir the evening’s defining moment had arrived. Robert and Jason particularly outstanding on this. For me, the undisputed highlight of the night was when Robert did his “Trying to find…where I’ve beeeeeeeeeeeeen” bit in Kashmir just before it lurches into yet another hypnotising wash across the crowd. Absolutely fucking thrilling. As shivers ran down the spines of 20,000 fans, Jimmy glanced across at Robert and just beamed with pride.

It’s a great life, this life of music.

Robert summed it up best for me by describing the whole experience as cathartic and therapeutic. Damn, fucking right. (But Harvey, help us out next time. The weirdly subdued crowd was caused by the lottery system. The fact that so many long-term fans and Tight But Loose readers were forced to get their tickets on e-Bay was not right.)

My lasting image of the night was simply Robert, Jimmy and John huddled around Jason’s drum kit. It was a 60 foot wide stage, yet for most of the night they spent it endearingly just a few feet away from each other, revelling in each other’s performance and being unable to stop smiling at each other.

And as the house lights went up I couldn’t help thinking the four of them are capable of even more. A tweak of the set list sequence, an acoustic number here or there…the possibilities are endless. If they can blow everyone away on an opening night performance, imagine what they could sound like mid-tour…

Afterwards the sense of euphoria leaving the 02 Arena was positively religious. With people travelling from all over the world to see this well-loved group of musicians, the atmosphere was fantastic. The gig? A complete triumph.

And the band itself?

Fucking phenomenal.

Krys Jantzen London – December 11 2007

………………………………..

”Ahmet We Did it”:

Led Zeppelin 02 Reunion Ten Years Gone TBL Anniversary Celebration Day Event Update:

This is all shaping up to be a great day out

Tickets to the event are now on sale – please note you can also pay for entry on the day if that is more convenient. Entry on the day is £8

We are now running the event one hour earlier so we kick off at 1pm and run through to 9.30pm 

Just heard from legendary UK Zep collector/chronicler Andy Adams who is aiming to there

Guest speakers lined up are Legendary Led Zep author Luis Rey will be in attendance talking about his Led Zeppelin Tape Documentary book

Plus  Former Melody Maker editor and author Chris Charlesworth is coming along to talk about his time on the road with Zep – he will also talk about and have copies available of his new Elvis Presley book Caught In A Trap: The Kidnapping of Elvis.

Simon Cadman who covered the 02 Reunion concert for IRN News will also relay his memories.

In amongst all that, there will be plenty of Zep related and 02 Reunion Concert footage

There’s also a TBL Survey to complete on the day to determine the favourite Led Zeppelin 02 performance, all time favourite best track and all time favourite album – the results of which will be announced during the day.

The Quiz will involve questions surrounding the o2 Reunion Concert plus a Guess The Song lyric round – there’s prizes for the winners!

Photos:

A couple of other points – if you are attending on the day and have any photos you took at the 02 Reunion concert we would love to see them -so bring them along.

Lunch:

The Atlas pub will be serving meals including a Sunday lunch – if you require lunch we would ask you to ring the pub to confirm this so they know how many lunches to prepare. You can ring them on 0207 385 9129

http://www.theatlaspub.co.uk/

From 1pm to 9.30pm

Nearest tube: West Brompton (District Line, London Overground, and Southern train services)

A unique TBL Led Zeppelin fan gathering staged exactly ten years gone from that night of nights.

‘’Ahmet we did it’’

Ten years on let’s celebrate that fact all over again….

IMPORTANT:

To confirm your attendance:

Please send £7.50 via PayPal at the link below:

Please note if you require more than one ticket – just make an additional order for each ticket -there is not a facility for multiple orders.

http://www.tightbutloose.co.uk/led-zeppelin-02-reunion-ten-years-gone-tbl-anniversary-celebration-day-event-order-tickets-here/

 I will send you a PDF ticket to confirm your attendance. This will need to be presented on the day at the pub. Also please print out the confirmation E-mail I will send with the PDF attachment and bring that along too. You will require both the ticket and a copy of the E-mail confirmation to gain entry.

…………………………

Robert Plant and the Sensational Spaceshifters -Royal Albert Hall Friday December 8 2017:

TBL pre gig meet Details:

This Friday’s Robert Plant show will be the 58th occasion I have seen Robert Plant sing into that Shure microphone at a London gig through Zep and all the solo years and guest appearances – and the 120th occasion overall.

The prospect of this London appearance, just as it was back in 1971 on that first experience at the Empire Pool Wembley some 42 years ago… is awesome.

As ever there are fans converging from all parts of the globe for  this one -I know of a fair few coming in from European locations and it will be great to say hi.

The venue for the TBL pre gig meet is as follows – we aim to be there around 5.30pm

The Queens Arms

30 Queens Gate Mews,

Kensington,

SW7 5QL

Directions

From The Albert Hall: Walk past the Albert Hall towards Kensington, turn right into Queens Gate, and take the next right onto Queens Gate Terrace the first right into Queens Gate Mews. The pub is in front of you.

From Gloucester Road Tube Station: Turn left, cross over Cromwell Road then take the 4th turning on the right (Queens Gate Terrace) approximately 150 yards on the left is Queens Gate Mews. The pub is in front of you.

Here’s more info:

http://www.thequeensarmskensington.co.uk/

Looking forward to seeing all that can make it along…

………………………………………….

To be continued – more 02 Reunion Ten Years Gone thoughts tomorrow…

YouTube clip:

Led Zeppelin – Black Dog

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One Comment »

  • Bob Flux said:

    “Ahmet we did it”

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