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LED ZEPPELIN WIN STAIRWAY COURT CASE/LZ NEWS/ JOHN BONHAM TOP TEN/LA FORUM 1977/ DL DIARY BLOG UPDATE

23 June 2016 4,774 views 7 Comments

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“We are grateful for the jury’s conscientious service and pleased that it has ruled in our favor, putting to rest questions about the origins of ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and confirming what we have known for 45 years. We appreciate our fans’ support, and look forward to putting this legal matter behind us,” Jimmy Page and Robert Plant – June 23, 2016

Stop press: Led Zeppelin win Stairway To Heaven court case:

Reason has prevailed…

This report via Rolling Stone.com

Led Zeppelin have won a copyright lawsuit that claimed they had plagiarized the music to their most celebrated song, “Stairway to Heaven.” A Los Angeles jury determined Thursday that the lawyer representing the estate of late guitarist Randy Wolfe, who played with the group Spirit, did not prove that the hard rockers lifted the song’s intro from Spirit’s 1968 instrumental “Taurus.”

“We are grateful for the jury’s conscientious service and pleased that it has ruled in our favor, putting to rest questions about the origins of ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and confirming what we have known for 45 years,” members Jimmy Page and Robert Plant said in a statement. ” We appreciate our fans’ support and look forward to putting this legal matter behind us.”

“At Warner Music Group, supporting our artists and protecting their creative freedom is paramount,” the band’s record label added in a statement. “We are pleased that the jury found in favor of Led Zeppelin, reaffirming the true origins of ‘Stairway to Heaven.’ Led Zeppelin is one of the greatest bands in history, and Jimmy Page and Robert Plant are peerless songwriters who created many of rock’s most influential and enduring songs.”
The lawsuit stemmed from a 2014 filing alleging that because Led Zeppelin had appeared on the same bill as Spirit in the early stage of their career, they would have been aware of the song “Taurus” and would have subsequently copied it. The track – penned by Wolfe as Randy California – appeared on Spirit’s 1968 self-titled debut and contains two minutes and 38 seconds’ worth of cinematic, psych-folk mysticism. The track features an acoustic guitar line playing a pensive melody that transforms into a descending chromatic pattern. A lawyer representing California’s estate, now repped by British former music journalist Michael Skidmore, claimed that Led Zeppelin’s trippy, acoustic guitar intro to “Stairway” had borrowed heavily from “Taurus.”

The trial quickly became a colorful, contentious battle between the two sides from the start. Attorney Francis Malofiy, who represented Skidmore, carried a briefcase that resembled a Fender amp and played fast and loose with courtroom protocol. He attempted to play videos that weren’t admitted into evidence (a possible basis for mistrial), conducted exasperating testimony that both the judge and defense found objection-worthy (the judge yelled “sustained” at one point before the defense could even object) and referred to Jimmy Page as the “alleged songwriter” of “Stairway.”
“You’re wasting a lot of time,” the judge told Malofiy at a point where the lawyer was attempting to claim that the Mary Poppins song “Chim Chim Cheree” was a possible influence on Page. In his closing statement, Malofiy said that the case was about giving credit where it’s due, blasted Page and Plant’s “selective memory” during testimony and reminded the jury that he needed to prove his case by only “51 percent” in order to win.
The jury was not legally allowed to hear the original recordings of “Stairway to Heaven” and “Taurus” in determining their verdict. Instead, they heard an expert perform both songs based on the original sheet music.
Led Zeppelin attorney Peter Anderson kept a cooler demeanor. He argued that the Wolfe Trust did not own the copyright to the song (a claim the judge shot down) and that the musical characteristics Malofiy claimed Zeppelin copied were musical traditions that date back at least to the 1600s and appeared in songs like the Beatles’ “Michelle.”

In testimony, Page was charming, witty, candid and sarcastic, offering rejoinders to Malofiy’s observations (when the lawyer said Page discovered he had the ability to play guitar in his youth, Page said, “Well, yeah.”) Both Page and Plant testified they did not remember ever hearing “Taurus.” Anderson made an ugly misstep during cross-examination with Skidmore when he accused Wolfe’s mother as having an “illegitimate son” that was cut out of royalties. He also brought in a musicologist as a witness who spoke too academically and compared “Stairway” to the obscure “To Catch a Shad” by the Modern Folk Quartet.

Anderson closed his arguments by saying that Malofiy had not proved the case and that Spirit’s music “would not even be remembered.” It marked the end of a particularly combative trial. Before the judge called for the jury to deliberate, he asked of the attorneys, “Any other catfights?”
Bloomberg reported in April that if Wolfe’s estate had won, they would have been entitled to a share of “Stairway to Heaven” revenue for only the three years before the lawsuit was filed, due to copyright law. The estate would also have been entitled to royalties going forward.
Malofiy filed his original complaint against Led Zeppelin, on behalf of the Randy Craig Wolfe Trust, in May 2014. He stylized section headers in the font the group used on its untitled fourth album – home to “Stairway to Heaven” – and claimed that Led Zeppelin had become influenced by Wolfe and Spirit’s performances after sharing a bill with them. Led Zeppelin would perform on the same bill as Spirit that year, at a gig where Malofiy claimed Spirit played “Taurus,” and again in 1969.
In his “Preamble,” the lawyer asserted that Led Zeppelin began performing Spirit’s “Fresh-Garbage” – a track on the same record as “Taurus” – at concerts, and that Page and Plant composed “Stairway to Heaven” a year after touring with Spirit. Malofiy also included a chart of Led Zeppelin songs he claimed infringed upon other songwriters’ works. He claimed that Led Zeppelin had knowingly and willfully infringed on “Taurus” with “Stairway to Heaven.”

But in a 1991 interview not mentioned in the complaint, Wolfe described Led Zeppelin’s members as fans of Spirit in the late Sixties and that “if they wanted to use [‘Taurus’], that’s fine. … I’ll let [Led Zeppelin] have the beginning of ‘Taurus’ for their song without a lawsuit.” Malofiy later said he believed that statement was “out of context.”
In 1996, the year before his death, Wolfe told an interviewer he felt “Stairway” was a “ripoff” of “Taurus.” Malofiy used the following statement in the complaint: “The guys made millions of bucks on it and never said, ‘Thank you,’ never said, ‘Can we pay you some money for it?'” Wolfe said. “It’s kind of a sore point with me. Maybe someday their conscience will make them do something about it. I don’t know. There are funny business dealings between record companies, managers, publishers and artists. But when artists do it to other artists, there’s no excuse for that. I’m mad!”
Wolfe drowned in 1997 while rescuing his son from a rip current in Hawaii, according to Bloomberg. His mother established the trust in his name, which purchases musical instruments for public schools. After she died in 2009, she passed it along to the suit’s plaintiff, Michael Skidmore, who had assisted her in managing the trust. After teaming with Malofiy, he sued for copyright infringement in various forms and for “falsification of rock & roll history” (Wolfe’s alleged right of attribution). He sought the defendants’ profits, various forms of damages (including “exemplary damages to set an example for others”) and an injunction on selling the recording and attorney’s fees, among other “claims for relief.”
Malofiy told Bloomberg he felt the lawsuit was worth around $40 million.
“This is ridiculous,” Jimmy Page said of the lawsuit that month. “I have no further comment on the subject.”
Led Zeppelin would later allege that the Trust did not even own the copyright to the song. They claimed that Wolfe’s son, whom he saved at the time of his death, did, though the judge in the trial nullified that argument.

The suit quickly became a cause célèbre in the music industry, as it is the most high-profile copyright case to follow the estate of Marvin Gaye’s victory over Robin Thicke in the “Blurred Lines” lawsuit last year. In that case, Thicke and Pharrell Williams were ordered to pay $7.4 million (later reduced to $5.3 million) to the Gayes after a jury ruled that the song infringed on the vibe of Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up.” Lawyer Donald S. Passman told The New York Times that the Gaye ruling was “aberrational” and would not have any long-term effects.
It was determined in April of this year that the case would go to trial. Led Zeppelin’s lawyer had asked U.S. District Court Judge Gary Klausner to rule in their favor without a trial in February, but the judge decided the songs were similar enough to warrant one. Although he wrote that Malofiy had not convinced him of Led Zeppelin’s alleged infringement, the judge said that the “similarities [between the songs] transcend this core structure” and that what would remain is a “subjective assessment of the ‘concept and feel’ of two works.”
What would occur over the coming months would become an epic story all its own.
Malofiy said at the time that any kind of settlement on behalf of Led Zeppelin would be a “nonstarter.” But later that month, he told Bloomberg he’d take a settlement of a dollar and a songwriting credit. The band did not take him up on the offer.

Page and Plant filed declarations to the court in March, before Klausner decided the suit should go to trial, in which they described how they wrote the song. Page wrote that while “Stairway” opened with “descending chromatic lines,” as did “Taurus,” he’d been aware of that melodic style dating back at least to 1960. Moreover, he stated that he never heard the song until 2014 when Malofiy filed his complaint. “I am very good at remembering music and am absolutely certain that I never heard ‘Taurus’ until 2014,” he wrote. He also wrote that he did not recall ever seeing Spirit live.
Page has always maintained in interviews that he wrote the song from piecing together his own melodic ideas. “I’d been fooling around with my acoustic guitar and came up with different sections, which I married together,” he once told Guitar World. “But what I wanted was something that would have drums come in at the middle and then build to a huge crescendo. … So I had the structure of it.”
Interestingly, in his declaration, Page wrote that he discovered a copy of the Spirit LP in his record collection in preparation for the trial. “[I] do not know how or when it got there,” he wrote. “It may well have been left by a guest. I doubt it was there for long, since I never noticed it before. But again I know I did not hear ‘Taurus’ until 2014.”
Plant, too, wrote that he believed he never heard “Taurus” before the lawsuit. “I do not now and have never owned a Spirit record album,” he wrote.
In April, Judge Klausner rejected all of Malofiy’s expert witnesses because they had prepared opinions based on sound recordings that weren’t admissible under copyright law. He also barred recordings of some songs that the attorney wished to present, saying that recordings of songs had to be made from existing sheet music. The judge gave Malofiy time to find more witnesses.
The judge also ruled that anything regarding Led Zeppelin’s alleged plagiarism in the past would not be allowed before a jury. Rumors about the group’s drug and alcohol use would not be allowed either; Malofiy had hoped to claim that the band’s substance abuse damaged the songwriters’ memories.
In May, Led Zeppelin accused Malofiy of attempting to “taint the jury pool” by claiming that the band’s members would not appear in court. Page and Plant always intended to appear in court, the lawyers claimed. “[Malofiy’s] ongoing efforts to try this case in the press should be rejected,” they said in a motion.
Earlier this month, Malofiy filed a motion to make Plant, Page and Jones appear in court on the first day of the proceedings, making it so that if they didn’t, they wouldn’t be allowed to testify. Judge Klausner denied the motion.
The day before the trial was to begin, Malofiy filed a motion claiming that one of Led Zeppelin’s experts, musicologist Lawrence Ferrara, had engaged in a conflict of interest by working with the group. Previously, he’d provided comparative analysis of “Taurus” and “Stairway” to the publisher of “Taurus,” with whom Malofiy says he had conspired with to undermine the lawsuit. Ultimately, the judge allowed Ferrara to testify, signaling the beginning of what would become a turbulent trial.
In 1975, Page told Rolling Stone he felt “Stairway” “crystalized the essence of the band.” “It had everything there and showed the band at its best … as a band, as a unit,” he said. “We were careful never to release it as a single. It was a milestone for us. Every musician wants to do something of lasting quality, something which will hold up for a long time and I guess we did it with ‘Stairway.'”

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Stairway To Heaven Court Case earlier in the week :

This via Rolling Stone.com:

The copyright infringement lawsuit against Led Zeppelin over the songwriting credits and profits of its classic “Stairway to Heaven” has now gone to the jury, which began deliberations Wednesday morning.
In the sixth day of the case – “Michael Skidmore v. Led Zeppelin et al” (the “et al” referring to corporate defendants Atlantic Records, Rhino Records and Warner/Chappell Music) – both sides made final arguments in Court 850 of Los Angeles’ Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and United States Courthouse. The presiding judge, Gary Klausner, allotted counsel representing the plaintiffs (the trust of Randy “California” Wolfe, whose composition “Taurus” for the band Spirit they allege has been plagiarized) and Zeppelin’s defense team 45 minutes each to convince the eight-person jury of their arguments.
The plaintiff’s controversial attorney, Francis Malofiy, began the proceedings, giving his best performance to date in the trial – concisely summing up the various themes he’d presented with clarity and force and largely never veering out of control. (Judge Klausner has repeatedly sustained objections over procedure against Malofiy throughout the trial.) “This case is about one thing: credit,” Malofiy began, noting his plaintiff requested songwriting credit for Wolfe and one-third of royalties of “Stairway.” “This case is about copying. Give. Credit. Where. Credit. Is. Due.”
Malofiy reiterated testimony from the plaintiff’s expert witnesses that both “Taurus” (an instrumental) and “Stairway” share “substantial similarity” in their use of a descending chromatic scale “in a unique and original way … That is memorable and unique.” He attacked Jimmy Page and Robert Plant as having a “selective memory” on the stand, asking if their “memory is better now or in 1969 or 1970” (at which time the Zep members gave interviews that seemed to contradict their testimony about their knowledge and appreciation of Spirit’s material, as well as having seen the band live).
Those interviews – both in their raw audio form and in print – alongside Zeppelin having covered Spirit’s song “Fresh-Garbage,” served as a smoking gun in the plaintiffs’ eyes that proved the band had “access” to Spirit recordings. Malofiy also cited the fact that Page owned five Spirit albums, including its 1968 self-titled debut that included “Taurus,” and that Page’s testimony contradicting ancient Zeppelin folklore that the intro of “Stairway” was written at the Welsh cottage Bron-Yr-Aur was a “complete rewriting of history.”
Malofiy also seemed to rub in the defense’s face that they were unable to call an expert witness to assess damages: He told the jury it had wide latitude to assess damages as “somewhere in the middle” of $10 million alleged gross profits, adjusting for the fact that “Stairway” is one of Zeppelin’s most popular songs in its catalog.
Malofiy did have some spurious and humorous moments in his final arguments, however. He continued to emphasize the legally questionable “Jimi Hendrix defense,” going on about Wolfe’s early association with the guitar god. (Not surprising considering Malofiy once sued the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for “falsification of rock and roll history,” a claim repeated in his case against Led Zeppelin.)
He also repeated the absurd assertion that Jimmy Page’s ability to write original songs was compromised by his time as a session musician “playing others’ music.” Malofiy seemed to approach the case on a pass/fail basis: In his rebuttal to the defense, he reminded the jury members that he only needed to prove his case by “51 percent” – sticking his arms out and tilting his body as if he’d become the personification of the scales of justice himself.
The defense’s lead counsel, Peter Anderson, also displayed humor in his final argument – often to his advantage. “The best place to start is [Malofiy said the case could be summed] up in six words from the Bible: ‘In the beginning God created…’ He promised six words but delivered only five – and throughout this case he’s made more promises, but hasn’t delivered.”
Anderson had some setbacks early on, though. He repeated his assertion that Hollenbeck Music (a publishing concern owned by legendary music producer and impresario Lou Adler) actually owned the “Taurus” copyright; that argument was rendered null, however, when Judge Klausner affirmed, in his instructions to the jury, that the trustees of Randy Wolfe’s estate indeed own the “Taurus” copyright.
his belief that Wolfe’s son Quinn Wolfe, not his estate trust, may be Wolfe’s true heir; Klausner admonished him as this point had already been rendered legally inadmissible during Anderson’s earlier examination of lead plaintiff Michael Skidmore

See more at:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/led-zeppelin-stairway-trial-goes-to-jury-as-both-sides-plead-case-20160622

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DL Thoughts:

I’ve got to say it’s a pretty euphoric feeling right now – some four hours after the resolve of the Stairway case. What a joy it is to hear the song anew – free of any claims to discredit it. It’s their song, it’s our song – it was a song of hope…it still is…

DL – June 23, 2016.

Stairway Court Case Summary via LZ News

James Cook at Led Zeppelin news has done an admirable job in tracking the Stairway court case -the weekly LZ news Update will have a full overview of the Stairway Court Case this Sunday.

LZ News:

Led Zeppelin News Update:

In conjunction with the Led Zep news site, each week I will be re producing highlights from their weekly email update news summary. This goes out every Sunday. Sign up details are below. Many thanks to James Cook

There was one big Led Zeppelin news story this week: The “Stairway To Heaven” trial took place in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones were all there in Los Angeles to testify in court that they did not copy the introduction to the song from “Taurus” by Spirit. Page and Plant were there for every single day of the trial. Here’s a breakdown of what happened on each day:

Tuesday

Day one of the trial established the daily routine of the court: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant arrived together in a car with blacked out windows which was driven into the courthouse parking lot. Meanwhile, their lawyer Peter Anderson and Skidmore’s team all walked in through a public entrance, past the press. You can see a video of the outside of the courthouse here.

The first order of the trial was jury selection which took place at 9.45am. An eight-person jury will eventually rule whether Led Zeppelin infringed on Spirit’s copyright. After that, it was time for the plaintiff to start his case. Francis Malofiy, the plaintiff’s lawyer, gave an opening statement. He said the case could be summed up in six words: “give credit where credit is due.”

Malofiy then presented various pieces of evidence that he hoped would persuade the jury that “Stairway To Heaven” was copied from “Taurus.” If he wants to win the case then he has to showcase just how similar the two tracks are.

Wednesday

Day two of the “Stairway To Heaven” trial kicked off with an exciting development: Jimmy Page carried a guitar into the trial. But it was never used. Malofiy told journalist Pamela Chelin that he barely slept because “artists need inspiration, not sleep.” The trial saw testimony from Jay Ferguson and Mark Andes, both of whom previously played in Spirit. Another witness for the plaintiff was Michael Ware, the elderly photographer who claimed to have seen Robert Plant at a Spirit show. He testified via a video and was not physically present.

Wednesday was also the first day that Jimmy Page took the stand in the trial. He testified that he had not heard “Taurus” before writing “Stairway To Heaven.” One issue that came up before the trial was that Page actually owns several Spirit albums. But Page said that didn’t mean he’d ever actually listened to them, he testified that he owns 4329 vinyl records and 5882 CDs. Interestingly Page claimed that it was his son in law who introduced him to the comparisons between “Taurus” and “Stairway To Heaven” on the internet. Page says he does not use the internet. “I don’t do the Internet. I’m not like everyone else here,” he said.

A live recording of Led Zeppelin was played in court and Page and Plant looked at each other and smiled. Elsewhere in the trial, Malofiy mentioned that Page had a gift for playing the guitar. “Well, yeah,” Page replied, and the court laughed. Rolling Stone called Page’s testimony “alternately candid, evasive, sarcastic and wittily charming.”

This Associated Press report has a lot more detail on day two of the trial.

Thursday

Day three of the trial started early, with a line to get into the courthouse forming before 7am. Page again brought in a guitar but it went unused. He resumed testifying to start off the day. He was asked whether “Stairway To Heaven” crystallizes the essence of Led Zeppelin, but replied with “I don’t think any one song crystallizes the essence of Led Zeppelin.” During a break in proceedings Page played air guitar and danced. Once everything resumed, Page was asked whether the song “Chim Chim Cher-ee” from “Mary Poppins” influenced Page and Plant during the composition of “Stairway To Heaven.” Page replied that elements of the song were similar, but no, it did not influence them.

Friday

Day four saw the plaintiff rest his case against Led Zeppelin and the start of the defense’s case. A musical expert, Lawrence Ferrara, testified about the songs. He’s the expert witness that the plaintiff tried to block from appearing, but Judge Klausner denied that motion.

John Paul Jones took to the stand to testify for the defense. He said he never saw any Spirit shows and did not know any of the members of the band. When asked about the origin of “Stairway To Heaven,” Jones said he first heard it at Headley Grange when Page played it to him on an acoustic guitar.

Here’s a Reuters report on day four of the trial.

There’s no court session on Monday, so day five of the trial will take place on Tuesday June 21. Robert Plant is expected to testify. It’s also expected to be the last day of the trial before it goes to the jury.

We weren’t physically present at the trial, so this summary comes from various articles published about what happened in the courthouse. In particular we’ve relied on journalist Pamela Chelin who attended every day and tweeted out what was happening during breaks (phones aren’t allowed to be used while the trial is underway.) Another court reporter who tweeted updates from the trial is Ashley Cullins from The Hollywood Reporter.

Upcoming events:
June 21 – The fifth day of the “Stairway To Heaven” trial will start in Los Angeles.
July 1 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Rock Werchter music festival in Belgium.
July 2 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Beauregard Music Festival in France.
July 4 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at Le festival des Nuits d’Istres in France.
July 7 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the NOS Alive Music Festival in Portugal.
July 14 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at Festival Noches del Botánico in Spain.
July 20 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Street Music Art Festival in Italy.
July 22 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Italy.
July 24 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Italy.
July 27 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in the Czech Republic.
July 28 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Austria.
July 30 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Croatia.
August 2 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform in Germany.
August 4/5/6/7 – Robert Plant and The Sensational Space Shifters will perform at the Wilderness Festival in the UK.

The Led Zeppelin News email goes out every weekend. To receive it each week sign up here: https://t.co/yp9fGJMSGH

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Classic Rock website: The Top Ten Best John Bonham Led Zeppelin Songs:

John Bonham on stage 1973

John Bonham on stage 1973

Ten of the best John Bonham performances as compiled by yours truly…

Narrowing it down to ten is of course an impossible task…so forgive me for any obvious omissions – In fact I somehow left of Achilles!

Top Ten Led Zeppelin John Bonham Songs
By Dave Lewis
From snare drum stampedes, though hi hat syncopation, jazzy interludes and sheer brutal power – John Bonham was the percussive talent at the heart of Led Zeppelin. These are ten of his greatest beats…

Read the full listing at :

http://teamrock.com/feature/2016-06-22/the-top-10-greatest-led-zeppelin-john-bonham-songs

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TBL Retro Archive – June 1977:

LA 3

To commemorate those epic six Los Angeles Forum shows of June 1977 of 39 years ago this week,  here is the first part of a lengthy overview of the 1977 tour that first appeared in TBL issue 9. The pre-amble sets the scene on the state of play inside Led Zeppelin at the time and leads on to a summary of three of those June performances as heard via the legendary Listen To This Eddie bootleg plus the two Last LA Forum sets issued back in the mid 90s.

Thanks to the late Mike Millard’s superb audience tapes, we can hear lasting evidence of the sheer excitement of the 1977 Led Zeppelin, capturing a week where the sense of on the road fun was never more evident. Read this…and get those 1977 CD remnants on your player…..

1977 AND ALL THAT…….. AND EVENINGS WITH LED ZEPPELIN

BY DAVE LEWIS

PART ONE

Against the background of three of the best live Zep CD’s, some recollections and viewpoints on the state of play as Led Zeppelin made what would be their final trek across America…

“It’s changing now. I mean playing live – that whole stimulus has been missing. When we did that first rehearsal it just clicked all over again. I just feel I’ve cleaned out a load of problems and now I’m ready to get back in the fray, so to speak. Something epic is going to happen musically. That’s what I feel. The next tour. . . you’ll see . . .”

So spoke Jimmy Page at the Swan Song office in November 1976 during an interview with the NME scribe Nick Kent. As can be viewed from the above comments, there was a new wave of optimism around the band as they came back together following the enforced lay off due to Robert’s accident. After all the various promotional interviews for the launch of ‘Presence’ and the ‘Song Remains’ film, the socialising at movie premieres, and the holidaying in tax havens in Montreux and the South of France, finally they were back to what they knew they did best. Playing music.

The formal return to arms occurred in a North London rehearsal studio in the autumn of 1976. And such was their enthusiasm to get back to work this time around instead of re-acquainting themselves musically by easing back in to rehearsals with familiar material of 50s covers – as was the norm on such occasions, they went straight into the fray by immediately attempting to restructure ‘Achilles Last Stand’; for live performance. ‘Achilles’ of course was the killer opening track from their latest studio album. In his ecstatic review of ‘Presence’ in Sounds (possibly the best description of any Zepp album by any critic during their career), John Ingram had noted somewhat astutely if rather blatantly, that Achilles Last Stand’ “would be a motherfucker played live”. It was obviously a notion shared within the band. When confronted with adapting a live arrangement for their multi dubbed epic, Jimmy Page assumed it would require the deployment of the Gibson double neck. Upon rehearsals it was the trusty Les Paul that surprisingly proved most appropriate for the piece, aided by a few timely flicks of the eventide harmoniser.

That autumn’s rehearsals marked Led Zeppelin’s initial preparation for a planned world tour that would open in North America and move to Canada before stretching into South America and winding its way back to the UK. Further rehearsals took place at ELP’s Manticore Studio in Fulham in the early weeks of 1977. Here the band developed a totally new set list, reviving the long deleted full acoustic set and rearranging tracks such as The Battle Of Evermore’ and ‘Ten Years Gone’ for their debut as live performances. For the latter track Jonesy brought in a new custom made three necked guitar while Jimmy toyed with the idea of playing pedal steel guitar on stage (an idea that was eventually dropped). For Robert they brought in a new toy – a vocal harmoniser that allowed him instantly to double track his voice. Much planning went into creating a balanced programme that would present a new look to America. With no new album to play alongside the tour (‘Presence’ being a year old already), the group took to the road to present what they would ultimately dub simply as An Evening With Led Zeppelin’.

The Fulham rehearsal location allowed them to venture into central London at night to view the then emerging Punk scene – checking out the likes of The Damned and Easter at the Roxy club in Soho much to the bemusement of the UK rock press. Visitors to the rehearsals in Manticore include Billy Idol and Generation X and Steve Marriott – the latter jamming with them on old Muddy Waters numbers, an experience that freaked Robert out – such was his admiration for the late, great ex-Small Face and one time number one choice as a vocalist during Jimmy’s attempts to get the first Led Zeppelin incarnation off the ground in 1966.

By the end of January the set had been honed to perfection and Robert, aware of the physical demands about to be put upon him tor the first time since his accident, booked in a weekly bout of training with the Wolverhampton Wanderers soccer team. Everything was set for a Feb 27 opening at the Convention Centre, Forth Worth, Texas and their equipment was meticulously packed and airlifted to the Showco HQ in Dallas for a final PA test. Then the troubles started.

In early February Robert contracted a severe bout of laryngitis and the tour schedule was postponed. During the next few weeks the tour itinerary went through various revisions. At one point they looked set to hit Toronto on April 1 and the West Coast in the summer. Eventually that idea was scrapped in favour of them opening in Dallas on the same day. Back in the UK, Earls Court promoter Mel Bush was hopeful of persuading Peter Grant to secure the group to top a one day festival due to be staged in late August at Wrotham Park near Potters Bar. It was to be an entirely unsuccessful quest as their US commitments beckoned.

With all their equipment in America including all of Page’s guitars, there was no room for further rehearsals leading up the opening date. It was therefore a very nervous Led Zeppelin who gathered in the wings of the Dallas Memorial Auditorium on the evening of Friday April 1 1977. (For visual evidence, take a look at the group photo from Neal Preston’s ‘Portraits’ book which captures the moment – also reproduced on the ‘Coda’ gatefold sleeve). So many questions remained unanswered in their minds. Would Robert’s injured foot take the strain? Would the long gap between rehearsals affect their co-ordination? And would America still crave for Led Zeppelin as they had done in previous years? . . . They really needn’t have worried.

From the moment Page slayed across the double neck to pick out the chords for the newly ensconced opening number ‘The Song Remains The Same’ that spring evening in 1977, it was plain for the group and its entourage to see that America’s love affair with Led Zeppelin was far from over.

From Dallas the tour progressed to Oklahoma and a four night stint at the Chicago stadium. From there the statistics began to blur. 40,000 in Cincinnati over two nights, 36,000 in Cleveland – leading to the remarkable 76,229 who attended the group’s appearance at the Silverdome Pontiac in Michigan on April 30 1977. This set a new record for a single act performance beating the previous best of 56,800 who had attended a concert at Tampa, Florida by . . . Led Zeppelin’.

In early May the group split for a two week break. Jimmy spent a four day holiday in Cairo, returning to be in attendance for the presentation of a prestigious Ivor Novello award along with Jones, Plant and Grant at London’s Grosvenor Hotel. By then the tour reports that had been filtering back to England had certainly fuelled my own curiosity to find out just exactly what they were up to. Reviews of the show from Chicago and St. Louis in Sounds and Melody Maker revealed the introduction of Ten Years Gone’, ‘The Battle Of Evermore’ (with Jonesy on vocals), the medley of Black Country Woman’ and ‘Bron Y Aur Stomp’, Jimmy’s guitar solo leading to ‘Achilles Last Stand’, and the link of ‘White Summer’ played live for the first time since 1970 leading to ‘Kashmir’.

With little hope of them playing in the UK, I hatched a plan to fly to New York to catch one of their June Madison Square Garden gigs. This being way before the days of organised overseas rock concert travel (and cheap shuttle air fares), the sheer economical logistics made the idea impossible – despite much assistance from Swan Song’s Unity Maclean to arrange tickets, etc. Instead I decided to wave them off from Heathrow as they flew back to America on May 17. Calling in to the office earlier in the day, I was despatched to find a copy of that day’s edition of the London Evening Standard from the local King’s Road newsagent. The reason was for Swan Song to check that a retraction of a story printed on Monday had been inserted.

The story centered on an alleged incident involving Robert Plant being arrested in Atlanta for pulling a knife and being drunk at Hartsfield Airport. The story was actually perpetuated by a 19 year old youth impersonating Robert – who on the day had been horse riding in Wales! The retraction was printed with an apology which was duly telexed to the Plant home.

A few hours later I arrived at Heathrow’s Terminal 3 and met up with the group and entourage as they awaited the call to fly to Alabama. Robert was on peak form, talking to all and sundry and sending up the late arriving Jimmy (“Where’s Patti Page Colesy?”) displaying a swagger and verve that would never quite be the same after this tour. Jonesy, resplendent in a Union Jack cardigan, happily posed for photos and unfolded tales of the three necked guitar. Bonzo seemed a little nervous and detached, anxious to get away. Jimmy arrived late in a misfitting white suit, sweaty and unshaven, hardly a picture of health, but ever articulate and anxious to meet with Robert.

heathrow 77 retouched

Above -The young DL with half of Led Zeppelin – Heathrow Airport May 17 1977 – Note dinner plate size Led Zep badges on wide lapelled jacket.

20 hours later they were back on stage at the Coliseum in Birmingham, Alabama. The remarkable cine home movie footage that has surfaced from that show illustrates the transition that Jimmy underwent once on stage. On that scratchy film he is literally everywhere, duck walking, dropping to his knees, spinning, turning … the perfect toil for Robert to narcissistically weave between. That Birmingham cine film certainly hones in on the two contrasting images of the tour. On stage they were capable of supreme moments, but off stage all was not so well. The state of health of Jimmy Page was a high topic of contention amongst the entourage throughout the tour. Indeed the second of the four Chicago shows had been cut short when Jimmy collapsed during Ten Year Gone’. This lapse was put down to food poisoning – Page having stated on the day of the gig that he was having trouble arranging a healthy diet on the road. Other problems centered on the addition to the security set up of London criminal John Bindon which caused much unrest amongst the roadies. His presence would of course have even greater consequences when they reached the Oakland Stadium in July. . . It would seem that being the biggest band in the world dictated that they had to have the most notorious minders … the most outrageous road crew behaviour… and of course the most amount of drugs.

Perhaps then it’s even more remarkable how impressive their performances and Page’s in particular could be during this era. It was as if each member of the band possessed an inner strength that drew and fed from their collective power. No matter what craziness was happening off stage, somehow as soon as they faced their audience something clicked. Not that it clicked without some inconsistencies showing through. As on any tour some nights were distinctly better than other nights. As an example – though just days apart, the difference in, say, Bonzo’s performance at San Diego on June 19, where he is surprisingly uncoordinated at times, is fairly striking compared to his domination at the LA shows. No doubt the old road fever was taking effect. The indulgence of certain parts of the set also made for a lack ot urgency. Brian Knapp tells me of the atmosphere of the 77 shows he saw pales against the more intense drive of ’75. The marathon excess of ‘No Quarter’ and ‘Over The Top’ often inspired a mass walk about for certain sections of the audience, unable to focus on the stage for too long amongst the excitement. The repeated problem of firecrackers being thrown at the stage also angered the band – culminating in Jimmy having to stop playing for treatment after being struck on the arm at one show.

As the second part of the tour rolled on, they were all eying with much relish the thought of settling in to the late June string of LA shows. After the trauma of the abandoned date in Tampa when rain stopped play after 20 minutes, matters improved for a six night run at Madison Square Garden. This latest triumph was faithfully reported back to the UK via a centre page spread by Ray Coleman in the Melody Maker issue of June 25. (I vividly remember rushing into the newsagent and excitedly buying up a bulk lot of copies to see how it was all progressing.) By that date they were back in their second home for what can be viewed in retrospect as their last truly great US appearances – and some of the very best of the post 1972 era. And thanks to the delights of those silver rarities, such performances are now available to reassess at the flick of the CD scanner button – providing the listener with the opportunity to travel back to the LA Forum and share again in the madness of the 77 tour.

When it comes to the underground documentation of this era, there have been a crop of ‘releases’ over the years. Many fans will already be familiar with The Destroyer’ soundboard April 27 Cleveland show, which is fine in itself but not the most inspired performances of the tour. 20 more minutes of soundboard quality exists from the June 11 Madison Square show (available on the ‘Silver Coated Rails’ CD) and the other prize catch up to now has been the two volume vinyl doubles ‘For Badge Holders Only’ capturing material from the June 23 LA show including the Keith Moon jam.

Listen To This Eddie’ was previously available on two hard to find vinyl sets. Now for the first time, the whole of this dynamic opening show from LA June 21 1377 is packaged on three CDs with a total playing time of 190 minutes. The sound source is from an audience tape – but it really is an excellent recording – very clear and over spilling with the sort of auditorium atmosphere that cleaner soundboard tapes often lose. The visuals for the inlays are also first class being reproductions of the photos to be found in the 1977 Tour programme.

‘Listen To This Eddie’ is very much the genuine article. A complete Led Zeppelin concert experience, a thrilling aural record that puts you right there on the spot.

The pure excitement of the event is evident from the moment the exuberant crowd noise filters through as the first CD commences. If there was one period in Zeppelin’s live concert history that I could be magically transported back in time to relive, then right now I would select the moment captured here when the group walk on to the stage for this opening LA Forum 1977 date. The expectation level must have been immense. Bonzo is the first to be heard rumbling the Ludwig into action. Then Jimmy scrubs his hands over the Gibson double neck to tease the crowd with a few well chosen chords. Those tantalising warm up chords became something of a Zep on-stage trademark when they employed ‘The Song Remains The Same’ as a set opener post 75. It was the same tactic we home-grown fans would finally revel in at Knebworth two years on.

Those chords eventually mould into the stinging intra of ‘The Song Remains The Same’. Immediately your senses are further assaulted by the quite brutal percussion of John Bonham. He rides alongside the galvanised guitar effects eventually breaking into the most inscrutable snare roll that underpins Jones’ bass patterns and Page’s role to emerge as the pivotal effect of the whole track. From that moment on, his playing dominates the proceedings. As I earlier observed, his performance a few days earlier had been decidedly lackluster in San Diego. Plant later explains he has just recovered from a bout of food poisoning and it’s obvious in LA John Bonham is back firing on all cylinders. The ‘Song’ swings into ‘Sick Again’ via ‘The Rover’ riff link as was commonplace at the time. They take a while to get into the groove here, but eventually with Robert teasing the crowd the momentum is increased leading to an extended outro that finds Page reeling off a series of telling phrases. “Good Evening” says Plant sedately before a more celebratory “I mean Good Eveeeening! Well, we finally made it. Haven’t seen you since. …. Anybody here when we played with Bad Company? That was the first time we ever managed to get back on stage again … So tonight no beating about the bush. We’re just gonna play ‘coz that’s what we’re here for.” But before they play there’ a pause of over a minute as Jimmy gets in check. Then it’s ‘Nobody’s Fault But Mine’ and again it’s a Bonham led fusion as the drummer blisters alongside Jones and Page on this most intense dynamic excursion. Plant meanwhile screams and grapples with the stuttered lyric.

There’s a telling no-nonsense stance about Plant’s next introduction. “It is indeed a great pleasure to be back in California for many many reasons, among those it’s very hard to see the sun in a basement in New York. This is a song about. . . well, it’s not even worth telling you what it’s about. YOU know!”. That statement says much about the affinity the group shares with its LA audience. Plant knows and they know that this is the tale of the passage of man . . . ‘Over The Hills And Far Away’. One of the few inflexible parts of the 77 set, this number was brought in at the June Madison Square stint and was employed in rotation with ‘In My Time Of Dying1. One of my all time fave live pieces, it’s good to hear it in this setting. Jonesy’s eight string Alembic patterns can be heard very clearly and Jimmy steps on the eventide to double up the effects of the solo – which is not quite as impressive as the June 23 ‘Badge holders’ cut but mighty fine nonetheless. “That was a song that speaks for itself. This is a song that comes from what you might call the urban blues of the United Kingdom. A song that you probably already know but a song very close to all of us in the band from time to time and things like that.” The ’77 incarnation of Since I’ve Been Loving You’ as captured on the opening LA show just might be the version to live or die by. The reason is simple. Jimmy Page’s playing throughout is just so precise, with every lick charged with vivid intensity. Over which Plant delivers a flowing vocal and John Bonham again delivers a truly devastating performance. Just marvel at the closing coda as he scatters his arms around the kit forming a barrage of power and glory.

“Welcome back to the world, John Bonham, who had a terrible fit of food poisoning”, acknowledges Plant. “He’s been taking too many rhinestones. That by the way featured Jimmy Page on guitar. . .” The noise and sheer bravado that greets the latter statement is quite startling, prompting Plant to later mimic the crowd any time they begin to get out of hand. “I didn’t say Jimmy!”. “No Quarter’ follows, the first of the marathons. The ’77 version for me suffers from just a little too much instrumental freedom as Jonesy romps through boogie woogie and neo- classical themes before Page returns to add some undisciplined guitar work.

One interesting addition to the song is the “Dogs of doom are howling more” refrain which finds Plant in a call and response mode with Jimmy during the final movement. This arrangement was retained for Knebworth and even survived the rather bizarre Plant solo rendition employed on some of the ‘Manic Nirvana’ 1990 shows. A final observation here: when one considers the song’s gruelling half hour length, it’s perhaps not too hard to see why it inspired some restlessness amongst the crowd. ‘No Quarter1 lacked the visual anything-could-happen appeal of the other lengthy live opus Dazed And Confused’ and it pushed I’d take the compact ’73 version and the majesty of the Earls Court deliveries over anything performed post 75.

Robert battles with the restless crowd (“I didn’t say Jimmy!”) to explain that the next track came out of rehearsals as they looked to perform material they’d previously ignored. “Jonesy most kindly went out and bought a three necked instrument which since then has often hurt his back in many a hotel, so with the aid of Jonesy’s three necked instrument we’re gonna try a thing from ‘Physical Graffiti’ called Ten Years Gone’”. Robert delivers an outstanding vocal here set against some immensely fluid Telecaster work from James P. Unfortunately the effect of this track is then marred considerably by an untidy fade and edit at 5.28 into the song which misses part of the final verse. The acoustic set is thankfully all intact as Robert sets the scene. “It brings to the front of the stage a man who had a very bad stomach complaint – John Bonham. The Rhinestone Cowgirl. I guess he’s a Cowgirl In The Sand . . .” The latter reference inspires a “bring on Neil Young” plea from a wag in the crowd. Instead they perform The Battle Of Evermore’ with Jonesy on vocals and Bonzo hitting the tambourine with gusto towards the end.

“This next song we should dedicate to a lot of good friends we’ve met along the way, some are going back to New York tomorrow . . . Dear Danny (Goldberg?), we’ll miss you so much and your American Express card. Lots of good people who we’ve met – especially the people who made us write this song (wah).” ‘Going To California’ is noticeable for yet another Joni reference (“They say she plays guitar and cries and sings and she lives in Bel Air”). “I wonder if she still lives there”, he can be heard to mutter off mic after the song. A couple of teasing choruses of ‘Hangman’ from Robert ushers in the medley of ‘Black Country Woman’/’Bron Y Aur Stomp’, which then leaves the stage to Jimmy Page. From the delightful opening strum of the modal tuned Dan Electro he turns in an aggressive solo rendition of ‘White Summer/BIack Mountain Side’. Played faster compared to the rather sedate politeness of the box set BBC version – and for the first time in LA for seven years, it builds the tension before swinging directly into ‘Kashmir’ (another ’77 set ritual that stayed with them for the rest of their touring days), Unsurprisingly on this occasion it’s Bonzo who again comes to the fore adding the power to match Robert’s impassioned final pleading.

la16

Moby Dick’ re-titled ‘Over The Top’ for the marathon delivery on this tour is preceded by an hilariously obnoxious Plant introduction as a delay occurs in setting up. Witness: “That was called Kashmir… Let me take you there. Bit of trouble with the musical equipment here. Right now the man who fought against the elements. The man who fought food poisoning. The man who drinks Heineken . . . The man who doesn’t get out of bed . . . the man who hasn’t got a cymbal . . . the man who’s having a chat with this man who knows the man who tunes Jimmy’s guitar and comes from Scotland and doesn’t know the man they call Tim but does know Audrey from Dallas thank you. The man who now learns to construct his own drum kit . . . the man who’s not very professional . . . shudd-up wait a minute … the man who said he could go back to a building site anytime and we all agreed … the man who’s holding up the show … the Rhinestone Cowgirl . . . C’mon Bonzo get on with it … the man who played the Los Angeles Aztecs and beat them 10-1 by himself. . . C’mon you silly fucker. . . the man one wonders is he worth waiting for. . and doesn’t realise there’s a curfew here … a childhood friend .a man who many people once said . . never heard of him . John Bonham Over The Toppppppll!” It’s an introduction that hones in on the off stage silliness of this part of the tour. Over The Top’ is just that as Bonzo powers on and on

Next up a rare ’77 tour bonus. Heartbreaker’ made only fleeting appearances in 1977 first being introduced on the June 10 Madison Square appearance. Predictably there’s a genuine desire to perform it for the LA crowd and it positively leaps from the speakers. Bonzo brings a subtle difference to the Page solo by serenading the high neck guitar chops with a crash of hi hat and snare. On into the home straight Page performs the showpiece ‘Guitar Solo’. This opus signified the end of ‘Dazed And Confused’, as it incorporated the violin bow episode into a lengthy solo extravaganza. Obviously more of a visual piece, it does make for some decidedly uneasy listening as Page attains an abusive howl of noise from the guitar. ‘Star Spangled Spanner’ performed with a nod in the direction of James Marshall Hendrix moves into the bow episode which eventually makes way for the introduction of ‘Achilles Last Stand’. Needless to say this is yet another Bonzo tour de force. After that it’s Robert’s closing speech. “Achilles Last Stand … at least we thought . . . very nice to see some friends just arrived from England – Mr. Phil Carson, a man who played bass in Japan with Dusty Springfield a long time ago. See we know all the Oldies (off mic) and all the pushers!”

LA 1

“Well no doubt you picked up on the atmosphere at least on stage tonight. It’s like a high point of the whole tour to be back here. Maybe after six nights it may not be so easy to say that but at the moment …. we give you this song . . . .” ‘Stairway To Heaven’ ’77 style includes some great ad libs (“Does anybody remember forests?”) and moves its way into an evocative Page solo. Rigorously crafted against Bonzo’s hi hat jiggling it moves through rock, flamenco and Latin influences and includes that great moment when everything just stops . . .

As the kids froth . . . it’s an apocalyptic encore medley of Whole Lotta Love/Rock And Roll’ that bursts forth with a great repeated and harmonised final “Lonely Lonely Lonely” refrain which leaves a breathless Plant to wave farewell. “LA, it’s like a good woman – Good Night!”

And that was only the first night. As a complete concert souvenir, ‘Listen To This Eddie’ is probably the most authentic slice of live Zep explosion packaged for the underground market since ‘Blueberry Hill’, and I can think of no higher recommendation than that.

Dave Lewis

Part Two to follow

……………………….

DL Diary Blog Update:

pop up june 18

Friday treats at the Vinyl Barn- last Friday pickings included – The Herd album Lookin’ Thru You – US Fontana pressing and The Byrds 1978 double album compilation – very nice.

There was a couple of splendid acquisitions at the Bedford Pop Up Record Shop the next day. Led Zeppelin I French Atlantic Records pressing with banded back sleeve plus Led Zeppelin IV Yugoslavian Atlantic Records pressing with white insert that proclaims ‘The New Led Zeppelin album’. A right result to be sure!

We had a very nice Fathers Day here last Sunday. Adam got me the new documentary DVD about the life of the legendary Bobby Moore while Sam provided the Rise and Fall of Tower Records – All Things Must Pass DVD . I am looking forward to soaking those up.

The big gig of this weekend is Richie Blackmore’s Rainbow come back at the Genting Arena in Birmingham on Saturday night. It’s not a gig for me as I am not a massive fan, though I have much respect for the man and a strong affinity with Deep Purple for varying reasons over the years.

This goes right back to when they performed at Bedford Town football ground in July 1970 and I could hear them from my bedroom. My good friend Jerry Bloom wrote a Ritchie Blackmore biography and for years published the More Black than Purple magazine. Simon Robinson of the Deep Purple Appreciation Society has been in touch over the years.

Bizarrely on the night of October 19th 1984, I spent an evening in the local Bedford pub The Ship when all of the band including Jon were holding court. This came about because Deep Purple had chosen a central Bedford club to rehearse in during the making of their comeback album Perfect Strangers. They were seen out an about in the town throughout their stay  It was a memorable evening in that pub, not least for the fact that Ritchie looked every bit the guitar legend with his cloak and hat.The video of Perfect Strangers includes some fleeting clips of Bedford and nearby Woodlands Manor where the band stayed back then.

Back in the early 70s, I sort of missed out on Deep Purple (and Black Sabbath for that matter) as my love for Zep was all encompassing.  I can’t say I play a lot of their stuff though I do own a fair few CDs and LPs and the Black Night single with the epic Speed King B side has been part of my collection for four decades. Regardless of all that, I have always respected their position as an inspirational band of musicians.

Then there are all the career crossovers with Zep notably David Coverdale’s collaboration with Jimmy etc. I once contributed to an article for the Deep Purple mag under the title Deep Purple v Led Zeppelin which highlighted the parallels between the two bands (I must dig that out). In recent years Glenn Hughes has been well supportive of the TBL mag with his interviews regarding Black Country Communion etc.

I have seen some of the YouTube clips of the two dates Rainbow did in Europe last week and they look impressive and Ritchie is right on it – those that have been lucky to get tickets look to be in for a treat.

Glastonbury is upon us and I’ll be tuning in over the weekend from the comfort of the armchair -and away from the expected mud. Jeff Lynne’s ELO set should go down well with the Sunday afternoon veterans slot.

On the player Listen To This Eddie – still sounding mightily impressive some 39 years on. My oh my, they were on form that week for sure. Naturally For Badgeholders Only has been on too – the version of Over the Hills And Far Away is just amazing on that one.

Other recent playlist delights:

The Move – Shazam album

Bobby Womack – Facts Of Life

Taste – Live Taste

Stephen Stills – Just Roll Tape

Crosby & Nash – Another Stony Evening

Wings – Venus & Mars

The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds

The Beatles – Let It Be The Movie

Robert Plant – Pictures At Eleven (instantly takes me back to that June of 1982 when it was released -all of  34 years ago – love that album)

Football: The Euros are hotting up very nicely now. The Welsh blood in me has been well pleased to see Wales progress through to the last 16 and well done to Northern Ireland too – and the Republic of Ireland for that inspired victory over Italy that has taken them through.

As for England – I cannot fathom why Roy decided on all those changes and subsequently it was a frustrating encounter with Slovakia. I was very worried about them having to play Portugal – I’d have put good money on Ronaldo scoring the winner  – thankfully it turns out we will play Iceland after their win against Austria on Wednesday.

As Robert proclaimed in Immigrant Song, ”They come from the land of ice and snow..” Hopefully after Monday night’s encounter Iceland will be going back there – but being England, I am sure it wont be easy – here’s hoping Roy’s boys can rise to the occasion…

Dave Lewis – June 23, 2016

……………….

YouTube clip:

Stairway To Heaven…it never sounded sweeter….

The John Bonham Influence:

An impressive display here sent in by Justin Amos

……………………………

Until next time…

Have a great weekend,

Dave Lewis/Gary Foy – June 23, 2016.

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7 Comments »

  • Pete Leigh said:

    Dave isn’t it so great to hear it when drums sound like drums. Now who said that?

  • Ed-Washington DC said:

    “You’re wasting a lot of time,” the judge told plaintiff attorney Francis Malofiy at a point where the lawyer was attempting to claim that the Mary Poppins song “Chim Chim Cheree” was a possible influence on Page.

    Dear God. What an appalling charlatan.

  • Larry said:

    The Stairway trial was a sad joke from the outset and I’m obviously happy for the band that they prevailed. Enough said.

    All Things Must Pass…brilliant, any music fan should put that on their “to see” list.

    Rainbow and Blackmore…looking way back to their early years with Ronnie James Dio on vocals, “Stargazer” might be the greatest Led Zeppelin song not written and recorded by Led Zeppelin…

  • mike moran aka pannama red said:

    Neil Young<s engineer harry came to my silicon valley studio with tales of a friend of mine showing up at david crosbys studio trying to sell my catalog as his own…..neil had been to my los trancos woods pad and jammed with me and recognized them…..busted peter macomber…..i also tracked a robbery of audibo equip to him…Peter Maccomber & I did sound for Spirit

  • VHP said:

    Hi Dave,
    I am very pleased that the Stairway case is over & it’s the right result. No perhaps everyone can get back to making music again.

    Nice bit about Ritchie Blackmore. My friend is going to the B’ham gig this weekend. (I am on holiday so couldn’t make it!) Rainbow was only my second gig back in Feb 1980. What memories. Hope anyone going has a great evening seeing Ritchie rock out once more.
    Ritchie & Jimmy, 2 amazingly talented people who have both written some amazing music over the years.

    Come on Jimmy, it’s now your turn to return to the live stage.

  • Matt Walsh said:

    Congratulations to Led Zeppelin on winning the trial!
    Hats off to Mr.’s Page, Plant, Jones, and their attorneys for defending Led Zeppelin and OUR way of life!

  • Lisa Haynes said:

    Finally, common sense rules! Now let’s get back to writing music and touring!

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