Happy Birthday John Bonham

The Drum Maestro is a real life Time Lord. None more significant for R-O-C-K in the U-S-A than John Henry Bonham. One of the most musical of them all. Happy Birthday John Bonham. Zep Out rolls on in your honour!

Astounding insanity 2 years has passed since posting to the Zepblog. Mountains of info piled up. Jason Bonham touring, Robert Plant Band of Joy relaunch. JPJ Crooked Vultures LP and tour. Page in This Might Get Loud with Jack White and Edge. All I can say is I've been fighting for survival in the Great Recession, holding my own -- vow to get the Zep Out Archives back on track in the year 2011. Hail album rock. Hail the Elvis of rock bands. And hail the Bruce Lee of Rock Guitar, James Patrick Page.

Happy Birthday John Bonham

This site was started to record the countdown Nate & Fran's trip to London to see Led Zep for the Ahmet tribute in December 2007. Mission Accomplished, the rock music pilgrimage of a lifetime -- as described in prior editions.

Then came May 31, 2008 and Pete Witkow's monumental Zep Out Live in Long Island, where America's longest running Zeppelin tribute party (1988-present), metamorphasized from an album listening ritual to a live band throw down (full details below).

Appropriately, given his persistence, Pete Witkow had somehow become the premiere exec producer of Led Zep since Peter Grant.

Since then, an egregious array of Zeppelin news has been burning up the teletype, from Plant/Krauss Grammy Dominance to Jimmy Page at the Beijing Olympics to JPJ reunion declarations to Jason Bonham named Drummer of the Year in Rolling Stone.

For a band that technically does not exist, Led Zeppelin are extremely happening.

I want to run down the key events in future posts, but let me open with two acknowledgements.

Happy Birthday, drum lord John Bonham. I can't think of a better tribute paid you in America than the toast that Powderfinger, the Long Island band who played Zep Out Live, paused and offered from the stage to celebrate your 60th birthday (61 tonight). When Zeppelin tours again in front of Jason, it's going to be incredible.

And speaking of absent friends, I want to pay my respects to Paul Molanphy, who left us in November '008 in a fatal car crash outside Austin. Paul was a schoolmate at CPS in Irving, TX in the 1980s, when a lot of this musical obsessiveness all began. He was always a total music/pop culture cogniscenti. A classic rocker and pop radio believer to the core, I can still see Paul in his torn Rolling Stones 1980 tour t-shirt, running cross country in the vile Texas summer heat. Never without his signature smile. He was the first explicitly Irish character I ever knew. Paul, your bros from Cistercian miss you.

More to follow on the past year and a half in Zepnology. Please stand by.

Peter's Live Zep-Out Rocks Long Island

They call it "ZEP OUT" aka "ZEP FEST" -- America's Longest Running Commemorative Led Zeppelin Party.


Born in 1988 at the U of M Ann Arbor, Zep Out started as an after hours listening party, then mutated into a chronic annual event -- an 8 1/2-hour party where the goal is to graduate from Zep I at 7 pm, all the way to the final track of Coda at 3:30 am.

ZEPPELIN ONE
ZEPPELIN TWO
ZEPPELIN THREE
FOUR
HOUSES
PHYSICAL, SIDES 1-4
PRESENCE
IN THROUGH THE OUT DOOR
CODA


It all started from one simple fact: if you were in the class of 1980 or later, you were fucked. No Zeppelin at the Garden. No Zeppelin at the Forum.

But you still had THE ALBUMS, played in a row on Saturday night near April 1st where you could MIND MELD with the entire decade of the 1970s in one huge, fat album-rock get-down. And only one band hit the Zoso exactly right.

Zep Fest started in Ann Arbor, riding the coat tails of the Diag's Annual Hash Bash, then moved to New York City.

Zep Out -- not an idea whose time had come, an idea whose time REFUSED TO GO AWAY.

Then this year, thanks to co-creator Peter Witkow and his blushing baby mama Cindy, the Zep Fest went live.

For his birthday party at a Port Washington bar and casino, Peter (aka "Prime") commissioned a band of Long Island pros to create a 2 hour Zep Out of songs representing the entire Zep catalogue. The band featured Bob and Norm from classic rock outfit Powderfinger.

The music and the party were a total home run. Excellent musicians, excellent show. Guests hailed from as far as England and L.A.

ZEP FEST LIVE AT "H ON THE HARBOR"
May 31, 2008

First Set)
Good Times Bad Times
Dazed & Confused
Whole Lotta Love
Heartbreaker/Livin/Lovin Maid
Moby Dick
Immigrant Song
Bron Y Aur Stomp
Black Dog
Rock & Roll

Second Set)
Misty Mountain Hop
When the Levy Breaks
The Ocean
No Quarter
Houses of the Holy
Wanton Song
Kashmir
Fool in the Rain

For everyone who saw it, there's only one thing to say:
ZEP OUT FOREVER

No Zeppelin Tour in 2008, UK Paper Says

Robert Plant says no to Led Zeppelin world tour and £100m
EXCLUSIVE Plant says No to a world tour.. and £100M
By Sean Hamilton Showbiz Editor Sean.Hamilton@Sundaymirror.Co.Uk 2/03/2008

Robert Plant has turned down an extra £100million fortune to take Led Zeppelin on a world tour. The rock legend wants to concentrate on his new partnership with US country singer Alison Krauss... spelling the likely end of the famous band. Led Zep fans had been longing for a tour announcement since last year - when the 1970s superstars reformed for a one-off show at London's O2 Arena. Surviving members Plant, Robert Page and John Paul Jones were offered a guaranteed £100m each for a tour of North America and Europe after a million fans applied for O2 tickets. But after extensive talks Led Zep - best known for the song Stairway To Heaven - decided against the moneymaking opportunity. Guitarist Jimmy Page, 64, was keen to do the tour this year and was backed by bass player John Paul, 62. But singer Plant, 59 - already worth an estimated £70million - wants to concentrate on his new success with US country singer Krauss. The pair's duet album Raising Sand went to No 2 in America and Britain and they are starting their own tour in April. A band source said: "Despite the enormous offer, the decision did not come down to money. They always said they would do the one-off show and then see how they felt. Jimmy had enjoyed the concert in December enough to want to tour. He argued they still had something to offer. He likes the idea of another chapter in the band - the grown-up tour. John sided with Jimmy. He loved making music with the others again. But Robert wanted to leave last year's concert as their legacy. They had proved they could still do it and that was enough. He has other commitments and is happier looking forward to those. Robert put the mockers on the tour."

The King, The Man & The Band

Led Zep and Hawaii Five-O share a special provenance.

They both ran from 1968 to 1980.

And Elvis was fascinated by each.

I Rest My Case

Oh yes, one final encoded message in the scriptures of Zeppelin foretelling the band returning to Cali.

The freaking song called GOING TO CALIFORNIA.