Talked to Audrey Hamilton today......

[SteveAJones]

2 hours ago, strombringer101 said:

Another thing about this offstage stuff that surrounded Zeppelin is boring and really not worth the trouble reading about because half of it is  over exaggerated. Jimmy page romance with a 16 year old girl is disgusting and arrogant, he would be called a pervert in today’s world, but since he is a guitar God it is something we look past wearily but we do. Same thing about John Bonham and his abusive behavior when drunk, stories of hitting female reporters, attacking a life reporter, drinking so much he would become distraught. This effect was apparent in his looks, remember Bonham was only 32 or when he died, he looked like he was 52 fat bloated and definitely not the best drummer that gave us classics like ALS, When the Levee breaks and many others. The captain of the Zeppelin ship was also lost in the land of  gluttony and the fire was growing dim. Then it was over.

There's more virtue signaling in this post than I can handle. I have no doubt it's a Millennial's viewpoint. 

[Christopher Lees]

On 1/23/2012 at 8:21 PM, TheStairwayRemainsTheSame said:

 Robert aged 10 years between July 19 73 and when this photo was taken in 1977. He looks a lot older here.  In the song remains the same he still looks like a kid and in this picture he definitely looks over 30. 

[PeaceFrogYum]

5 hours ago, SteveAJones said:

There's more virtue signaling in this post than I can handle. I have no doubt it's a Millennial's viewpoint. 

Ya know, I kinda agree with you on this one. To ignore the times and the mindset of that era, then superimpose the values of today is unfair. When we are in the now we can only understand from that viewpoint, we are not seers or wizards, just people of our time. When I was in HS in the mid-80's I said some messed up stuff that would look quite bad today. I did not necessarily believe any of the stupid crap I was saying, nor did I know any better but since everyone else was doing it, well, heard mentality. Nobody in the 70's looked at massive bell bottoms and leisure suits and thought WTF, this shit is SHIT! Nope, it was groovy baby. Or big hair and shoulder pads in the 80's, grunge in the 90's etc.

Be content in your thoughts though Steve, for this wee child will be quite shocked 40 years from now when that new generation is crawling up his ass about this generation. Karma is one bad mama jama.

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by PeaceFrogYum

[SteveAJones]

4 hours ago, PeaceFrogYum said:

Be content in your thoughts though Steve, for this wee child will be quite shocked 40 years from now when that new generation is crawling up his ass about this generation. Karma is one bad mama jama.

Great point!

Watching Millennial's take flack for how they lived their lives from a generation that won't know which bathroom to use will be very satisfying to me.

[rm2551]

1 hour ago, SteveAJones said:

Great point!

Watching Millennial's take flack for how they lived their lives from a generation that won't know which bathroom to use will be very satisfying to me.

Isn't this every one generation to the next to some extent? (not the specific gender/bathroom example)

The difference now being, the shift in culture and technology is accelerating at a far greater pace making each generation far more different far quicker.

[TheStairwayRemainsTheSame]

10 hours ago, Christopher Lees said:

 Robert aged 10 years between July 19 73 and when this photo was taken in 1977. He looks a lot older here.  In the song remains the same he still looks like a kid and in this picture he definitely looks over 30. 

I just think he looks tired here I don't think those 4 years aged him that much.

77-80 however he was a completely different man. Inside and out

[strombringer101]

15 hours ago, SteveAJones said:

There's more virtue signaling in this post than I can handle. I have no doubt it's a Millennial's viewpoint. 

 

15 hours ago, SteveAJones said:

There's more virtue signaling in this post than I can handle. I have no doubt it's a Millennial's viewpoint. 

Excuse me? Sorry buddy was born when Zeppelin four came out. It’s ok if you get turned on by off stage bull shit, but to criticize another because “they weren’t there” is pompous crap. Don’t care what Zeppelin did off stage because a lot of it was fake, Zeppelin music is definitely not fake but my point is the gluttonous life on 5he road for Zeppelin almost overshadowed the music. I’ve met hundreds of people who saw Zeppelin in Seattle and all of them said 77’ was terrible and a fucking joke compared to their previous tour in 75’ at the Seattle Center. Steve Slaton a popular Radio DJ told me once at a music convention that he met Zeppelin at the airport and Jimmy was wasted and had to be carried off the plane. This type of life style is Romantic to you SteveAJones? My opinion on Zeppelin is one of a music fan not a ass kisser who thinks the band could do know wrong.  Yeah a 30 year old rock star dating a 16 year old girl is gross by any means.

[Deeds]

Zep Head... I agree with your thoughts on the song Hot Dog. What I find funny is thinking about that title while it may be referring to a girl being "hot" she is still just a "dog"! Working at The Whisky throughout the '70's I saw the band many nights in the club and at the Hyatt House Hotel when invited back and they showed no regard or respect for anyone while drunk and disorderly. 

[SteveAJones]

9 hours ago, strombringer101 said:

Excuse me? Sorry buddy was born when Zeppelin four came out. It’s ok if you get turned on by off stage bull shit, but to criticize another because “they weren’t there” is pompous crap. Don’t care what Zeppelin did off stage because a lot of it was fake, Zeppelin music is definitely not fake but my point is the gluttonous life on 5he road for Zeppelin almost overshadowed the music. I’ve met hundreds of people who saw Zeppelin in Seattle and all of them said 77’ was terrible and a fucking joke compared to their previous tour in 75’ at the Seattle Center. Steve Slaton a popular Radio DJ told me once at a music convention that he met Zeppelin at the airport and Jimmy was wasted and had to be carried off the plane. This type of life style is Romantic to you SteveAJones? My opinion on Zeppelin is one of a music fan not a ass kisser who thinks the band could do know wrong.  Yeah a 30 year old rock star dating a 16 year old girl is gross by any means.

I completely agree that drug abuse ruined Jimmy Page and that the '77 tour was a dumpster fire. Even so, I do find the offstage antics interesting and quite often funny. I'm thinking of all those shenanigans that later turned up in Robert's lyrics, especially on Physical Graffiti and Presence.  

[Christopher Lees]

I find this offstage stuff very interesting too, and I thank the poster who started this thread. It was a great read!.

[EaglesOfOneNest]

I am not ashamed to admit that I like Hot Dog! It's not even close to my favorite Zep song but I like it; it's fun and a little cheesy. 

Regarding the offstage stuff... it's slightly disturbing when looked at through a current lens but it was par for the course for the time. For me, it doesn't add or detract to my love for the band's music. Plenty of people are very talented at their jobs or artistic pursuits and are terrible people (example, Steve Jobs). It doesn't detract from their talents. People are multi-faceted. 

[bishlap]

On 12/26/2017 at 10:25 PM, Darth Hoek said:

When I think of Zeppelin I think of a super talented band which happens to get far too crazy when they are on the road but at the end of the day basically created the rock genre.  When I think of Kiss I think of Pabst Blue Ribbon, carnies on blow, derivative lyrics, and bad choices...pretty much says it all!  When I think of Ace Frehley...I probably should stop here I am getting a bit too mean to the kiss fan out there!

KISS sucked, and I saw them when they were "good" 1975. P.S. Met Ace a few times, he even dated a friend of mine's sis, good guy, great sense of humor.

[porgie66]

On 5/3/2019 at 7:26 AM, SteveAJones said:

Come to think of it, those photos could have also been taken in Lincoln Park or the much smaller Seward Park.

Probably not Seward Park ... that was in the heart of Cabrini Green housing project at the time , and a very dangerous place to dally around. More likely Lincoln Park or the lakefront. 

[SteveAJones]

7 hours ago, porgie66 said:

Probably not Seward Park ... that was in the heart of Cabrini Green housing project at the time , and a very dangerous place to dally around. More likely Lincoln Park or the lakefront. 

Agreed.

[LZ77]

On 5/4/2019 at 11:00 AM, Deeds said:

Zep Head... I agree with your thoughts on the song Hot Dog. What I find funny is thinking about that title while it may be referring to a girl being "hot" she is still just a "dog"! Working at The Whisky throughout the '70's I saw the band many nights in the club and at the Hyatt House Hotel when invited back and they showed no regard or respect for anyone while drunk and disorderly. 

Hi Deeds!  Did you get to hang out at the Hyatt House with them on their 1977 Tour?

[Paimonus Rex]

On 5/3/2019 at 7:41 PM, SteveAJones said:

There's more virtue signaling in this post than I can handle. I have no doubt it's a Millennial's viewpoint. 

Is there an emoticon for snapping fingers so we can avoid any undue triggering for the thunderous applause this comment deserves?

To the person who crafted the original post, you deserve the future.

 

[GeminiMoon]

I've grown to like "Hot Dog".  Sounds great when they played it live.

I don't think Robert would appreciate Audrey writing a book.  He's a seriously private man.

 

[Hereismike1]

On 1/24/2019 at 11:17 AM, Built4hurricanes said:

There are quite a few problems with Audrey Hamilton’s story, as told in the opening post “interview” in this thread.

One, Plant wasn’t in Dallas “for weeks before the tour”, as she says about how she met him. The 1977 US tour was marred by many mishaps before and all through the entire tour. It was almost a disaster, and it sure ended like one. The tour was supposed to start in Ft. Worth the end of February, but Plant got laryngitis and the opening was postponed until the first of April in Dallas. That might have been when Audrey hooked up with the roadies, perhaps in late February, but it is unlikely she met Page and Plant then. The idea that LZ would hang around Dallas for those weeks while Plant recovered from laryngitis is ludicrous, they would have gone to NYC or back to the UK most likely, or who knows to a beach somewhere for all we know.  (When LZ was on tour in the US, they didn’t change hotels every night or two; after most shows in smaller cities, they’d hop right onto their plane the Starship and fly back each night to NYC or LA (mostly) and thus they could stay in one hotel for quite a while.) That simply is not how she met him, “weeks before” the tour.

Second, LZ took breaks for themselves in their scheduled shows during tours. They would take 2 weeks, or even a month at a time and fly back to the UK or for vacations during their tours. Check the original 1977 tour dates and the revised actual tour dates (google it). There are gaps of several weeks a couple of times. Funny how Audrey Hamilton doesn’t recall these. Where was she then? If she was with Robert Plant all through the tour, why doesn’t she remember his absence?

 Third, she’s probably quite right that JPJ disliked her intensely as she was screwing several roadies before she ever met Plant, and Page (let’s not forget she was with him, too), this according to accounts of several who were there; it was only later she was with Page as well as Plant. JPJ was a family man who seemingly never got into the tour life like the others; he didn’t care much for groupies, to put it mildly, so he probably didn’t like her. Hate is a strong word, and JPJ was a gentle man, but I am sure he disliked her a lot.

Plant wasn’t in love with Audrey as she claims, she was just another groupie to him, fun for a while but that’s all she ever was. He was married to Maureen then, and at that point he was still pretty happy with his wife, and he worshipped his kids. Perhaps Audrey fell for Plant and rather invented some great love story, which existed only in her own mind. Plant had lots of groupies, she just was one of many.

Also, recall this tour ended abruptly with Karac Plant’s sudden death on July 26 when the band was in New Orleans getting ready for shows there. Plant likely forgot Audrey like she never existed. He was destroyed over the loss of his son. I doubt he gave her another thought. He was severely depressed for a very long time. In fact, in recent interviews, he says he still misses his son to this day and talks to him a lot. He doesn’t mention Audrey Hamilton, or truly acknowledge her much when questioned about her.

So of course she was, as she puts it, “sent home”; in reality, she found herself alone in New Orleans and had to find her own way home; there was not anyone there to “send” her home.

Were Audrey and Plant ever in touch after their short time together? Who knows, but I doubt it. It amounted to weeks that they were “together”, and accounts by some others on that tour say she was with Page during that time too. I don’t think she was much of a blip on Plant’s radar. Others there during the tour say Plant and Audrey fought and didn’t get along all that well because she was prone to a lot of drama and “childish outbursts”. She claims she has “some of his rings”. I have my doubts, he loved his jewelry; if she has any rings at all it would be something he bought for her.

Finally, Plant says the song “Hot Dog” was a tribute to Texas and the state of mind of the people in Texas. He says it was definitely NOT about any one woman. I think Audrey Hamilton has romanticized her groupie days, which evidently included quite a few other bands according to research I did, and she came up with a great love story with Robert Plant which in reality exists only in her head. I’m sure she’s a nice enough person, but the fact is her “facts” from that “interview” at the beginning of this thread back in 2012 just do not line up with the actual facts of the 1977 LZ tour. This argues against her great love affair and her being with Led Zeppelin and Plant for the entire 1977 tour.

Main problem with your theory is Plant himself admitted in an interview with JJ Jackson in 1979 that Hot Dog was about Audrey.  He even names her in the interview!  So the rest of your conclusions are all built upon a false premise.

 

[BobDobbs]

On 5/4/2019 at 11:00 AM, Deeds said:

Zep Head... I agree with your thoughts on the song Hot Dog. What I find funny is thinking about that title while it may be referring to a girl being "hot" she is still just a "dog"! Working at The Whisky throughout the '70's I saw the band many nights in the club and at the Hyatt House Hotel when invited back and they showed no regard or respect for anyone while drunk and disorderly. 

I think you may be reading a bit too much into the title Hot Dog. It's a joke song, lyrically its just a silly remake of Hey Hey What Can I Do and the title Hot Dog likely refers to a phrase which was used weekly on Hee Haw which was massively popular in 1978 when the tune was written. As the song is rockabilly, and Hot Dog was a popular phrase used in the country music industry I always assumed the song was just silly, just like the closing lines of Fool in the Rain where old Robert is waiting on the wrong corner.

[Wolfman]

What was the supposed drink throwing incident in 1983?

 

[Terrom13]

How can I get in contact with Audrey? @HotDogAudrey

[BobDobbs]

1 hour ago, Terrom13 said:

How can I get in contact with Audrey? @HotDogAudrey

Sorry, that information cannot be released as it would constitute a violation of HIPAA regulations

[Lexi]

On 1/25/2019 at 4:17 AM, Built4hurricanes said:

There are quite a few problems with Audrey Hamilton’s story, as told in the opening post “interview” in this thread.

One, Plant wasn’t in Dallas “for weeks before the tour”, as she says about how she met him. The 1977 US tour was marred by many mishaps before and all through the entire tour. It was almost a disaster, and it sure ended like one. The tour was supposed to start in Ft. Worth the end of February, but Plant got laryngitis and the opening was postponed until the first of April in Dallas. That might have been when Audrey hooked up with the roadies, perhaps in late February, but it is unlikely she met Page and Plant then. The idea that LZ would hang around Dallas for those weeks while Plant recovered from laryngitis is ludicrous, they would have gone to NYC or back to the UK most likely, or who knows to a beach somewhere for all we know.  (When LZ was on tour in the US, they didn’t change hotels every night or two; after most shows in smaller cities, they’d hop right onto their plane the Starship and fly back each night to NYC or LA (mostly) and thus they could stay in one hotel for quite a while.) That simply is not how she met him, “weeks before” the tour.

Second, LZ took breaks for themselves in their scheduled shows during tours. They would take 2 weeks, or even a month at a time and fly back to the UK or for vacations during their tours. Check the original 1977 tour dates and the revised actual tour dates (google it). There are gaps of several weeks a couple of times. Funny how Audrey Hamilton doesn’t recall these. Where was she then? If she was with Robert Plant all through the tour, why doesn’t she remember his absence?

 Third, she’s probably quite right that JPJ disliked her intensely as she was screwing several roadies before she ever met Plant, and Page (let’s not forget she was with him, too), this according to accounts of several who were there; it was only later she was with Page as well as Plant. JPJ was a family man who seemingly never got into the tour life like the others; he didn’t care much for groupies, to put it mildly, so he probably didn’t like her. Hate is a strong word, and JPJ was a gentle man, but I am sure he disliked her a lot.

Plant wasn’t in love with Audrey as she claims, she was just another groupie to him, fun for a while but that’s all she ever was. He was married to Maureen then, and at that point he was still pretty happy with his wife, and he worshipped his kids. Perhaps Audrey fell for Plant and rather invented some great love story, which existed only in her own mind. Plant had lots of groupies, she just was one of many.

Also, recall this tour ended abruptly with Karac Plant’s sudden death on July 26 when the band was in New Orleans getting ready for shows there. Plant likely forgot Audrey like she never existed. He was destroyed over the loss of his son. I doubt he gave her another thought. He was severely depressed for a very long time. In fact, in recent interviews, he says he still misses his son to this day and talks to him a lot. He doesn’t mention Audrey Hamilton, or truly acknowledge her much when questioned about her.

So of course she was, as she puts it, “sent home”; in reality, she found herself alone in New Orleans and had to find her own way home; there was not anyone there to “send” her home.

Were Audrey and Plant ever in touch after their short time together? Who knows, but I doubt it. It amounted to weeks that they were “together”, and accounts by some others on that tour say she was with Page during that time too. I don’t think she was much of a blip on Plant’s radar. Others there during the tour say Plant and Audrey fought and didn’t get along all that well because she was prone to a lot of drama and “childish outbursts”. She claims she has “some of his rings”. I have my doubts, he loved his jewelry; if she has any rings at all it would be something he bought for her.

Finally, Plant says the song “Hot Dog” was a tribute to Texas and the state of mind of the people in Texas. He says it was definitely NOT about any one woman. I think Audrey Hamilton has romanticized her groupie days, which evidently included quite a few other bands according to research I did, and she came up with a great love story with Robert Plant which in reality exists only in her head. I’m sure she’s a nice enough person, but the fact is her “facts” from that “interview” at the beginning of this thread back in 2012 just do not line up with the actual facts of the 1977 LZ tour. This argues against her great love affair and her being with Led Zeppelin and Plant for the entire 1977 tour.

This covers a lot of the questions I had about time lines and consistency in story. Not sure about the 'Hot Dog' angle. Plant has said a few different things about the inspiration, although I think the closest he got to saying it was about Audrey was in response to her assertion it was, saying "It could have been, could have been about a lot of girls'" shrugging. Sorry don't have the reference for that quote. I also have a few issues with the whole 'seeing' Mick Ralphs, which essentially amounted to the time Bad Co was in Dallas (a week) during which Mick jammed with Zep, and Robert made a quip when introducing 'It'll Be Me' along the lines of "It's very appropriate Mick". After which Audrey was left firmly behind in Texas. 

[kimba59]

Oh it would be really great to have a book about these fun times. Yes please get one going Audrey 

[Jukkin]

On 5/3/2019 at 6:00 PM, strombringer101 said:

When it comes down to it. Who cares because that song is terrible and should never been written or placed on an album. Yeah it’s just my opinion but I’m pretty sure 1000s of other people would agree that song is cheese to the max. In through the out door has some serious issues as a record in whole but there is some stellar songs on their : in the evening, All my love, I’m gunna crawl, southbound... & the epic. Hot dog is a filler song and fool in the rain is a joke, yeah I know Bonzo drumming on fool.... is technically hard to do but still a cheesy tune. 

Jimmy page romance with a 16 year old girl is disgusting and arrogant, he would be called a pervert in today’s world.

Not in the UK. The age of consent in the UK has been 16 since 1885. I think it's the same age for the majority of European countries.