Reggie29 Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 ^ There's nothing like a woman scorned. You'd know all about that! Good comeback, how long did it take you to think of that one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whyalla Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 You'd know all about that! Good comeback, how long did it take you to think of that one? Listen Reggie I don't even know what we're bickering about anymore. I'm sorry if I've upset or derided you in any way what so ever and I’d like (if your ok with this) to draw a line under this right now. It was never my intention to disrupt this thread as I can see the amount of work that Steve and others have put into it and I can sense the real pleasure it is bringing to the contributors. And; just for the record, I do recognize Steve A Jones as a most valuable commodity to ledzeppelin.com. I know he thinks that I think contrary to this but I do believe the forum would be a much, much worse place for his absence and feel that what he brings here to share - without asking anything from anybody else, shows a generosity and passion not found in many men. Therefore 1) Reggie, please let's end this silly argument and, 2) I will not post in the Fiction thread again. However I would still like to read through it to see when Jimmy ‘inevitably’ breaks his wrist and the tour is cancelled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggie29 Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 Listen Reggie I don't even know what we're bickering about anymore. I'm sorry if I've upset or derided you in any way what so ever and I'd like (if your ok with this) to draw a line under this right now. It was never my intention to disrupt this thread as I can see the amount of work that Steve and others have put into it and I can sense the real pleasure it is bringing to the contributors. And; just for the record, I do recognize Steve A Jones as a most valuable commodity to ledzeppelin.com. I know he thinks that I think contrary to this but I do believe the forum would be a much, much worse place for his absence and feel that what he brings here to share - without asking anything from anybody else, shows a generosity and passion not found in many men. Therefore 1) Reggie, please let's end this silly argument and, 2) I will not post in the Fiction thread again. However I would still like to read through it to see when Jimmy 'inevitably' breaks his wrist and the tour is cancelled. Done and dusted. Unfortunately sometimes what starts out as friendly banter can turn into stupid and ugly one-up-manship. By all means post, it would be nice if people contributed their take on this what if scenario. What I can't understand is, why it is upsetting people so much? If there were any anti band comments or disrespect shown to the band I would be the first to jump on it. As I see it, it is just our way of showing how much a tour would be appreciated even if it never happens. I was lucky enough to see them in their prime and nothing would make me happier than for everyone else on the forum (who haven't), could share the same experience and in a small way this thread virtually does that. I'm more concerned about the Pagettes getting stuck into him, more than a broken wrist or more likely his fingers! Apology accepted and for my part please accept mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveAJones Posted September 27, 2009 Author Share Posted September 27, 2009 I know he thinks that I think contrary to this but I do believe the forum would be a much, much worse place for his absence and feel that what he brings here to share - without asking anything from anybody else, shows a generosity and passion not found in many men. I think in any online forum there are bound to be others we don't seem to get on with as well as we'd like. When we don't know them personally it's easy to draw our own conclusions or even resort to sterotyping. I'd hoped this particular thread might be an opportunity for us all to if not create a shared experience then share in our common interest in a civil manner devoid of any arbitrary and capricious judgement. Mick Jagger said it best at Altamont when he said "Who's fighting and what for? If we are all one let's show we're all one". It's too late for Altamont, I can only hope it's not too late for this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION I'm standing here totally speechless and amazed at what I just witnessed- Led Zeppelin's triumphant return to Madison Square Garden. I can't believe it's over, it just went too fast! Heart took the stage about 8:45 and played a great set: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnUmZMwIdv4 And then, after a short intermission, the lights went down again- the moment was now here! No announcement necessary- the music said it all..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qn1R1MoAlW4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JybkqBGrVs Robert, wearing a red silk shirt unbuttoned halfway down as well as a tight pair of black leather pants (yes Deborah J, I saw you looking! ), was all smiles as he looked around at the audience. "Good evening! Good evening! It's so great, to be back here in New York, in the eeeeeveningg!" After "In The Evening" ended, the lights went out, save for an eerie blue misty spotlight on John Paul Jones at the organ. At this point, some of the roadies came out and set up some chairs at the front of the stage for their acoustic set: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-c5Q-00vbFo http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVrfHuihPfo For the next song, Robert said, " For the final song of our acoustic set, we're going to do a song from the fourth album, that we did with the late, lovely Sandy Denny. But uh, instead of Jonesy doing the vocals, we decided to uh, let him off the hook and... let's welcome Ann Wilson, of Heart! After "The Battle of Evermore", the roadies cleared the chairs and and John Paul picked up his bass: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wewu45XSb00 Then Jimmy, who was wearing a black velvet jacket with silver embellishments similar to the one he wore in TSRTS, picked up his doubleneck guitar & the crowd went wild! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kNEo8OxrT8 Robert then spoke- "Ah, it's great to be back...but uh, I'd like to dedicate this next song, to one of the greatest blokes who ever sat behind a drum kit, my mate John Henry Bonham." After "Achilles", the band came to the front of the stage, waving & smiling before they disappeared behind the stage. The entire Garden was vibrating with applause and shouts of "more! more!". And as the band came back on stage the cheering just got louder and louder! Jimmy began the riff, and we all stood there mesmerized, like The Edge and Jack White were in "It Might Get Loud": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDLfDzeDG2c "New York- good night!" Robert said, as he, Jimmy, Jonesy, and Jason again came to the front of the stage, bowing & smiling. "We'll see you again soon!". (hmmm- I wonder how much Stub Hub wants for tix for tomorrow night's show?) FICTION Stargroves Tangie, wasn't this the perfect night!! Starting out with Heart doing a great Rock & Rock, then our boys taking the stage with a great new set list, completely different set list than Montreal. The place was on fire last night. I loved that they played Hey Hey What Can I Do as this is one of my favorites!! And the reason I always try to get stagefront on JPJ's side is No Quarter Then the tribute to our beloved JOHN BONHAM...wow, I was overcome with emotion. The party at BB Kings and then the concert and to be able to all meet each other. I am still in awe!!! I saw you laugh at me when you caught me on numerous occasions looking at ROBERT in his red shirt, wished he would have just had no buttons:-) Can't wait to see tonights set list.See you there:-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
austinzeppelin68 Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 Hey, Glad you finally made it!! No worries, does it look like the party pooper really dampened anyones mood? Well, boys & girls, my cell battery is about to die. The solo for Stairway is about to start. I'm standing at a Led Zeppelin concert with my lover. Life is good. It looks like I'll be hanging out with Deborah, Ronnie & ledzepfvr for the rest of the show. Goodnight all & have a rockin time!! **Sorry I haven't been on in a few days** Anyhow, from this perspective, life most definitely is good. I'm holding you as tight as I can apart from my spontaneous urges to play the air guitar. Deborah seems to be having a good time over there, what is that, a bouquet of roses she's throwing at Jimmy? This definitely is a night to remember, after all, what IS life if not just one big Zeppelin tour. R.I.P. John Henry "Bonzo" Bonham. May you be the glorious drummer for all the tunes that Heaven has to play. ( ) Looking forward to the next setlist!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION after all, what IS life if not just one big Zeppelin tour. In total agreement:-) Can't wait to see you there tonight!Yes I am having a more than great time:-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ledzepfvr Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FACT Whats a Led Zeppelin tour without the critic's chiming in to tear things down? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jabe Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION New details are emerging about Led Zeppelin's upcoming concert in Mayberry, North Carolina. Led Zeppelin will headline one night of the initial three day festival taking place just outside the city limits. Using a template similar to Bonaroo, organizers estimate 350,000 to 499,999 people will attend the event. Wealthy landowner, Earnest T. Bass is donating the use of 1700 of his 5500 acre spread for the festival. Said Bass, "My wife did one of those family tree things on the computer and it seems I'm related to Max Yasgur somehow. I figure it must be a hereditary thing." Robert Plant was quoted briefly after the exceptional MSG show last night. "We played Greensboro in late January of 1975.I was not fully recovered from the bug and that was not our best night as a band. We look forward to returning to such a beautiful part of America and giving three full hours of pure energy beneath the stars." A contest is being held to name the festval with no name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveAJones Posted September 27, 2009 Author Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION New details are emerging about Led Zeppelin's upcoming concert in Mayberry, North Carolina. Perhaps cancel it? One thing will undoubtedly lead to another around here and it could get ugly for everyone: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ledzepfvr Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION What another great night inspite of some interuptions for some rowdy, yet enthusiastic fans. Led Zeppelin just keeps getting better as they are setteling into their new tour. I did notice an ever so slight opening night jitters but the boys definately got their groove on now. When they played the new, but still familiar arrangement of Kashmir I closed my eyes and tried to envision the journey they took that inspired the song. (Riding a camel isn't easy.) Ann Wilson did a wonderful harmony with Robert in the Battle of Evermore. "Every girl's crazy about a well dressed man" (if I may quote ZZ Top) and we were not dissappointed as the guys looked every bit classy in their outfits. I'm looking forward to what I'm sure will be another memorable night tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveAJones Posted September 27, 2009 Author Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION I closed my eyes and tried to envision the journey they took that inspired the song. (Riding a camel isn't easy.) ^^^ OH! Who is going to the next concert? I have an opening act to recommend via PM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 ^^^ OH! Who is going to the next concert? I have an opening act to recommend via PM. FICTION I am, just sent you a PM:-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Rover Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 An Update to the Cowboys Stadium show..... Tony Romo, who had been photographed attending Mavericks Basketball games with a Led Zeppelin T-shirt on, has said that getting to go to the Led Zeppelin concert will be his greatest experience in the stadium to date... Also, it has been leaked that for this show, the boys will be performing their full Acoustic set in the middle of this show. The band will be introduced by none other than Billy Gibbons. There will be no warm up band for this show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveAJones Posted September 27, 2009 Author Share Posted September 27, 2009 An Update to the Cowboys Stadium show..... Tony Romo, who had been photographed attending Mavericks Basketball games with a Led Zeppelin T-shirt on, has said that getting to go to the Led Zeppelin concert will be his greatest experience in the stadium to date... Also, it has been leaked that for this show, the boys will be performing their full Acoustic set in the middle of this show. The band will be introduced by none other than Billy Gibbons. There will be no warm up band for this show. You got a good imagination. Tony Romo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stargroves Tangie Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION Still recovering from the excitement of last night's show- what a great time we had hanging out with the other Forum members & fans from all over the world! Of course I want to go back tonight, so I finally found a guy on Craigslist who was selling a single ticket (going solo tonight as my husband said 'it's football day & you're on your own')for a reasonable price. The seat's not in the Golden Circle (man was I spoiled with those seats!), in fact it's the total opposite (sect. 347, last row) so I probably will be watching the video screen unless I bring binoculars! But I don't care, as long as I'm there I know I will have a good time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigstickbonzo Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 Philly Spectrum Adds Zeppelin To End of Era AP With much fanfare about Led Zeppelin's return to the world scene this fall with their first major tour since disbanding 29 years ago, it was only fitting they come back to Philly in style. While they are playing the Electric Factory October 12th to a smaller crowd, it has been announced they will play the Spectrum the following night which is sure to be a memorable performance. The Spectrum is closing its doors after more than 40 years of service to the Philadelphia entertainment scene. Following Led Zeppelin will be Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam and local favorites the Hooters joining Hall & Oates for the final performances at the venue before its demolishing sometime early next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ledded1 Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FACT NOT FICTION - THIS IS WHAT IT REALLY FEELS LIKE TO GO TO A ZEP SHOW. (02 STORIES FROM THE FORUM) SORRY GUYS BUT NO MATEER HOW HARD YOU TRY YOU DON'T COME CLOSE TO THE REAL THING. Posted 10 January 2008 - 05:41 PM Well, work is slow and I've got some time to kill so I'll follow C's lead and post my story. I hope others will do the same. Tickets! Ebay all the way here. Of course I entered the ballot but after not winning the first evening, I panicked! I took a $450 chance and it ultimately paid-off. Probably the best gamble I've ever made. Since my wife would be 6 months pregnant by the end of November, I went for stadium seating but Ticketmaster kept timing-out. After several hours of trying, I settled for floor tickets. So what if we had to hang-out in the back, at least we were going to be there! The Harvey Incident Several weeks on the ticket roller coaster was not fun. Maybe I shouldn't go after all. The wife's pregnant. London is far from home. Do I really want to spend a few thousand dollars on a Zeppelin concert? Fuck yeah! A Stroll in the Garden Jimmy has a tumble and I'm out another $500! Wow. Talk about power. The hotel also had to be changed since it was all booked for the new date. Hmmm, that's strange considering it was the only hotel in the immediate vacinity of the O2. Oh well, I'll just book Club Quarters in the financial district and pay twice as much. Not my only option I know but it was a nice room just north of London Bridge, which would prove to be a convenient location. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus Wow, finally in London! My wife's first time, almost 15 years since my last visit. Hit Convent Garden on Saturday with my wife's friend from Ireland who flew in to hang for the night. We're just a bunch of jet-setters (lol, I still get emails from the O2 for upcoming concerts). Early to bed after some Toad-in-the-Hole and lots of English Ale. The next day, of course, was ticket day. Funny, waiting in line, it turns out the couple behind us is also from Long Island! How 'bout that. They're friends with a friend of Jason Bonham who comes over and spills the beans on the opening song. In any event, the good part: when it's our turn for tickets and wrist bands, my wife speaks up about her pregnancy, 6 1/2 months at this point, and we're taken aside. Exciting! It turns out they put us in the first level, directly on Jimmy's side of the stage. I mean, he was 40 or 50 feet away. Merry fucking Christmas! The Party Sunday night we hooked-up with The Friends of Zep group for a raging party. The bar, south of London Bridge, was kind of a dive but the people were great. Off the top of my head, some came from Maryland, Colorado, California, Texas, Canada, England (Stuart!), and yes, Long Island. We all got drunk and watched Zeppelin bootlegs all night long. It was a great time. Thanks Sharon! In Concert and Beyond In the interest of brevity, I will simply state that I cried my eyes out during No Quarter. It was really happening. We were there in London with Led Zeppelin playing our favorite rock music in the world. It's actually more than just music. I've always felt really connected to these guys. I can't quite put my finger on it. In any event, the baby, Sophia Mae, really dug Ramble On according to my wife The Day After When I woke up, my ears were still ringing. It was over. Time to go home. What just happened? Was it a dream? Saw Hugh Grant on the flight home and wondered if he was at the show. Not that it mattered. I was there and it felt great. And yes, it was a dream. I went to both the Knebworth gigs in 1979, which kind of merged into a single experience for me, and posted a single-line review of these gigs on this site indicating the August 4th gig as the best I have ever been to. The reason I didn’t go into great detail is that, apart from a few instances (queuing all night for tickets, camping out the night before the gig, the rush I felt when Page hit the opening note of TSRTS, the moment the smoke bombs went off just before they played Kashmir), it’s a bit difficult for me to remember specifics after nearly 30 years. I certainly know a few other gigs have come close over the years, but never quite matched Knebworth 79. The O2 gig in 2007 is a different matter, all the details still very much fresh in my mind. So, here’s my story…. It all started in the middle of the year, when I first started hearing rumours of a reunion. These have been cropping up every so often over the past 25 years, so I didn’t really pay much attention at first, but as time went on, they became more persistent, and when a venue and date were being mentioned, and even advertised on some ticket sites, I started paying attention. Not least because the venue mentioned, the O2, was in South East London, where I live. Led Zeppelin playing a one-off gig up the road from me? Too good to be true, surely. When the day of the announcement finally arrived, I was all ready to head off to the O2 at a moment’s notice, even though I expected the tickets to be distributed in a similar manner to the Live 8 concert in 2005. Well, the means chosen was of course the now-infamous ballot method. I had the same problems as everyone else getting onto the site, but finally managed to get on and register, but by the day the draw took place, I had already come to the conclusion that my chances of winning were virtually nil (actually something like 100/1 by my calculation), and had investigated the ticket shops in Charing Cross Road who were quoting anything up to a thousand quid per ticket. Given the strict rules governing the ballot, I couldn’t quite see how they would get hold of tickets anyway. Of course October 1st came and went, with no golden email for me, but this was of course totally expected. My next stop was inevitably eBay, where the passcodes started duly turning up. Harvey Goldsmith had already made it clear that the winners of the passcodes had to be the person that bought the tickets, but what about all the people that were buying with a passcode they had been given by their aunt, friend, boss, etc? Something told me this would be my only chance, so I plunged in and checked out the ‘buy it now’ codes. OK…let’s go for the cheapest one, which had only been posted a couple of minutes ago…whoops already gone! Lots of people out there thinking the same as me. OK, next one, costing a bit more…got it! Then straight onto Ticketmaster where I have the choice of standing or seated. Well, I know how they work, seated will probably keep offering me stuff way up high or right over to the side. If I had hours to try again and again I might eventually end up with something decent, but sitting in the office at work, I don’t have too much time for this, and the head of my department (a huge Zeppelin fan!) has already seen my buy the passcode, so I don’t want to spend too much time mucking about. So…standing tickets it is! Having secured the tickets, I now have to endure a couple of months waiting to find out of this will all work out; the promoter is quite clear I won’t get in…and my tickets will be cancelled within 14 days. As time goes on, however, the howls of protest start building, and it becomes evident that I’ve probably got away with it! I have a bit of a guilt complex, but the bottom line is that the touts have got hold of quite a few of these, so if I hadn’t bought them, someone else would have got them anyway! So…after a few weeks, I start feeling a little more comfortable. Having taken quite a risk, I had of course bought a pair. The ‘obvious’ thing to do with the spare is flog it on eBay and get my money back….but there’s no way I want to do that. No doubt this would have gone to another fan, but I feel that even though I had the money to achieve this (and I’m certainly not a rich man), money should not be the deciding factor in who receives the other ticket , it should go to the person that deserves it the most. I need to go with another fanatic, someone who gets as much of a buzz out of this as I do. After reading through the posts on the (old) Zeppelin site, I eventually arrive at a short list of three candidates, out of which I chose Caz, . Luckily the other two, leddy and brpsled both managed to get into the gig under their own steam anyway, so I think fate directed me to the right guest. I wrote to Caz letting her know the situation, and she agreed to join me, despite not knowing for certain whether this was all going to work out. Of course time slowly passed by, and apart from a near disaster (I was due to fly to Japan on December 14th) when Jimmy broke his finger, the great day finally arrived, December 9th. In retrospect I would have gone down on December 10th to collect the ticket, but originally thought I would be busy during the day, only finding out at the last moment that I was not. Anyway, Caz and I finally got to meet face to face, along with her boyfriend Bob, who joined us for loads of queuing during our time in Greenwich, with no reward for him! After a couple of hours slowly shuffling forward to the ticket desk, I handed over the sheet of paper with the reference number. I must admit, by the time I was certain there would be no problems…everyone else was walking away with the prize, and I’m sure loads of people in the queue had cheated the system like me! It was all over in a couple of minutes…here’s the tickets, write down your names on a bit of paper, have the wristband fitted….and finally it’s in the bag…sorted, as we Brits say! I was not just glad that it had all finally worked out, but also really pleased for Caz, who had travelled halfway down the country and effectively put her trust in a complete stranger. We posed while Bob took a photo, the pair of us looking like the cat that got the cream. We then went into one of the O2’s expensive bars to celebrate with a bottle of bubbly. December 10th…finally the great day had arrived. After about 30 minutes queuing we were into the arena, and selected a pitch about 20 feet in front of the mixing desk. The security had been virtually non-existent, and I was a bit annoyed that I had decided against smuggling in my minidisk recorder, but I knew plenty of others would have done so, therefore the bootlegs would be available by the end of the week. The gig kicked off with a so-so prog rock run through of an ELP song from the late 1970’s, and then Bill Wyman’s band took to the stage, acting as a backing band to a number of singers such as (Swan Song artists) Maggie Bell and Paul Rodgers. This was all great, especially Paul, who sounded as good as when I saw him with Bad Company nearly 30 years ago. ‘All Right Now’ was exactly the kind of song this crowd wanted to hear, and he went down a storm. Unfortunately this was followed by the dire Foreigner, who made their power ballad even more inappropriate by bringing on a kids choir to sing along with the chorus. I really could have done without this, but the night was all about celebrating Ahmet Ertegun, and they did have connections there I suppose…I just think they could have come up with an alternative. Thankfully they only played the one song then made there exit. Next up was the band we had all come to see. Would they rise to the occasion? I knew that other 1960’s bands could still carry it off. In 2006/2007 I had seen the Who four times and the Stones three times, and they were both great, although they both had extra members on stage. More to the point, in 2005, I had seen Cream four times, a band I never dreamed I would get to see, and they were way better than I could have hoped for, the final Albert Hall gig being second only to Knebworth ’79 as far as I was concerned. As for Led Zep: Jason Bonham was an unknown quantity to me, but I knew he had to be good to be on the same stage as the other three, no matter who his father was. JPJ was always totally reliable, so I was quite sure he would be fine. Robert Plant I had seen many times over the years, so I knew his voice was still in fine shape…the only slight worry I had was the man with the guitar. Jimmy Page in his heyday was only ever matched as a rock guitarist by Hendrix, as far as I’m concerned. However, his playing went downhill rapidly after Zeppelin split, and he has been trying to climb back up to the top of the pile ever since. He was pretty good playing with Robert in the 1990’s, but with loads of other people up on stage, I felt they were there to take the load off Jimmy to an extent. Would he manage to regain his old vigour tonight? The lights go down, and some news footage of Zeppelin’s 1973 gig in Florida starts on the big screen behind the stage. The end of this herald’s the band’s arrival, as they launch into Good Times Bad Times. Robert takes a couple of lines to get going, but is soon in his stride, Jason Bonham is clearly up to the job, JPJ sounds OK, but a bit low in the mix to really stand out. Jimmy goes into his first bit of lead guitar, and there’s a huge roar of approval from the crowd around me…and there’s no doubt about it, the guy’s on form. At some points over the next two hours I watch the fingers of his right hand, projected onto the backdrop screen, turn into a blur, just like they did in 1979. He’s still got it. Not quite as fast as in his prime, but still well up to the task. The first and second songs, while great, are obviously placed to allow the band time to warm up, and the engineers to get the measure of the venue. Next up is Black Dog, and this is the one where the band hit their stride. Led Zeppelin have reclaimed their crown as the greatest rock band ever. Caz got a little emotional at this point, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was meant to be there, fate guided me in choosing my guest. The guys onstage kept up the momentum for the rest of the gig, In My Time Of Dying, Kashmir, Whole Lotta Love…how can you go wrong with a set list that contains such gems? During Dazed and Confused Jimmy produced the violin bow, and while I’ve seen his do this a few times over the years, to see him do it onstage with Led Zeppelin, during this particular number…wow. Seeing him standing in the middle of the laser pyramid, creating that amazing sound took me straight back to my teenage years, and I felt exactly like I did as a 16 year old, standing watch him do the same thing at Knebworth. You can see footage of this on TV, but actually being there is a whole different thing! The overall impression of this gig was that out of the hundreds of concerts I’ve been to over the years, this has to rank in the top three, alongside Cream’s final night at the Albert Hall and of course, Knebworth, 4th August 1979. After all the negative press Led Zeppelin got in the 1970’s, it was very pleasing to see the string of five star reviews in the press. I can only say that I feel very lucky to have been one of the fortunate few that actually got in to see this fantastic concert…they could easily have sold out 100 nights in this venue if they wanted. Without doubt I’ll remember this night for the rest of my life. Posted 29 April 2008 - 11:42 PM It's a bit of a long story, but hopefully worth the read. It started with getting to the 02 on Friday and being told there's no way that we can stay there until the show. We had a hotel room, but wanted to queue. Went back on Saturday with all of our gear and when we approached security they called the office and said the first of the zeppelin people are here. We broke out laughing hysterically. Just too funny. We got to hang inside all of saturday night and even played poker inside the 02 before anyone came on sunday morning. Then the crowd started coming. We went outside and were first in line. A few minutes later the BBC cameras pull up and interview zepp-4-life and me and others in line as well. This was the queue for the wristband only. Got the wristbands and they again filmed us. Then we go to the queue for the show. How cool. A psychedelic wall to hang out by for the next day and a half!!! Any many of the most hardcore Led Zeppelin fans to exist!!!! Everyone was awesome to say the least. A true comeraderie between the people from all over the world. I filmed everyone on my camcorder and one of these days will get it online. I've got some great footage. There were so many tv and radio interviewers going on it was just crazy. I didn't want to leave. Sunday night was cool. Went to the Friends of Zep party which was just kicking. Very cool bunch of people escpecially the planner who went to great lengths to ensure all of us an excellent time. Hats off to you!!! Back to the queue at about 3am and stayed there all day monday again getting interviewed over and over and meeting people from all over the world. Only one bummer and that was that a few of the other early queuers jumped in front of me while the line shifted from one place to another. I thought it was pretty low of them to do so when it was obvious that we were there before anyone but at that point there was no need to have a problem and complain. I was first and they know it!!! The show was just amazing. Tingles throughout my body the entire night. I NEEDED to hear stairway. It was everything I hoped for. Nobody expected For Your Life which they never played before and it was just amazing. When I watch the video I get chills. My favorite song of the night though was In My Time of Dying. It was just amazing seeing Jimmy play it. It was like watching an old movie about the blues. Maybe it was the angle I was seeing it from and the light but it was simply incredible. Something I will never forget. Of course we all wanted to hear about 20 other songs but I was overall very happy with the setlist. My original prediction of what they would play was way off. After the show was sleep and then off the the bbc at 5am. Interviews on the breakfast show, world news, bbc radio several times, and then driven to the cbc canadian tv studio for another interview which is available online as well. Back to the room exhausted at the end of the day and the phone rings. It's Capetown south Africa calling asking if I'll do a phone interview about the show. OK, why not. What an amazing amazing time. And to end it the taxi ride to the airport we listened to stairway to heaven live. It was the most amazing experience ever in my life and will never forget many of the people I've met. The Other, Suzanne, Chief, Henri, Suzanne, BBC folks, security at the 02 was awesome a+++. Rock on Led Zeppelin!!! See you all at the next show!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THERE WERE MORE STORIES BUT THE FACTS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES I was there and its still so fresh, as are my memories from 73.75 and 79. You can't make it up really.I will leave you to it but carry on enjoying it as you seem to be doing. Dream on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ms_zeppelin94 Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION WOW!!! Thanks for the review Steve, that was one hell of a show- I hope that tonight's MSG show will be as equally amazing! Still waiting for Deborah J, Reggie29, ledzepfvr, ms zeppelin 94, badgeholder, jabe to check in, I guess they're still speechless from last night... Ooooh my head.... Speechless is a huge understatement!! Sorry I've been MIA for a few days, I just recently remembered that I'm on a place called "Earth". This weekend has been amasing!! It all seems like a huge dream... The show Friday...no words to describe it!! Electrifying...mind-boggling? Deborah, Ronnie, and ledzepfvr were great company. Glad to hear that Deborah & Ronnie had a good night afterwards Although it's been 29 years, the boys never lost "it" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stargroves Tangie Posted September 27, 2009 Share Posted September 27, 2009 FICTION Just arrived at my seat here at MSG for tonight's show, I'm waaay up & out in the boondocks but fortunately there's a huge video screen above the stage so I'll be able to see them close. There's a lot of rumors flying around here about who is going to open tonight & what the setlist will be, but I guess we'll all find out soon enough. Catch you guys later! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ms_zeppelin94 Posted September 28, 2009 Share Posted September 28, 2009 **Sorry I haven't been on in a few days** Anyhow, from this perspective, life most definitely is good. I'm holding you as tight as I can apart from my spontaneous urges to play the air guitar. Deborah seems to be having a good time over there, what is that, a bouquet of roses she's throwing at Jimmy? This definitely is a night to remember, after all, what IS life if not just one big Zeppelin tour. R.I.P. John Henry "Bonzo" Bonham. May you be the glorious drummer for all the tunes that Heaven has to play. ( ) Looking forward to the next setlist!! Ohhh so that's what Deborah was throwing on stage... Ah the spontaneous air guitar...I did notice your fingers drumming out the rhythms on my arm from time to time... Rest In Peace Bonzo. I dedicate this whole experience to you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted September 28, 2009 Share Posted September 28, 2009 FACT NOT FICTION - THIS IS WHAT IT REALLY FEELS LIKE TO GO TO A ZEP SHOW. (02 STORIES FROM THE FORUM) SORRY GUYS BUT NO MATEER HOW HARD YOU TRY YOU DON'T COME CLOSE TO THE REAL THING. Posted 10 January 2008 - 05:41 PM Well, work is slow and I've got some time to kill so I'll follow C's lead and post my story. I hope others will do the same. Tickets! Ebay all the way here. Of course I entered the ballot but after not winning the first evening, I panicked! I took a $450 chance and it ultimately paid-off. Probably the best gamble I've ever made. Since my wife would be 6 months pregnant by the end of November, I went for stadium seating but Ticketmaster kept timing-out. After several hours of trying, I settled for floor tickets. So what if we had to hang-out in the back, at least we were going to be there! The Harvey Incident Several weeks on the ticket roller coaster was not fun. Maybe I shouldn't go after all. The wife's pregnant. London is far from home. Do I really want to spend a few thousand dollars on a Zeppelin concert? Fuck yeah! A Stroll in the Garden Jimmy has a tumble and I'm out another $500! Wow. Talk about power. The hotel also had to be changed since it was all booked for the new date. Hmmm, that's strange considering it was the only hotel in the immediate vacinity of the O2. Oh well, I'll just book Club Quarters in the financial district and pay twice as much. Not my only option I know but it was a nice room just north of London Bridge, which would prove to be a convenient location. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus Wow, finally in London! My wife's first time, almost 15 years since my last visit. Hit Convent Garden on Saturday with my wife's friend from Ireland who flew in to hang for the night. We're just a bunch of jet-setters (lol, I still get emails from the O2 for upcoming concerts). Early to bed after some Toad-in-the-Hole and lots of English Ale. The next day, of course, was ticket day. Funny, waiting in line, it turns out the couple behind us is also from Long Island! How 'bout that. They're friends with a friend of Jason Bonham who comes over and spills the beans on the opening song. In any event, the good part: when it's our turn for tickets and wrist bands, my wife speaks up about her pregnancy, 6 1/2 months at this point, and we're taken aside. Exciting! It turns out they put us in the first level, directly on Jimmy's side of the stage. I mean, he was 40 or 50 feet away. Merry fucking Christmas! The Party Sunday night we hooked-up with The Friends of Zep group for a raging party. The bar, south of London Bridge, was kind of a dive but the people were great. Off the top of my head, some came from Maryland, Colorado, California, Texas, Canada, England (Stuart!), and yes, Long Island. We all got drunk and watched Zeppelin bootlegs all night long. It was a great time. Thanks Sharon! In Concert and Beyond In the interest of brevity, I will simply state that I cried my eyes out during No Quarter. It was really happening. We were there in London with Led Zeppelin playing our favorite rock music in the world. It's actually more than just music. I've always felt really connected to these guys. I can't quite put my finger on it. In any event, the baby, Sophia Mae, really dug Ramble On according to my wife The Day After When I woke up, my ears were still ringing. It was over. Time to go home. What just happened? Was it a dream? Saw Hugh Grant on the flight home and wondered if he was at the show. Not that it mattered. I was there and it felt great. And yes, it was a dream. I went to both the Knebworth gigs in 1979, which kind of merged into a single experience for me, and posted a single-line review of these gigs on this site indicating the August 4th gig as the best I have ever been to. The reason I didn’t go into great detail is that, apart from a few instances (queuing all night for tickets, camping out the night before the gig, the rush I felt when Page hit the opening note of TSRTS, the moment the smoke bombs went off just before they played Kashmir), it’s a bit difficult for me to remember specifics after nearly 30 years. I certainly know a few other gigs have come close over the years, but never quite matched Knebworth 79. The O2 gig in 2007 is a different matter, all the details still very much fresh in my mind. So, here’s my story…. It all started in the middle of the year, when I first started hearing rumours of a reunion. These have been cropping up every so often over the past 25 years, so I didn’t really pay much attention at first, but as time went on, they became more persistent, and when a venue and date were being mentioned, and even advertised on some ticket sites, I started paying attention. Not least because the venue mentioned, the O2, was in South East London, where I live. Led Zeppelin playing a one-off gig up the road from me? Too good to be true, surely. When the day of the announcement finally arrived, I was all ready to head off to the O2 at a moment’s notice, even though I expected the tickets to be distributed in a similar manner to the Live 8 concert in 2005. Well, the means chosen was of course the now-infamous ballot method. I had the same problems as everyone else getting onto the site, but finally managed to get on and register, but by the day the draw took place, I had already come to the conclusion that my chances of winning were virtually nil (actually something like 100/1 by my calculation), and had investigated the ticket shops in Charing Cross Road who were quoting anything up to a thousand quid per ticket. Given the strict rules governing the ballot, I couldn’t quite see how they would get hold of tickets anyway. Of course October 1st came and went, with no golden email for me, but this was of course totally expected. My next stop was inevitably eBay, where the passcodes started duly turning up. Harvey Goldsmith had already made it clear that the winners of the passcodes had to be the person that bought the tickets, but what about all the people that were buying with a passcode they had been given by their aunt, friend, boss, etc? Something told me this would be my only chance, so I plunged in and checked out the ‘buy it now’ codes. OK…let’s go for the cheapest one, which had only been posted a couple of minutes ago…whoops already gone! Lots of people out there thinking the same as me. OK, next one, costing a bit more…got it! Then straight onto Ticketmaster where I have the choice of standing or seated. Well, I know how they work, seated will probably keep offering me stuff way up high or right over to the side. If I had hours to try again and again I might eventually end up with something decent, but sitting in the office at work, I don’t have too much time for this, and the head of my department (a huge Zeppelin fan!) has already seen my buy the passcode, so I don’t want to spend too much time mucking about. So…standing tickets it is! Having secured the tickets, I now have to endure a couple of months waiting to find out of this will all work out; the promoter is quite clear I won’t get in…and my tickets will be cancelled within 14 days. As time goes on, however, the howls of protest start building, and it becomes evident that I’ve probably got away with it! I have a bit of a guilt complex, but the bottom line is that the touts have got hold of quite a few of these, so if I hadn’t bought them, someone else would have got them anyway! So…after a few weeks, I start feeling a little more comfortable. Having taken quite a risk, I had of course bought a pair. The ‘obvious’ thing to do with the spare is flog it on eBay and get my money back….but there’s no way I want to do that. No doubt this would have gone to another fan, but I feel that even though I had the money to achieve this (and I’m certainly not a rich man), money should not be the deciding factor in who receives the other ticket , it should go to the person that deserves it the most. I need to go with another fanatic, someone who gets as much of a buzz out of this as I do. After reading through the posts on the (old) Zeppelin site, I eventually arrive at a short list of three candidates, out of which I chose Caz, . Luckily the other two, leddy and brpsled both managed to get into the gig under their own steam anyway, so I think fate directed me to the right guest. I wrote to Caz letting her know the situation, and she agreed to join me, despite not knowing for certain whether this was all going to work out. Of course time slowly passed by, and apart from a near disaster (I was due to fly to Japan on December 14th) when Jimmy broke his finger, the great day finally arrived, December 9th. In retrospect I would have gone down on December 10th to collect the ticket, but originally thought I would be busy during the day, only finding out at the last moment that I was not. Anyway, Caz and I finally got to meet face to face, along with her boyfriend Bob, who joined us for loads of queuing during our time in Greenwich, with no reward for him! After a couple of hours slowly shuffling forward to the ticket desk, I handed over the sheet of paper with the reference number. I must admit, by the time I was certain there would be no problems…everyone else was walking away with the prize, and I’m sure loads of people in the queue had cheated the system like me! It was all over in a couple of minutes…here’s the tickets, write down your names on a bit of paper, have the wristband fitted….and finally it’s in the bag…sorted, as we Brits say! I was not just glad that it had all finally worked out, but also really pleased for Caz, who had travelled halfway down the country and effectively put her trust in a complete stranger. We posed while Bob took a photo, the pair of us looking like the cat that got the cream. We then went into one of the O2’s expensive bars to celebrate with a bottle of bubbly. December 10th…finally the great day had arrived. After about 30 minutes queuing we were into the arena, and selected a pitch about 20 feet in front of the mixing desk. The security had been virtually non-existent, and I was a bit annoyed that I had decided against smuggling in my minidisk recorder, but I knew plenty of others would have done so, therefore the bootlegs would be available by the end of the week. The gig kicked off with a so-so prog rock run through of an ELP song from the late 1970’s, and then Bill Wyman’s band took to the stage, acting as a backing band to a number of singers such as (Swan Song artists) Maggie Bell and Paul Rodgers. This was all great, especially Paul, who sounded as good as when I saw him with Bad Company nearly 30 years ago. ‘All Right Now’ was exactly the kind of song this crowd wanted to hear, and he went down a storm. Unfortunately this was followed by the dire Foreigner, who made their power ballad even more inappropriate by bringing on a kids choir to sing along with the chorus. I really could have done without this, but the night was all about celebrating Ahmet Ertegun, and they did have connections there I suppose…I just think they could have come up with an alternative. Thankfully they only played the one song then made there exit. Next up was the band we had all come to see. Would they rise to the occasion? I knew that other 1960’s bands could still carry it off. In 2006/2007 I had seen the Who four times and the Stones three times, and they were both great, although they both had extra members on stage. More to the point, in 2005, I had seen Cream four times, a band I never dreamed I would get to see, and they were way better than I could have hoped for, the final Albert Hall gig being second only to Knebworth ’79 as far as I was concerned. As for Led Zep: Jason Bonham was an unknown quantity to me, but I knew he had to be good to be on the same stage as the other three, no matter who his father was. JPJ was always totally reliable, so I was quite sure he would be fine. Robert Plant I had seen many times over the years, so I knew his voice was still in fine shape…the only slight worry I had was the man with the guitar. Jimmy Page in his heyday was only ever matched as a rock guitarist by Hendrix, as far as I’m concerned. However, his playing went downhill rapidly after Zeppelin split, and he has been trying to climb back up to the top of the pile ever since. He was pretty good playing with Robert in the 1990’s, but with loads of other people up on stage, I felt they were there to take the load off Jimmy to an extent. Would he manage to regain his old vigour tonight? The lights go down, and some news footage of Zeppelin’s 1973 gig in Florida starts on the big screen behind the stage. The end of this herald’s the band’s arrival, as they launch into Good Times Bad Times. Robert takes a couple of lines to get going, but is soon in his stride, Jason Bonham is clearly up to the job, JPJ sounds OK, but a bit low in the mix to really stand out. Jimmy goes into his first bit of lead guitar, and there’s a huge roar of approval from the crowd around me…and there’s no doubt about it, the guy’s on form. At some points over the next two hours I watch the fingers of his right hand, projected onto the backdrop screen, turn into a blur, just like they did in 1979. He’s still got it. Not quite as fast as in his prime, but still well up to the task. The first and second songs, while great, are obviously placed to allow the band time to warm up, and the engineers to get the measure of the venue. Next up is Black Dog, and this is the one where the band hit their stride. Led Zeppelin have reclaimed their crown as the greatest rock band ever. Caz got a little emotional at this point, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was meant to be there, fate guided me in choosing my guest. The guys onstage kept up the momentum for the rest of the gig, In My Time Of Dying, Kashmir, Whole Lotta Love…how can you go wrong with a set list that contains such gems? During Dazed and Confused Jimmy produced the violin bow, and while I’ve seen his do this a few times over the years, to see him do it onstage with Led Zeppelin, during this particular number…wow. Seeing him standing in the middle of the laser pyramid, creating that amazing sound took me straight back to my teenage years, and I felt exactly like I did as a 16 year old, standing watch him do the same thing at Knebworth. You can see footage of this on TV, but actually being there is a whole different thing! The overall impression of this gig was that out of the hundreds of concerts I’ve been to over the years, this has to rank in the top three, alongside Cream’s final night at the Albert Hall and of course, Knebworth, 4th August 1979. After all the negative press Led Zeppelin got in the 1970’s, it was very pleasing to see the string of five star reviews in the press. I can only say that I feel very lucky to have been one of the fortunate few that actually got in to see this fantastic concert…they could easily have sold out 100 nights in this venue if they wanted. Without doubt I’ll remember this night for the rest of my life. Posted 29 April 2008 - 11:42 PM It's a bit of a long story, but hopefully worth the read. It started with getting to the 02 on Friday and being told there's no way that we can stay there until the show. We had a hotel room, but wanted to queue. Went back on Saturday with all of our gear and when we approached security they called the office and said the first of the zeppelin people are here. We broke out laughing hysterically. Just too funny. We got to hang inside all of saturday night and even played poker inside the 02 before anyone came on sunday morning. Then the crowd started coming. We went outside and were first in line. A few minutes later the BBC cameras pull up and interview zepp-4-life and me and others in line as well. This was the queue for the wristband only. Got the wristbands and they again filmed us. Then we go to the queue for the show. How cool. A psychedelic wall to hang out by for the next day and a half!!! Any many of the most hardcore Led Zeppelin fans to exist!!!! Everyone was awesome to say the least. A true comeraderie between the people from all over the world. I filmed everyone on my camcorder and one of these days will get it online. I've got some great footage. There were so many tv and radio interviewers going on it was just crazy. I didn't want to leave. Sunday night was cool. Went to the Friends of Zep party which was just kicking. Very cool bunch of people escpecially the planner who went to great lengths to ensure all of us an excellent time. Hats off to you!!! Back to the queue at about 3am and stayed there all day monday again getting interviewed over and over and meeting people from all over the world. Only one bummer and that was that a few of the other early queuers jumped in front of me while the line shifted from one place to another. I thought it was pretty low of them to do so when it was obvious that we were there before anyone but at that point there was no need to have a problem and complain. I was first and they know it!!! The show was just amazing. Tingles throughout my body the entire night. I NEEDED to hear stairway. It was everything I hoped for. Nobody expected For Your Life which they never played before and it was just amazing. When I watch the video I get chills. My favorite song of the night though was In My Time of Dying. It was just amazing seeing Jimmy play it. It was like watching an old movie about the blues. Maybe it was the angle I was seeing it from and the light but it was simply incredible. Something I will never forget. Of course we all wanted to hear about 20 other songs but I was overall very happy with the setlist. My original prediction of what they would play was way off. After the show was sleep and then off the the bbc at 5am. Interviews on the breakfast show, world news, bbc radio several times, and then driven to the cbc canadian tv studio for another interview which is available online as well. Back to the room exhausted at the end of the day and the phone rings. It's Capetown south Africa calling asking if I'll do a phone interview about the show. OK, why not. What an amazing amazing time. And to end it the taxi ride to the airport we listened to stairway to heaven live. It was the most amazing experience ever in my life and will never forget many of the people I've met. The Other, Suzanne, Chief, Henri, Suzanne, BBC folks, security at the 02 was awesome a+++. Rock on Led Zeppelin!!! See you all at the next show!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THERE WERE MORE STORIES BUT THE FACTS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES I was there and its still so fresh, as are my memories from 73.75 and 79. You can't make it up really.I will leave you to it but carry on enjoying it as you seem to be doing. Dream on. ledded1, nice post and story, like you I saw them 1973 and 1975 and it forever changed me in regards to music. We are enjoying this thread and taking our imaginations to the limits. Doesn't hurt to have great dreams:-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah J Posted September 28, 2009 Share Posted September 28, 2009 Ohhh so that's what Deborah was throwing on stage... Ah the spontaneous air guitar...I did notice your fingers drumming out the rhythms on my arm from time to time... Rest In Peace Bonzo. I dedicate this whole experience to you! ms_zeppelin94 and Stargroves tangie.. I am in the Golden Circle and waiting on the opening act!!! Can't wait to post my review of this.This place is rocking!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ms_zeppelin94 Posted September 28, 2009 Share Posted September 28, 2009 ms_zeppelin94 and Stargroves tangie.. I am in the Golden Circle and waiting on the opening act!!! Can't wait to post my review of this.This place is rocking!!! Deborah, we're going to need therapy after this! I can see the headlines... Led Zeppelin fans incapacitated after over-dosing on too many concerts in one weekend... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jabe Posted September 28, 2009 Share Posted September 28, 2009 FICTION Headsup. Led Zeppelin will perform The Lemon Song on 'Live with Regis and Kelly', Monday,September 28. Time constraints will not permit an interview with the band. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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