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Sydney Morning Herald

Mali Mountain Hop

March 16, 2013 Date

• George Palathingal

Global sound: Robert Plant embraces world music with his latest venture.

Photo: Getty Photo: Getty Images

In more ways than one, Robert Plant likes to keep on the move. Physically, his adventures in the past 10 years alone have taken him from Mali to Mississippi via Tennessee and Texas. Musically, in that same period he has sung African blues, made a Grammy-slaying country-folk album (with Alison Krauss) and played rootsy rock with his partner, country star Patty Griffin, in Band of Joy.

He is on the move again with his latest venture, the Sensational Space Shifters. The project reunites him with most of his early 2000s band, Strange Sensation, adding the redoubtable tweak of Juldeh Camara, a west African master of the ritti (a traditional one-stringed African violin) and the kologo (a kind of cross between a lute and a banjo). Camara's contributions give the Sensational Space Shifters a heady and potent world-music flavour.

''The musical overview of this thing is so … kaleidoscopic,'' Plant says. ''It means that we can visit songs from my distant past or contemporary songs or stuff from the darkest sort of swamps of Mississippi or bayou of Louisiana and turn 'em upside down on their head using amazing west African rhythms.''

It's fair to say Plant's ''distant past'' is the reason most fans are still interested in what he's up to, especially following the recent release of Celebration Day, a recording of a one-off 2007 tribute concert to Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun. During that show, the surviving members of Led Zeppelin (Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones) and their late drummer's son (Jason Bonham) tore through highlights from their devastating back catalogue.

Despite repeated requests for that band to reunite for a tour, Plant has resisted because, ''to actually pour forth into something beyond a special occasion is folly''.

''But, y'know, we're in touch quite a lot and when there's another special occasion, somebody'll tell me about it and I'll say yes or no. I'm certainly not against that idea as a hoot - providing it's fresh, exciting, riveting and so long as we're scared out of our minds.''

This would further explain some of the thrilling, unusual versions of Led Zeppelin standards such as Black Dog, Bron-Y-Aur Stomp and Rock and Roll that have made it into Sensational Space Shifters sets alongside the band's own originals and covers of blues giants such as Howlin' Wolf and Bukka White.

When Plant noticed, during a trip to Mali ''about seven or eight years ago'', the blues affinity between the Tuareg people of noted collective Tinariwen and his old-school American idols, ''I got really, really excited. I was listening to stuff that was coming off the stage and thinking, well, this is amazing, really, 'cause neither these guys who are playing this music in the beautiful Malian desert evening nor the guys down there in Cleveland, Mississippi, have any idea of these links - but they're there.''

Before he could pursue that train of thought, though, he started his duet project with Alison Krauss. They would go on to win five Grammy awards in 2009 for their collaboration, including album of the year for Raising Sand and record of the year for Please Read the Letter.

An album with the Band of Joy followed before Plant came to the realisation that he ''really just missed the wolf in me'', something he rediscovered with the Sensational Space Shifters.

''You have to actually move out into other spheres to get a lick of this and a lick of that, y'know, and I've learnt how to sing in lots of different ways and I thank all the gods for that.''

It's Plant's distinctive voice that has made him the rock icon he has become over the years. But as far as he is concerned, the Sensational Space Shifters are about much more than the voice.

''It's about energy - and also it's about Juldeh Camara. He's a guy who's spent most of his life entertaining and he's every bit as dynamic and interesting as an entertainer as I could ever be.

''We laugh and we work off each other and when he speaks to me in Bambara or whatever it is and I'm completely befuddled by it, we just reach to the heavens and we pull down the great gift that all the gods put together for us. And that is what it's all about. That's why you actually commit to tours and say, 'Yeah, OK, I'm gonna do it. Let's go.'''

Robert Plant & the Sensational Space Shifters play at the Entertainment Centre on March 28, at Byron Bay Bluesfest on March 30 and in the Hunter at Hope Estate on Easter Sunday, March 31.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/mali-mountain-hop-20130313-2g0ni.html#ixzz2NkAk9fQP

Edited March 16, 2013 by kenog

[kenog]

Sunday Mercury: The Tube broke the mould and a few new bands too

Sunday Mercury (Birmingham, England) - Sunday, November 11, 2012

Readability: 9-12 grade level (Lexile: 1130L)

Author: ROZ LAWS

RIK Mayall vomiting over Jools Holland, Ozzy Osbourne propped up in a coffin and Iggy Pop wandering around bandaged like a mummy.

That was all in a normal night's work for Chris Phipps as an assistant producer on The Tube.

It is 30 years since the groundbreaking music show burst on to Channel 4 screens. For five years it became compulsive Friday night viewing for youngsters and music buffs, as it featured a host of famous names.

Madonna made her TV debut on The Tube - and was then given GBP37 in an envelope to cover her train fare.

Ozzy startled drinkers in the Egypt Cottage pub next door to the studios by standing in an upright coffin next to the bar.

"Then there was the time that Rik Mayall decided to throw up at the beginning of the show," remembers Chris.

"He drank a whole tin of chicken soup, then vomited straight into the camera and all over Jools. We had a lot of complaints about that.

"The studio was in a big complex and people got lost. One night Iggy Pop completely disappeared. Then I got a call saying 'Could someone please collect the mummy in reception'.

I found Iggy wrapped in bandages, for some reason.

"I had tried to interview him before at the Albany Hotel in Birmingham and just had to give up, because he kept grabbing pate from a passing food trolley and moulding it into shapes. It was the only interview I've abandoned."

Chris is returning to his native Birmingham this week to share his memories of The Tube and the Midlands music scene. He'll be talking on Wednesday at an event run by Birmingham City University.

The Tube was filmed in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and hosted by Jools Holland and the late Paula Yates.

"It wasn't just a gig in passing for the artists, it was the show they all wanted to get on," says Chris.

"When The Tube was first commissioned, a lot of people said 'Newcastle? They're never going to get people up there'. But we did.

"We had everyone from Paul Mc-Cartney, Whitney Houston and Tina Turner to Elton John, The Police and The Jam.

"We had comedy stars on too - we gave Vic Reeves his first TV appearance and French and Saunders were regulars. They posed as Paul Young fans and got him to sign a Tampax box. He didn't know who they were, he thought they were real fans."

Chris tried his best to champion Midland musicians on The Tube.

"The first series of films I shot were in Birmingham. I filmed interviews with Robert Plant , who had just left Led Zeppelin, and Grace Jones in Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

"I shot a punk group called Charged GBH on top of the Central Fire Station as their single was called Give Me Fire.

"Giving Fine Young Cannibals their first TV appearance was my decision. They were a unique band with an extraordinary sound. I shot them singing Johnny Come Home at the Zella Studios on Carpenter Road in Edgbaston. That brought a record deal to their door.

Unsigned "The important thing about The Tube was how we gave unsigned bands the same video treatment as major artists, we made no distinction.

"Viewers tuned in for the big stars but on the way they saw unsigned bands like Frankie Goes To Hollywood.

"We'd gone to Liverpool to film Dead Or Alive but couldn't find Pete Burns and his band anywhere. Someone in a pub said 'There's a band round the corner you might be interested in', which is how we found Frankie Goes To Hollywood and shot Relax."

The Tube film with Robert Plant was by no means Chris's first encounter with the Kidderminster rocker. He knew him when he was starting out, in various bands with outlandish names, playing Birmingham pubs.

"I saw Robert play to about 14 people in the Black Horse in North-field in 1967," remembers Chris.

"I think that band was called Hobbstweedle. Another was called Listen. I also remember him getting up on stage at the MAC to perform with Alexis Korner, that was my greatest memory of him."

Born in Northfield 63 years ago, Chris grew up in Bournville and attended King Edwards School, Camp Hill.

The very first record he bought was Catch A Falling Star by Perry Como, but he soon graduated to rock and roll.

[kenog]

When jazz and blues ruled at the Mercer's - YOUR nostalgia MUSIC historian Pete Clemons, from Keresley, this week looks back at the live music years of Coventry pub The Mercer's Arms.

Coventry Telegraph (England) - Monday, October 29, 2012

BUILT in the early 1930s, and on land that was once allotments, The Mercer's Arms public house used to sit on the corner of where Thackhall Street meets Swan Lane and across the road from the Coventry City FC's Highfield Road ground.

Of course, for many years, it was used as a meeting place for Coventry's football fans and a chance to get 'a last one in' before a match but there was another side to The Mercers.

By night, and after the nearby floodlights had been turned out, this famous old pub had a country wide reputation as being a prestigious jazz and music venue.

From the mid 1950s through to the mid 1970s weekends at this venue were dominated by jazz of one form or another. You could choose to visit a Friday night club or attend either a Saturday or Sunday session. And then, from the mid 1960s, it found itself embroiled in the R 'n' B explosion that happened across the UK. One of its earliest clubs was the Weary City Jazz Clubs and included guests like Chris Barber, The Jazz Makers and The Jazz Couriers complete with Ronnie Scott. The pub's esteem must have been incredibly high for these acts to have travelled up from swinging London.

The Abracadabra club of the early 1960s continued to build the pub's reputation as they secured regular Friday nights and attracted guests such as Tubby Hayes, Nat Gonella, Alan Ganley, Harold McNair, Cy Laurie and Terry Lightfoot.

During November 1963, and after much preparation and rehearsal, Club Harlem was opened by trumpet player Dud Clews along with his Jazz Orchestra. This incredibly popular band performed in the style of the 1920s/1930s Chicago jazz era and took up a residency on Saturday nights. However, within a few months of the club opening, Dud himself was fatally injured in a car accident at the age of 26. Despite this massive loss, and with the blessing of Dud's family, the band managed to regroup and continue at the Mercers through till the end of 1973. Even then that was not the end for the band. They moved to the New Inn (later renamed The Fiesta) in Longford. The band eventually folded in 1981.

1966 saw yet another new jazz club establish itself. The Yardbird Club was opened by the Mercer's Arms veteran Ronnie Scott and his Quintet.

The Yardbird Club again attracted high calibre quartets led by Stan Tracey and Dick Morrisey along with acts such as The Johnny Patrick Trio and continued until mid-1967.

Of course some musicians at this time were experimenting with rock rhythms and electric instruments and some were beginning to incorporate elements of jazz into their blues and soul music by experimenting with extended free form improvisation. And as such jazz clubs, to the horror of traditional jazz enthusiasts, were becoming more eclectic and broadening their horizons.

Inevitably and in parallel to the traditional jazz, that still took centre stage at the weekends, early 1967 saw Monday night sessions spring up. The venue had seemed to quickly latch onto the fledgling British blues scene that was taking off country wide. All of a sudden bands such as The Jeff Beck Group, complete with Rod Stewart, and Robert Plants Band of Joy were appearing while other weeks would see local bands Jigsaw and The Ray King Soul Pact. In fact Rod Stewart would play at the venue several times.

The next club night appeared at the end of 1967. This was known as the Tudor Club and continued to build on the success of its predecessor.

The Mercers by now had a country wide reputation as a leading venue and was attracting regular Sunday evenings with Chris Farlowe, Jimmy Cliff, Herbie Goins and Jimmy James and the Vagabonds.

The Tudor Club continued to flourish until it ceased operating during November 1969.

The end of the 1969 also saw, I guess, an attempt by The Mercers to replicate Birmingham's Mothers Club as the next club night to appear was called Fathers. It may have only briefly existed but Fathers attracted bands like Fat Mattress and Atomic Rooster to their Sunday evening slots. Coventry's own Beverley Jones, who deserves a story in her own right, also played the venue several times during this period.

The final major club night, and again one that had a Birmingham connection, began toward the end of 1970. Henry's Blues House existed till mid-1971. This particular club staged bands like Tea and Symphony, Medicine Head and Coventry's Indian Summer. The Birmingham connection being that the second city also had a Henry's Blues House run by promoter, jazz musician and Big Bear record label owner Jim Simpson. Jim was also manager of Indian Summer.

By the end of 1971 the R 'n'B, the rock music and the soul bands had all but finished at the venue yet the jazz music, that had initially given the Mercers its reputation continued for several years after.

Interspersed between the live music clubs were the sporadic activities of several folk clubs, that including the Tavern folk club which had moved at some point in the 1960s from the Swanswell Tavern, and other folk related events. For the rest of the 1970s the pub was kept very busy by way of the various discos that The Mercers staged. These included an early residency for Coventry's Pete Waterman.

The 1980s saw an attempt to breathe new life into the venue again by way of a cabaret style club called the Nite Inn. However, the good times did return by way of the thriving local scene at the time. Bands as diverse as Bob Brollys Calvary, Sammy Earthquake and the Volcano's and the Travelling Riverside Blues Band continued to play there on a now and again basis till the end of the decade.

Toward the end of its life The Mercers became known as The Sky Blue Tavern before being bulldozed just after the turn of the millennium to make way for an overflow car park for football parking. Eventually though the land, along with the land made vacant by CCFC when it moved to The Ricoh Arena out at Rowleys Green in 2005, was used as part of the housing development that is now known as 'The City'.

Edited April 11, 2013 by kenog

[kenog]

Sunday Mercury: I'm going gun-ho for charity!

Sunday Mercury (Birmingham, England) - Sunday, October 21, 2012

Author: 10PM TO MIDNIGHT EVERY TUESDAY BEV BEVAN'S PHOTO ALBUM

WHEN my rock and roll pals and I played the Heartbeat charity concert at Birmingham's NEC in 1986, little did we realise just how much enthusiasm would be drummed up.

We were raising cash to help the Birmingham Children's Hospital and the show boasted a who's who of Midland rock and pop, including ELO, Roy Wood, Robert Plant and The Moody Blues. From there our charity campaign snowballed, and soon we had all manner of events taking place. Here I am, raising a firing pistol to start a bicycle ride.

Imagine if I wandered into the city centre carrying a gun these days. I'm sure armed cops would pounce on me!

[kenog]

Tribute act Fred Zeppelin to perform in Catshill

Bromsgrove Advertiser (England) - Monday, February 25, 2013

TRIBUTE band Fred Zeppelin will be heading to a Bromsgrove venue this Friday, (March 1).

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the formation of the group which was started due to admiration and love its four members had for Led Zeppelin’s music.


Fred Zeppelin were recently voted one of the 10 best live bands to see in a Kerrang poll, and were the only tribute band listed in any category.
During the decades they have had the honour of Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant attending three of their gigs, and they have even played with John Bonham’s son Jason.

The band will be performing at Catshill Working Men’s Club in Meadow Road, from 8pm.

Tickets for the show cost £6 in advance, £8 on the door.

Edited April 11, 2013 by kenog

[kenog]

FAB FOUR FANS GET BACK TO 60s AT GIG

Birmingham Mail (England) - Saturday, February 16, 2013

Author: Brett Gibbons STAFF REPORTER

BEATLES fanatics managed to Come Together for a Magical Mystery Tour of musical memories to mark the 50th anniversary of the Fab Four first playing Birmingham.

Bands, ranging from tribute acts to teens, performed a homage to John, Paul, George and Ringo yesterday - half a century from the day they played at the Ritz ballroom in King's Heath, which is now a Cash Converters.

The tribute show took place at Fletchers Bar, directly opposite the site of the legendary venue.

The Ritz gig on February 15, 1963, coincided with the group's second single Please, Please Me, topping the charts and it was the first time Brum had witnessed Beatlemania. Originally the concert was intended to take place three weeks earlier, but the band had been forced to cancel following heavy snow. In between, The Beatles made their debut TV appearance singing their new single.

The Fab Four were only able to enter the Birmingham venue by climbing over the rear fence in Milford Place because screaming girls had laid siege to the ballroom.

Dance hall owner Joe Regan made them tea and sandwiches before he realised George was missing and went to rescue him from the fans.

Martina Gagan, of Fletchers, said the tribute was a 150-strong sell-out. "We've had fans young and old and a host of different acts singing Beatles' songs.

"It is fantastic to see everyone enjoying the Beatles' music," added the Fab Four fan, whose favourite song is Hey Jude. The Ritz has been recognised by Birmingham Civic Society with a musical heritage plate, which was unveiled last June.

Most of the major artists of the 60s played there at the start of their careers including Robert Plant , The Kinks, Pink Floyd, and The Rolling Stones, who will also be the theme of a tribute later in the year.

The ballroom closed at the beginning of the 1970s when the owner converted it into a bingo hall. It was empty for several years until it became a Cash Converters.

Edited April 11, 2013 by kenog

[kenog]

MUSEUM REVIVES GOLDEN MEMORIES - Tale of football triumph and woe in latest attraction at Wolves' Molineux ground

Birmingham Mail (England) - Thursday, February 14, 2013

Mail reporter and Wolves fan STEVE BRADLEY gives a supporters' verdict on his club's new museum.

THE timing couldn't have been worse.

The decision by Wolves to open a new museum celebrating the club's illustrious past coincided with a nosedive in the fortunes of the Molineux men.

Fans already paying around £30 for match tickets were unhappy at being charged another £7 to wallow in the club's golden past, which includes four FA Cups and three league titles.

Some demanded the £1 million attraction open for free, prompting the kind of stout defence from chief executive Jez Moxey and owner Steve Morgan that fans could only dream of on the pitch.

So with new manager Dean Saunders now at the helm, bringing a promise of honest graft in the city of honest grafters, it's time to ask: is the museum worth the admission fee? To this fan, who cowers in an armchair when his beloved Wolves are in action these days, the answer is a big 'yes'.

Museum boss Sophie Cawthorne gave the Mail a guided tour of the 600sq m facility.

Created by Manchester-based museum designers Mather and Co, it has individual displays at its centre dedicated to club greats Major Frank Buckley, Stan Cullis, Billy Wright, Derek Dougan, Steve Bull and financial saviour Sir Jack Hayward. "Quite a few former players came to the opening and the response was really good from them," said Sophie.

"There has been a genuine sense of pride from them and from fans who have been in.

"It's the first dedicated football museum in the Midlands, although other clubs like Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea have them."

The club used specialist software to catalogue 24,000 items ripe for displaying, Sophie said, with only a small proportion currently on show.

Reams of paper records, programmes, photos and administrative material remain stored in rented space at Molineux House, the city's archives resource.

"We're looking to change the exhibitions, to keep the museum fresh, but we'll keep it as it is for maybe a year so that more people can visit," Sophie said.

The entrance area is dressingroom themed, with artefacts including Billy Wright's peg, FA Cup winning midfielder Billy Crook's shirt, and rightback Kevin Foley's boots.

Technology gives the visitor the chance to beat cartoon depictions of goalkeeping heroes Bert Williams, Phil Parkes, Mike Stowell, Matt Murray and Wayne Hennessey by swinging their foot at an imaginary ball in the direction of a big screen.

And the reverse process allows fantasy footballers to step into incumbent shot-stopper Carl Ikeme's boots, facing piledrivers, dinks and carefully-placed efforts from a virtual Bull, Kenny Hibbitt, Johnny Hancocks, Dennis Westcott and John Richards.

There is also the chance to pose as a Wolves player or man-ager, answering post-match questions from commentator John Motson on a video, which can then become part of the fans' wall at the museum.

The physical exhibits are too numerous to mention, but include one of Joleon Lescott's England shirts, a Republic of Ireland top fron Robbie Keane, and city ref Jack Taylor's kit from the 1974 World Cup final.

There is the Wrekin Cup from 1884, that looks like it should have been handed to the best in Europe, and a match ball from the 1893 FA Cup final, when Wolves beat Everton 1-0. A minute book from the 1920s shows that Major Buckley was paid £650 a year to be manager, while there is a stern taped denial from one of his successors, Stan Cullis, that Buckley had given his team controversial, performance-enhancing 'monkey gland treatment'.

Pictures and documents trace the club's moves from pitches off Goldthorn Hill, and in Lower Villiers Street and Dudley Road, before the arrival at the Molineux Pleasure Gardens in 1889, the last decisive uprooting taking place with the help, strangely, of the Northampton Brewery Company.

There is Ron Flowers' World Cup winner's medal from 1966, loaned by the midfield star, a South Bank turnstile from the 1930s, and a chunky 50s physiotherapy machine.

Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant , a season ticket holder in the Steve Bull Stand, has also loaned the museum a Wolves head sculpture by artist Bruce Larsen.

A spellbinding experience for a fan, all in all, the cost of entry holding up well against admission to Wolverhampton's semirural National Trust properties Wightwick Manor (£8.60) and Moseley Old Hall (£6.45).

Worth foregoing a half-time pint and pasty so you can afford to get in, or a special journey, even? I would have said so. ¦ Details are available at www.wolvesmuseum.co.uk or on 0871 222 1877.

Rivals: No plans to follow club lead WOLVES' Midland rivals have no plans to create their own dedicated, stand-alone museums.

A Villa spokesman said: "We have several display areas around Villa Park to show the trophies and memorabilia from the club's rich and storied history.

"At present there are no plans to build a museum as such."

A Blues spokesman also said there were 'no plans' for a museum.

An Albion spokesman said: "Since 2004, we have displayed our memorabilia collection, of which we are very proud, throughout the East Stand.

"Our collection is extensive and dates from the birth of the football club to the present day.

"Supporters can view the memorabilia collection by booking a place on a behind-the scenes stadium tour, which also takes in the match day media areas and the inner sanctum - the players' tunnel and dressing rooms."

Edited April 11, 2013 by kenog

[kenog]

THE DAY THE RITZ PUT ON THE Fab Four - Gig marks 50th anniversary of Beatles gig at city historic venue

Birmingham Mail (England) - Monday, February 4, 2013

Author: Ben Hurst STAFF REPORTER

WHEN The Beatles arrived at The Ritz in Kings Heath 50 years ago they hardly made the most dignified of entrances.

Beatlemania hadn't yet arrived when the band turned up at the small Birmingham ballroom. The concert had been booked before the group had really taken off - but by the time of the show the single Please Please Me had just been released.

This meant hordes of girls were now lying in wait at the small venue - so that when they arrived, the band were forced to climb over a fence at the rear to get in.

In fact, legend has it that the four were in fact only three when the numbers were counted after their arrival on February 15, 1963.

It was soon discovered that George Harrison was in the process on being hauled out of a black cab by a mob of screaming girls, after he arrived late.

After the final Beatle had been rescued they were all ready to go on for the delayed show.

To mark the 50th anniversary of the landmark event, a special concert is being planned in Birmingham featuring local musicians playing their favourite Beatles songs.

The Ritz Ballroom in York Road is long gone, and is now a Cash Converters, and the event is taking place in Fletcher's Bar, opposite the former concert venue.

The original concert is well-remembered in the area by local people who were present at what was the dawning of the Fab Four's huge popularity.

Originally it was meant to take place three weeks earlier but the band had been forced to cancel following heavy snow.

In between The Beatles made their debut TV appearance on Thank Your Lucky Stars singing their new single.

Owner Joe Regan made them tea and sandwiches before he realised George was missing - and went to rescue him from the fans.

The Ritz was one of four Midland venues run by Irish couple Joe and his wife Mary.

After eating their sandwiches the band began to practice before the gig - which didn't go down well with owner Joe Regan.

According to accounts at the time he is said to have shouted: "Tell them to turn that racket down".

But Mr Regan was a good negotiator - he persuaded their hard-nosed manager Brian Epstein to allow them to perform for their previously agreed fee even though they had stormed the charts in the intervening period.

Residents Bob Prew and Ken Whittaker who are campaigning to recognise the heritage of Kings Heath, said: "We want as many as people as possible to come along on February 15 to celebrate a key event in Kings Heath's musical heritage.

"Later in the year we will also be organising a similar event on September 14 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Rolling Stones playing the Ritz.

"We will also be creating further pavement stars for Fuzzbox's Jo Dunne and rock legend Trevor Burton following on from the first last year for King's Heath-born Toyah Willcox. All the money raised from the Beatles event will go towards establishing the Walk of Fame as a registered charity."

The Ritz has been recognised by Birmingham Civic Society with a musical heritage plate, which was unveiled last June to recognise how large a part the venue played in the city's heritage.

Most of the major artists of the '60's played there at the start of their careers including Robert Plant on April 24, 1966, The Kinks on June 11, 1966, Pink Floyd on December 16, 1967 as well as The Beatles on February 15, 1963 and The Rolling Stones on September, 14, 1963.

The Ballroom closed down at the beginning of the 1970's when the Regans converted it into a bingo hall. Mr Regan died in 2004 and his wife in 2008, and after this the building was vacant until it became a Cash Converters shop.

Any local musicians or DJs interested in playing at the Beatles event should contact info@kingsheathwalkoffame.

org.uk Fletchers Bar on York Road will host the event from 12.30pm to 4.30pm on Friday, February 15, exactly 50 years after the appearance of The Beatles at the ballroom.

Tickets only cost £2.50 and can either be purchased on the door or in advance from the Kitchen Garden Cafe on York Road. Space is limited so booking is advisable.

[kenog]

ZEP'S WHOLE LOTTA LOVE FROM OBAMA - Midland legends honoured at White House awards ceremony

Birmingham Mail (England) - Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Author: Brett Gibbons STAFF REPORTER

THE hard-rocking reputation of Black Country legends Led Zeppelin struck a chord with Barack Obama when he thanked them for not wrecking the White House.

The President drew laughter from guests at a lavish Kennedy Centre arts awards when he praised the former band members for behaving themselves because of their history of "hotel rooms being trashed and mayhem all around".

Obama added: "These guys also redefined the rock and roll lifestyle. So it's fitting that we're doing this in a room with windows that are about three inches thick - and Secret Service all around.

"So, guys, just settle down. These paintings are valuable."

Dressed in smart black suits and bow ties, the band's three remaining members Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page were among a group of artists who received the prestigious honours at the swanky dinner.

West Bromwich-born frontman Plant , aged 64, replied he was flattered and overwhelmed by the award, adding that he was glad to see Jones and Page using "good table manners".

In his tribute to the band, Obama went on: "When Jimmy Page, Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham burst on to the musical scene in the late 1960s, the world never saw it coming.

"There was this singer with a mane like a lion and a voice like a banshee, a guitar prodigy who left people's jaws on the floor, a bassist who was equally at home on the keyboards, a drummer who played like his life depended on it.

"It's been said that a generation of young people survived teenage angst with a pair of headphones and a Zeppelin album.

"But even now, 32 years after John Bonham's passing - and we all I think appreciate the fact - the Zeppelin legacy lives on."

Led Zeppelin, whose songs include Stairway To Heaven, Rock And Roll, Whole Lotta Love, broke up in 1980 following Bonham's death.

Since then they have performed together just once at a 2007 tribute show with Bonham's son Jason on drums.

The awards show will be broadcast on US TV on Boxing Day.

[kenog]

Sunday Mercury: LED ZEPPELIN ALBUM OF THE WEEK CELEBRATION DAY

Sunday Mercury (Birmingham, England) - Sunday, November 18, 2012

IT seems a lifetime ago that the clock on the Led Zeppelin website started counting down to the big announcement.

Now, a worldwide cinema screening later, Celebration Day arrives on the high street tomorrow.

The band's sensational 2007 reunion for the Ahmet Ertegun memorial concert at London's 02 Arena (that's the Millennium Dome in old money) has been captured on two CDs and a DVD - and it's a barnstormer.

It sits comfortably alongside the previous landmark live sets, The Song Remains The Same and How The West Was Won, bringing the Zeppelin story to what many still believe is a premature conclusion.

Robert Plant , Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham - son of late, lamented John - are on fine form as they power through a setlist of classic Zeppelin anthems, and the odd surprise. As befits a great gig, it's a memorable movie, too. Director Dick Carruthers keeps camera trickery to a minimum, allowing the music to do the talking, only occasionally inserting mobile phone fan footage.

So how can they possibly still cut it? After all, the original Zeppelin high-fliers are spring chickens no longer. Plant 's vocal isn't what it once was, hence his more melodious work of late with Alison Krauss and Band Of Joy, and some of the songs have been lowered in key to make things just the right side of comfortable. Page's fingers aren't as nimble as they used to be either. Sure, some of the guitar solos are sloppy - he admits as much himself - but they emerge gloriously messy in very best live rock and roll tradition. Jones, however, is the constant. Solid, sure-footed, the glue that binds his bandmates to the revelatory powerhouse drumming of Bonham Junior, whose Rock And Roll concert closer is a manmade thunderstorm.

Opening with Good Times Bad Times - you won't be able to wipe the smile off your face - Zeppelin serve up Ramble On before letting the song ramble on into the opening of Black Dog, rock's most impossible guitar riff.

There's a spine-tingling In My Time Of Dying, during which Plant and Page excel, then the first curiosity of the night: a live debut of For Your Life, unprepossessing in the Presence studio but better onstage. Trampled Under Foot, with Jones' keyboard funk, ups the game again. After the bluesy Nobody's Fault But Mine, he's back with No Quarter, shimmering soundscapes slowly unveiling the underlying riff.

Since I've Been Loving You is nostalgia incarnate, Dazed And Confused gives Page the opportunity to bring back the violin bow, and Stairway To Heaven, well, Stairway To Heaven brings the house down.

The Song Remains The Same races along like a runaway train before Misty Mountain Hop boasts a surprise vocal duet between Plant and Bonham, Plant explaining how John loved to sing.

They save the best 'til almost last. Kashmir proves an epic performance, Led Zeppelin after all checks completed, surely ready for take-off again. The gig closes with a playful Whole Lotta Love and that Rock And Roll thunder.

Don't let this be their swansong. PC

[kenog]

thametoday.co.uk

Stairway to good times at this rock‘n’roll show Published on 22/09/2011 10:05

THERE’S a whole lotta tribute acts out there – so many, in fact, that it is difficult to tell which ones are worth seeing.

Ropey Elvis impersonators are generally good for a laugh, but not much of a tribute to the King.

Then there are long standing acts like the Bootleg Beatles and Rumours of Fleetwood Mac who come fully endorsed by the artists they impersonate.

Hats Off to Led Zeppelin are seeking to match the sort of success achieved by the latter bands, and though they have a long way to go they have made a good start since getting together two years ago.

“Once we started rehearsing together the sound was electric,” said Kevin Jones, who plays his namesake John Paul Jones.

“We’ve been playing it as a theatre show and it has been going really well. Marshall, the amplifier manufacturer, invited us to play a gig in Milton Keynes and gave us a load of equipment, and we sold out The Stables in MK as well.”

Unlike some other theatre rock‘n’roll shows Hats Off don’t try to impersonate Robert Plant and his merry men.

Instead Kevin and his cohorts – Peter Eldridge as Plant, Jack Tanner as Jimmy Page and Simon Wicker as John Bonham – pay tribute to the rock legends through a celebration of their music.

“We don’t try to act like them on stage it’s more about doing justice to the music,” said Kevin.

“We talk to the audience as ourselves telling them things about Led Zeppelin and the songs we are singing.”

As well as some classic rock songs, the show includes impressive pyrotechnics and audience interaction.

The foursome have good pedigree in rock‘n’roll theatre shows, with acting credits in Thriller, Dancing In The Street and We Will Rock You between them.

Kevin was also musical director on Thriller, the Michael Jackson tribute show, on its international tour.

“Because it’s a theatre show we get a different audience than if was a straight forward rock gig,” he said.

“We get the rockers, but we also get people coming with their children or grandkids who want to listen to some good music and watch a great show.”

Hats Off split the concert into two acts – the first part is a straightforward gig, as Led Zeppelin would have played in pub venues when they were starting out.

Then the second act has all the bells and whistles, with big set pieces and OTT rock poses.

And at the back of the stage you can see Kevin loving every minute.

“John Paul Jones is a great part to play as he played so many different instruments, but the focus was on Plant and Page.

“I get to rock out at the back and play all these great songs, it’s really fun.”

Hats Off to Led Zeppelin play at The Limelight Theatre, Aylesbury, on Saturday, October 1, and The Bucks Herald has a pair to tickets to give away.

[kenog]

Sussex Express Back in time to a magical night in the pub garden

Published on 23/09/2012 10:19

LAST week’s unique picture in the Sussex Express of the one and only public appearance on stage together of rock legends Jimmy Page and Ronnie Wood captured the public imagination.

Not least from the BBC as they sought to interview the owner of the negative, local antiques expert Vernon Ward.

So here’s another image from that magical summer’s night in the garden of The Half Moon at Plumpton way back in 1977.

It shows Vernon himself, caught slightly off guard by photographer Fernando Valverdie, after chatting with Wood just before the Rolling Stones guitarist went on the makeshift stage to perform with the Led Zeppelin front man.

Wood is understood to have been a weekend guest at Page’s mansion, Plumpton Place.

The evening made a big impression on antiques man Vernon –who also has something of a rock and roll past of his own. So much so that he and his girlfriend Hayley chose the venue for their wedding reception two years later.

And he will be back at The Half Moon next week when the Vernon Ward Antiques Roadshows come to the pub on Sunday and Tuesday, both 10am-4pm.

Vernon will give free valuations on all kinds of antiques and collectables brought along to the pub, from china to art and from jewellery to books.

And if you’ve got any unusual old photographs he might just be interested in those, too.

For private valuations he can be contacted on 01273 502097.

[kenog]

Sussex Express £8m price tag on Led Zeppelin star's former home in Plumpton

Published on 16/07/2010 16:06

PLUMPTON Place, a moated Elizabethan manor house that has been home to peers and rock stars, is up for sale - for an eye-watering £8m.

The price is a far cry from the 3,300 paid for it in 1927 when it was bought by Edward Hudson, the founder of Country Life.

He had spotted the property, which was in a major state of disrepair, in his own magazine.

He engaged his favourite architect Edwin Lutyens and garden designer Gertrude Jekyll to embark on a major restoration programme on the 16th century main house, mill house and 60 acres of land and lakes.

It was still unfinished when Hudson died in 1937.

A year later Plumpton Place was sold for 9,000 to racing enthusiast Lord Manton, who built the charming, 19-box stable yard beside an enormous, Grade II-listed Elizabethan barn.

In 1972, rock star Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin bought the property for 200,000 and, ten years later, sold it to developer Philip Gorringe for 650,000.

Shortly afterwards, Gorringe sold it on to legendary American venture capitalist Tom Perkins, the current owner, for a reputed 800,000.

Now the manor house, described as "an enchanted place" by Nikolaus Pevsner in his Buildings of England, is being advertised in the latest issue of Country Life.

It is on the market through Knight Frank (020-7629 8171) and Savills (020-7016 3701).

Plumpton Place, standing at the foot of the South Downs, was built for the Mascall family in 1568 on the site of an earlier manor house mentioned in Domesday.

Water was as important an element of the estate then as it is now - and the source of its wealth, judging from the staggering 4,000 paid for the property in 1620 by Sir Thomas Springett of Arundel Castle.

The original house was E-shaped and probably thatched.

The north and south fronts are the earliest parts and possibly date from the 1400s.

The flint west front is 16th century, but the east front is almost entirely Lutyens, dominated by his dramatic, double-height music room, which rises from the water's edge on a plinth of stone, beneath a huge catslide roof and tall chimney stacks.

In addition to the music room/great hall, ground-floor rooms include a panelled library, a morning room overlooking the moat, an intimate family dining room and a kitchen.

A newly crafted staircase leads to master and guest suites, and two further bedrooms on the first floor, with two further bedroom suites on the second floor.

[kenog]

Reading Evening Post Food Review: The Ivy at Sonning

By Mike Pyle

November 05, 2010

What do Boris Johnson, Jimmy Page, Glenn Hoddle and Uri Geller have in common? They have all eaten at The Ivy.

While they might have all eaten in the London eaterie of the same name, The Ivy in question is one found in the little village of Sonning.

A glance at this Ivy’s guestbook tells you all you need to know about the Indian restaurant nestling in the middle of Sonning’s quaint high street.

Hundreds of visitors, including some famous names, have all left their own glowing reviews of the restaurant and not one of them has written a single bad word.

From the moment you arrive, it is clear that the Ivy isn’t like normal curry houses. It is based in the village’s old shop and tea room and a sign outside still says that’s what it is. It doesn’t look out of keeping with its setting.

Inside it is well lit and tastefully decorated and still has a little bit of that old-fashioned tea room feel about it, but there isn’t a stale scone in sight.

The menu has many of the things we’ve all come to expect in an Indian restaurant but, as manager Bobby

Ali proudly claims, there is much more to it than that.

The first couple of pages contain the Ivy’s specialities which is a range of dishes from around India you might not have seen in other restaurants and is where my girlfriend and I chose our meals from.

To start I went for duck tikka (£5.85) and my girlfriend ordered paneer pakora – Indian cheese fried in a mildly spiced chick pea batter.

The duck comprised perfectly spiced tender pieces of meat. I’ve never had duck done in this way before but the spices complemented the rich meat perfectly.

I’ve tried paneer before and it can be an acquired taste, but done in this way I can’t imagine anyone not liking it. The batter wasn’t greasy or fatty, was nicely savoury and went well with the dense but fresh cheese.

My main course was royal lamb (£12.25) – a lamb shank cooked in a medium-spiced sauce with garlic, lemongrass, onion and peppers.

My girlfriend had Sabzi Karai (£9.50) – vegetables cooked with spices, onions green pepper.

The royal lamb was, to use a fitting cliché, fit for a king. When I ordered it Bobby had to check they had a lamb shank ready – he said they prepare them from fresh, only using good quality meat and never freezing it. On quiet nights they don’t always make them to ensure they don’t get wasted.

“Better not to serve it than to serve one which isn’t the best,” Bobby says.

Anyway, I was in luck. My lamb was tender, juicy, plentiful and flavoursome. I could tell it had been thoroughly marinated because the bone I was left with at the end was stained bright red.

The sauce was thick and spicy but I could taste individual flavours. There was sweetness from lemongrass, as well as the tang of chilli and bittersweet peppers.

As with many carnivores I steer well clear of vegetable curries despite knowing that, with many Indians being vegetarian, they are usually very good.

My girlfriend’s dinner was no exception. A few stolen forkfuls told me, again, the flavours worked well together but also stood out individually and the angry look I got as I attempted to steal some more told me that I was not alone in that opinion.

With our meals we had garlic naan, a vegetable medley and, on Bobby’s recommendation, a portion of lemon rice. I’d not had lemon rice before;

I was privately nervous that it would be too sweet. It wasn’t. It was tangy and fresh-tasting with bits of peelin it. I’ll always look out for it on menus from now on.

There wasn’t one element of our meal at The Ivy that was anything less than excellent, from the service to the food itself.

Bobby openly admits that The Ivy isn’t the cheapest of Indian restaurants, but he also says it is not like most Indian restaurants and wouldn’t even thank me for using the term ‘Indian restaurant’ when talking about The Ivy because that conjures up a certain image which it goes well beyond.

I can’t recommend The Ivy highly enough but that doesn’t matter, who needs my recommendation when Jimmy Page calls in at this hidden gem regularly? If it’s good enough for rock royalty, it’s good enough for me.

[kenog]

Reading Evening Post Whole lot of loving going on

February 28, 2008

Reading guitarist Raff Auchour becomes iconic axeman on Saturday, when he plays Jimmy Page for Boot-Led-Zeppelin’s gig at The Hexagon.

He’s got the brown curls (his real hair) as well as the double-headed guitar, and collectively the band are mind-blowing.

Having seen this band twice I think they’re almost as good as the real thing.

Even TV and radio starlet Fearne Cotton thinks so. She said Boot-Led-Zeppelin are “The nearest thing I have heard to the lords of rock.

“They got me so close to my true fantasy of hearing Led Zep live.”

She didn’t get a freebie to the O2 arena then...

Tickets for the show cost £16 and doors are at 7.30pm. For details, call the box office: 0118 960 6060.

[kenog]

Maidenhead Advertiser Roadie's memorial marred by vandals

Rose Rutland, 47, of St Chad's Road, Cox Green and a group of neighbours decided to mark the life of their neighbour, known as Carter, who died of cancer three weeks ago.

Carter, a grandfather in his 50s and a volunteer for Wamdsad, was well-known around town for his links with the music industry, having been a road manager and worked with names such as Elton John and Jimmy Page, as well as pursuing his own music career.

He and Mrs Rutland had wanted to hold a barbecue for all the residents after pushing for the redevelopment of their courtyard, but he died before it was completed.

A new bench, plaque and solar powered lights were installed in the courtyard in his memory and neighbours came together for a barbecue.

Just days later, the solar powered lights were torn out.

Mrs Rutland said: "On Friday morning I got up to find eight of the 12 lights were missing and we found bits of them. Whoever had taken them had taken them and smashed them.

"Obviously it has just really upset everybody and really annoyed them because they were put there as a memorial."

Five of the lights have since been recovered, but Mrs Rutland is unsure whether they will work.

[kenog]

Maidenhead Advertiser

11 December 2008

Ever imagined being there to see Ziggy Stardust’s swansong or touring with The Kinks?

Photographer and singer Debi Doss did both and along the way met music superstars and became a part of rock history herself.

Amazingly the rolls of pictures she took lay unseen by the world for 30 years but, since being unveiled a few years ago, have gone on to become some of the industry’s most iconic images.

And now, thanks to a chance meeting with the managing director of the Windsor Firestation Arts Centre, her unique and fascinating collections of photographs are on display for all to see until December 22.

Originally from St Louis, Missouri, the 55-year-old started taking photographs as a teenager.

Her first project was an 8mm film of The Who performing a preview of Tommy in her home town. In 1971, at the tender age of 18, she travelled over the pond to London.

She said: “I came to enjoy the music scene and never went home. I got in big trouble from my mother for that.”

In the three-year whirlwind that followed, she snapped the likes of Led Zepplin, Elton John, The Faces and David Bowie. “Bowie was incredible because of all his costume changes,” she said.

“That was a great moment because he retired Ziggy Stardust that night. I remember hanging out with Robert Plant, but I can’t remember what we talked about and I was backstage with Mick Jagger once, but I didn’t dare go up to him.”

“I did meet some of them, but I wouldn’t say I palled up around with them and I never slept with any of them.”

As if this lifestyle wasn’t enviable enough, Debi then went on to discover she could sing and quickly rose through the ranks to become a backing singer for The Kinks.

“The very first record I ever bought was The Kinks,” she said, “and then eight years later I was recording with them.”

Photography took a backseat for 30 years as she went on to sing with Hot Chocolate and The Buggles to name just a few. She continues to work as a singer today and last year receive her first, long-awaited, gold disc for Video Killed the Radio Star.

But then a few years ago the treasure trove of images surfaced. She said: “I found the photos in a drawer a few years ago. I hadn’t forgotten about them, but I didn’t think there was a market. But then I discovered my daughter listening to Hendrix and The Doors and all my pin-ups and realised everything had gone retro and thought I should do something with them.”

Exhibitions in London followed and Debi is delighted with the response. “They bring back memories for me, but even more for viewers,” she said.

“One guy was looking at the picture of Jimmy Page and said he could remember what song he was playing when it was taken. It was Stairway to Heaven.”

She has also revived her photography career, being asked to photograph Fatboy Slim at his infamous gig on Brighton Beach. She said: “I even took some photos of Ray Davies at Hampton Court this summer. So it’s all gone full circle.”

[kenog]

Maidenhead Advertiser

17 August 2006

Chilly September

Minichill is a not-for-profit festival with all proceeds going to the Action for Brazil"s Children Trust, a UK-based charity working to help impoverished children across Brazil.

The festival was the inspiration of Jemina Page, the founder of ABC, and trustee Lynda Colborne as a way to raise money for the charity.

Jemina Page, the wife of Led Zepplin and Yardbirds guitarist Jimmy Page, started her charity work with street children from an early age.

Born of Argentinian parents who lived in San Francisco, Jemina divided her teenage years between the US and Buenes Aires, where she first came across South America"s street kids.

Acts confirmed for the festival, which takes place at Hawkins Farm in Frieth Road, include Giles Peterson, Hextatic, Alice McLaughlin and Bussetti and there are plans to make it a permanent feature on the festival circuit.

Mrs Colborne said: â€So many people have generously offered their musical talents. We feel very lucky and are sure that it will be a wonderful weekend to remember.â€

Roger Wilson, chairman of Marlow community association, welcomed the festival. â€I support the idea very much,†he said. â€I think we should be bringing music to as many people as we can.

â€London has so many things going on and I think it"s good that Marlow is getting some culture.â€

The Minichill festival takes place on September 2 and September 3. Tickets are limited and are sold on a first come first served basis.

[kenog]

UK Daily Mail 4 January 2013

"... Meanwhile, Jimmy is also having trouble selling the magnificent 19th-century oak table which once adorned his house in Sussex and is being sold by his friend, society antiques dealer Anthony Bush at his Stags End, Hertfordshire, emporium.

‘I think it’s a shame Jimmy didn’t get a knighthood,’ says Anthony."

[SteveAJones]

Lots of interesting new additions to this thread; thanks!

[kenog]

It's nice of you to say so. When I was uploading these last night, I was wondering if anyone ever looked at them!!

Lots of interesting new additions to this thread; thanks!

[Knebby]

It's nice of you to say so. When I was uploading these last night, I was wondering if anyone ever looked at them!!

Ha ha thanks I just looked through them too - I enjoyed the one about Chris Phipps, he's an old friend of mine.

[kenog]

Yes, I thought you might know him because of the location. I was going through a database of local newspapers and searched through the ones which are near the band's homes. They often give quirky little items that are different to national newspapers.

Ha ha thanks I just looked through them too - I enjoyed the one about Chris Phipps, he's an old friend of mine.

Edited April 12, 2013 by kenog

[zepofile]

It's nice of you to say so. When I was uploading these last night, I was wondering if anyone ever looked at them!!

i"m looking and i love this thread. your efforts are greatly appreciated. warm regards, bk

[kenog]

Bob,

Thanks so much for your words of encouragement. I try to add pieces to the thread when I have the time.

i"m looking and i love this thread. your efforts are greatly appreciated. warm regards, bk