Meet Richard Cole Online (Led Zeppelin ) (May 7th)

[nirvana]

On the '77 tour.Cole was their manager from 1968 up to and including 1979. The band became the world's #1 music attraction in the 70s, so it's kind of unfair to pan Cole.

I'm not panning Richard - at least not until 1977. At that point he was coked out and he had thugs as his security force. He lost control of a very

important part of a successful tourng band like Zeppelin. Security needs to be heavy handed only when there is absolutely no other choice.

Cole just let the animals run the zoo, while the white stuff was running him and, sadly, the band as well.

[TheStairwayRemainsTheSame]

I'm not panning Richard - at least not until 1977. At that point he was coked out and he had thugs as his security force. He lost control of a very

important part of a successful tourng band like Zeppelin. Security needs to be heavy handed only when there is absolutely no other choice.

Cole just let the animals run the zoo, while the white stuff was running him and, sadly, the band as well.

Bit of a shame that near the end he was just left in jail in Italy

[Disco Duck]

I'm not panning Richard - at least not until 1977. At that point he was coked out and he had thugs as his security force. He lost control of a very

important part of a successful tourng band like Zeppelin. Security needs to be heavy handed only when there is absolutely no other choice.

Cole just let the animals run the zoo, while the white stuff was running him and, sadly, the band as well.

I don't think the onus should be on Cole alone. He reported to Peter Grant who had the power to fire the thugs. Unfortunately, Grant was also battling a cocaine addiction at the time.

[nirvana]

I don't think the onus should be on Cole alone. He reported to Peter Grant who had the power to fire the thugs. Unfortunately, Grant was also battling a cocaine addiction at the time.

Very true DD, very true. 1977 Grant bears even more responsibility for the total loss of control of the band's management. Think about it - Grant , Cole, and Page all had

the power to call the shots if one of the others failed in their responsibilities. If Jimmy said "Enough !" that would have been it, same with Grant and Cole.

The common bond with all three was that cocaine and heroin had crept in and taken all of them, the top of the Zeppelin pyramid, captive.

Bonham too was a victim but he needed help from someone in charge - but no one was in any kind of shape to help John or to right the sinking ship. (note Robert's lyrics on

Carouselambra). Richard Cole was simply not up to the security task while under the influence of a powerful drug and neither was Peter or Jimmy.

[nirvana]

In reference to the failure of the 3, Robert's lyrics from Carouselambra:

"...Still in their blissful hallowed mighty sleep,
Unending dances shadowed on the day,
Within their walls, their daunting formless keep,
Preserved their joy and kept their doubts at bay;
Satan's Legions stood in readiness to lead,
Just turn a coin bring order to the fray,
And everything was soon no sooner thought than deed,
Which nobody seemed to question in any way.

How keen the awry hunter's eye prevails upon the land
To seek the unsuspecting and the weak,
And powerless the fabled sat too smug to lift a hand
Towards the foe that threatened from the deep;
Who cares to dry the cheeks of those who saddened stand
Adrift upon a sea of futile speech?
And soothe the pain to walk the famous land
Where no one dares Forever ever to reach.

Where was your word, where did you go?
Where was your helping, where was your bow?
Dull is the armour, cold is the day.
Hard was the journey, dark was the way.

Edited April 18, 2013 by nirvana

[Chicago]

John Bonham was not a victim. He was a grown man with a free will who made his OWN choices.

[TheStairwayRemainsTheSame]

John Bonham was not a victim. He was a grown man with a free will who made his OWN choices.

The environment was very tough on Bonzo, the man missed his family and needed to escape reality.

[Geezer]

Bonham was not a victim. His death was accidental - surroundings had close to zero effect on it.

The environment was very tough on Bonzo, the man missed his family and needed to escape reality.

Really? I always thought he spent most of July, August, and Septembner with his family. Edited April 18, 2013 by Geezer

[SteveAJones]

Steve, ask him about the hitchhiker/trucker nicked guitar incident.

Is it true as Benji Lefevre was quoted as saying in Hoskyns book pg. 384?

If so, when? What guitar? And did Richard really punch the trucker?

Thanks!

^^^

I dont remember, but everyone has different stories and involvements -- Richard Cole

I would like Mr.Cole to be asked what the band or entourage considered to be performances that ranked high on the '77 tour, that might be flying under our radar. Mainly, the top four or five concerts where the band and management knew Led Zeppelin hit it out of the park, maybe a little further than usual.

^^^

Every date was an adventure for me -- Richard Cole

Im sorry but I cant work Facebook could you PLEASE ask him

"Would you ever have considered maybe being the tour manager of any solo projects in the future for members?"

^^^

I would had I been asked no doubt -- Richard Cole

[LedZebedee]

In reference to the failure of the 3, Robert's lyrics from Carouselambra:

"...Still in their blissful hallowed mighty sleep,

Unending dances shadowed on the day,

Within their walls, their daunting formless keep,

Preserved their joy and kept their doubts at bay;

Satan's Legions stood in readiness to lead,

Just turn a coin bring order to the fray,

And everything was soon no sooner thought than deed,

Which nobody seemed to question in any way.

How keen the awry hunter's eye prevails upon the land

To seek the unsuspecting and the weak,

And powerless the fabled sat too smug to lift a hand

Towards the foe that threatened from the deep;

Who cares to dry the cheeks of those who saddened stand

Adrift upon a sea of futile speech?

And soothe the pain to walk the famous land

Where no one dares Forever ever to reach.

Where was your word, where did you go?

Where was your helping, where was your bow?

Dull is the armour, cold is the day.

Hard was the journey, dark was the way.

Thanks for posting these lyrics! I never knew the significance partly because they are so buried in the mix and it's hard to decipher them! The song takes a whole new meaning now though it's still let down by the annoying parping synths and disco euro beat!

[Disco Duck]

How did the Richard Cole meet go today?

[SteveAJones]

How did the Richard Cole meet go today?

The thread title (May 7th) alludes to last year, not today. The most recent meeting was a couple weeks ago, when I posted Richard's replies to this thread.

[Sagittarius Rising]

I have to say from a purely professional level I have zero respect for Mr. Cole post 75'. As the tour manager he had two choices, do his damn job or quit, anything else is but an excuse. He was in charge of the road show, not Grant, that is what Grant and other managers hire tour managers for otherwise why even suffer the expense? Sure, Grant was in bad shape, but IMO Cole simply became a parasite post 75', enjoying the party favors while ignoring his responsibility. It was his job to keep the show on the road working well, managing all details and looking after the individual band members. Was he completely to blame? Of course not, but the fact cannot be denied he was hired to do a job and for two years he took the cash, enjoyed the lifestyle, and did fuck all as a tour manager. I am glad he has gotten his life together, but he further exploited the band with his STH bullshit book. He reminds me of the convicted killer who claims remorse for slaughtering an entire family, but since he has found Jesus thinks he should be released. That dog just don't hunt for me. If I am coming across as harsh, so be it, I deal with addiction on a daily basis with clients and I know the story, same one every time.

If anyone wishes to appreciate this guy that is your prerogative, but the shit that happened at Oakland ( and other places) was on his watch, his responsibility. Unless I missed that chapter in STH or other print media, I never heard him apologize for not doing his job and allowing a man to be almost beaten to death. Until he claims responsibility, there is nothing to appreciate.

[SteveAJones]

I have to say from a purely professional level I have zero respect for Mr. Cole post 75'. As the tour manager he had two choices, do his damn job or quit, anything else is but an excuse. He was in charge of the road show, not Grant, that is what Grant and other managers hire tour managers for otherwise why even suffer the expense? Sure, Grant was in bad shape, but IMO Cole simply became a parasite post 75', enjoying the party favors while ignoring his responsibility. It was his job to keep the show on the road working well, managing all details and looking after the individual band members. Was he completely to blame? Of course not, but the fact cannot be denied he was hired to do a job and for two years he took the cash, enjoyed the lifestyle, and did fuck all as a tour manager. I am glad he has gotten his life together, but he further exploited the band with his STH bullshit book. He reminds me of the convicted killer who claims remorse for slaughtering an entire family, but since he has found Jesus thinks he should be released. That dog just don't hunt for me. If I am coming across as harsh, so be it, I deal with addiction on a daily basis with clients and I know the story, same one every time.

If anyone wishes to appreciate this guy that is your prerogative, but the shit that happened at Oakland ( and other places) was on his watch, his responsibility. Unless I missed that chapter in STH or other print media, I never heard him apologize for not doing his job and allowing a man to be almost beaten to death. Until he claims responsibility, there is nothing to appreciate.

If I understand your post correctly, you are equating Richard Cole to a mass murderer? Wow. I don't even know what to say to such hyperbole.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the fact is Peter Grant - perhaps the most demanding band manager in music - maintained complete trust and confidence in Richard Cole from the band's inception through '79. The results Richard helped attained for Led Zeppelin speak for themselves.

Insofar as the Oakland '77 incident, an adult male who puts aggressive hands upon someone else's innocent child (in this instance Peter Grant's son) deserves an ass kicking they'll remember for the rest of their life.

Hollywood Variety (July 27, 1977)

Scan courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive

Edited May 8, 2013 by SteveAJones

[Knebby]

In reference to the failure of the 3, Robert's lyrics from Carouselambra:

"...Still in their blissful hallowed mighty sleep,

Unending dances shadowed on the day,

Within their walls, their daunting formless keep,

Preserved their joy and kept their doubts at bay;

Satan's Legions stood in readiness to lead,

Just turn a coin bring order to the fray,

And everything was soon no sooner thought than deed,

Which nobody seemed to question in any way.

How keen the awry hunter's eye prevails upon the land

To seek the unsuspecting and the weak,

And powerless the fabled sat too smug to lift a hand

Towards the foe that threatened from the deep;

Who cares to dry the cheeks of those who saddened stand

Adrift upon a sea of futile speech?

And soothe the pain to walk the famous land

Where no one dares Forever ever to reach.

Where was your word, where did you go?

Where was your helping, where was your bow?

Dull is the armour, cold is the day.

Hard was the journey, dark was the way.

I'd disagree with some of these (famously hard to decipher ) lyrics - particularly the "satan's legions" which I believe is "faceless legions".

[Disco Duck]

The thread title (May 7th) alludes to last year, not today. The most recent meeting was a couple weeks ago, when I posted Richard's replies to this thread.

Oops! Thanks for the clarification.

[Sagittarius Rising]

If I understand your post correctly, you are equating Richard Cole to a mass murderer? Wow. I don't even know what to say to such hyperbole.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the fact is Peter Grant - perhaps the most demanding band manager in music - maintained complete trust and confidence in Richard Cole from the band's inception through '79. The results Richard helped attained for Led Zeppelin speak for themselves.

Insofar as the Oakland '77 incident, an adult male who puts aggressive hands upon someone else's innocent child (in this instance Peter Grant's son) deserves an ass kicking they'll remember for the rest of their life.

Hollywood Variety (July 27, 1977)

Scan courtesy Steve A. Jones Archive

Steve, I was simply making a comment regarding contrition, or lack thereof. As a good Catholic I a sure you can understand that point. In regards to kicking someones ass, according to the article you posted above, they guy they almost beat to death was not even the perpetrator of the initial crime...that guy got kicked in the balls by Bonham. Further, the varying accounts of what happened between Barsotti and Warren Grant, the worst case scenario has Barsotti slapping the boy and the best case has him giving the little thieving magpie a simple dressing down. I am not saying I believe a child should be smacked by an adult but if that was indeed what happened I think a nice kick in the balls was a good payback for a single smack. Instead, the doped up Bindon, Cole, & Grant proceeded to beat the shit out of a guy who had nothing to do with it. I don't know about you but if some guy hit my kid I would not go up to his second cousin twice removed and beat the crap out of him. I mean how fucked up can you be that you don't even beat up the right guy? If I were Plant and Jones I would have walked then and there, see ya and thanks for the memories.

So if you like him fine, he may be a real swell guy, a regular charmer these days, but for me I require a bit more, you know, like a simple I AM SORRY.

[SteveAJones]

Steve, I was simply making a comment regarding contrition, or lack thereof. As a good Catholic I a sure you can understand that point. In regards to kicking someones ass, according to the article you posted above, they guy they almost beat to death was not even the perpetrator of the initial crime...that guy got kicked in the balls by Bonham. Further, the varying accounts of what happened between Barsotti and Warren Grant, the worst case scenario has Barsotti slapping the boy and the best case has him giving the little thieving magpie a simple dressing down. I am not saying I believe a child should be smacked by an adult but if that was indeed what happened I think a nice kick in the balls was a good payback for a single smack. Instead, the doped up Bindon, Cole, & Grant proceeded to beat the shit out of a guy who had nothing to do with it. I don't know about you but if some guy hit my kid I would not go up to his second cousin twice removed and beat the crap out of him. I mean how fucked up can you be that you don't even beat up the right guy? If I were Plant and Jones I would have walked then and there, see ya and thanks for the memories.

So if you like him fine, he may be a real swell guy, a regular charmer these days, but for me I require a bit more, you know, like a simple I AM SORRY.

Where have I claimed to be Catholic, let alone good?

The article I posted provides an outline of events according to the assistant district attorney. It doesn't necessarily square with the defendant's accounts. As far as I'm concerned the right men were beaten for the right reasons and as such no apology is due to anyone.

[kenog]

Sagittarius Rising,

Good points that you have made here. I didn't realise that Jim Matzorkis wasn't the guy initially involved - that makes the beating he got even worse. In one account I read, Bindon had tried to gouge out Mr Matzorkis eyeballs.

From the Hoskyns book (UK Edition, p399), Benji Lefevre says, "...From what I've been told, Warren was being a pain in the ass...and unfortunately John Bindon was an animal." Jim Matzorkis says, "He was just a young kid, so I took the signs from him. It wasn't a violent act of any kind."

From pages 400-402, there are comments and viewpoints from Dave Northover, Bill Graham, Dennis Sheehan, Jack Calmes, Mitchell Fox, Simon Kirke and Janine Safer. For me, Janine Safer sums it up the best, "...I lay the episode entirely at the feet of Bindon, with the flames stoked by Richard Cole and then bellowed by the paranoia of Peter Grant." "...Bindon was spoiling for a fight, as was Richard".

It may be of interest to any of J Bindon's victims throughout his life both here and in the US, that he died of AIDS through having to end up working as a male prostitute. (And yes, I do know that two wrongs don't make a right.)

The Bill Graham security team were IMHO in a no-win situation. If they had let Warren take the signs away, they would have been in trouble for that.

[kenog]

We'll have to wait for Sagittarius Rising to respond as to how he thought you were a Catholic. However, it may be due to your knowledgeable responses on the 'New Pope' thread.

As for you being good, well .... there are young Asian females who say "Mr Steve he is very very good"

Where have I claimed to be Catholic, let alone good?

The article I posted provides an outline of events according to the assistant district attorney. It doesn't necessarily square with the defendant's accounts. As far as I'm concerned the right men were beaten for the right reasons and as such no apology is due to anyone.

[Disco Duck]

I wonder how this incident affected Warren Grant. He was a just a kid, acting like kids often do when they're bored and unsupervised. Then to have his father arrested...He may have felt it was all his fault.

[Sagittarius Rising]

We'll have to wait for Sagittarius Rising to respond as to how he thought you were a Catholic. However, it may be due to your knowledgeable responses on the 'New Pope' thread.

As for you being good, well .... there are young Asian females who say "Mr Steve he is very very good"

Hey Kenog, yep, that is what I thought. Steve was making some very interesting posts on the New Pope thread and I thought he did mention he was a catholic but I may be mistaken. Sorry Steve if you are not a catholic. However, it is a real shame some people can get away with just about anything and still be considered blameless in the eyes of certain people. In a civilized society we do not randomly beat people up for no reason, hell even if there is a reason that is no excuse. You go through the proper channels, you do not take the law into your own hands...especially without the facts. Bindon, Cole, Grant = Guilty.

[And You Know How It Is?]

I can see why one would choose both sides to this argument, but here is my two cents:

No matter what condition Cole was in during the 1977 tour, he sure wasn't the only one in "party mode". And, to manage the funds as he did, among his many other duties (even the perceived loss of $10,000 which was later found and confirmed by Grant to be an error), he did a GREAT job managing the money and protecting his mates (yes, more than employers)during the largest tour ever under taken by the band, at a time when the band was at its Zenith in popularity, along with an all time high in threats to members of the band. Oakland incident notwithstanding (and we don't know ALL the facts), Cole was excellent in his job in 1977!

If one were to base his behavior as a means to be fired, frankly, John Bonham should have been fired too.

[nirvana]

I'd disagree with some of these (famously hard to decipher ) lyrics - particularly the "satan's legions" which I believe is "faceless legions".

"Faceless Legions" it is! Don't know where the "Satan" reference came from....

[nirvana]

In regards to the Oakland brawl...violence begets violence - all parties were wrong but esp. Binden, Bonham, Cole, and Grant.

Bonham, as a Band member, had the most to lose - but he was out of control and obviously didn't care. Binden was nothing

but a criminal and thug but under Cole's hire. Peter should have had final say and control of the situation but he just was so burnt

out that he was nothing but a bystander cheering his gorillas on.

Bill Graham was a victim too of their intimidation and crazed in-justice.

Sorry SAJ, there is no justification for animalistic behavior on anyone's part. Especially from a Band member with so much at stake.