Interview with Henry "The Horse" Smith

[jb412]

Hi again.

We at Back Page Magazine are really proud of this interview, and wanted to share. One of our writers sat down with Henry "The Horse" Smith, a Zeppelin roadie from 1968-1973, for a long interview.

Here's the link - http://www.backpagemagazine.com/2011/11/03/the-roadie-led-zeppelin/

If you recall, we also conducted an interview with Bill Ward of Black Sabbath a few months back, and I shared that with you here as well - http://forums.ledzeppelin.com/index.php?/topic/16271-black-zeppelin-myth/

Anyway, we hope you enjoy the interview, it's pretty exciting to read Smith's insights into what it was like being around the band right as they blew up to become the legends they were.

Thanks!

[TheStairwayRemainsTheSame]

He seemed a big part of Zeppelin, how have I just heard of him?

[SteveAJones]

He seemed a big part of Zeppelin, how have I just heard of him?

Well for starters he's never published a tell-all book.

[TheStairwayRemainsTheSame]

Well for starters he's never published a tell-all book.

Sounds like it could be good though, I wonder what he means by saying that the storys are in fact bigger than what they are made out to be

[jb412]

Well for starters he's never published a tell-all book.

That's what intrigued me the most personally. Of course if the stories WERE in fact "bigger" than they already have been (which seems like quite a stretch) he could have made quite a hefty profit if he did write a book.

[TheStairwayRemainsTheSame]

That's what intrigued me the most personally. Of course if the stories WERE in fact "bigger" than they already have been (which seems like quite a stretch) he could have made quite a hefty profit if he did write a book.

All the LZ books sell particularly well I think they are nearly on par with The Beatles for "mysticism"...

[walterswalk]

Very interesting. Thx for posting

[MadScreamingGallery]

Hi again.

We at Back Page Magazine are really proud of this interview, and wanted to share. One of our writers sat down with Henry "The Horse" Smith, a Zeppelin roadie from 1968-1973, for a long interview.

Here's the link - http://www.backpagem...e-led-zeppelin/

If you recall, we also conducted an interview with Bill Ward of Black Sabbath a few months back, and I shared that with you here as well - http://forums.ledzep...-zeppelin-myth/

Anyway, we hope you enjoy the interview, it's pretty exciting to read Smith's insights into what it was like being around the band right as they blew up to become the legends they were.

Thanks!

Thank you for sharing your wonderful interview with us! It's always a breath of fresh air to encounter someone who was so close to the band who hasn't sold them out. I have great respect for some of the roadies I've met - in most cases their devotion and admiration for the bands they worked with is still so strong.

[aen27]

Thank you so much for posting this, jb412! I agree with MSG about not selling them out.

[SteveZ98]

Steven Tyler mentioned Henry Smith in a Rolling Stone interview:

"In the Sixties, I was in a band called Chain Reaction. We got to know the Yardbirds because they played at Staples High School in Westport, Connecticut, in 1966. We had a friend, Henry Smith, who had been our manager for a while, and he had gone to school there. He called me and said, "Steven, the Yardbirds are playing here, and you can open up." It was the lineup with Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, who was playing bass on that tour. We waited all day for them to arrive. I grabbed their amps, they grabbed ours. We carried each other's gear in, because back then, that's what you did. Hence began the rumor that I was a roadie for the Yardbirds."

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/7249947/89_the_yardbirds

[Knebby]

That's what intrigued me the most personally. Of course if the stories WERE in fact "bigger" than they already have been (which seems like quite a stretch) he could have made quite a hefty profit if he did write a book.

But maybe some things are more important to him than the cash? There are countless people around the band who have remained loyal and quiet, and in fact very few who have done the tell-all thing. Speaks volumes about the guys if you ask me.

[SuperDave]

But maybe some things are more important to him than the cash? There are countless people around the band who have remained loyal and quiet, and in fact very few who have done the tell-all thing. Speaks volumes about the guys if you ask me.

Certainly does. Well said Knebby!

[greenman]

One thing that interview does suggest me to me is that besides outright falsehoods alot of the "Road Fever" thats atrributed to band members was actually related to the road crew.