CARNEGIE HALL, NY 10-17-69 - Never Before Seen Fan Photos! First use of Black Beauty Les Paul

[drowan]

This photo below was associated with Led Zeppelin's fourth North American concert tour in 1969 when they opened the tour with a one night two concert single bill at Carnegie Hall on October 17, 1969.

[drowan]

Rock critic, Chris Welch, was invited by Led Zeppelin, to travel with the band by plane from London, to attend, witness and report on the Carnegie Hall concert in NYC held on October 17, 1969.  Though writers try to stay behind the scenes as they interact with the band and sit in on concerts, occasionally they are photographed together.  Here is a photo of Chris (far right) with the band a few months later from March, 1970 during LZ's European Tour which included concerts in Germany.

  

Edited November 21, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

Ritchie Yorke is another prolific rock music critic and an early fan of Led Zeppelin starting in 1969.  He is also profiled in some of the earlier comments of this Forum string which include some scanned examples of his LZ music reviews.  Below is a picture of Ritchie (on the right side of this photo) with Robert Plant, taken in all likelihood around 2015 when he had recently published a new book on Van Morrison (visible in Ritchie's left hand).

 

Edited November 22, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

Here's a 1968 concert recording of "Dazed and Confused" that gives you an example of the raw power of the band in their early years.  By October 1969, when Led Zeppelin performed this song at Carnegie Hall in NYC, Jimmy Page had perfected his eerie and haunting use of the cello bow in this song.  The physical and intense power of John Bonham's drumming is so apparent throughout the song as well.  Also, some of the electric guitar effects during the jamming interlude within the song incorporate the influence and sound of Jimi Hendrix.  Enjoy.

 

 

Edited November 23, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

Here is Jimmy Page using his cello bow on his guitar during "Dazed and Confused" in the middle of the 10/17/69 Carnegie Hall concert.  Wow, what a night!!!  We were all just blown away.  The music changed us all that night.

 

[drowan]

Here's one of the few photos taken from the stage showing Jimmy Page playing that night on October 17, 1969 at Carnegie Hall.  Notice the same band stage hand (shown at the left of this photo with his back to the camera) who was also captured in the B&W photo immediately above.  In the background, you can also make out Jonesy (in a red shirt) and two guests behind him watching the concert from the other side of the stage - most likely, Chris Welch, Chris Wood (of Traffic), Eddie Kramer or Lord Sutch.

 

Edited November 23, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

On 2/25/2018 at 5:25 PM, drowan said:

Here is the cover of the first vinyl LP album that John Bonham bought when he was 15 years old.  He mentioned this Benny Goodman album (featuring drummer Gene Krupa) nostalgically to Chris Welch and others assembled on the Carnegie Hall stage while he set up his drums before the concert:

 

The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert by Benny Goodman, Columbia Records catalogue item SL-160, is a two-disc LP of swing and jazzmusic, first issued in 1950. The concert has been described as "the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history: jazz's "coming out" party to the world of "respectable" music."^[2]

The first ever double album, it was one of the first records of Benny Goodman music issued on the new long-playing format, and one of the first to sell over a million copies. A landmark recording, it was the premiere performance given by a jazz orchestra in the famed Carnegie Hall in New York City. This album was also sold in a set of nine 45 rpm records in the same year by Columbia.

The reception to the original 1950 long-playing double-album was exceptional, as had been the band's appearance at Carnegie Hall. Over time as technology improved the material was re-released, with digital versions produced both in the 1980s and 1990s.

Editor's Note:  A correction is required in this string entry (reprinted above).  The Bennie Goodman 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert album was not purchased by John Bonham as his first album at age 15, it was purchased by rock critic and writer, Chris Welch.  Welch's first-hand description of John  Bonham's on-stage commentary immediately prior to the LZ 10/17/69 Carnegie Hall concert made the tale and significance of this 1938 album tie-in a little hard to follow.  But, after re-reading Chris Welch's review and commentary surrounding the Carnegie Hall concert, it became apparent that it was Chris, not Bonzo, who purchased the Benny Goodman 1938 album at age 15.  Sorry for the misinterpreted attribution.   Just wanted to set the record straight for both Chris' and Bonzo's benefit!  DCR 

Edited November 23, 2019 by drowan

[June72]

On 11/22/2019 at 5:26 PM, drowan said:

Here's a 1968 concert recording of "Dazed and Confused" that gives you an example of the raw power of the band in their early years.  By October 1969, when Led Zeppelin performed this song at Carnegie Hall in NYC, Jimmy Page had perfected his eerie and haunting use of the cello bow in this song.  The physical and intense power of John Bonham's drumming is so apparent throughout the song as well.  Also, some of the electric guitar effects during the jamming interlude within the song incorporate the influence and sound of Jimi Hendrix.  Enjoy.

 

 

For the record, this version of DAC was recorded in March 1969 if I'm not mistaken. The only available 1968 live recording is Spokane.

[drowan]

10 hours ago, June72 said:

For the record, this version of DAC was recorded in March 1969 if I'm not mistaken. The only available 1968 live recording is Spokane.

June72:  Thanks for your effort to correct and clarify the origin and date of this video recording.  [I referenced a recording date of "1968" because that was the year (incorrectly) cited in the corner of this You Tube's video recording home page.]  I have since done a little research to follow up on your correction and can expand a bit here further.  The video recording was done on March 18, 1969 at Staines Studios in the UK as part of a larger "staged" concert recording event called "Supershow".  It was produced by Tom Parkinson, directed by John Crome and filmed by a privately financed, independent production company call Colourtel TV Productions.  In addition to Led Zeppelin, some of the other musicians recorded as part of this show included Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Stephen Stills, Buddy Guy and others.  The filmed concert was ultimately made into a full length feature film and was shown in both Europe and the US in 1969 and 1970.  There is some more detailed documentation of the Supershow event on the Led Zeppelin website.  The link to that site is as follows:

https://www.ledzeppelin.com/show/march-18-1969

The Wikipedia link for this concert film recording event is as follows:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supershow

Here is what Jimmy Page was quoted as saying with respect to this Supershow session:

Jimmy Page: "We performed Dazed and Confused with what seemed to be a pretty experienced production team, as the camera angles appeared interesting at the time. They also used some dry ice, which was quite vibey, and we were just part of a number of artists that were to appear on this show - some of whom had not yet recorded and were due to arrive at the building. There was definitely a timeslot for us to do another number, especially as the other artists hadn't arrived, and I suggested to the director that maybe it would be a good opportunity to do Communication Breakdown as a second number, but they declined the offer and said it wasn't necessary!" - jimmypage.com

Once again, thank you June27, for bringing this correction, to our attention.  Accuracy is an important part of what this LZ Forum is all about.  It is also worth noting that the March 18, 1969 recording date occurred only seven months prior to the 10/17/69 Led Zeppelin concert at Carnegie Hall.  This now correctly attributed Supershow video date of 3/18/69 brings the "Dazed and Confused" recording event that much closer to the band's Carnegie Hall October performance date in NYC!  DCR

 

 

   

Edited November 26, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

On 3/8/2019 at 6:30 PM, drowan said:

Here is a photo of A&R's recording studio building at 322 West 48th Street in NYC and a receipt from a May 22, 1969 recording session for LZ II :

 

11 West 60^th Street, NYC – Address of Constellation Overseas division of Atlantic Records

They managed several of the studio recording sessions for Led Zeppelin II in May of 1969.

Recording studio session held on 5/22/69.

 

Edited December 1, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

On 11/30/2019 at 1:24 PM, drowan said:

 

Correction:  I believe "Constellation Overseas, LTD" was a corporate entity formed in 1965 by Peter Grant and was later used in 1969 for concert contracts and recording sessions booked by the band.  See the excerpted note below:

I have the original August 17th, 1969 show contract paperwork for the Oakdale Musical Theatre concert, signed by LZ manager Peter Grant and Oakdale owner Ben Segal. It states that “Constellation Overseas, LTD.” will be furnishing the services of Led Zeppelin for the show. Constellation Overseas Ltd was incorporated on November 24, 1965 and is now dissolved. There isn’t any director information or really any information at all(not to be confused with the current offshore mining company of the same name). Their address was, Barclays House, 41 Park Cross Street, Leeds LS1 2QH. The building at that address sounds like it could be an office quadplex now and isn’t quite as nice as surrounding buildings. Is this possibly another one of Jimmy’s companies, similar to Superhype or Flames of Albion, etc., etc.?? Even the name sounds like something he would come up with, Constellation Overseas = Superstar Abroad(USA/The World)!?!? It seems like 1965 was when Jimmy was really becoming a highly sought after session musician and may have had the foresight of protecting himself and his ventures, and could have set up Constellation Overseas.  

Source:  CeeJay302 [https://rarerecordcollector.net/2013/08/04/led-zeppelin-and-superhype/] 

DRowan

 

Edited December 1, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

On 11/25/2019 at 8:32 PM, drowan said:

June72:  Thanks for your effort to correct and clarify the origin and date of this video recording.  [I referenced a recording date of "1968" because that was the year (incorrectly) cited in the corner of this You Tube's video recording home page.]  I have since done a little research to follow up on your correction and can expand a bit here further.  The video recording was done on March 18, 1969 at Staines Studios in the UK as part of a larger "staged" concert recording event called "Supershow".  It was produced by Tom Parkinson, directed by John Crome and filmed by a privately financed, independent production company call Colourtel TV Productions.  In addition to Led Zeppelin, some of the other musicians recorded as part of this show included Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Stephen Stills, Buddy Guy and others.  The filmed concert was ultimately made into a full length feature film and was shown in both Europe and the US in 1969 and 1970.  There is some more detailed documentation of the Supershow event on the Led Zeppelin website.  The link to that site is as follows:

https://www.ledzeppelin.com/show/march-18-1969

The Wikipedia link for this concert film recording event is as follows:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supershow

Here is what Jimmy Page was quoted as saying with respect to this Supershow session:

Jimmy Page: "We performed Dazed and Confused with what seemed to be a pretty experienced production team, as the camera angles appeared interesting at the time. They also used some dry ice, which was quite vibey, and we were just part of a number of artists that were to appear on this show - some of whom had not yet recorded and were due to arrive at the building. There was definitely a timeslot for us to do another number, especially as the other artists hadn't arrived, and I suggested to the director that maybe it would be a good opportunity to do Communication Breakdown as a second number, but they declined the offer and said it wasn't necessary!" - jimmypage.com

Once again, thank you June27, for bringing this correction, to our attention.  Accuracy is an important part of what this LZ Forum is all about.  It is also worth noting that the March 18, 1969 recording date occurred only seven months prior to the 10/17/69 Led Zeppelin concert at Carnegie Hall.  This now correctly attributed Supershow video date of 3/18/69 brings the "Dazed and Confused" recording event that much closer to the band's Carnegie Hall October performance date in NYC!  DCR

 

 

   

Below is a handbill advertising the Supershow full length concert movie that was filmed in March 1969 (7 months prior to the Carnegie Hall October concert) that featured Led Zeppelin and a number of other bands.

 

[drowan]

The "Supershow" full length concert feature film was shown at various venues in the US as well and helped establish Led Zeppelin's reputation in the states in the months prior to and after the LZ Carnegie Hall on October 17, 1969.  Here is an example of a 1970 screening of the film at Hunter College in New York City:

[Note: Hunter College screening premiered on September 17-19, 1970]

Edited December 4, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

Rock music critic and author, Chris Welch, who was one of the first journalists to chronicle the rising success of Led Zeppelin on the concert circuit and the band's rapidly expanding fan base in the US, had this to say about the 10/17/69 LZ Carnegie Hall concert:

 

Source:  Interview of Chris Welch by Neil Daniels in 2008

Link: 

https://web.archive.org/web/20100623065158/http://neildaniels.com/Welch.html

 

 

Must have been to thousands of gigs and festivals over forty years but the one I remember with most excitement was Led Zeppelin at Carnegie Hall in 1

Edited December 11, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

Chris Welch wrote in his book about the ascent of Led Zeppelin as a worldwide rock music phenomenon, that he accompanied the band on a flight from London to New York to play at Carnegie Hall on 10/17/69 as the first stop of their Fourth North American Tour of 1969.  In preparation for the flight, Chris mentions that he met up with Robert Plant and Bonzo art Euston Station in London:

 

[drowan]

The day after the Carnegie Hall concert, Led Zeppelin quickly moved on to Detroit (MI) for a Saturday night concert on October 18, 1969:

[drowan]

“The group played an incredible 145 shows in 1969, and by the end of the year they had released the blockbuster “Led Zeppelin II” (featuring their breakthrough single “Whole Lotta Love”) and were headlining venues like London’s Royal Albert Hall, New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Boston Garden and Detroit’s Olympia Stadium.

From there, Zeppelin went on to become one of the most popular rock bands in history, dominating the 1970s, influencing countless thousands of musicians and, according to unofficial estimates, selling more than 200 million albums worldwide.”

Source:  Jem Aswad, Variety, August 13, 2018

Edited December 15, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

“10/25/69: Led Zeppelin At Carnegie Hall by Chris Welch. A superb, vividly rendered description of Welch's trip to America with Zep for the opening of their fourth U.S. tour at Carnegie Hall in New York. Notable in part because this concert (of which no recording exists) was a milestone in the band's career and yet it is seldom discussed-and according to Welch, "Summertime Blues" was played as an encore! Cover: unknown.”

Source: Hugh Jones, Proximity Led Zeppelin Collector’s Journal, Volume 9, No. 29, April 1998.

Photo of Chris Welch

Edited December 16, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

More color on the "backstory" of the Led Zeppelin 10/17/69 Carnegie Hall concert and its pivotal contribution to the rising visibility and fame of the band: 

[drowan]

As noted and excerpted from the above quote, "Thousands of teenagers, running in, chasing towards the front of the stage.  No one sat down, they just all stood together, whooping and hollering, shaking hands with Jimmy and Robert.  Well, we weren't used to this."    ---Chris Welch

Quote

Source:  Martin Power, No Quarter: The Three Lives of Jimmy Page

 

Edited December 18, 2019 by drowan

[drowan]

Here's what the view from the "upper" balcony is like at Carnegie Hall.  It's a fantastic venue for a rock concert with great acoustics and an intimate view of the stage from many vantage points!  We were in the tenth row from the stage on the left isle of the floor (just visible at the bottom edge of the picture) and were just blown away like all the rest of the fans that night!!  The view from the floor that night is in B&W!  This concert photo was taken during the encore when many fans had their jackets slung over their backs not sure if the band would opt to keep playing on.  Though the concert took place fifty years ago, the image in our minds is as vivid as yesterday. The rock world changed forever for many of us that night...and five days later we went out and bought our freshly pressed LZII vinyl LP's at local record stores on the first day of its release!  Rock on!!!

Edited December 20, 2019 by drowan

[anniemouse]

Was the sound decent. I can imagine this is during the era when amps were quieter although I can imagine the acoustics in the hall was impressive.

[drowan]

7 hours ago, anniemouse said:

Was the sound decent. I can imagine this is during the era when amps were quieter although I can imagine the acoustics in the hall was impressive.

Anniemouse:  Yes, the sound was loud and intense for this relatively small venue despite not having the scale of equipment one might see at a concert in Madison Square Garden (NYC) or an outdoor event.   Keep in mind that rock concert promoter, Howard Stein, put this show together and hired a seasoned sound manager, Jack Weisberg.  Jack was a sophisticated sound engineer who also designed sound boards of varying scale and complexity.  There was a supplementary sound system complementing the band's amps that is not visible in these photos.  So yes, there was plenty of volume!  In contrast, the Carnegie Hall management was somewhat intimidated by this intense heavy metal scene.  They managed to turn the stage power off several times insisting that the frenzied crowd had to get down off the arms of the chairs before the concert could proceed any further.  The fans obliged, the concert resumed, but 10 minutes later many were back up on the mahogany arms.  Oh well...the management finally realized it was futile on that front.     

Edited December 20, 2019 by drowan

[anniemouse]

Thanks for the reply its sounded quite a night.

[drowan]

Anniemouse:  Yes, a performance definitely worth a swig or two!!!