I am a massive Led Zeppelin fan and have been lucky enough to see them on six occasions. The first was in 1971. In November 1971 I went to see Led Zeppelin two nights in a row, something I have very rarely done. I saw them first at Newcastle City Hall and then the following evening at Sunderland Locarno. They were magnificent on both occasions, starting with “The Immigrant Song”, Robert Plant screeching out those opening vocals, Jimmy Page playing those magnificent riffs, John Paul Jones providing the steady bass lines and the late great John Bonham sitting centre stage banging away at his drums. The next event was the following year at another unbelievable performance at Newcastle City Hall. My fourth encounter with Led Zeppelin was in 1975 at London Earls Court with my friends Ian , Pete and John, more of whom later. Then in 1979 I went with my late wife Marie and many friends to see what was to be their last UK performance at Knebworth Park. My sixth and last Led Zeppelin experience was at the O2 reunion concert in 2004 with Marie and my two youngest children David and Laura. Each of these concerts were magnificent and momentous in their own way.
So how could I resist going to see this film which examines the beginnings of the band. I went along to my local cinema with my carer Chris to see the film a few days ago. My aforementioned friend, John who now lives in the USA, also went to see it over in the States. John has written a full account for me of seeing the film over there which I reproduce below. His thoughts of the experience are similar to mine, so I have used his account for my blog entry today. Thank you so much John for allowing me to do so. Over to you John.
Becoming Led Zeppelin is a movie about the genesis of the band and its first exciting chapter. It’s strange that there has been very little promotion for this event and it’s very difficult to know if it’s officially authorized by the band. However, as it does include extensive fairly recent interviews with the three surviving members and legacy discussions with John Bonham , I assume it must be. For me I am happy to see anything that documents Led Zeppelin from the past.
So, I approached tonight with mixed feelings, excitement and trepidation. What should we expect, what will it be like? Is there really enough “new” vintage material to make the story interesting and compelling? History had led me to believe that there isn’t too much material from their early days as they were not well documented. I was the first person to buy tickets for tonight’s opening event and as we approach showtime there are only about a dozen people in the cinema. Unbelievable. Peter Grant must be turning in his grave!! But as we get near to the start time it does fill up somewhat, but it’s still a rather meagre crowd given the magnitude of the artist and this event.
The movie is a well put together story which opens with context on Post War Britain, then documents the impact of American Rock and Roll on our deprived society, before moving on to the genesis of the band. Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones emerge as the real musical talent in the band during these early days. We learn about the early life of the four members with good natured humor in typical British self- deprecating manner. The story then moves to the legendary first rehearsal in a basement studio in London where the band played “Train Kept A Rollin’” and realized something special could be happening. It describes the Scandinavian tour where the band honor some commitments by the now defunct Yardbirds and they are billed as The New Yardbirds. In these early days Jimmy clearly had the vision and was the driving force behind the band, supported by Peter Grants emphatic belief in his talent.
After recording the first album in late 1968 and fueled by interest from Atlantic Records, the band embark on a series of shows across the US, from West to East. Vintage footage is peppered throughout the movie, some of which I’ve seen before but to see it in a truly glorious technicolor on a giant screen with a sensational sound system is really exciting. We learn about the reaction of American audiences to the first album and tour; with the music critics being rather unkind with their views. We hear how the second album, which broke the band worldwide, was recorded between gigs during this hectic touring schedule with both albums being ultimately released in 1969. What really comes over is the excitement around the process and the groundbreaking nature of what they were doing. And don’t forget the speed at which this all happened and how Robert and John Bonham were young and very inexperienced at the time. It all seems incredible by today’s standards.
While I am a reasonable Zeppelin expert, I did learn a lot. There is some great footage from a TV show in France which I’ve seen before, but it’s so much better in this big screen format. While Jimmy and John Paul describe the musical vision and its delivery, it is left to Robert to provide the humor which he does splendidly, complete with that wonderful sly grin and glint in his eye. He has some great comments about how John Bonham’s wife Pat said, “don’t hang out with Planty, he’s a bad influence on you”. With the benefit of hindsight that’s so hard to believe! There are shots of Robert and John in their early bands, also Peter Grant, Mickey Most and Terry Reid [who was Jimmy Page’s first choice for singer, Terry turned them down and recommended Robert Plant for the job], all of which add colour to this splendid tale. The movie closes with “What Is and What Should Never Be” and “Something Else” from their triumphant London Royal Albert Hall gig in January 1970.
While it’s easy to look for faults, for me as a long- term fan, this is a sensational evening and time flies by. The only words I have to describe it are “spine-tinglingly sensational”. While Zeppelin may have borrowed heavily from historical blues artists (Willie Dixon and Chester Burnett among others) and even some of their peers of the time (listen to The Small Faces “Need Love” and Marriott’s voice is very similar to Robert’s on “Whole Lotta Love”), there is no doubt they added their own magic and genius to create a patchwork of sound that has never been equaled. For me Led Zeppelin are simply the greatest rock band of all time, and this movie adds another chapter to their incredible legacy. Go see it !!
Thank you, John. I was similarly impressed by the movie. The performance I saw was poorly attended, there were six people in the audience including Chris and me. I bought myself an official poster and also one on eBay. I also bought myself a press pack from the Cannes film Festival a few years earlier where the film was yet to be named, and the showing was pulled because the band decided not to attend. Finally, I also bought a small poster from eBay, which was given out to those who attended the first showings in the UK and USA. I have included those images in this blog entry. Many thanks to John for allowing me to include his account of the movie and to Joanne for manipulating the site for me. A great movie about a great rock ‘n’ roll band. Happy days.
My head is still reeling with the music and sounds from last night. And the concert raised so many questions for me. Why is the rock legend, rock god, who is 
Saving Grace is very much a band. Of course people had turned out to see the main man, Robert Plant. But Robert is simply a singer in the band along with Suzi. The rest of Saving Grace comprises two guitarists and a percussionist; all excellent musicians in their own right and also providing some backing vocals. Lisa mentioned that the main hall may have been a church in earlier days (I must check this out). It certainly has stained glass windows on one side and a large church – like organ behind the stage. Tonight it certainly became “a church” in which we all enjoyed a spiritual and soulful journey led by a man who has explored spiritual themes throughout his career; “Stairway to Heaven” being one obvious example. The set comprised songs which Robert, unashamedly, has chosen because they have influenced him and touched him over the years. So there were the traditional such as “The Cuckoo” and “Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down”, old blues songs and classic progressive/psychedelic tracks including “It’s a Beautiful Day Today” by Moby Grape and (one of my all-time favourite songs) “Season of the Witch” by Robert’s old friend Donovan. The stage setup was quite basic with a simple curtain backdrop naming the band and unobtrusive lighting. But the music was exquisite, challenging, soulful and beautiful. Robert shared the vocals with Suzi and, in many cases, took us through the story of the song and what it meant to him. He even forgot which song he was introducing at one point and Suzi came over and whispered in his ear; tactfully correcting his mistake. There were references to performing at Redcar Jazz Club in 1966 with Long John Baldry. Many of the audience clapped, showing their age! “Season of the Witch “, led by Suzi, transformed into “For What It’s Worth” by Buffalo Springfield at one point; another reference point to Robert’s roots. The final song was an old Richard and Linda Thompson track, again taking us back to the late 60s/early 70s. The lights went up to signify the end of the show. But the crowd weren’t ready to leave just yet. Everyone stood up and cheered until the band returned.
Oh, and I must not forget that they sang a couple of songs by new American band Low. Robert spoke highly of them; another thing to check out. I learned lots of things last night. The final song was performed a cappella with the band all coming together at the front, arms entwined, singing the beautiful “And We Bid You Good Night”. Robert playfully said “see you soon at Kirklevington country club”. For some moments I believed this to be serious. But then I don’t think the wonderful venue that was referred to as “the Kirk”, and was 10 miles or so south of Middlesbrough, exists any more. Of course, Robert played there with his band the Honeydrippers many years ago. We wandered out into the cool dark Middlesbrough night, everyone chatting and looking at each other, each of us knowing we had just had the privilege of experiencing something very special and unique. The 45 minute taxi ride flew over and I was soon safely back home.
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