Band
Bios
Jimmy Page
Unquestionably one of the all-time most influential, important, and
versatile guitarists and songwriters in rock history is Jimmy Page.
Just about every rock guitarist from the late '60s/early '70s to the
present day has been influenced by Page's work with Led Zeppelin —
his monolithic riffs served as a blueprint for what would eventually
become heavy metal, yet he refused to be pigeonholed to any single
musical style (touching upon folk, country, funk, blues, and other
genres). Page also lent a hand in writing (or co-writing) Zeppelin's
vast array of classic songs and produced all their albums. Born on
January 9, 1944, in Heston, Middlesex, England, Page picked up the
guitar at age 13 after being inspired by the Elvis Presley tune "Baby
Let's Play House," and while he took several lessons, was mostly
self-taught. Instead of attending college right after high school,
Page decided to join his first real rock band, Neil Christian &
the Crusaders, whom he toured England with. But Page fell seriously
ill (with glandular fever) and was forced to quit and recuperate.
Dejected, Page pondered giving up music and focusing on another interest,
painting, as he enrolled at an art college in Sutton, Surrey.
With the emergence of such bands as the Rolling Stones in the early
'60s and their gritty blues-rock, Page's interest in music perked
up once again — but instead of forming a band right away, he
decided to hone his craft by becoming one of England's top session
guitarists and producers. Although the exact specifics of which sessions
he was involved with have become hazy over time, it's confirmed that
he worked with many of the day's top acts, including the Who, Them,
Donovan, the Kinks, and the Rolling Stones, among others. By 1966,
Page was looking to put his session work on hold and join a full-time
band; he accepted an offer to play with the Yardbirds (initially as
a bassist, then shortly thereafter as a guitarist), as he was paired
up with another one of rock's all-time guitar greats, Jeff Beck. Although
the Yardbirds began as a straight-ahead blues-rock band, with the
inclusion of Page in the lineup, the group began experimenting with
psychedelic and hard rock styles.
Despite it being obvious that the Yardbirds were on the downside of
their career (Beck left shortly after Page came onboard), Page appeared
on the album Little Games and several tours before the band finally
called it a day in 1968. With a string of tour dates still set up
throughout Europe, Page decided to go through with the shows and put
together a new band who was dubbed the New Yardbirds — including
longtime session bassist John Paul Jones, plus newcomers Robert Plant
on vocals and John Bonham on drums. After the completion of their
initial tour, the band changed their name to Led Zeppelin and explored
the still largely uncharted territory of hard rock/heavy metal. The
band immediately became one of rock's most successful and enduring
bands, issuing a string of classic albums from 1969 through 1975 —
Led Zeppelin I, Led Zeppelin II, Led Zeppelin III, Led Zeppelin IV,
Houses of the Holy, and Physical Graffiti — which spawned such
classic rock radio standards as "Dazed and Confused," "Whole
Lotta Love," "Immigrant Song," "Black Dog,"
"Stairway to Heaven," and "Kashmir," as the band
also became a must-see live act in the process. Page also found the
time to work with folk artist Roy Harper (most notably his 1971 release,
Stormcock, under the alias S. Flavius Mercurius). Zeppelin was arguably
the biggest rock band in the world by the mid-'70s (their influence
on other rock bands following in their wake cannot be stressed enough)
as they launched their own record company, Swan Song, but it was around
this time that Page began dabbling with heroin and other substances,
eventually leading to him becoming a full-blown addict by the late
'70s/early '80s (as a result, his playing began to suffer). Also,
Page's interest in the occult became a concern to those around him
(he went as far as purchasing a mansion on the Loch Ness in Scotland
that was once owned by renowned Satanist Aleister Crowley).
Zeppelin continued issuing albums until the dawn of the '80s (1976's
concert movie/soundtrack The Song Remains the Same and Presence, 1979's
In Through the Out Door), but tragedy ultimately derailed the quartet
— the death of Plant's young son in 1977 and Bonham's alcohol-related
death in 1980. After Led Zeppelin decided to call it quits in late
1980, Page disappeared from sight (it became known later on that he
hardly touched his instrument for a long time afterward). It wasn't
until 1982 that Page began to emerge from his self-imposed exile,
as he composed and played on the motion picture soundtracks to Death
Wish I and Death Wish II, compiled the Zeppelin outtakes collection,
Coda, and took part in the 1983 star-studded A.R.M.S. tour, which
saw Page unite with Beck and Eric Clapton for a series of shows that
raised money for multiple sclerosis research. In 1984, Page guested
alongside Plant, Beck, and Nile Rodgers on the hit EP of rock &
roll oldies The Honeydrippers, and formed his first band since the
demise of Zeppelin, dubbed the Firm. The group featured former Free/Bad
Company vocalist Paul Rodgers, and despite the fact that their self-titled
debut was a sizeable hit, the band decided to call it a day shortly
after the release of their lukewarm-received sophomore effort, Mean
Business.
Zeppelin fans were given a rare treat when their surviving three members
reunited (with drummers Tony Thompson and Phil Collins) for the mammoth
Live Aid at Philadelphia's JFK Stadium in July 1985 — unfortunately
handing in an incredibly under-rehearsed, sloppy performance. Zeppelin
reunited again in 1988 for the Atlantic Records 25th Anniversary Concert
at New York's Madison Square Garden (this time Bonham's son, Jason,
filled in for his late father behind the kit), and yet again performed
another mistake-filled mini set. The same year Page guested on Plant's
solo release, Now & Zen, as well as issuing his first ever solo
recording, Outrider, following it up with a tour that touched upon
tracks from all eras of his career. By the early '90s, further rumors
of an impending Zeppelin reunion continued to circulate, and after
Plant declined an invitation from Page to join forces once again,
Page decided to collaborate with former Deep Purple/Whitesnake vocalist
David Coverdale, whose vocal style has often been compared to Plant's
over the years. Page's latest project only lasted a single album,
1993's heavily Zep-like Coverdale/Page, as a proposed world tour was
scrapped in favor of just a few select dates in Japan.
In 1994, Plant and Page finally agreed to collaborate once again (although
Jones wasn't invited this time), leading to the release of the acoustic
set No Quarter the same year, plus a highly popular MTV Unplugged
special and sold-out world tour. A year later, Led Zeppelin was inducted
into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, this being the second time
a Page-related band got the nod from the Hall (in 1992, the Yardbirds
were honored). 1998 saw Plant and Page issue an album of all-new material,
Walking into Clarksdale, which was surprisingly not well received
by the public, sinking from sight shortly after its release. The duo
went their separate ways by the late '90s, as Page joined the Black
Crowes for a tour and live album (2000's Live at the Greek). The same
year as the album's release, another Crowes/Page tour was cut short
due to a back injury Page suffered. But in June of 2001, Page took
to the concert stage alongside Plant to celebrate the 60th birthday
of their friend, folk artist Roy Harper.
John Paul Jones
One of the founding members of the legendary group Led Zeppelin, John
Paul Jones started life on January 3, 1946, in London, England. In
the turbulent years since then, he has left his mark on rock &
roll music history as an innovative musician, arranger, and director.
In 1960, when Jones was only 14 years old, he became a member of his
father's dance band. This time under his father's watchful eye gave
him a chance to gain experience and confidence. A year later, Jones
formed his first band and by the next year, he began to travel and
perform professionally at an age when school alone can apply too much
pressure on a teen. By the mid-'60s, he had served for other groups
as director and arranger, as well as bassist and keyboardist. His
remarkable credits from that early period include amazing groups like
the Rolling Stones, the Outlaws, Jeff Beck, Mickey Most, the Yardbirds,
the Mindbenders, the Everly Brothers, and the Supremes.
In 1968, Jones was chosen by Jimmy Page to help put together a new
group that would be known as Led Zeppelin. In less than a dozen years,
Jones, as a member of Zeppelin, made one movie, recorded nine full-length
albums that gave the world of rock & roll something to think over,
and completed close to 30 exhausting tours.
When Led Zeppelin ended in 1980, Jones continued his musical career.
He began to produce and arrange albums for other artists, he also
wrote songs, and then film scores for movies likes Scream for Help,
Risk, and The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb. In 1996, Jones saw the
construction of his own studio completed. Two years later he finally
recorded a solo debut album, Zooma. "Smile of Your Shadow,"
"Bass 'N' Drums," and "Grind" are a few of the
tracks from this first noteworthy solo offering.
Robert Plant
In 1968, a naïve young singer from the Black Country hills in
England named Robert Plant was discovered wailing the blues by veteran
session guitarist Jimmy Page and bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones.
When Plant recommended his friend John Bonham as the drummer, one
of the most successful bands in rock history was born as Led Zeppelin.
But the group that started with such force also ended in flames after
12 years, as Bonham's death from alcohol poisoning in 1980 split the
band after nine albums. The remaining members went their separate
ways, but Bonham's death hit Plant particularly hard. Starting his
solo career in 1982 with his Zeppelin-like Pictures at Eleven album,
Plant would use a slew of great drummers over the next few years,
including Phil Collins, Cozy Powell, Barriemore Barlow, and Richie
Hayward. Collins appeared on the 1983 follow-up, The Principle of
Moments, and Plant achieved a lighter touch somewhere between Genesis
and Zeppelin's quieter side with tracks like "In the Mood"
and "Big Log." But the singer would feed his Elvis Presley
infatuation on 1984's The Honeydrippers, Vol. 1, teaming with Page
and other guests on influential roots rock material. Refusing to be
typecast, Plant then threw a major curve with Shaken 'N' Stirred,
the 1985 album that approximated new wave through the synthesizer
embellishments of keyboardist Jezz Woodroffe and guitarist Robbie
Blunt, plus Hayward's use of electronic drums. It was a creative highlight
of his career, but despite a hit in "Little By Little,"
the album sold poorly, and the rumblings about a Zeppelin reunion
mounted. Plant took the next few years off, then answered the call
for Zeppelin material with 1988's Now & Zen, which featured samples
from his old group (plus selections from its vault on the subsequent
tour). Manic Nirvana furthered the post-Zeppelin theme in 1990, and
Plant's 1993 CD Fate of Nations proved another artistic high point
and found Plant singing Page's name on the hit "Calling to You."
The old songwriting partners had gotten together again for special
occasions with Jones and drummers like Collins and Bonham's son Jason,
but organized a different reunion in 1994. Plant brought in his bassist,
Charlie Jones, and touring drummer, Michael Lee, to back he and Page
— who added a British symphony orchestra and Middle Eastern
musicians for their televised No Quarter concert and CD. Despite Plant
blocking Jones from participating (the two had disagreed throughout
their careers), the show proved a fascinating blend of different cultures
tackling Zeppelin classics like "Since I've Been Loving You"
and "Gallows Pole." As the versatile Jones made a name for
himself as a producer (of groups as disparate as Heart and the Butthole
Surfers) as well as solo artist, Plant and Page further stirred the
ashes with their 1998 studio CD, Walking Into Clarksdale. But the
quartet format (with Jones and Lee) paled in comparison to Zeppelin's
similar blend of bombast and subtlety, and poor sales put Plant back
at the crossroads of his 35-year career. He stayed away from recording
until late 2001, when he stepped into the studio with a batch of original
material and a few well-chosen covers and recorded Dreamland. Taking
his penchant for experimenting with ethnic musics and blending it
with a softer approach to his bluesy pop, he steered in another interesting
direction almost 40 years into his recording career. In November 2003,
Atlantic issued Sixty Six to Timbuktu, a two-disc compilation dedicated
exclusively to Plant's solo work. The set ranged from hits like 1988's
"Tall Cool One" and the Honeydrippers favorite "Sea
of Love" to the previously unissued "Upside Down" and
a pre-Zeppelin single dating from 1966.
John Henry Bonham
Drummer John Henry Bonham was born in Redditch, England in (b.1948).
His early musical training came from rhythmic beating on pots and
pans that he confiscated from the kitchen. By the age of ten he had
moved up to a real drum, and then later a complete used drum kit his
father bought for him.
Bonham played for his first band, Terry Web and the Spiders, in the
'60s. He moved around from group to group, gaining experience and
polishing his own style of playing. By 1968 he had won a noteworthy
reputation that had several groups making him offers of membership.
One was a heavy rock band called the New Yardbirds. The Yardbirds
didn't offer as much pay as some of the others, but Bonham joined
anyway. The guitarist in this little band was Jimmy Page. Chris Dreja
was bassist, and Robert Plant was the new singer. Thanks to a comment
made by Keith Moon, a member of the Who, the band's name was changed
to Led Zeppelin. The rest is album rock history.
A part of that history came to a premature end in 1980. John Bonham,
only 33 years young, was known as a man who loved his alcohol. On
September 24th he downed somewhere over three dozen straight shots
of vodka in just a few hours. He died in his sleep later that night.
Left to grieve his loss and ask why, were his wife, two children,
many friends, and tons of fans. The band Led Zeppelin didn't recover,
and called it quits within three months.
In 1994 the members of Led Zeppelin, including Bonham, were inducted
into the Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame. The next year they each received
a lifetime achievement award.
