There's no denying

On this day in 1987, Robert Plant made history by singing, for the first time, Led Zeppelin songs at one of his solo concerts. The occasion was a show at Leas Cliff Hall in Folkestone, England. It was Plant's first show in nearly a year -- just two days short of that mark.

Plant's band that night was billed as the Band of Joy, reviving the name of an old band he'd played with before Led Zeppelin, one of a few that paired him with his friend John Bonham. For this 1987 show, the lineup of youthful musicians was Doug Boyle on guitar, Chris Blackwell on drums, Charlie Jones on bass, and main songwriter Phil Johnstone on keyboards.

"Working with Phil and all these young guys has been such a joyous experience because they've never played outside of bars before," said Plant. "Their honesty and their enthusiasm was so good that it was a Zen-like experience. It was like, God, these guys really want to do it. There were none of these 35-year-old menopausal mumblings that I was beginning to get with the last band. It was almost the second summer of love."

The Dec. 17 set opened boldly with a rendition of "In the Evening," the number that introduces Led Zeppelin's album In Through the Out Door. As the evening wore on, the band settled into two more Led Zeppelin tunes -- namely, "Trampled Underfoot" and "Misty Mountain Hop." It's interesting to note that Plant performed both of these songs at the Led Zeppelin reunion concert one week ago today.

Planted on a stool

On this day in 1975, Led Zeppelin performed a one-off comeback concert just to see what it felt like.

Hey, wait a minute, that's also what they're doing today in 2007, isn't it?

Well, the circumstances in 1975 were completely different. Robert Plant had been told in August that he might never walk again, after he and his family had been in a life-threatening auto accident. But by this point, he was moving with the aid of crutches.

The recuperating singer sat on a stool for a 45-minute set during which he belted out some Elvis Presley covers like "Jailhouse Rock" and "Blue Suede Shoes." Norman Hale, who had played piano for the Tornados in 1961 and 1962, sat in with Led Zeppelin. A friend of the band, he had been rehearsing with the rhythm section since the beginning of December.

A last-minute announcement that Led Zeppelin would appear at Behan's West Park night club brought 350 fans there. This unique experience in Led Zeppelin's history was the group's first concert in half a year.

Jimmy Page showed off a brand new guitar for the first time at this gig. He sported a Lake Placid blue model Fender '60s Stratocaster.

Because Plant is a natural dancer and showman, he said the toughest thing for him onstage was confining himself to the stool so he wouldn't put pressure on his healing ankle. "Every time I went to hit a high note," he explained, "I stood up, not putting any weight on my foot, but just sort of standing."

The previous month, in a Munich recording studio, Plant fell over in a wheelchair trying to dance while singing a song with the group.

Plant said he was impressed with the atmosphere at Behan's pub. "It was like a dance hall that was like some place 10 years gone by, in the best old English tradition," he said. "Guys with dickey bows and evening jackets ready to bang your head against a wall if you stepped out of line, and chairs and tables lined up in escalation. Chicks wearing suspenders and stockings -- and a lot of rock and roll."

Other December 10 events in Led Zeppelin history

December 10 is special to me personally as six years ago today, I exchanged questions and answers with John Paul Jones over four hours during an in-depth, one-on-one interview at a hotel in Philadelphia where he was staying on tour. Aside from the stories he told and the insight he provided, he also played some music for me, including "In My Time of Dying," which appears to be among the songs Led Zeppelin will be playing today at their first reunion concert of the 21st century.

Whatever happens today will add another layer of history to the ongoing Led Zeppelin saga. Good luck to the band on its performance today at the O2 arena in London. Led Zeppelin: Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and now Jason Bonham. We are proud to be your fans. Congratulations and best wishes to those who are attending the event. You are encouraged to keep your eyes on www.LedZeppelinNews.com over the next few days for updates from fans lucky enough to be there.

Could undivided harmony recur?

This is part two of the "On This Day In Led Zeppelin History" edition published Dec. 4, 2007, the week before the first Led Zeppelin concert since 1980. The day this was published was the 27th anniversary of Led Zeppelin's breakup following the death of John Bonham.

Jason Bonham, 41, says he is enthusiastic to be taking his father's place with Led Zeppelin at Monday's concert. "It's something I've dreamed about since I was 15 and realized I would love to play drums in Led Zeppelin," he said in an interview published in the December issue of Rythm magazine.

The rest of the band now considers him an equal, the drummer says. "I want to be known as more than just John Bonham's son. Because being in the room with them I do feel like a kid again. But after that first day I might have walked in a boy, but I left a man. The feeling they gave me at the end was they weren't these giants that I remember -- I was talking eye-to-eye with them, musically."

According to Plant, Bonham has earned the spot in the reunited group rather than it naturally being his by inheriting it from his father. In an interview with David Fricke for the current issue of Rolling Stone magazine, Plant said, "Now [Jason] knows that not only is he the right guy for it, but he's actually adding and, with his enthusiasm and his skill and his chops and his prowess, he's actually changing it."

Proclaiming that Bonham does so "stylistically," Plant added that because Bonham is "a drummer and a thinker in a more contemporary environment than the one that Led Zeppelin flourished and died in, he's got much more of a handle on keeping it in place than we have. Also, he played in bands where timing is strict."

Is it possible that the sense of undivided harmony has returned among Page, Plant and Jones with their new drummer? Bonham said that after a rehearsal this year, they informed him, "You're the reason we want to do this again, you're making us feel it's worth pursuing."

"I can't believe how well [Jason] fits into the scheme of things," Jones said in an interview for Yahoo. "He's a great drummer, he hits really hard. He's got certain musical mannerisms of his dad, but he doesn't really play like his dad, although it's uncanny because he sounds like his dad when he speaks." Jones said he'll often hear Bonham speak and think it's his father.

Plant has been particularly outspoken over the years that Led Zeppelin would never be forced to reunite. In the Rolling Stone interview, he answered Fricke's question of what about the current reunion he would characterize as real and not forced. "Oh, what happens in that room when there's nobody about," Plant replied. "And that's really -- that has been, at times, as good as it ever was. And the mentality and the approach obviously is a little different because Jason's whupping everybody's ass now, you know."

In a videotaped interview for Yahoo shot since the splint on Page's left pinky finger is gone, the guitarist described what is working with the reunited band today. "All I know is that the vitality that we'd have in the rehearsal period that we've had up til now, and the passion for the music, I mean, it's urgent," said Page. "It's still scary, and that's all there is for me. ... That's what it would have to have, and it's a synergy. It's a synchronized energy between the musicians, and the more that we've been playing together, the more that it's gelled."

"The passion and intensity is still there," Jones said. "We sounds great in rehearsals. It would really take your breath away, I guess. ... I was very happily surprised."

"It has to be exciting," said Plant, "when you got that much electricity in the air, a lot of static and a lot of expectation."

For 27 years, the thrill was gone. Now, with Jason Bonham, it appears to be a whole different story.

Undivided harmony

On this day in 1980, the three surviving members of Led Zeppelin announced their decision to retire the group.

This first public statement of Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones after the death of John Bonham on Sept. 25 clarified their position on calls to carry on without him. A press release summed up their feelings in these 48 words:

"We wish it to be known that the loss of our dear friend, and the deep respect we have for his family, together with the sense of undivided harmony felt by ourselves and our manager, have led us to decide that we could not continue as we were."

Each member of Led Zeppelin went his own way, retreating for a time from the public eye. Plant shied away from singing and considered going into teaching. Within two years, Jones did begin teaching, leading an electronic composition course. Page retreated from music for a time, and even the sight of his guitar painfully reminded him of his loss.

The three of them avoided playing Led Zeppelin's music for years. Page addressed his own feelings on the subject in an Ireland On-Line article published yesterday: "After John Bonham's death I spent 15 years not even wanting to think about Led Zeppelin."

Fifteen years is an obvious exaggeration, as those 15 years included every Led Zeppelin reunion show until the one scheduled to take place this Monday in London, as well as the remastering of the band's entire catalog as supervised by Page.

"But I also have difficulty thinking it's all over," Page continued. "Now at least one concert is planned and I'm incredibly
happy about that."

For reflections bringing this story up to date in the days immediately preceding the one-off Led Zeppelin reunion concert in December 2007, see the second part of this post, "Could undivided harmony recur?"