I read today that Led Zeppelin “long-awaited reunion” may lead to more concerts. The group will be performing on December 10th at London’s 02 Arena in a benefit tribute concert for Ahmet Ertegun. Ertegun was the co-founder of Atlantic Records (along with Herb Abramson) who passed away last year.
I only have one problem with this. The “reunion” of Led Zeppelin doesn’t include all the original members. The original members of the band, formed in 1968, were Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and John Bonham.
I am not that big a Led Zeppelin fan, but to me, the band ended in 1980. That is because on September 24th of that year, drummer John Bonham died at the age of 32. He had had a long battle with alcoholism and that day, he had been drinking heavily. Bonham fell asleep and was taken to bed and placed on his side. The next morning, tour manager Benji LeFevre and John Paul Jones found him dead. The official cause of death was asphyxiation from vomit.
In 1988, the band asked John’s son, Jason Bonham, to play with them at a 40th anniversary concert for Atlantic Records. That was very nice and it will be Jason joining them on drums for the concert on the 10th.
But, to me, that is not a reunion. Maybe I am too hardheaded, but to me, a true reunion should consist of the original band members. I also feel that same way about Van Halen. I thought David Lee Roth would never rejoin the band I loved in high school, but I lived long enough to see it happen. The only problem is that while Diamond Dave and Eddie are back together and playing nice, original bassist Michael Anthony has been replaced by Eddie’s 16-year-old son Wolfgang.
Anthony is not dead – he is alive and kicking, but I am not really sure why he was replaced. I am not sure he knows why he was replaced. After reading on the Internet that he was being replaced by Wolfgang, he said, “I’m a little miffed that they’re calling it a Van Halen reunion. If I was dead or they needed someone to play, that’s one thing, but to me this is not a reunion.”
I just feel that, for the most part, when an original band member dies, the magic created by the band is lost forever. INXS, one of my favorite bands of the 80s, is touring with a new lead singer since Michael Hutchence’s death, but it just wouldn’t be the same. The music may sound almost the same, but something is lost.
What do you think? Is this really a Led Zeppelin reunion or just a get together of the surviving band members?