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rhapsodynew · 14 days

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Little-known facts about the cult rock band – part one.

Led Zeppelin – founded in England in 1968, the band was almost doomed to success because its founder, guitarist Jimmy Page, and his buddy, bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones, were already experienced session musicians. Adding a vocalist Robert Plant and the drummer John Bonham – both young but well versed in their shared local music scene – complemented the band perfectly.

An international sensation of the 1970s, Led Zeppelin remains one of the most successful and legendary bands in rock history, breaking records with their rousing live performances, diverse genre catalog, and refusal to play by the rules. Some of their songs, including the iconic "Stairway to Heaven" and "Whole Lotta Love", became classics of the time and genre.

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However, over the years, the band's touring exploits – in particular, frequent fun with female fans, the destruction of hotel rooms and reckless use of substances and alcohol – have become a cautionary tale about the dark side of rock and fame in general. It may look colorful and interesting, but in fact the career of the Zeppelins was extremely dark and tragic...

Below are some of the most unique and little-known facts.

Robert Plant plays the harmonica

Robert Plant was afraid of the stage – at first

While this may seem shocking, given that Robert Plant is now widely known as one of the most iconic rock frontmen of all time, the lion-maned singer once suffered from self-confidence issues. Plant was still literally a teenager (namely, he was 20 years old) when Led Zeppelin first hit the road in 1968, and the shouts of the crowd, as well as harsh media reviews, were initially unbearable for him...

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At the beginning of their journey, critics were not kind to the Zeppelins, and Plant, being the face and voice of the group, often bore the brunt of their insults. Some accused Robert of affectation, others of "excessive femininity.".. The cruel words deeply hurt Plant, who was already prone to self-doubt.

Later, the group manager Peter Grant admitted that he had to hide bad reviews from Plant in every possible way, and even comfort the anxious vocalist just to bring him on stage. It was for this reason that Robert also hesitated to write lyrics, which is why many considered him the weak link of the group (again, at the initial stages).

John Paul Jones miraculously did not die in the fire.

John Paul Jones

During a tour of America in 1973, Led Zeppelin threw a party in New Orleans, Louisiana. The group stayed at a hotel in the French Quarter, known for its vibrant nightlife... And that night the bass player John Paul Jones will never forget!

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The story goes how John met a certain Stephanie, and invited the girl to his room. The problem came up soon, and it was that Stephanie was actually a man! However, John later claimed that he knew this, and that Stephanie was his good friend, with whom they drank and had fun. In any case, it's not about what gender Stephanie was, and who she was to John. After entering the room, the two had a few drinks and smoked. They were so drunk that they forgot to put out their cigarette butts, and just fell asleep. Soon a fire broke out in the room, and John and his friend miraculously survived – they were found unconscious when the firefighters arrived! It was this incident that Robert Plant immortalized in the song "Royal Orleans".

"Everything is in perfect order on Bourbon Street –You can meet my friends, they hang out there all night long..."

The band was robbed during a US tour.

Led Zeppelin. Early 70s

On July 29, 1973 – the last night of the American tour – Led Zeppelin became the victim of a strange crime. The story goes that tour manager Richard Cole opened the band's safe while at the hotel and found it empty!

"I opened this thing, and there's nothing there–it's empty! Only passports! I burst out swearing because nothing else came to mind at that moment..."

To understand the full range of Cole's emotions, it's worth emphasizing that there were more than $200,000 in the safe– a significant portion of their income from the tour. Not wanting to disturb the band before they went on stage, Cole proceeded to resolve the issue as confidentially as possible. While the Zeppelins were performing, the FBI guys searched the hotel. There were no signs of forced entry on the safe, indicating that whoever stole the money had used the key. Cole was the first to come under suspicion, and he even had to undergo a lie detector test (which, by the way, did not reveal a lie in his words).

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After the show, the FBI also questioned the band members, but found no leads. The next day, the robbery made national news. Although the crime remains unsolved to this day, many believe that Peter Grant is responsible for the theft.

John Bonham struggled with depression.

Despite the fact that he looked brave and fearless on stage, the drummer John Bonham had great difficulties on the road. A family man at heart, Bonham, known to his bandmates as Bonzo, often missed his wife and two young children who stayed in England when he toured. At the beginning of his career with Led Zeppelin, he started drinking a lot to fight his depression and homesickness, which most often led only to chaos...

A friendly and gentle man when sober, Bonham was prone to anger, recklessness and outbursts of rage when intoxicated. He often took out his alcohol-induced rage on hotel rooms and anyone unlucky enough to be near him at the time of his rampage. Over the years, this behavior earned him the nickname "The Beast".

"Bonzo drank because he hated being away from home, it's true. Between performances, it was difficult for him to cope with emotions ...", – said John Paul Jones.

John Bonham

The tour also aggravated Bonzo's mental state. He began to be afraid of flights, and also suffered from constant panic attacks before performing. One day he confessed to a journalist:

"Every year it gets worse for me. I have terribly bad nerves all the time... It's even worse at festivals."

Zeppelin concerts have become dangerous.

As their popularity grew, Led Zeppelin began to give larger-scale concerts, which led to new problems. On July 5, 1971, the band performed in front of a boisterous crowd of about 15,000 people at the stadium Velodromo Vigorelli in Milan, Italy. The promoters begged the band to ask the public to stop lighting the fire, which frontman Robert Plant repeatedly did, but to no avail. The situation escalated, and hundreds of police used tear gas, water cannons and batons to subdue the crowd. Many were injured.

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Disoriented by the blinding smoke, panicked onlookers rushed onto the stage, causing the band to drop their gear in the middle of the performance and flee. In the confusion, one of the Zeppelin roadies was hit on the head with a broken bottle and was hospitalized. Page later recalled:

"It was absolutely terrible..."

And this was just the first of many dangerous performances by the Zeppelins. During the band's 1977 American tour, fans without tickets burst through the gates at several concerts, leading to hundreds of arrests. That same year, violent riots broke out in Tampa, Florida, among a crowd of 70,000 when the show was interrupted due to rain, leaving the police outnumbered and powerless. Then, during a concert in Cincinnati, Ohio, a fan fell from an upper floor. It was the last concert in his life...

The extension follows....

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theindyreview · 6 months

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Banger of the Week: Amber Wild - Breakout

Banger of the Week: @amberwildband - Breakout The spirit of stadium rock is alive and well in this new group fronted by the son of @KISS frontman @PaulStanleyLive #newmusic #AmberWild #KISS #rock #rocknroll #hardrock #stadiumrock #hairmetal #breakout

On Nov 3rd, I made the excellent decision to catch KISS‘ final California show (ever?) at the Hollywood Bowl. I went in with the full knowledge that the legendary band would be putting on a classic, hugely entertaining show. I wasn’t expecting there to be an opener, nor if there was one, that they would be…gasp…good. Much less really good. So when Amber Wild hit the stage and opened their set…

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#Amber Wild #Banger #Breakout #Evan Stanley #hair metal #New Music #rock #rock n roll #stadium rock

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spectrumpulse · 11 months

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#2023 #music #spectrum pulse #album review #on the pulse #foo fighters #but here we are #alternative rock #stadium rock #dave grohl

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history105rockandrollblog · 1 year

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Lecture 16: PUNK! The spirit of Punk is alive and well in this television clip of The Ramones appearing on the late-night Tomorrow show on September 1, 1981, to discuss the birth of punk and their role in it. The band has one of the best senses of humour in the history of rock ‘n’ roll, and a real eye for absurdities. Their irreverent style helped to define the modern punk subculture. Notice how the band members insult some of the stadium rock bands of the period, like Styx and Foreigner.

#The Ramones #punk #1970s #1980s #The Tomorrow Show #Stadium rock #Styx #Foreigner #television

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beatleshistoryblog · 1 year

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LECTURE 14: HELP!/BEATLEMANIA AT HIGH TIDE: The year 1965 saw no letup in the Beatles’ crazy-busy-hectic schedule. The summer tour proved especially exhausting. Their biggest concert of the year, in terms of sheer numbers, occurred on August 15 at Shea Stadium (where the Mets played baseball), in the borough of Queens, New York, which drew over 55,000 screaming fans. The noise coming from the audience was so loud, The Beatles often couldn’t hear their own music. Ed Sullivan’s production company, Sullivan Productions Inc, filmed the concert in colour. It was later shown on television, attracting millions of viewers. Sullivan introduces the band in this footage, and they run out onto the stage to play a 30-minute concert. The event revealed the hugely profitable potential of outdoor stadium concerts, which had become the norm in the world of rock music by the 1970s.

#The Beatles #Shea Stadium #1965 #Queens #New York #Mets #Ed Sullivan #television #stadium rock

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strawberry-crocodile · 3 months

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thinking about the time when someone on here was trying to tell everyone to watch sports and someone added "even if you don't like it, it's a good excuse to be in a huge open-air stadium surrounded by screaming people eating overpriced hotdogs" and i have never felt a more profound sense of

#''even if you don't like it it's a good excuse to stare headlong into an LED light while listening to christian rock''#blogodile #ah yes trapping myself in one of those 50-ft-in-the-air no handrail stadiums #where it's hot and sweaty #and there's. a bunch of screaming people.#so i can watch something meaningless to me.

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elvispresley · 9 months

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August 15, 1965 — The Beatles perform at Shea Stadium for the first time

#it took me hours to make this lol #i’m not too sure of the coloring but wtvvvv #today in history #the beatles #john lennon #paul mccartney #george harrison #ringo starr #1960s #1965 #shea stadium #eight days a week #classic rock #beatlesedit #edit

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emeraldexplorer2 · 15 days

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Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks at JFK Stadium, 1978

#beauty #vintage #rock music #rock band #band #fleetwood mac #stevie nicks #jfk stadium #1978

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k-i-l-l-e-r-b-e-e-6-9 · 2 months

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AC/DC, Angus Young and Bon Scott in Lakerfront Stadium, Cleveland, 1978.

#ac/dc #angus young #bon scott #lakerfront stadium #cleveland #70s #70's #1978 #australia #hard rock #classic rock #70s hard rock

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sbrown82 · 11 months

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Tina Turner on stage with the Rolling Stones during their “Tattoo You” American Tour at the JFK Stadium in Philadelphia (1981).

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bayareabadboy · 6 months

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Elton John

Dodger Stadium 🏟️ 1975

#Elton John #dodger stadium #classic rock #rock #hard rock #heavy metal #rock and roll #'70s rock #'70s

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theindyreview · 2 years

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New Music Friday: May 27, 2022

#NewMusicFriday w/albums by @JukeboxTheGhost @DefLeppard @liamgallagher @LosSaints_ & songs by @Interruptweets @WhereisMUNA @AmandaShires @MIAuniverse @FrankTurner @JayPutty @KGandTheDrive @hayleymarsten @official_cnr @deadboltsmusic @TravieMcCoy & more!

We all go into this Memorial Day with heavy hearts over the tragic events from this past week. While there is no cure for the pain caused by what happened in Texas, if you’re like me, listening to music is often a cathartic and soothing escape from the world, so hopefully there’s something from the new albums and songs out this week that can help you. Jukebox The Ghost‘s operatic brand of…

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#alternative #hard rock #indie #indie pop #New Music #New Music Friday #new releases #punk #rap #rock #singer songwriter #stadium rock

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ringostarrlover · 9 days

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I wish I had been a teenager during that time of Beatlemania! I find the musical reach they had impressive and I am very grateful for having revolutionized music. Beatle fan forever! 🫶

Are you a fan of The Beatles? If your answer is yes, I would be very happy to hear how you met them and how they came to have a place in your life! 🪲🎸

#ringo starr #john lennon #paul mccartney #george harrison #the beatles #music #rock #60s #beatlemania #shea stadium #concert

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yesloulou · 1 year

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Welcome to Miami ❤️‍🔥

#daniel ricciardo #f1 #f1edit #miami gp 2022 #*#**#daniel at sunset at an empty hard rock stadium in his pretty pretty helmet is my happy place actually

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marian-1122 · 9 months

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Mick Jones leaving the dressing room at Kezar Stadium , San Francisco , California , USA , October 13th , 1979 .

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jeffcbliss · 2 months

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Richard Fortus (left) and Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses - - BMO Stadium (then-Banc of California Stadium); Los Angeles, CA (8-19-21). @gunsnroses @axlrose @richardfortus

Photo: Jeff Bliss

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