Jason Bonham


Jason Bonham, son of the late John "Bonzo" Bonham, does not take lightly the responsibility of carrying on his father's legacy. Having made a head start at drumming while he was a child, Jason is now passing on the same lessons to a third generation of Bonham drummers.

John Bonham's death in 1980 left such an impact on the surviving members of Led Zeppelin that they knew immediately they could not continue as they were. Yet Jason Bonham's familiarity with the band made him a shoe-in to join his father's bandmates on the few occasions reunion concerts have taken place.

This year marked the 20th anniversary of Bonham's most successful album release to date, the Platinum-certified disc The Disregard of Timekeeping released by his band, Bonham. To mark the milestone, he recently toured with a new band and played under the banner of "An Evening with Jason Bonham."

In the past, Bonham has also toured and/or recorded with Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Foreigner, UFO, Paul Rodgers, Joe Bonamassa, Virginia Wolf, Airrace, Healing Sixes and Motherland. He also acted in the movie Rock Star and appeared on the reality TV show "SuperGroup."

- What's the latest on Jason Bonham?

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Official: Led Zeppelin to reunite, Nov. 26 concert confirmed

The three surviving members of Led Zeppelin will reunite this November for a single show in London, according to an official announcement made today.

As promoter Harvey Goldsmith stated at a London press conference in their absence, the group's performance Nov. 26 at the city's O2 arena will be at a concert that will also include Pete Townshend of the Who and Bill Wyman of the Rolling Stones.

There was no mention of whether Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones would consider playing another gig together after the tribute concert to Ahmet Ertegün, the Atlantic Records cofounder and close personal friend to Led Zeppelin.

"During the Zeppelin years, Ahmet Ertegün was a major foundation of solidarity and accord," Plant said in a press release. "For us, he was Atlantic Records and remained a close friend and conspirator. this performance stands aloneas our tribute to the work and the life of our long standing friend."

The reunited Led Zeppelin will also include drummer Jason Bonham sitting in to fill the seat left by his father, John Bonham, whose death on Sept. 25, 1980, caused the band to announce its retirement later that year.

The younger Bonham has been drumming in recent months for classic rock group Foreigner, which has also been booked to perform at the Nov. 26 concert.

Concert proceeds are to benefit the Ahmet Ertegün Education Fund, set up to "provide students with annual scholarships to universities in the UK, USA and Turkey," according to an official press release. "In addition, a music scholarship open to all will beestablished at Ravensbourne College in the UK."

Tickets to the event, priced at 125 British pounds ($254), are available exclusively from a random drawing at http://www.ahmettribute.com/.

Aside from three one-off performances in 1985, 1988 and 1995, and two jams at family members' weddings, Led Zeppelin has not reunited for a tour.

While the Led Zeppelin members are rumored to have been rehearsing together over the past month, the concert in November would be their first public appearance together since May 22, 2006, when they were awarded the Polar Music Prize at a ceremony in Stockholm.

The most recent performance by all three former members coincided with their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, on Jan. 12, 1995. At the time, Page and Plant were toward the start of a mini-reunion of their own that, by the end of 1998, had resulted in two full-length albums as well as a home video and television special heralding their work together.

Led Zeppelin's much-anticipated performance is set to take place during a rare month of new releases from the band showcasing live and studio material recorded mostly during the band's 1970s heyday. A plethora of new releases are to hit stores on two consecutive Mondays, with the performance taking place on the Monday of the following week.

Rhino Records, in conjunction with Atlantic, will release a new greatest-hits collection called Mothership with a U.K. release date of Nov. 12, followed one week later with Atlantic's upgraded reissue of the soundtrack to Zep's 1976 film, The Song Remains the Same, as well as Warner's reissue of the film on DVD and Blu-Ray with additional footage.

Ertegün's surviving wife, Mica Ertegün, stated in a press release that her late husband "would be very proud that Led Zeppelin have chosen to reunite and headline a benefit concert in his name featuring so many of his friends. I would like to thank all of the artists for their generous contribution to help make Ahmet’s vision a reality."

Singer-songwriter Paolo Nutini will also appear at the concert on Nov. 26, and Wyman will perform with the Rhythm Kings.

Initial reports from the press conference:

2 comments:

  1. Another press release, this one just seen in a message from Dave Lewis at TBLweb.com:

    LED ZEPPELIN CAUSE INTERNET MELTDOWN
    Within minutes of the announcement of the Tribute To Ahmet Ertegun concert in London today, an estimated 20 million fans around the world rushed to register at www.ahmettribute.com.

    According to service provider Pipex, there are around 80,000 fans a minute attempting to register at the site. They are working around the clock to keep the website moving.

    The message is to be patient. The website will be open until midday Monday (September 17, 2007) for anyone wanting register. It is NOT 'first come first served' and all successful applicants will be entered into the ballot for tickets to be drawn at random.

    ReplyDelete
  2. From the official Web site for the concert tickets:

    FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

    1. When will I know if my application for tickets has been successful?

    You will be notified no later than 1st October 2007.

    2. Can I register more than once?

    No, only one registration per person / household is allowed, any duplicate registrations will be cancelled.

    3. How will you use the information I provide?

    In accordance with our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy

    4. If I am successful, how will I be contacted?

    You will be contacted by email and provided with full details of how to purchase the tickets you have successfully registered for.

    5. How long will I have to pay for my tickets?

    You will have 72 hours from the time at which you have been notified.

    6. What are the concert dates?

    The concert dates are detailed on www.ahmettribute.com. Keep checking the website for the latest details, which may change from time to time.

    7. How many tickets can I buy?

    Ticket purchases will be restricted to no more than 2 per successful registrant.

    ReplyDelete

Users agree to refrain from posting obscenities and defamatory statements.

About the author

Other Led Zeppelin information from Lemon Squeezings

Lemon Squeezings archive

Like what you see?


John Paul Jones is now in one of the hottest and hardest rock bands, Them Crooked Vultures. The frontman, handling lead guitar and vocals, is Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age. Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters is on drums. As for Jones, he offers not only bass and keyboard but also mandolin, keytar, lap steel and whatever else is needed.

One album was released in November, and another is forthcoming. A tour of North America completed in November, and the band now heads to Europe in December and Australia in January.

- What's the latest on Them Crooked Vultures, the group featuring John Paul Jones, Dave Grohl and Josh Homme?

- What else is John Paul Jones up to?