According to a posting on former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman’s official web site, Led Zeppelin guitar legend Jimmy Page joined Marty in Japan for the taping of a new episode of “Eigo De Shabera Night”, NHK’s hit program which Marty is a regular guest on. The show will be broadcast on February 25.
http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=89654
A short Japanese TV report featuring footage from Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page’s January 28, 2008 press conference in Tokyo can be viewed below.
As previously reported, Page said at the press conference that Led Zeppelin was “musically ready” to go on a world tour, although the earliest that was likely to happen was September. According to Yahoo! News, Page said that the band’s intense rehearsals for its reunion show at London’s O2 Arena last month were “what you would normally put into a world tour anyway.” But Page added that frontman Robert Plant “has a parallel project running, and he’s really busy with that project, certainly until September. So I can’t give you any news on anything at the moment.”
Plant has mapped out a series of live shows around the world with singer Alison Krauss, with whom he recorded the recently released “Raising Sand”.
Page was in Japan to promote the Zeppelin retrospective collection “Mothership”, which arrived in the U.S. late last year.
Page, Plant and bassist John Paul Jones performed together for the first time in nearly two decades at the December 10 show in London, joined by late Zeppelin drummer John Bonham’s son Jason behind the kit.
Since the acclaimed show, speculation has been rampant that Zeppelin will launch a full tour, with massive offers reportedly already on the table from some of the world’s largest concert promoters.
Meanwhile, Plant was interviewed by MSG TV last Friday (January 25) during the halftime break of the Knicks and Sixers game at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. When asked about the possibility of a full Zeppelin reunion tour, he responded, “You never know what is around the corner.”
The re-release of The Song Remains The Same has been nominated in this years’ Shockwaves NME Awards.
Here is a list of the nominations in the category of Best Music DVD:
‘Up The Shambles’ - Babyshambles
‘The Song Remains The Same’ - Led Zeppelin
‘Unplugged In New York’ - Nirvana
‘Lord Don’t Slow Me Down’ - Oasis
‘I Told You I Was Trouble’ - Amy Winehouse
Fans can logon to the NME Website to cast their vote on which nominee will win.
The awards will be presented on Feb. 28, 2008 at the Indig02 in London, England.
The Foo Fighters will perform as part of this year’s “My Grammy Moment,” produced in partnership with YouTube and CBS.com. The segment gives up to 20 unsigned musicians the opportunity to play with the rock group as part of an orchestra that will be arranged by special guest conductor John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin fame.
The 50th Annual Grammy Awards will be held Feb. 10 at Los Angeles’ Staples Center.
http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003701651
TOKYO (Reuters) - Rock band Led Zeppelin enjoyed jamming together again last year in a charity concert but won’t have another session before September at the earliest, lead guitarist Jimmy Page said in Tokyo on Monday.
A successful reunion show in London in December rekindled hopes of a world tour, but Page said that singer Robert Plant’s tour with U.S. country singer Alison Krauss is keeping him busy for now.
“I can assure you the amount of work that we put into the O2 (concert), for ourselves rehearsing and the staging of it, was probably what you put into a world tour,” Page said.
But, “Robert Plant also had a parallel project running and he’s really busy with that project, certainly until September, so I can’t give you any news.”
Page, in Tokyo to promote a greatest hits release, painted a happy picture of the reunion.
“It was exhilarating, fantastic, every week was a week to look forward to,” he said. “We did the show and it was great.”
The band, formed in 1968 by Page, Plant, bass guitarist John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham, became arguably the world’s biggest rock group by the early 1970s.
Their fourth album, released in 1971, included their most famous song, “Stairway to Heaven”, while the band has sold an estimated 300 million albums worldwide.
The group decided to break up shortly after Bonham died in September 1980, although Page and Plant collaborated at times over the years.
Plant, Page and Jones performed together in London before about 20,000 fans on December 10, with Bonham’s son Jason on the drums.
When the concert was announced, the Internet site selling tickets crashed with applications, while the possibility of a new world tour had fans around the globe excited.
Page said after many years the song indeed remained the same.
“That is what was so thrilling really — to come together after all this time and find that there was so much chemistry and so much electricity involved in these four characters.”
http://uk.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUKT9054520080128?sp=true
Jimmy Page is in Tokyo this week for business, and as usual he spent time visiting the record shops in the Shinjuku section of Tokyo yesterday, January 27th.
He was photographed and filmed at the Lighthouse Record Store.
After selecting CDs, he started to watch the Led Zeppelin show at the O2 Arena on DVD. In the photo below he is watching In My Time Of Dying and he watched it very intently. Afterwards he was satisfied and gave a big smile. He seemed very impressed with the DVD and requested several copies.
http://www.youtube.com/v/LLIH4Rnbz9o
http://www.youtube.com/v/-7AG_e0QNus
http://www.collectorsmusicreviews.com/announcements/jimmy-page-visits-shinjukufor-the-fourth-time/
Jill Martin from MSG TV interviewed Robert Plant during the halftime break of Jan. 25, 2008’s Knicks and Sixers game. Robert said that the most memorable performance at Madison Square Garden was in 1973, from which they made The Song Remains The Song Movie.
He also talked about his upcoming tour with Alison Krauss and that Kashmir was the one he would choose to play to bring the house down at Madison Square Garden.
“You never know what is around the corner” was Robert’s reply to playing again with Page, Jones and Jason Bonham.
A preview clip of Led Zeppelin frontman and legendary rocker Robert Plant and bluegrass superstar Alison Krauss performing the track “Gone, Gone, Gone (Done Moved On)” as part of the all-new episode of “CMT Crossroads: Robert Plant And Alison Krauss” can be viewed at this location.
“CMT Crossroads: Robert Plant And Alison Krauss” will premiere on Monday, February 11 at 8:00 p.m. ET. The two music icons perform songs from their “Raising Sand” album, including “Please Read the Letter” and “Rich Woman”. The pair performed Alison Krauss and Union Station’s “The Boy Who Wouldn’t Hoe Corn”, as well as Led Zeppelin classics “Black Dog” and “When the Levee Breaks”. The pair also pay homage to The Everly Brothers with their version of “Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)”. Special guest T Bone Burnett, acclaimed songwriter, performer and “Raising Sand” producer, joins in the onstage collaboration.
Plant and Krauss were recently nominated for a Grammy in the category of “Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals” for the song “Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)” from “Raising Sand”.
http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=89292
According to a posting on the Led Zeppelin fan site Royal-Orleans.com, Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page will hold a press conference at Park Hyatt Hotel in Shinjyuku, Japan on Monday, January 28. Park Hyatt is reportedly the hotel Jimmy stayed at during the 1996 Page & Plant tour.
Times Online reported in December that Led Zeppelin could earn well over £100 million (approximately $200 million) if the hard-rock band went on tour this year in the wake of last month’s triumphant reunion gig. The band is being pursued with offers from both Live Nation and AEG, the rival concert promoters, with each structuring bids in the form of a large upfront payment to lure the band to their venues.
One source said that “AEG put a bid in on the night” — although that could not be confirmed independently — but intense demand would probably make a Zeppelin reunion the most sought-after ticket in 2008.
The reluctance of Robert Plant, the lead singer, still makes a tour far from certain, although the three other band members are believed to be willing to go ahead. Venues in America have been held open in the hope that Plant will say yes.
It is likely that the four-piece band would be able at least to match the estimated $212 million grossed by The Police for their reunion last year, according to figures compiled by Billboard, the industry magazine.
http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=89210
Led Zeppelin ringtones are now available for the following songs:
* “Black Dog” (purchase)
* “Immigrant Song” (purchase)
* “Kashmir” (purchase)
* “Stairway To Heaven” (purchase)
According to Rhino, rach ringtone “requires compatible handset and service through participating carriers. Standard text messaging rates apply. See your contract for details. Available content subject to change at any time.”
http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=89232