JOHN HENRY BONHAM

                                                                                                                                                               'Ladies and Gentlemen, A Percussionist - 
John Bonham'

Today, John Henry Bonham is the reason for refection and much more. With every passing year his genius and influences comes sharper and sharper into focus and more and more important and indeed celebrated. The first Led Zeppelin music I heard was an 8 track of the first LP Led Zeppelin in the winter of 1974. Immediately I was impressed then stunned by the drumming. The prowess, the groove and the power. Playing it again and again it was mesmerising, bewildering even. Little did I now I had stumbled across a band at the very height of their powers. The top of the game. 

Quickly snapping up the catalogue, I became entranced, fascinated and quickly obsessed with Led Zeppelin. You know what I mean. And that obsession, that devotion and that unknown something, that 'magic' when the combination of the four creates a fifth element, not only remains but grows ever stronger and palpable.

Once I entered the murky but wonderous world of Bootlegs my love of Bonzo's playing grew and deepened. The second Bootleg vinyl I got hold of was TAKRL's 'A Cellarful Of Noise'. Playing too slow and with a strangely unbalanced sound, it did include the drums powerfully to the fore and with it a remarkable Moby Dick as well. 

'Earls Court' and 'Live In Seattle 73' followed on wax, joined by a mesmerising and addictive flood of cassettes pouring in from newly found contacts around the country. Once I'd secured my first overseas collectors and traders in the USA, Sweden, Germany and Japan it became a torrent. Upgrades, different sources, duplicates, rip offs. Yep, all of the above and more. The one constant, the common denominator if you will, was always Bonzo. NEVER a bad gig. Sure, the odd miscue, slip, foul up. It's called live music after all. But his craft, his consistency and his ridiculous high standards was nigh on impeccable. 

The subtleties were there too, be it the light touch on Down by The Seaside, the jazzy dreamy cymbals on What Is And What Should Never Be, the holding back and staying back empathy on Thank You. All the 'whisper to a thunderstorm' dictum Jimmy enthused about and insisted on.

Bonzo's Montreux shows his forward thinking, his vision and intent in just what could be done with percussion. The electronic treatments were added to his solo onstage in 1975 before it was recorded in Montreux and his 77 showcase extended the possibilities further. 

Bonzo's live solo was something else. Beginning as a short burst of power and energy with a different intro/outro and called 'Pat's Delight' after his wife (also erroneously called 'Facts Of Life' on some bootlegs too) it grew beyond 10 minutes by the time Moby Dick surfaced for II. 

The studio version was laid down on May 6th 1969 at mystic Studios, LA, 2 weeks into the 2nd North American Tour. The construction was simple enough. Jimmy's monsterous riff, using a low D to add to the crunch, powers in with some neat Jonesy unison licks allowing Jimmy to spit some flashy and classy cascades until they retreat and John is in the spotlight. Firstly he builds a storm with a steady, building cross rhythm. Then a pause and the lighter playing with his hands, kept tense by that insistent hi hat and once again building a thunderstorm with just 4 limbs. After that a cymbal crash and the big build up for home. In later tours this would be delayed by his use of electronic effects, either a wall of sonic white noise or even riffs including Whole Lotta Love and Dazed And Confused.

By 1971 it could be 20 minutes, 30 and more in 1973 and 1975. The last hurrah was 1977, when solo spots threatened to derail the show if things weren't going well.  

ALL the members of Led Zeppelin were essential to the band. No-one could, should or would ever be replaced. The space in between them, that fifth element, was only possible when the other four were in place, in harmony. 

Onstage John was a revelation. Disciplined and tight as a coiled spring on record, the whole band flew once the curtain went up and the lights went down. No messing, no bullshit. Sonically the superb production on record plus the amount of overdubs, especially as the band strove forward and created more complex, original and daring music, meant there had to be a different approach onstage. 

Unlike many of their peers who used extra (sometimes hidden) musicians or tapes triggered by click tracks and the like, Led Zeppelin were simply four musicians playing live. Watch any film of the band, and no matter what size the stage, the event, within minutes you'll see that huddle in front of Bonzo, eye contact, triggering off each other. Playing together as only they could.

Jonesy had the task of filling to sound melodically in the absence of a second (or third or fourth) guitarist, and in empathy Bonzo would make sure he laid down the beat spot on, adding his own emphasis to licks and riffs. As with the recorded songs of Led Zeppelin, silence was another great often overlooked and underrated weapon Bonzo wielded to perfection. As in all walks of life, power is something to use when the time is right. Too much too often and the impact is lost. Bonzo never lost that impact. 

Alongside Jonesy's superlative bass and keyboard figures, Bonzo was the rock that Led Zeppelin was built on. From 1973 on, there were some shows that just didn't hit the spot. Robert's voice, Jimmy's broken finger, drugs, booze, over rowdy crowds. You name it, things sometimes went wrong. Behind it all, the rhythm section stood firm and on more than one occasion saved the show. 

Even in 1977, when excess threatened to overflow at times, Bonzo's crisp and powerful rhythms, that infectious beat and the sheer power was more than enough to get 20 or 30,000 (or more) to get up and shake. His solo on that tour sometimes hit 30 minutes plus, full of incredible fills and bursts of thunder combined with light deft 'no sticks' hand work and revolutionary electronic blats and whooshes of sound as he took his percussion work further and further night after night.

After the 'Magick' US Tour we didn't get to see a full drum solo again, just a short phased cameo linking Jimmy's bow solo and the then new epic In The Evening at the four 1979 Copenhagen and Knebworth shows. Despite bouts of ill health, his strong and powerful playing during the Over Europe 1980 Tour was integral in what was an exciting and obvious rebirth of Led Zeppelin. Sadly, tragically, it was not to be. I'm not about to detail the events, that's not what this is about, but I remember it far too well. 

I was rehearsing that Thursday night. Before I could drive Brad would ferry the equipment to and from our homes. After his first run he came back with the news. it was on News at Ten. The next night we went to Crocs, a local 'Rock Disco' and late on in the evening the DJ played the live 'Moby Dick' from 'The Song Remains The Same' in specific tribute (he'd played Rock And Roll, Kashmir and Stairway too) and I stood, virtually alone on the dance floor listening, wondering and cursing up to the heavens that seemed darker than ever that cold Friday night.

The speculation in the aftermath was awful. Tasteless, trashy 'journalism'  naming replacements and trying to write John and Led Zeppelin out of musical history. Of course, I knew - we ALL knew - that the moment John passed was the moment Led Zeppelin ceased to be. It was on December 4th the official statement came. Absolutely the right thing to do. No Question. No Doubt. 

In the intervening decades, there has thankfully been a reappraisal of Led Zeppelin and of John Bonham. Their true place in music has been reestablished, their legacy and incredible influence recognised and celebrated. When Jimmy and Robert reunited for the Unledded and Walking Into Clarkesdale projects, the South Bank performances of Four Sticks in particular were dedicated to John, a heartfelt and lovely moment. On the subsequent tours Michael Lee - sadly also passed - played magnificently on the myriad of Led Zeppelin songs, as well as any living drummer could have done at the time. The three 'reunion' shows included firstly two drummers (one and a half to me actually, that pitiful contribution from Phil 'me me me' Collins still makes me shudder) and John's son Jason for the Atlantic 40th and O2 shows. 

The recent expanded editions of Led Zeppelin's incredible body of work have shown another generation - let alone those generations already more than aware of it all - just what it was all about. The companion discs have unlocked the vaults and given us some wonderful treats as well as fascinating in progress mixes of their compositional genius. The BBC Sessions set completes the studio releases, now the wonder is what live material will follow. I've got a feeling Southampton '73, Earls' Court and Knebworth will get pulled out, and hopefully some early shows. The 1971 Japanese tour is a certain contender now the soundboard recordings have been recovered (allegedly), and there must be a big shout for a show or three from that innovative time between the Rock Hour and In Concert shows featured on the BBC set.

All that aside, the work of John Bonham is there for all to enjoy. His playing on the studio recordings is nothing short of revolutionary. You could go for a compilation or a personal best of, but for me just simply play those records. EVERY song owes so much to Bonzo. He had it all, and by consequence so did Led Zeppelin. Timeless, fearless and peerless. 

And to this day, his sequence in the movie is still my go to part. It shows different sides to John, and the love and affection of his family and friends. He was a normal guy, a big hearted guy who had a supreme talent, one he himself was never quite aware of. 

To this day I miss Bonzo terribly. It does seem like a lifetime ago, yet also just a moment. Sad at his passing, left wondering at what more he and Led Zeppelin would have achieved, we can also be thankful so much of his genius is with us to enjoy and delight in. Dig out 'DVD'. The Moby Dick from the Royal Albert Hall show is exemplary. But so is the rest of it. You will all have your own moments, your own fills and your own songs. I'll play Whole Lotta Love, In My Time Of Dying, Fool In The Rain, Black Dog..... I'll soak in Listen to This Eddie, Hamburg 73, Fillmore 27-4-69, Earls Court... I'll watch Danish TV, The Song Remains The Same, Earls Court, Alright Now....

In 1992 Dave Lewis and I conceived 'Celebration Days' the UK's first (and the World's second) Led Zeppelin fan convention. There were many incredible highs that weekend, meeting so many like minded souls and celebrating the unique animal they were. It was an absolute honour and delight to meet and spend some time with some of John's family - Debbie, Zoe, Mick and of course his mother Joan. A remarkable woman and musician herself, I'll always remember the emotion they showed at the weekend, marvelling at the love for John and the band from all in attendance. Spending some time with Mick 3 years later, I loved his stories and memories of 'our kid' as he called his late Brother. Sadly Joan and Mick are no longer with us, but I'll always cherish their company and words, their pride in John and the amazing influence and effect he has had on so many of us. 

Now it's time to watch those video clips, pore over those pictures and crank those records....

And I'll think of John Henry 'Bonzo' Bonham and smile.