Jason Bonham part of 3 touring lineups in UK, US, Europe

A summary of Jason Bonham's upcoming tour dates with as many as three different band lineups (updated as time goes on):

UK tour dates with Paul Rodgers
April 15: Blackpool - Opera House
April 16: Sheffield - City Hall
April 18: Newcastle - Metro Radio Arena
April 19: Glasgow - Clyde Auditorium
April 21: Manchester - O₂ Apollo
April 22: Nottingham - Royal Centre
April 24: Bournemouth - International Centre
April 25: Southend - Cliff Pavilions
April 27: London - Royal Albert Hall
April 28: Birmingham - National Indoor Arena

US/Canada tour date(s) with Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience
May 4: Wallingford, Conn. - Oakdale Theatre NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 25
May 5: New Brunswick, N.J. - State Theatre NEW! Tickets available here
May 6: Atlantic City, N.J. - Borgata Resort NEW!
May 7: Concord, N.H. - Capitol Center for the Arts NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 21
May 9: Buffalo, N.Y. - University PAC NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 25
May 10: Westbury, N.Y. - Theatre at Westbury NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 25
May 12: Montreal, Quebec - Metropolis NEW!
May 14: Toronto, Ontario - Sound Academy NEW!
May 15: Greensburg, Pa. - The Palace Theater Tickets available here
May 17: Indianapolis, Ind. - The Murat Theatre NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 25
May 18: St. Louis, Mo. - The Pageant NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 18
May 19: Kansas City, Mo. - Harrah's Casino NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 26
May 20: Denver, Colo. - Ogden Theatre NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 19
May 21: Salt Lake City, Utah - The Depot NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 18
May 24: Fremont, Calif. - The Saddle Rack NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 25
May 25: Napa Valley, Calif. - The Uptown Theatre NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 18
May 26: Sacramento, Calif. - Crest Theatre NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 19
May 27: Los Angeles, Calif. - Greek Theatre NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 25
May 28: Las Vegas, Nev. - Aliante Casino NEW! Tickets on sale beginning March 26

US tour dates with Black Country Communion
June 9: San Diego, Calif. - Civic Theatre Tickets available here
June 10: Anaheim, Calif. - City National Grove of Anaheim Tickets available here
June 11: Salt Lake City, Utah - The Depot NEW! Tickets available here
June 13: St. Louis, Mo. - The Pageant NEW! Tickets available here
June 15: Indianapolis, Ind. - Murat Theatre NEW! Tickets available here
June 17: Hampton Beach, N.H. - Casino Ballroom NEW! Tickets available here
June 18: Sayreville, N.J. - Starland Ballroom NEW! Tickets available here
June 19: Washington, D.C. - 9:30 Club NEW! Tickets available here

European tour dates with Black Country Communion
June 23: Vitoria, Spain - Azkena Rock Festival
June 30: Stuttgart, Germany - Killersberg
July 1: Frankfurt, Germany - Jahrhunderthalle
July 2: Liepzig, Germany - Parkbuhne
July 4: Munich, Germany - Zenith
July 5: Berlin, Germany - Zitadelle
July 6: Hamburg, Germany - Stadtpark
July 10: Weert, Netherlands - Bospop Festival
July 14: Bonn, Germany - Museumsplatz

UK tour dates with Black Country Communion
July 23: Llandudno, Wales - Llandudno Cymru Arena NEW!
July 26: Leeds, England - O₂ Academy
July 27: Newcastle, England - O₂ Academy
July 29: Glasgow, Scotland - O₂ Academy
July 30: Manchester, England - O₂ Academy

Paul Rodgers, Jason Bonham link for UK tour in April

While waiting for Black Country Communion to release its second album and begin touring in June, Jason Bonham will not be lounging around the house waiting for the unemployment check. Bonham will be part of the touring lineup backing Paul Rodgers on his April jaunt through the UK.

Photo: Carl Dunn

The tour will be in support of the 31st album of Rodgers's career as a recording artist. Completing the band lineup with with Bonham on drums will be Heart guitarist Howard Leese and bassist Lynn Sorensen.

Rodgers has led a successful solo career in addition to fronting the bands Free, Bad Company, the Firm and a post-Freddie Mercury Queen. Bonham drummed on two of Rodgers's albums in the 1990s: Muddy Water Blues in 1993 and The Chronicle in 1997.

Rodgers and Bonham also shared the bill of the Ahmet Ertegun tribute concert in 2007. Before Bonham filled his father's seat for the Led Zeppelin reunion portion, Rodgers opened with renditions of his song "Seagull" and the Free hit "All Right Now." a rendition of his song "Bluebird."

Tickets for this tour in April are ₤34.50 regionally and ₤32.50, ₤37.50, ₤40.00 and ₤50.00 in London from Live Nation and Ticketmaster.

Tour dates are:

• April 15: Blackpool - Opera House
• April 16: Sheffield - City Hall
• April 18: Newcastle - Metro Radio Arena
• April 19: Glasgow - Clyde Auditorium
• April 21: Manchester - O₂ Apollo
• April 22: Nottingham - Royal Centre
• April 24: Bournemouth - International Centre
• April 25: Southend - Cliff Pavilions
• April 27: London - Royal Albert Hall
• April 28: Birmingham - National Indoor Arena

Options abound for Jimmy Page, last seen without a band

When Jimmy Page was sitting next to Show of Peace organizer Rick Garson on a couch addressing Chinese reporters' questions for nearly 20 minutes in January, one of the first was who would be singing for Page. The guitarist was quick to reply, "I don't know."

Hmmm, he really was undecided, wasn't he? So, there's a vacancy?

After the debacle that was the Led Zeppelin reunion that didn't expand to a second show or the tour most everybody expected, and the offshoot band with John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham that never came to fruition, Page was left so rudderless in early 2009 to the point that his manager, when asked what Page's next career move would be, replied, "F--- if I know."

So much time has passed since then, which Page has acknowledged. "It's been two years! Two years since the O₂. It's time to do that," he told Sky News in December, in an interview that touched on his intentions to play music live in 2010.

But did he really enter the new year without even the slightest clue of who would be singing for him at his only scheduled major appearance? You won't find the answer here. What you will find is a number of people who've shown their support for Page and said they would love to work with him.

Roger Daltrey sounded sincere on BBC Radio 6 Music this morning when he said in a pre-taped interview that his blues singer voice would complement Page well. However, it seemed as though the idea was really contrived by host Shaun Keaveny and then exaggerated on air for maximum impact. The host recapped by saying, "You heard it here first. Jimmy Page, Roger Daltrey, 2011. We'll look into that."

Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, who attended the Led Zeppelin concert at the O₂ arena in December 2007, was asked on the Feb. 6 episode of "That Metal Show" on VH1 Classic to name another musician he'd like to collaborate with. He didn't hesitate to say, "Jimmy Page." He explained:

"What Jimmy did with the guitar was very snark. If you listen to it stripped down, it's not like these wussies that play today and they've got 40 rhythm tracks because they can't play rhythm. You know, you listen to Jimmy Page, you know he was gettin' it. I mean, he had the -- back then -- enormoballs! You know what I mean? To make a guitar that's sounding that weak sound that big, you know, that's an art form. Plus, I mean, you know, he's Jimmy Page!"

Then there's David Coverdale, who in December 2008 volunteered to front Led Zeppelin in a revolving-door vocalist scenario since Robert Plant wanted no part of a reunion tour. Coverdale said in an interview posted on the official site of his band Whitesnake last month that he liked being his own boss but would love to work again with Page given the proper amount of time and resources:

"I have nothing but positive feelings for people like Jimmy Page, Ritchie Blackmore for the inspiration and motivation I received from working together with musicians of their incredible talent. ... Personally, I am thrilled I had the opportunity to work with one of my musical heroes, and to maintain a healthy, loving friendship with him."

The question is posed as to whether he and Page would ever consider recording a follow-up album to their 1993 disc Coverdale/Page, the singer replied:

"No, not at this time. EMI have recently been making overtures to me about putting a 'special edition' together after they heard there were several unreleased tracks. But time and resource is the problem.

"We've been archiving lots of tapes, cassettes and videos at home recently, and we have discovered a ton of the demos Jimmy and I made, which could be very interesting for some people to hear.

"We also filmed a lot of our writing and recording sessions. So, I feel we could put a terrific 'special' together that would be a treat to have. But in reality, JP and I have never discussed reissuing, or making another C/P album. There is always the possibility of something happening. I just can't see it in the foreseeable future as I am busy with all things Whitesnake."

Coverdale is too busy to make another attempt at singing for Page? Surely, he jests.

Another singer who might jump at the job is Paul Rodgers, whose legend only grows with each passing year as he blends his voice with new projects such as the reunited Queen. He has eight U.K. dates with Bad Company next month, followed by nine shows in the United States and Canada from April to July.

But coming later this month is a new U.K. compilation titled The Very Best of Free and Bad Company Featuring Paul Rodgers. It is a career retrospective that includes four tracks from his stint as singer of the Firm with Page as guitarist. Notably, two tracks on the disc, set for a March 29 release, are their band's live takes of "Live in Peace" and "Midnight Moonlight" recorded in 1985.

As to what Page's performing career holds in store for the immediate future, his head could be anywhere at this point. Let him weigh his options -- but not for much longer!

If he was going to play at the Show of Peace, he now has a six-month reprieve to decide who's going to comprise his concert band.

But it sure would be great to see Page out and about long before October.