August fan gathering, book to reflect on Led Zep's '79 Knebworth concerts

Recent months have celebrated the 40th anniversaries of Led Zeppelin's first album and onstage debut, but author Dave Lewis over in England recognizes another milestone anniversary taking place in 2009. This August will mark 30 years since Led Zeppelin's final appearances in its home country, at the Knebworth Festival in 1979.

 
The monumental occasion of Led Zeppelin's homecoming performances on Aug. 4 and 11, 1979, proved sentimental for the group and its fans at the time. Given the unexpected nature of these shows being Led Zeppelin's last ones in England, memories of the concerts have improved with time. And since the May 2003 release of the band's official 2-DVD set in 2003, these shows are now more than ever viewed as two of the most memorable events in the band's latter days.

Before that anniversary rolls around, Dave Lewis is organizing a get-together for Zep fans at the Lytton Arms, a pub about a 10-minute walk from the location of those concerts. "Then as It Was: A 30th Anniversary Knebworth Celebration Day" is to take place on Aug. 8, the Saturday between the two dates on which Led Zeppelin played its famous shows at Knebworth in 1979. For only £10 admission, attendees will be treated to a buffet meal, view memorabilia displays and participate in a charity auction.

The event will also serve as the launch party for a new limited-edition hardcover book Lewis has been compiling, called "Then As It Was: Led Zeppelin at Knebworth 1979 -- 30 Years Gone." Lewis will be on hand to sign books and also hold a question-and-answer session with the audience. Footage from the Knebworth shows are to be played throughout the day. Click here for more information on the Aug. 8 event in England.

The limited-edition book will include the written accounts of fans who witnessed the shows firsthand and some material that has previously appeared in Lewis's superb fanzine, "Tight but Loose." There is also going to be a 16-page section in the book for color photographs, which should have a number of shots from the Knebworth concerts -- as well as shots taken this weekend by Led Zeppelin memorabilia collector Brian Knapp of some Knebworth-related items in his possession. Included among these are some truly unique items from the shows! More on these in the coming weeks.

Also, Knapp happens to be selling one of his rare Knebworth items on eBay right now: a full, unused ticket to the Aug. 4 show. Since he's an avid collector with many items for sale on eBay, he brags that his ticket is one from the Aug. 4 show with red lettering, which makes it more scarce than ones from the Aug. 11 show with green lettering. And he boasts that his ticket comes with the perforated "agent retainer" portion that would have been removed upon entry to the shows -- and also with a letter of authenticity from Knebworth promoter Freddy Bannister from when Knapp acquired the ticket in 2004.

As you may recall, British Zep fan Annie Hollinshead spearheaded "Memories in Music '68-'08" last year, a Led Zeppelin memorabilia display at Knebworth Field House raising money for charity. Plans for a repeat of the event this year have been postponed until further notice.

Rare Zep footage included in guitar documentary's trailer

What happens when three generations of guitar heroes meet?

"Probably a fistfight," predicts Jack White, on his way to an arranged guitar summit with The Edge and Jimmy Page.

This comical prediction comes courtesy of a newly released trailer for the feature film "It Might Get Loud," which heads to theaters this August.



The trailer cuts to a scene with Page shot on location at Headley Grange, known to Led Zeppelin fans as the place where many of that group's songs were recorded. At the bottom of a staircase, Page names off one of them, "[When the] Levee Breaks."

The shots, in this film directed by Davis Guggenheim of "An Inconvenient Truth" success, bring this mythical and storied mansion to life for a mass of Zep fans who have never seen inside it before.

Just as this comes to life, Page says memories are coming back to him, and the shot changes to home footage I haven't ever seen before. Probably from 1971, Jimmy Page is shown wielding a guitar in a garden, presumably on the grounds of Headley Grange, with a dog relaxing on one side and an energetic Robert Plant bouncing around on the other side.

The trailer later cuts to a glimpse of Page playing air guitar, as has been explained before, to his recording of Link Wray's "Rumble." Get a load of the library of records behind him! This was filmed at his home, which video crews are said to have never been allowed before.

The trailer begins and ends with White building his own makeshift guitar -- "Who says you need to buy a guitar?" -- but also includes a moment of three-way laughter as Page treats the two agape and onlooking guitarists to a personal performance of "In My Time of Dying."

No fistfights are apparent in this trailer!

Robert Plant in and out of Nashville

Robert Plant was in Nashville briefly over the weekend, sources have confirmed. One LedZeppelinNews.com reader tipped me off to the singer's whereabouts on Saturday. Plant witnessed the banjo-plucking debut of comedian Steve Martin on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry. The informant said he was in and out of town rather quickly.

That account has been bolstered now by WKRN MusicCityTV's report on Plant's Friday night whereabouts -- wearing bright red shoes while dancing with Alison Krauss at a Presbyterian church -- and his quick exit from town Monday morning.

In January, Plant and Krauss were in pre-production for a second album together, although plans to complete the project have been sidetracked for the time being. In July, Krauss will be recording a new album with Union Station, a spokesperson for her record label, Rounder Records, confirmed today. The spokesperson added there are no plans for Union Station to tour this year, which means a tour in 2010 in support of the album would be likely.

On one hand, that could leave time for Krauss to work with Plant and finish work on their sophomore release; however, my source indicates that "Alison has declared a moratorium on all work for 12-18 months with Robert because she wants to do an album and extended tour with Union Station." In the meantime, the source says, this situation has left Plant "frustrated" because he "wants to finish the thing off and be done with it."

As for what this portends for Led Zeppelin fans hoping to see the surviving members reunited once again, perhaps there is still yet hope. One observer has theorized, "By the time [Alison] works [Robert] over, he will crawl back to Jimmy Page." True, you can almost always predict how Page would react if Plant suddenly said he was in favor of some further Led Zeppelin activity.

Finally, portions of a Levon Helm concert from last September, which saw Plant and Krauss perform as special guests onstage at the Ryman Audiotorium in Nashville, are set to air June 14 on Nashville Public Television.