Classic Led Zeppelin posters unearthed for sale

In case you somehow missed these two big news items today:

1. Happy 70th birthday to Jimmy Page!
2. Robert Plant has just announced plans to tour Europe and Japan this June, July and August. Fourteen live shows are on the books with his band the Sensational Space Shifters. Check out his website for all the details.

Here's another item that will be of interest to collectors of Led Zeppelin concert posters. We've probably all seen these UK posters from the Bath Festival 1969 and 1970.

The Bath Festival in 1969 featured Led Zeppelin fourth on the bill.

Although Led Zeppelin headlined the Bath Festival 1970, all band names were printed in the same size, much to the chagrin of Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant.

Henrietta Bannister, daughter of Bath Festival promoter Freddy Bannister, emailed me today about two forgotten posters her family had just discovered. Reprints are now available for sale through her company, Rock Music Memorabilia.

Bath Pavilion 1968

One is the poster for Led Zeppelin's show at the Bath Pavilion half a year before the first Bath Festival. The date was Dec. 16, 1968, within two weeks before the group left for their first tour of America. An earlier version of the poster advertised the Jeff Beck Group as the headliner, but Beck was becoming unreliable at that time and canceling shows. This was one of those instances. As the Rock Music Memorabilia website explains: "At short notice we received a phone call from Peter Grant's office saying Jeff Beck was unable to appear, but if we wished we could have the New Yardbirds, now known as Led Zeppelin." Henrietta Bannister's email to me expands on this: "Led Zeppelin replaced Jeff Beck because of illness. In fact, my father was quite annoyed because in 1968 Jeff Beck was a much bigger attraction than Led Zeppelin." The concert poster reprint being sold today lists Led Zeppelin in Beck's place and contains a disclaimer about the previously advertised headliner. This poster should also be of interest to fans of Muddy Waters and The Who as their own Bath Pavilion dates are also listed.

Alternate Bath Festival 1969

The other newly discovered Led Zeppelin artifact is an alternate Bath Festival 1969 poster. As the original poster features a faceless and bare-chested woman, some store owners complaining that it was obscene refused to advertise the show with it. They were given this alternate poster design instead, which features the side of the woman's face in a lot more detail.

For a limited time only, a set of these four posters is available from Rock Music Memorabilia at a special discount of over 30 percent off. For more specific information, visit www.rockmusicmemorabilia.com. In the spirit of full disclosure, I've been offered one of these sets for mentioning this here.

Shop launching on Jimmy Page's official site to offer limited edition of 'Death Wish II' vinyl

Jimmy Page's 1982 soundtrack for the movie Death Wish II is to be rereleased next month in a limited quantity, a news item on the guitarist's official website has announced.

The Death Wish II soundtrack was the first album released by any surviving member of Led Zeppelin after the group disbanded in 1980.

It was 30 years ago on Sept. 15 that Page recorded an instrumental that was used as the film's main title sequence but was not available on the original soundtrack album.

That instrumental, an early version of the album's song "Who's to Blame" simply called "Synth Track," is said to be added to the track listing of the remastered soundtrack to be issued in October.

Page says the working title "referred to the initial guitar track performed on a guitar synthesiser with further overdubs with guitar synthesiser and melody lines from a Telecaster string bender."

For only 24 hours, the front page of Page's site features a clip of "Synth Track." He says he recently found a white label test pressing of it in his personal collection.

The release is also to include liner notes newly written by Page. He explains on his site:

In 1981, Michael Winner asked me if I would compose the soundtrack to Death Wish II. The songs with vocals were only going to appear in the film for a matter of seconds but I had recorded full versions of them anyway - which is how I ended up doing my first soundtrack and soundtrack album. I’ve re-released this because I wanted it to be available again.

Only 1,000 copies of the remastered Death Wish II vinyl are to be pressed, according to Page's site. They are to be sold exclusively through the forthcoming shop on JimmyPage.com. No plans have been announced for any other reissues at this time.

Page launched his first official site on July 14, saying in an interview published on it four days later, "I think this is the ideal vehicle to present my past, present and future work."

His recollections about Death Wish II, including a track identification log for "Synth Track," are part of the daily "On This Day" feature that keeps the site's front page fresh each day. "It looks random, but it isn't," he explained. "I love the idea that there will be a 'Splash' page everyday and nobody will be able to guess what's coming next."

Possibly unique copy of 'Physical Graffiti' LP for sale

When Swan Song Records manufactured the initial run of Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti around the beginning of 1975, it seems that at least one radio station may have gotten the royal treatment.

And then it was promptly forgotten about by everyone concerned.

That is, until earlier this year, according to record industry veteran Jeff Gold, who says he was going through the massive vinyl collection that belonged to Ken Barnes when one of the Led Zeppelin LPs popped out at him.

"I've known Ken since the mid '70s, and his knowledge of records is truly unsurpassed," says Gold. "I don't know anyone who knows half of what Ken knows about records, and I've met a lot of collectors in the 39 years I've been in the game."

This is believed to be a unique pressing of Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti dedicated to a now-defunct Chicago radio station, WMET 95 1/2 FM.

Chris Welch focuses on memorabilia in new Led Zeppelin book

Chris Welch is set to release his first book on Led Zeppelin in 12 years. His follow-up to "Dazed and Confused: The Stories Behind Every Song" is due next week in the United Kingdom.

The title of the new book is "Treasures of Led Zeppelin," and its U.K. release is set for Thursday, May 13, by Carlton Publishing Group.

In a new interview, the longtime Melody Maker journalist says the book is written from the point of view of a fan or collector. The title "Treasures of Led Zeppelin," he says, has to do with diehard fans' "eternal interest for things like T-shirts, posters, memorabilia of every kind."

The 64-page book includes 90 photographs and 16 memorabilia reproductions, some of which is sourced from the collection of fellow author Howard Mylett. Other pieces referenced in the book are courtesy of other collectors, says Welch:

"A lot of it came from various collectors around the countryside, fanatical collectors [of] ticket stubs from shows, and programs, illustrations. The album covers, of course, are a very important part of the look of Led Zeppelin."

Welch admits he is not much of a memorabilia collector himself, but for 12 years he did own one particular artifact that was given to him by a member of the band. He tells the following story about receiving this gift from John Bonham:

"I was interviewing John, and it was going very well. He was a very personable and friendly guy, and we went out for a drink near his home. He had a farm house in the country. We went to the country pub and had a lot to drink and were talking about our favorite drummers, people like Buddy Rich. At the end of the interview, he realized that I was a keen drummer as well, so he insisted that his roadie give me this brand new Ludwig drum kit, which was stashed away in a barn at the back of his farm. And, of course, I made fake protests, saying, 'No, John, you can't possibly give me a drum kit.' He was very generous and very kind. ... I kept it for about 12 years. I did use it and played it as well."

Welch is also the author of the biographies "Peter Grant: The Man Who Led Zeppelin," "John Bonham: A Thunder of Drums" and "Power and Glory: Jimmy Page and Robert Plant," as well as books on Cream, Steve Winwood, Jimi Hendrix, and two-part series on David Bowie.

The interview was conducted by radio producer Denny Somach while visiting London last month. More of Welch's interview is scheduled to air in an upcoming episode of DJ Carol Miller's Led Zeppelin-centered radio show "Get the Led Out," which has been syndicated nationwide since January 2009.

In a previous interview also for the radio show, Welch discussed home movie footage he shot while touring Europe with Led Zeppelin in 1970.

A tentative U.S. release of Welch's new "Treasures" book is set for October.

Promoter of Knebworth Festival sells his '79 stash to Led Zeppelin

Freddy Bannister, who promoted the Knebworth Festival series that featured Led Zeppelin in 1979, has sold his rights to the Led Zeppelin Knebworth '79 merchandise to Mythgem Limited. This report came to LedZeppelinNews.com last month by way of Freddy's daughter, Wendy Bannister, a representative of his company.

Mythgem is a holding company owned by the surviving members of Led Zeppelin and the estate of John Bonham.

As a result of the transfer of rights, the Bannisters are no longer selling merchandise related to the 1979 Knebworth Festival. Their Web site at rockmusicmemorabilia.com, however, does continue to offer goods associated with other festivals Bannister promoted, as well as his memoir, "There Must Be a Better Way."

Jimmy Page calls his purported autograph on guitar a forgery; attorney dries up legitimacy of John Paul Jones's ink, too

An autograph of Jimmy Page's on a guitar that sold for $2,750 this year can now correctly be called a forgery, says his attorney.

Less than a week since a report on this autographed electric guitar aired on the ABC News program "20/20," the news outlet now provides the update from attorney George Fearon: Of the three signatures on the guitar, at least two are now being called into question. Page's signature isn't really his, and the one claimed to be from John Paul Jones may not be legit either.

The program had already called into question the authenticity of a photo of Robert Plant allegedly signing the guitar.

Now, the attorney representing Jones and Page says the bassist could not have signed the guitar, or other memorabilia, in the times and places a memorabilia company has claimed he did.

Bruce Hall, doing business as the California-based company Gallery of Dreams, is the supplier being sued by Florida memorabilia dealer American Royal Arts, the company that recently sold the Led Zeppelin guitar to a bartender in Charlotte, N.C.

American Royal Arts President Jerry Gladstone says it is when he was on the witness stand in an unrelated case that he learned of photographs, including the one of Plant, that appear to have been doctored. He filed suit against Hall and Gallery of Dreams within a week of that court appearance.

Other celebrity photos suspected of having been altered, as featured in the "20/20" report, include ones of members of the Eagles and U2, as well as pop starlet Miley Cyrus.

ABC says "the supplier had claimed to ARA that [Jones] signed the Led Zeppelin guitars in Asheville, N.C., on December 11, 2007." This would have been one day after Led Zeppelin's reunion concert in London, England, and Jones was not in Asheville then, says Fearon.

Asheville is the location of the annual Christmas Jam organized by Warren Haynes, guitarist for both the Allman Brothers Band and Gov't Mule. Jones sat in with both bands a year later, in December 2008.

"The supplier also claimed that Jones signed some [other] guitars at the Mondrian Hotel in Los Angeles on February 10, 2008," ABC reports. "But, again according to the band attorney, Jones says, not only was he not at the Mondrian on that date, he's never been to that hotel."

Signed Zeppelin guitar at center of counterfeit controversy

Earlier this year, a Florida memorabilia vendor advertised a guitar bearing the autographs of Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Robert Plant, all three surviving members of Led Zeppelin.

In promoting the guitar for sale, memorabilia company American Royal Arts used the following photograph of Robert Plant, who was said to be signing the item for sale.

The buyer of that guitar, identified in an online report by ABC News as Charlotte, N.C., bartender Barry Stevens. He says he is now questioning the authenticity of his purchase based on the photographic representation of Plant making his signature appearing to be a doctored version of a similar shot. Perhaps, an attorney believes, a doctored version of one particular shot by Stuart Wilson for Getty Images.

Jerry Gladstone, the president of American Royal Arts, testified in court on Nov. 13 that he stands by the authenticity of this item, as shown in a video displayed Thursday on the ABC News Web site. When asked on the witness stand whether he believed the photos to be identical except for the guitar, Gladstone testified:

"No, it doesn't look the same. No, I think his fingers are -- I think that's a standard type of a photo shoot that he takes. A lot of celebrities have a standard type of a way that they stand, but to me, looking at this, his knuckles look different in one photograph to another photograph."

The questioning attorney persisted, asking Gladstone if the photo used to advertise his guitar "was a cropped and Photoshopped version of this other photo that I've shown you that bears the image from Life magazine." Gladstone denied it.

In further courtroom footage presented on the Nov. 23 airing of the TV series "Inside Edition," Gladstone is admonished by Judge Jack Schramm Cox after the following exchange:

Attorney: "Isn't it true, sir, that you altered, doctored and cropped this photograph and then placed it on your Web site in connection with your attempt to sell this particular piece of --"
Gladstone: "You know what, I don't know if this is appropriate for court, but don't you ever -- say that I -- that I doctored something."

The Nov. 23 piece by "Inside Edition" shows other photos that American Royal Arts had allegedly used to authenticate guitars autographed by other musicians, including members of U2 and the Eagles, plus pop starlet Miley Cyrus. Each of the photos appeared to have been doctored from a previously existing photo.

"Inside Edition" credited Steve Cyrkin, the publisher of Autograph Magazine, with the find related to Cyrus's autograph signing. The photo Cyrkin says is the original shows Cyrus signing not a guitar but her own image.

In the episode, reporter Matt Meagher confronts Gladstone outside the courtroom with the Cyrus photos and asks for his reaction to possible doctoring. Gladstone admitted it was "possible" but added, "If somebody actually did doctor those photographs, certainly we didn't."

Five days after that Nov. 13 hearing, Gladstone announced that his company, American Royal Arts, was suing supplier Bruce Hall and his California-based company, Gallery of Dreams. Gladstone alleges that the defendants "sent to ARA and other similarly-situated companies, false provenance and altered/doctored photographs which it represented supported the authenticity and genuineness of the memorabilia it sold to ARA and others."

The ABC News report says Gladstone's supplier "denies any wrongdoing." The report, however, highlights discrepancies pertaining not only to photographs allegedly being altered but also with the authenticity of the signatures. ABC reports:

... there appear to be problems with some of the supplier's claims.

For example, the supplier claimed Don Felder of the Eagles signed guitars at appearances at two California book stores in 2008. But "20/20" spoke with store managers who were there during the appearances. They said they do not recall Don Felder signing any guitars. In fact, they said he specifically asked them to announce in advance he would not sign memorabilia, only books.

As for the signatures of the other band members, Eagles spokesman Larry Solters told "20/20": "In reviewing the available information, we do not believe that these guitars were personally signed by members of the Eagles."

"20/20," the ABC newsmagazine, is scheduled to cover the story in Friday night's episode, which also promises a broader examination of how trick photography is used in marketing. "20/20" airs at 10 p.m. Eastern on Friday.

Led Zeppelin exists as a brand but not a band

Want an officially licensed Led Zeppelin beach towel? How about a matching bag? Would you like to sit on an official Led Zeppelin barstool while you're wearing your Led Zeppelin hoodie and staring at your Led Zeppelin blacklight poster with the soundtrack to The Song Remains the Same blaring on 180-gram vinyl? These days, there sure are enough goodies available from Bravado, the sole officially licensed dealer of Led Zeppelin merchandise, for a hardcore fan to adorn a room in a way never before possible.

The amount of sanctioned merchandise available to the public keeps on increasing. Collect all the ringtones and 2007 reunion programs you want, but there is one thing Led Zeppelin has not been able to supply: new musical compositions. That's because Led Zeppelin, while successfully resurrected in a concert setting once last December, is not a functioning band.

Led Zeppelin was forming at this time exactly 40 years ago, and it spent the following 12 years offering up the music that made the band the best in the world. Excitement about the group has not lessened in the long period since the fourpiece existed. The band's original albums are among the biggest sellers of all time, and newer collections of archival material have been right behind, with barstools and beach bags being manufactured to satisfy fans clamoring for more memorabilia associated with the band.

This 40th anniversary gives pause for reflection and a measure of celebration. One can only assume that the group's three original surviving members are cognizant of the occasion and are marking it in their own ways, just as will the collectors and fans who will be taking part in the memorabilia exhibit held at the historic Knebworth Field House in England between Friday and Sept. 3.

Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and Robert Plant must also harbor some desire to recreate some of their greatest collective moments from when they played alongside John Bonham, rock's greatest drummer. Recent packages like BBC Sessions in 1997 and DVD in 2003 have reminded fans about what Led Zeppelin was like in its '60s and '70s heyday. Because the group's fine form reappeared onstage for an isolated moment in this decade, with the powerful and deserving Jason Bonham behind the drum kit, it is more than a mere possibility that the group could do something else to add to its outstanding legacy. As such, it is simply up to the Led Zeppelin organization to decide whether or not the last Led Zeppelin song has been written, or the last Led Zeppelin tour has taken place.

We can make educated guesses on the mindsets of the would-be band members. Jimmy Page is looking back on the band he was in when he was at his best. Jason Bonham is hopeful for the band that will make him his best. John Paul Jones could be doing anything at this point, but he has a soft spot for playing with Jimmy Page. Robert Plant, turning 60 next month, is looking ahead to something he hasn't done yet.

If it is indeed Plant's decision to pursue other projects, it is unfortunate for him that he would inevitably be viewed, once again, as the lone holdout to a Led Zeppelin reunion. It would likewise be unfortunate for the others that he would not be joining them should they otherwise decide something like a world tour is in the cards.

It would be just as unfortunate if the history of Led Zeppelin, as the one legendary rock group that resisted all temptation to reunite and/or change its membership for the sake of a whopping payday, were so drastically rewritten that the new storyline involves a 2009 world tour with a new singer, such as a young Robert Plant imitator.

Still, Jason Bonham was Jimmy Page's drummer on tour in 1988, and they didn't call it Led Zeppelin. Robert Plant and Jimmy Page went on tour between 1994 and 1998, and they didn't call it Led Zeppelin. If a Led Zeppelin tour is discussed for next year and the willing parties don't include everybody it naturally could, and particularly if one or more surrogates is called to step in, then there's no sense in calling it Led Zeppelin. Call it the Vegetables, or the Mad Boys, or the Whoopie Cushions, or the Nobs. Just don't call it Led Zeppelin.

Then they can introduce a new brand with which to license merchandise, so they can pocket the profits and keep the proceeds from any unwilling participants.

Update: Well explained comments from Jeff Jampol, manager of the Doors, appeared in late October in a mailing list by Bob Lefsetz. Jampol, in a response to an earlier complaint about the rock band's perceived commercialism of late, defends the choices he made and explains why. Click here to read them.

Led Zeppelin memorabilia on display, at auction and for public consumption

Parallel to the business of selling music is the longstanding and lucrative business of merchandising a band's name in myriad ways. Led Zeppelin's history is rich with savvy marketing gimmicks such as The Object, a mysterious promotional figurine whose original manufacture supporting Presence's release in 1976 was limited to 1,000 until cheap knock-offs hit the market for a quick buck, and the series of six album covers for the group's last studio set.

Several extensive magazine articles and Web sites are dedicated to tally the quantity and second-hand price range of rare foreign pressings of Led Zeppelin's music and of items that were pulled from shelves for one reason or another.

Collectors should be aware that their universe is about to expand. A new officially sanctioned Led Zeppelin collectible is being made available to the public, but this ultra-rare pressing of the soundtrack to The Song Remains the Same on white vinyl will be about 200 times harder to get than tickets to the band's one-off reunion concert were last year.

Talk about a limited pressing! There are to be only 200 of these white vinyl sets produced, and only half are being immediately offered up for public consumption. They are to be randomly given to customers of Led Zeppelin's official Web site who purchase the no-less-enticing black vinyl pressings of the soundtrack album. This four-LP soundtrack pressing on 180-gram vinyl is to be available July 29. It is to contain the same expanded track listing as was on last November's re-release of the 1976 set on CD. The remixing, mastering, artwork and liner notes will also resemble last year's edition. A set could be yours for only $54.99 if you pre-order soon, and if you're lucky, you will receive the extremely limited white vinyl edition.

Also coming soon to a four-LP vinyl set, for the same price, is last year's Mothership anthology. This audiophile-quality vinyl release is scheduled for Aug. 26. Further information on both new vinyl releases from Led Zeppelin is available here.

Auctioneers are also testing the staying power of Led Zeppelin's name when it comes to the resale of unique items once owned by the band members. A drum kit pounded on by John Bonham in his later days is soon to be sold at auction, possibly fetching an amount comparable to the sum recently paid out for a bass guitar and equipment John Paul Jones used in Led Zeppelin's earliest days.

The acoustic bass and accompanying bass stack sold for $27,115 at a Christie's auction in London on July 10, demonstrating the value of the group's moniker.

Bonham's Ludwig Vistalite drum kit, thought to be the only kit of his not possessed by his estate, is to be auctioned Sept. 4 in London. The drums left Bonham's possession when he gave them as a gift to Chris Welch, who later went on to co-author the biography "John Bonham: A Thunder of Drums." Letters of authenticity signed by Welch and Todd Trent of Ludwig's artists relations are listed as part of the lot.

Speaking of Led Zeppelin memorabilia, a fan of the group named Annie Hollinshead has labored intently over the past year to fulfill her vision of having collectors donate some of their memorabilia for a large display to be held at the historically significant Knebworth Field House, commemorating the formation of the band 40 years ago next month. The exhibit, which intends to raise money for the Jimmy Page-supported ABC Trust charity, is set to run daily between Aug. 1 and Sept. 3. For more information, visit http://memoriesinmusic.com.

One away from forty: An appeal to memorabilia collectors

This year marks the 39th anniversary of the formation of Led Zeppelin with today being the 39th anniversary of the two first-ever Page-Plant-Jones-Bonham concerts – which means next year's 40th anniversary celebrations ought to be bigger.

Annie Hollinshead is a contact of mine in England who has an idea for a fitting tribute. She would like to see an archive assembled of collectors' fine Led Zeppelin memorabilia and perhaps store it at Knebworth House, a particularly appropriate choice given the band's stellar 1979 performances on a stage at the Knebworth field.

"The exhibit will run for several weeks in the summer at Knebworth, and possibly later in the year in London," says Annie. "ABC Trust [the charity benefiting Brazilian street kids and for which Jimmy Page is a benefactor] is working on combining it with a photographic exhibition for Zeppelin, also for charity."

She is sharing the idea with several supportive folks and is attempting to contact the management for each band member and trustees of John Bonham's estate. For now, Annie says, "I need to spread the word to collectors. Even if they only have one item it would be much appreciated if we could borrow it. ... I told Knebworth and the ABC up front that if I couldn't get enough items we would just have to cancel it, but they think with Knebworth as a venue and the backing of the band and the charities, it will be successful."

Annie stipulates that all photographs shared for the cause must be approved by their original photographers and that no bootlegs will be included.

"I will be very pleased to speak with anyone who is interested in loaning us their memorabilia," says Annie, who can be reached at:

Annie Hollinshead
24 Rusts Lane,
Alconbury,
Huntingdon
UK PE28 4DN
Tel (+44) (0) 1480 896030
E-mail: ayhollinshead [at] hotmail [dot] com