John Bonham Traps Magazine

7/28/2019 John Bonham Traps Magazine

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City

BoyMan

Country

Countr WITH ANDY DOERSCHUK JON COHAN JARED COBB &KAREN STACKPOLE

BY CHRIS WELCH

THE JOHN BONHAMSTORY

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PREFACE A SLOW NIGHT AT THE MARQUEE

As a Melody Maker reporter during the 1960s, Ivividly remember the moment when areview copy of Led Zeppelins eponymousdebut album arrived at the office. Mycolleague and fellow scribe Tony Wilsonhad secured the precious black vinyl LPand dropped it onto the turntable,awaiting my reaction. We wereimmediately transfixed by the brash, boldsounds that fought their way out of the lo-fi speakers Robert Plants screamingvocals, the eerie Hammond organ soundsof John Paul Jones, and Jimmy Pagessupreme guitar mastery. But amid thekaleidoscope of impressions, the drumswere the primary element that set pulses

racing. We marveled at the sheer audacity,the sense of authority, the spatialawareness present on every track. Withinmoments, John Bonhams cataclysmic bassdrum triplets and roaring snare rolls hadsignaled a new era of rock drumming.

The first time I saw Bonham up close was in December 1968,at The Marquee Club on Sohos Wardour Street. While The

Marquee has long held a mythical status in the rich history of the London rock scene hosting early appearances by suchlegendary bands as The Who and The Rolling Stones it wasactually a dark and rather cramped facility with a tiny stagethat fronted an even stuffier dressing room.

The venue wasnt full on the night of the Zeppelin show, so we couldwander around and chat to other club goers. While Page and Plantdominated the stage, we edged over to the side to check out thedrummer. Among those watching with me was Mark Ashton, curlyhaired stickman with the group Rare Bird. Hes so fucking heavy!Ashton shouted in my ear. We stared in disbelief at the aggressive, beefy guy who seemed intent on breaking the heads on his toms.

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P H O T O B Y N E A L P R E S T O N


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John Henry Bonham was born in Redditch, Worcestershire, on May 31, 1948.He started drumming at the age of five by playing around on a bath saltscontainer fitted with strands of wire on the bottom, which gave the effect of a snare drum as he hammered out rhythms with knives and forks. After headded pots, pans, and a coffee tin to his armory, his mother reclaimed thekitchenware and bought her ten-year-old son a real snare drum. Five yearslater, when it became clear that drumming wasnt simply a passing phase,

his father purchased a complete kit. It was almost prehistoric, Bonzorecalled. Most of it was rust, but I was determined to be a drummer as soonas I left school. I was so keen I would have played for nothing in fact, I didfor a long time, but my parents stuck by me.

CHAPTER I BIRTH OF BONZO

JOHN BONHAM

Robert Plant and John Bonham met asteenagers. We were from the same area,the singer says. We grew up around thesame things and dated the same women.He was very colorful to be around, John.We were both proud owners of unbeliev-

ably huge egos. I was going to be the greatsinger in the area where I lived, and he wasdefinitely going to be the best drummer.The two of us in the room often made it im-possible for anybody else to get in becauseof our egos, and our personalities, and ourgregarious, aggressive natures. It was veryhard for anybody else to stomach us.

Family patriarch Jack Bonham ran a building company, and employed both of his sons, John and Michael. But even as heworked as a builder, John Bonham devel-oped a parallel career as a drummer play-ing with local bands. It was the age of Ringo Starr and The Beatles, but Bonhamhad already developed a taste for jazz

drummers such as Gene Krupa, BuddyRich, and Joe Morello. Our parents weremore into big band dance music BennyGoodman, Gene Krupa, that sort of thing,remembers his sister, Deborah Bonham.And John really got into drumming by lis-

tening to the likes of Gene Krupa and Bud-dy Rich. He really loved Krupas style.

John Bonham began taking lessons tomaster his rudiments, but quickly devel-oped his own hard-hitting sound. Impa-tient, but a fast learner, he often practicedlicks during gigs, to the frustration of bandleaders when he got things wrong.Drumming was the only thing I was anygood at, and so I stuck at it, said Bonham.I always worked hard all the time. When Iwas 16, I went into full-time music. But Idhave to go back to the building sites to earnmoney to live. If there were no gigs, therewas no money. As he gained confidencehed go up to a bandleader and say, Your

drummer is not much good, is he? Let mehave a go and Ill show you. Whereuponhed climb behind the hapless drummerskit, pound it to bits, and take over his gig.

One of his first professional opportuni-ties was a stint with Terry Webb & The Spi-ders, a rock and roll band he joined at theage of 16. A year later, in 1965, he marriedhis girlfriend, Pat Phillips. Money wastight, and the family lived in a trailer

owned by Bonhams father. We really did-nt have much, recalls Jason Bonham, Johns now 41-year-old son himself a suc-cessful and talented professional drummer.He would say he was going to work, off inthe local factory. But really he was taking atrain to Manchester where hed hang out ina drum shop and play demonstrations for afew pounds. Then hed take the train backhome and rub dirt on his face to look likehed been at the factory all day.

The Bonhams moved into a high-riseflat in Dudley (where they still lived whenthe first Led Zeppelin album was re-leased). John joined A Way Of Life thesame year and made some demo record-ings in a Birmingham studio. He played soloudly he was told he was unrecordableand that there was no future in playing soloudly. Some years later he sent the studiomanager a Led Zeppelin gold disc with anote that read, Thanks for your advice.

Out on the road hed try to improve hisplaying, often at the expense of some lucklessgroup that had booked him for the night. Afriend, former Warhorse drummer MacPoole, remembers Bonham desperately try-ing out a new lick a half-time triplet on aslow blues. He threw it in and went allaround the kit but it didnt come off. He had-nt quite mastered this pattern and kept try-ing to get it right. The band was completelypissed off by the time theyd finished the set. Isaid to John, Youve got a few problems withthe band, right? He said, Oh, fuck them!

In 1965 he joined Plant in The CrawlingKing Snakes, but left after a few months torejoin A Way Of Life. Plant and Bonhamwould reunite in Plants hippie-era Band Of Joy in January 1967, where the two wouldreceive much-deserved recognition. Wewere getting offers to go off with other peo-ple, Plant says. John was getting invita-tions to play with the top bands, and I wastrying to stop him. Bonham quit again inMay 1968, when he backed Tim Rose on aU.K. tour, performing Morning Dew andHey Joe, and earning 50 a week. P H

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We stayed at the Hilton Hotel and I re-tired to my room to watch TV and fallasleep. The following morning I received atelephone call. Had the night gonewell? My blank reaction drew clear disap-pointment. It transpired that the grouphad kindly sent two hookers armed withporno films and whips to my room, butthey had been spotted en route by the ho-tel detective and arrested.

Then next day, October 17, 1969, some-what dazed by jet lag, skyscrapers, and Man-hattan hubbub, I headed to Carnegie Hall only to find all the tickets had been sold and

cemented a strange bond known only toZeppelin fans as we stood in awe while the

group exploded on stage. They played fortwo hours and the young New York audi-ence leapt out of their seats to shake Pageshand and scream their approval. Bonzowore a leather hat as he crouched over hisLudwig kit and delivered the batteringsnare drum intro to CommunicationBreakdown with such force it made me blink. When it came to his full-scale work-out, Bonham made good on his promise to be in top form. He summoned a demonicdrum solo and flew around the kit with aspeed and brute strength that was as-tounding. I saw Bonham play many moresolos over the years but never with quitethe same sustained attack.

The band continued its U.S. tour followingthe historic Carnegie Hall show, and I went back to London not quite sure if the whole ex-perience hadnt been a dream. But it was alsoa dream come true for Bonzo, as Zeppelinwas now earning millions of dollars from liveshows and royalties from the first two albums. Soon he would leave his flat behind,and by 1970 he had invested in a large housenear Stourbridge, Worcestershire.

CHAPTER III ONE DAY IN NYC

Ifirst met John Bonham and Robert Plant in a taxicab that took us from EustonStation in London to Heathrow Airport. We were due to fly to New York,where Led Zeppelin was scheduled to play at Carnegie Hall. It was October1969, and the new Led Zeppelin II album was eagerly awaited, although asPlant told me en route, its release had been delayed due to problems with theartwork. At the airport we met Page, Jones, and Grant, and boarded the TWABoeing 707, the fastest means of travel in the 60s. Among our fellowpassengers was Graham Nash, who was eager to chat, but Led Zeppelinremained calm and quiet throughout the seven-hour trip across the Atlanticand into the sunset, as we sipped champagne and dined on caviar.

there were no seats left. Instead I would haveto join the group on stage during the soundcheck and the nights show. What a hard-ship. So there I was, standing next to Bonzoon the hallowed boards where Benny Good-mans Sing, Sing, Sing was recorded live back in 1938. This is it, lads, said Bonham,adjusting his cymbal stands, as the audience began to file in early and take their seats.Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich theyve allplayed here. So Id better be good tonight!

Dr. John joined me in the wings alongwith Chris Wood of Traffic and, somewhat bizarrely, Screaming Lord Sutch. We three I M A

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BCHAPTER IV ROAD DOGSritish fans may have felt that Zeppelin had decamped to America, but itwasnt long before the group was back with an appearance at Englandsfamed Bath Festival, a massive event in the West Country, where the bandplayed to 200,000 fans. By then they were tackling three-hour sets andBonham had to deliver an even longer version of his solo, now dubbed MobyDick. Not long after the festival, I was invited to go on tour with the bandaround Germany. We spent five days on the road, traveling by car, train, andplane. Zeppelin played to audiences of up to 10,000 a night at stadiumswhere the police had to fend off the rioting crowds with clubs and dogs.

We flew from London to Dsseldorf through heavy cloud layers. It was a tur- bulent flight, and almost immediately aftertakeoff Bonham, who hated flying evenunder the best conditions, left his seat andlurched to the toilet to be violently sick. Itwas moments like these where I saw a dif-ferent side of Bonzo, the tough hell-raiser.Most of his bravado and drinkingstemmed from nerves, worry, or boredom.People assumed he was the man they sawon stage, but actually he was very shy andreserved, very introspective, says Jason.The John Bonham who people watchedup on stage every night needed alcohol tohave that kind of bravado.

On our arrival, Bonham stompedaround Germany looking somewhat men-acing in his black moustache and blackleather hat. Yet when we got to the Dssel-

dorf Sportshalle he was clearly nervous, aswas the rest of the group. This was sur-prising. Zeppelin was so big, powerful, andpopular. And yet Bonham sat silent andedgy, as if waiting for the boxing bell toring for round one of the big fight. Youcould hear the fans yelling aggressively inthe distance, and then came the signal. The band filed toward the stage in the dark,cavernous hall more like condemned men

than cocky rock stars. But as soon as thefirst notes of Immigrant Song blasted,they knew the P.A. was working, the fanswere happy, and they might even be atten-tive enough to listen to the acoustic set.

The next nights concert in Essenproved much noisier, and Page gave uptrying to play Black Mountain Side. Youload of noisy buggers! scolded a furiousBonham. Once again I was able to watchhis solos from a variety of angles from

behind, in front, even above the stage, andright beside him in those happy days be-fore laminates and security teams. Intruth, the only security you needed withLed Zeppelin was Peter Grant and tourmanager Richard Cole.

Our next stop was Frankfurt, where Zep-pelin played to 11,000 fans at the Festhalle,and I was invited to join in on timbales dur-ing Whole Lotta Love. I hammered thedrums with a pair of Bonzos spare sticks

and wondered if anybody could actuallyhear me. We went on to Berlin, where barbed wire and The Wall were still inplace. By now the tour was taking its tollwith Page ill and Bonham a nervous wreck.Even so, the last show at the Deutchland-halle was tremendously exciting and thewhole band hit a peak. After the show Iwent with John to a Berlin cabaret full of people who could have been men, women,or both. It was hard to tell. Theres someweird-looking people about, he observedsagely. Theres nowhere for a decent bloketo have a pint of beer!

That night my sleep at the Berlin Hiltonwas disturbed by hideous howls, which Ifeared might have been Bonzo wreakinghavoc on the floor below. It turned out to bea tiger in the Berlin Zoo, convenientlyplaced next door, no doubt protesting aboutthe noise from the dance band in the hotel ballroom. I found just five days on the roadwith Zeppelin thrilling and exhausting, andId played on only one number. The early70s were a blur of events for most rock bands, but especially for Led Zeppelin.

Once it cameto the point of working on numbers,

Johns input was so

substantial Jimmy Page

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CHAPTER V THAT HUGE DRUM SOUNDonhams trademark sound two generous scoops of Neanderthal, with adash of R&B became as immediately recognizable as Plants piercing wailand Pages power riffs. Once it came to the point of working on numbers, Johns input was so substantial, Page says. He was constantly working onnew things. For instance, when we were doing Presence, he had this fill thathe wanted to fit into Achilles Last Stand. He asked us to give him a second between takes, and he started working on it, and working on it. Finally hesaid, Lets go, and he fit it in, and it was absolute magic.

One of the numbers that we did, FourSticks from the fourth album, was ex-tremely abstract. We tried to record it nor-mally, so to speak, and it hadnt really hap-pened. So we said, Well do it anothernight. And John came in the next day, andsaid, Ive got an idea for this. He picked upfour sticks, and away he went. It was donein two takes because it was so exhausting.It couldnt be done in any more. Thats the

way he would attack something.Led Zeppelins albums sound lush, eventhough their studio techniques were sur-prisingly primitive by todays standards.At the time, the band would set up muchas they would on stage, with acoustic baf-fles separating the instruments. John Paul Jones explains, We could all walk aroundand stand around the drums. Nobody real-ly cared how much leakage there was onanything, as long as it sounded good. That

was part of the sound.Engineer/producer Eddie Kramers

work with Led Zeppelin spanned five albums, starting with Led Zeppelin II and in-cluding Houses Of The Holy, Physical Graffiti ,and The Song Remains The Same . Kramertook a simple approach to Bonhamsdrums. The least amount of mikes you in-troduced to him, the better, I thought. Youlisten to the drums, listen to the way theysound in the room, and mike accordingly.And you dont need that many mikes orat least we didnt in those days.

Kramer wanted quality, not quantity, andchose a selection of mikes to capture Bon-hams explosive sound, including at varioustimes Shure SM57s, Neumann U67s andU87s, AKG C12s, and ElectroVoice RE20s.Kramer developed an open drum soundwhile recording Bonham, forgoing com-pression and reverb to let the drums speakfor themselves, even though you cant es-cape the natural tape compression from themassive signal slamming the tape.

One of Kramers best memories is record-ing Bonzo at Stargroves, Mick Jaggers Eng-

lish estate, in 1972. We cut a bunch of tracks for Houses Of The Holy and Physical Graffiti there, he remembers. The roomhad a particularly nice ambience and Bon-ham was very happy. He would come in andlisten, and hed go, All right, Eddie, got agood drum sound there. He trusted me heknew that I would give him something hewould feel proud of. He was a very proudchap, you know. He really loved his work.

We did use different techniques whenwe used to record in large country houses inthe later years, remembers Jones. Some-times the live room was a little too much totake drums and other instruments, in whichcase we would put John out in the hall orsomething like that. In fact, When The Lev-ee Breaks was recorded with John in agrand stairwell of this two-story building.There was a microphone about ten feetabove him and one about one foot abovehim, no bass drum mike. I think Rock AndRoll was done the same way.

Its almost hard to believe, consideringthe gigantic drum sounds Bonham capturedon tape throughout his career. However, allthree of his former bandmates attest to hisexacting ear for tuning, and to his then-un-fashionable (now commonplace) tuningphilosophies. Page says, One of the mostimportant things to remember about John isthat he really knew how to tune his drumsand get the most tone out of them. This issomething that I appreciated, havingworked in the studio where drummers


would sound on the playback like they werehitting a piece of cardboard or something.

He liked to hear his drums sound likedrums, Jones agrees, rather than todampen everything down, which was thecommon practice of those days. That wasthe sound he liked, and that was the soundthat immediately worked. He couldnt seethe point of buying a good quality drum kit,and then plastering it down so that it had

no resonance and no sonic quality whatso-ever. He always thought it sounded like youmight as well play the cases.

At the dawn of the 70s, Bonham moth- balled his natural maple drums in favor of a Ludwig Sparkle Green (catalog #2004),which he used on stage for a couple of years and in the studio as late as 1975. Hewas introduced to Paiste cymbals throughLudwig, which was the American distribu-tor of the Swiss cymbal brand at the time.

Appice remembers, In those days, whenyou got a Ludwig endorsement, the cymbalendorsement came with it.

Swiss drummer Fredy Studer worked inPaiste drummer services in 1970 and re-members when Bonham made a surprisevisit to the companys factory in Nottwil,Switzerland. That was when he signedthe agreement as an endorsee, he says.We went through the factory and checkedsome cymbals. It had to sound big to him.He was looking for a big sound that waspitched and would blend with his drumsound. The main thing was that they werecutting through, but not in a sharp way.

After the visit, Bonham walked awaywith a set of Paistes recently developed Gi-ant Beat cymbals. The company tried outdifferent alloys because the music changed,says Studer. When rock music came out,Paiste developed Giant Beat because theywere looking for a sound that could cutthrough the amplified guitars more.

In 1973, Ludwig shipped some Vistalitedrums to Bonham as part of a push to pro-

BOh God, he was funny. He was afunny man with one heck of a senseof humor. There was always a lot of laughter in our home. Deborah Bonham


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mote its new product line. Acrylic drumswere a fairly big gamble for Ludwig. Fibeswas making clear plastic drums, Bill Lud-wig III recalls. We saw that and thoughtwe should look into it. The supplier said hecould get us other colors and we knew thatwould separate us in the market.

Bonham, who was at the time enamoredwith the playing of Billy Cobham and hisclear Fibes drums, saw the showy potential

of the kit, which also had the benefit of beingmuch louder than the wood-shell drums hehad previously played. As a result, with therelease of the movie The Song Remains TheSame, thousands of would-be drummers sawBonhams amber-colored Vistalites (catalog#302) with Bonhams three-ring insignia onthe bass drumhead. This eventually becamethe archetypal Zeppelin drum set.

When Paiste introduced the 2002 linein 1973, Bonham shifted back and forth be-

tween the Giant Beats and the 2002s for alittle while. As with his drums, he chose toplay cymbals that were larger than con-ventional sizes, including 15" Sound Edgehi-hats, a 24" ride, and a 38" symphonicgong that was known to catch fire in lateryears. He also used an 18" or 20" mediumride as his right-side crash cymbal, and a16" or sometimes 18" crash on his left.

Bonham played the Vistalites untilaround 1975, when he returned to wood-

shell drums with a Ludwig Sparkle Silverkit (catalog #2003). He eventually replacedthose with a Ludwig Stainless Steel kit (cat-alog #900) around 1977, which is the setuphe played at the 1979 Knebworth Festival,on the Led Zeppelin DVD, and throughoutthe final European tour in 1980.

Over the years, Bonham tinkered with hissetup. For his very last kit the stainless steelmodel a 15" x 12" tom replaced his 14" x 10"(although other tom sizes occasionally madetheir way into his setup over the years). Thehigh tom on his first Ludwig kit was original-ly mounted on a snare stand, but he latermounted it on the bass drum using a RogersSwiv-O-Matic tom mount (every subsequentkit featured a Ludwig mount). An historicalfootnote: for some unknown reason, he used both a snare stand and tom mount on the ex-cellent Royal Albert Hall performance fromthe Led Zeppelin DVD. For a while he kept apair of congas to his left, which were replacedin 1970 by a pair of Ludwig timpani. He wasknown to throw a Ching-Ring on his hi-hat,mount a cowbell on his bass drum, or switchup crash sizes, depending on his mood. P H

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John Bonham played only a few drum sets during his celebrated tenure with LedZeppelin. Since his death, these kits have taken on a mythical quality and why not?To this very day, drummers ask recording engineers to help them achieve a Bonhamsound in the studio. As a result, these kits have become some of the most sought-afterprizes in the collectible vintage market. Heres a quickglance at the makeup of each.

From BlondeTo Steel

CIRCA 1969-70Ludwig Drums In Natural Maple (Blonde) Finish26" x 14" Bass Drum14" x 12" or 14" x 10" Tom eithermounted on snare stand orRogers Swiv-O-Matic tom mount (or both)16" x16" FloorTom18" x16" FloorTom14" x 6.5" Supraphonic 402 Alloy Snare Drum

Paiste GiantBeat Cymbals15" Sound Edge Hi-Hats16" Medium Crash on left18" or 20" Ride (on right, used as a crash)24" Ride mounted on bass drum cymbal arm38" Symphonic Gong

Bonham also mounted a cowbell on the bass drum hoop, useda Ludwig Speed King pedal, Ludwig heads, and in 1970, addedtwo conga drums to the leftof his hi-hat.

CIRCA 1975Ludwig Drums In Sparkle Silver Finish26" x 14" Bass Drum15" x 12" Tom16" x16" FloorTom18" x16" FloorTom14" x 6.5" Supraphonic 402 Alloy Snare Drum

Paiste 2002 Cymbals15" Sound Edge Hi-Hats16" Medium Crash on left18" Ride on right(used as a crash)24" Ride mounted on bass drum cymbal arm38" Symphonic Gong

Bonhams timpani, pedals, and head choices remainedidentical to the 73 Vistalite kit.

CIRCA 1977Ludwig Drums In Stainless Steel Finish26" x 14" Bass Drum15" x 12" Tom16" x16" FloorTom18" x16" FloorTom14" x 6.5" Supraphonic 402 Alloy Snare Drum

Paiste 2002 Cymbals15" Sound Edge Hi-Hats16" Medium Crash on left18" Ride on right (used as a crash)24" Ride mounted on bass drum cymbal arm38" Symphonic Gong

Once again, Bonham keptthe same timpani, pedals,and head choices thathe used with the 73 Vistalite kit.

CIRCA 1970-73Ludwig Drums In Sparkle Green Finish26" x14" Bass Drum14" x 10" Tom16" x16" FloorTom18" x16" FloorTom14" x 6.5" Supraphonic 402 Alloy Snare Drum

Paiste GiantBeat Cymbals

15" Sound Edge Hi-Hats16" Medium Crash on left18" Ride on right (used as a crash)24" Ride mounted on bass drum cymbal arm38" Symphonic Gong

At this stage Bonham also added a pairof Ludwig timpani andbegan combining Ludwig and Remo drumheads.

CIRCA 1973Ludwig AmberVistalite Drums26" x14" Bass Drum14" x 10" Tom16" x16" FloorTom18" x16" FloorTom14" x 6.5" Supraphonic 402 Alloy Snare Drum

Paiste Giant Beat And 2002 Cymbals

15" Sound Edge Hi-Hats16" Medium Crash on left18" Ride on right (used as a crash)24" Ride mounted on bass drum cymbal arm38" Symphonic Gong

Bonham continued to use the timpani and Speed Kingpedal, and began to experimentwith a Ching-Ring on hishi-hat. He also further refined his head choices to LudwigClear Silver Dot or Remo Clear CS Batterheads.

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JOHN BONHAM

The Old Hyde farm the family property that John Bonham purchased in 1972and helped restore to a working cattle ranch with his father and younger brother, Michael nestles quietly among the lush, rolling pastures of Englandsunassuming Midlands. On a breezeless, damp evening the property seemsfrozen in time, motionless against its backdrop of green solitude. Then, cuttingthe silence like a chainsaw at dawn, the ferocious thunder of a careeningLamborghini echoes up the long drive, through the valleys beyond, turning thehead of every heifer and steer as a rooster tail of leaves and gravel marks the

wake of its explosive horsepower. And as the engines sprawling roar reachesthe Old Hyde and its neighboring farms, one by one each member of this quietcountry town knows one unmistakable thing: John Bonham is home.

But once this latest exotic sports car findsthe garage and its ignition settles to a warmsilence, John Bonham himself also warmsquickly to his surprisingly quiet home life.Known first for his incredible, expansivetalents on his instrument and second for hisoften-excessive Bonzo lifestyle, Bonham at

home is a much different man than his fanswitnessed every night on stage. John Paul Jones remembers Bonham being a lot of laughs on the road, but adds, I dont knowif he was altogether happy touring all thetime. He was a bit of a homebody.

Jason Bonham recalls, It was alwaysvery quiet when hed be home during breaks. People generally think it was allprivate jets and wild parties and peoplestaggering drunk all over the place, but it

wasnt like that. If anyone was at thehouse, it was usually family.

John was just a regular guy with an im-mense talent, an incredible God-given tal-ent, explains his younger sister Deborah,another established musician. He bred hisown Hereford cattle and he was justthrilled when one of his calves from his bull Bruno won best prize at a show. He

would be there with his farmers coat on,posing not to be a rock star. He liked hislife like that. His home life mustve been amillion miles away from the lifestyle thatsurrounded Led Zeppelin on tour.

He was very supportive of all sorts of lo-cal events and charities, Plant says. You

know, he comes from Worcestershire, thecountryside. It created a different mentality,so that ones reaction to ones own thingswas a lot different than if you were living inNew York, London, or San Francisco. Yougo back to a country town which goesthrough its depressions, materially and stuff riding high, landing in a starship at the lo-cal airport. Its coming straight from Ameri-ca with Led Zeppelin painted on the side of your jet, and you have to be ready to handle

people. John did his utmost to make peoplefeel okay around him. Powerful guy.

Bonham kept his work and home lives sodetached that he never even set up a drumkit at the Old Hyde. Apparently it was arare occasion when he played any drums atall during a break in Zeppelins schedule.My drums were the only drums set up atthe house, says Jason. Dad never playeddrums at home, really. If he did, it was be-cause there was a party and he was drink-ing and people would coax him into playingmine. But that was rather rare.

Deborah carries vivid memories of Johnsextensive music collection and its impact onthe household. The house was always fullof music: James Brown, The Everly Broth-ers, a lot of Motown. Johns record collectionhad everything . And it was all great music:Little Feat, The Police, Kansas, Hendrix.

What breaks in Led Zeppelins schedulemeant to me, recalls Jason, was that Dadwould be coming along to my motocrossevents that weekend, which was always ex-citing, and my earliest musical memorywith my dad was driving with him to those

events. He had a terrific 8-track system inhis car and he absolutely blared FleetwoodMacs Rumours the entire way on repeat for three hours each way. And to thisday that album is so ingrained in my head.

One time at the end of one of Zeppelinstours Jimmy Page called the house andasked for John. My mom was confused andsaid, Hes not back from the tour yet. Howare you home? And before Jimmy could an-swer, we all heard the roar of a sports carengine and sure enough, here comes Dad.He had gone straight from the airport to thedealership and picked up a Lamborghini.

Oh God, he was funny, laughs Deborah.He was a funny man with one heck of asense of humor. There was always a lot of laughter in our home, a lot of silly joking.

Inevitably, Bonzo/John/Brother/Dadwould eventually have to pack his bagsand leave his beloved family farm for an-

other whirlwind adventure aboard thechaotic Zeppelin rocket ship. Its said thathe, understandably, despised leaving OldHyde to go on tour, and many speculatethat the pain of homesickness led him toempty so many bottles on so many nights.

Its well publicized that he found touringvery difficult, but I think everybody does,admits Deborah. Its a very lonely time go-ing out on the road. And Ive heard a lot of stories about John that simply arent true.

One time it was reported that he was arrest-ed for beating somebody up in an airport inAmerica, but we were together in the Southof France at the time. Some of the books on John are complete nonsense.

One aspect of John Bonhams life that has been accurately documented is his supremereign as the greatest rock drummer of alltime. I think its just now that Im begin-ning to realize [how important and influen-tial] John was as a drummer, reflects Deb-orah. When he was alive I thought my big brother was the best thing ever anyway.But now I listen to his music and hearthings in his drumming that were so subtle but so fantastic. A lot of it was from those big band influences. Brilliant stuff.

Similarly, Johns cultural significance ar-rived later in the eyes of his son Jason. Itdidnt occur to me how big Led Zeppelinwas and how famous my dad was until af-ter he passed and I came to America, heremembers. Its different in America. Zep-pelin was big in England, but not house-hold name big. In America, everyoneknows Led Zeppelin.

CHAPTER VI JUST A FAMILY MAN

A family portrait(left to right):brotherMichael,sisterDeborah,fatherJohn II,and Bonzo sharea drink

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suffering from panic attacks before everyconcert. Ive got worse. I have terribly badnerves all the time. Once we start into RockAnd Roll, Im fine. I just cant stand sittingaround, and I worry about playing badly.Its worse at festivals. You might have to sitaround for a whole day and you darentdrink because youll get tired and blow thegig. So you sit drinking tea in a trailer witheverybody saying, Far out, man.

Bonham gave a great guffaw that couldprobably be heard halfway around the100 acres of pasture that surrounded thehouse. We set off for a walk through thefields and ended up inside one of the cat-tle barns that had been converted into agarage. This is the hot car shop, he saidwith a chuckle, leading the way toward atrio of highly improbable vehicles. Onewas an elaborately painted taxicab,mounted on wheels a yard wide. Thiswas, he explained, A show car. I boughther in L.A. She can do 150 mph. And thatone is a 67 Corvette with a seven-liter en-gine. This one is a 1954 two-door Ford

Away from Zeppelin, Bonham would re-turn to normality, looking after his wifePat, son Jason, and daughter Zo. In fact,Zo was born the night before I visited John at his country abode in June 1975, notlong after the band had played a series of superb concerts at Londons Earls Courtvenue following the release of Physical Graffiti . I didnt realize it at the time, butthis would be our last interview before aseries of catastrophic events conspired toalter the course of Zeppelins history.

I drove from London to Bonhams

Worcestershire farmhouse, where assomeone who preferred bricklaying, deco-rating, and gardening to the itinerant life of a rock star Bonham busied himself run-ning the farm and breeding cattle in thepeace of the countryside. I was never intofarming at all, he would later tell me. Iwasnt even looking for a farm, just a housewith some land. But when I saw this place,something clicked, and I bought it in 1972.

We sat in his lounge in front of a big juke- box loaded with his favorite Supertramptracks, and Bonham confided that he was

CHAPTER VII OUR FINAL INTERVIEW n October 1970 Led Zeppelin III was released and the band took time off theroad to record the next album, the fabled untitled work that became knownas Four Symbols. In March 1971, the band set off on the road again for anexciting trip to Ireland, where they played two concerts in Belfast andDublin. Here Zeppelin unveiled a remarkable new song that seemed toepitomize all that was best about the band. What was that new numbercalled? I asked Plant as we boarded a plane back to London.

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with an eight-liter engine. You get guyscoming past in a sports car who think itsan old banger, until I put my foot down.Its an amazing car look at all thechrome ins ide. Shed only done 10,000miles when I bought her.

Bonham once purchased a white RollsRoyce, but thugs in Birmingham attacked itwhen he drove the car to a wedding recep-tion. When I came out it looked like a bomb had hit it. All these skinheads had jumped on it. They kicked in the wind-screen, smashed everything. If it had beenany other car, they would have left it alone.

Back in the house we talked about hisearly days and the start of his drumming ca-reer. I never had many drum lessons. I justplayed the way I wanted and got blacklistedin Birmingham. Youre too loud! they usedto say. Theres no future in it. But nowa-days you cant play loud enough. I just wish

there was a way of wiring a drum kit to getthe natural sound through the P.A. Ive tried

so many different ways, but when youreplaying with a band like ours you get somany problems with sound. With Jimmyand John Paul on either side playing lead,they can leak into the drum mikes, and if you have too many monitors you start to getfeedback. I never get it the way I want.

And yet Bonhams drum sound was fan-tastic at the Earls Court shows not long be-fore our interview. I enjoyed those con-

certs, he said. I thought they were the best shows that weve ever put on in Eng-land. I always get tense before a show, andwe were expecting trouble with such ahuge audience. But everything went reallywell. Did we rehearse? Nah, just threedays. Mind you, it was only a few weeksafter we got back from the States. We justneeded a bit of rust remover.

We like to change the show each year.Theres nothing worse than playing the oldnumbers over and over again. Youve got tokeep in some of the old songs, of course. Idont know what would happen if we didntplay Stairway To Heaven, because its be-

come one of the biggest things weve everdone. When Jimmy plays the first chord, itsinstant bedlam, until Robert comes in withthe first line. And we always play WholeLotta Love because people want to hear it,and I still get a great kick out of Dazed AndConfused. I always enjoy the number be-cause we never play it the same.

With the other stuff, well put one in ortake one out. On the last night at EarlsCourt we played Heartbreaker, Black Dog,and a bit from Out On The Tiles. With thesongs from Physical Graffiti weve got such awide range of material. It wasnt done onpurpose. Its just that we went through astage where we were very conscious of everything we played. We felt it had to be acertain kind of thing for Zeppelin.

In the States they play Trampled UnderFoot on the radio all day. When we first ranthrough it, John Paul and Jimmy started off

the riff, but then we thought it was a bitsoulful for us. We changed it around a bit.

Its a great rhythm for a drummer. Its justthe right pace and you can do a lot of fills.But compare that to Dazed And Confused.The speed of the thing! While were play-ing, I think Christ, if I drop one [beat] thats it. Youve got to be fit to play Tram-pled Under Foot, and if I dont feel toogood, its very hard. We keep tapes of everyshow, and its very useful afterwards, espe-cially for my drum solo, because then I can

hear what works best.Bonhams solo during the Earls Court

concerts featured some sort of special ef-fects during the timpani segment. I won-dered if he had been using a synthesizer.No, it was just phasing on the pedaltimps. I was using them in 73. Its just adifferent sound. Not everybody likes orunderstands a drum solo, so I like to bringin effects and sounds to keep their interest.

Ive been doing the hand-drum solo fora long time before I joined Zeppelin. I re-member playing a solo on Caravan when Iwas 16. Sometimes I take a chunk out of myknuckles on the hi-hat or catch my hand on

the tension rods. I try to play somethingdifferent every night on the solo, but the basic plan is the same, from sticks to handsand then the timps, and the final buildup.

It would be really boring to playstraight kit all the time. On our last Statestour I was really chuffed when I had somegood reviews from people who dont evenlike drum solos. I usually play for 20 min-utes, and the longest Ive ever done wasunder 30. Its a long time, but when Implaying it seems to fly by. Sometimes youcome up against a brick wall and youthink, How am I going to get out of thisone? Or sometimes you go into a fill andyou know halfway through its going to bedisastrous. There have been times whenIve blundered and got the dreaded lookfrom the lads. But thats a good sign. Itshows youre attempting something youvenot tried before.

Was there any danger of Bonham losingpower after so many years on the road?Im not losing strength. Im less tired aftera solo than I used to get in the early days.Of course we didnt have a break for theacoustic numbers then. But it was so cold atEarls Court, we had to have an electric firein the dressing room. The unions wouldntlet us use blow heaters. I had a run-through on the Friday night before the firstshow, and I was playing in an overcoat.

After a trip to Johns local, The Che-quers, where most of the patrons seemed tothink that he owned the pub, we returnedto the farmhouse to sample brandy and thedelights of a quad sound system thatthreatened to stampede the sleeping herd of cattle. I wish there were some more live bands around here I could have a blowwith, he sighed, tossing back a brandy.Theres nowhere for them to play, now itsall discos. God, I hate those places all

those flashing lights. Its all right if youreout for a night on the tiles. But I like to heara good live group. Youve got to remember theyre the backbone of the business.

As if to prove his faith in live music, John had set up nine-year-old Jasons jun-ior drum kit in the lounge, where hepounded away to Gary Glitter hits. Then Jason clad in his Boy Scouts uniform sud-denly appeared in the lounge, and glaredat us somewhat suspiciously as he inspect-ed his drum kit to see if we had beenmucking about with it. You cant teachhim anything, warned John. Hes got aterrible temper.

I never had many drum lessons.I just played the way I wanted and got blacklisted in Birmingham. John Bonham

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Released in January of 1969,Led Zep- pelin was a lesson to the rockset inblending power with subtlety and so-phistication. Even thehardest songs containeda level of emotionalpunch beyond anythingthat had come before.From the opening few

bars of Good Times Bad Times, the worldwas introduced to the fluttering agility of Bonhams now-infamous right foot, whilethe operatic drama of Babe Im GonnaLeave You set up whatwould become adominantZeppelin aesthetic: delicate,bluesy acoustic segments punctuated byPlants hypnotic, tortured wailing sud-denly rocketed to dizzying heights by mas-sive, electrified choruses. And while the 60spsychedelia-inspired Dazed And Confusedseemed to nod in the direction of Cream andHendrix, the straight-ahead, blistering en-ergy of Communication Breakdown madeit clearZeppelin intended to take this styleinto a newand heavierdirection.

Riding the crestof the wave the debutcreated, the band set off on extended Ameri-can tours, recording a follow-up albumalong the way and releasing it as quickly aspossible. The touringmind-set is obvious here,with songs like WholeLotta Love and Heart-breaker serving as hard-charging examples of thelive sound, complete with extended solos.

The most significant of these is the four-and-a-half minute version of Moby Dick, a sim-ple blues/rocknumber that in time wouldevolve into a concert staple and a showcasefor Bonhams 20- to 30-minute drum solos.On Ramble On Robert Plants long-runningpreoccupation with themes of mysticism andthe occult surfaces forthe first time in lyricsthat includeLord Of The Rings references. Butwith its clear tributes to American blues mas-ters (including a couple of songs that drewlawsuits from Sonny Boy Williamson andWillie Dixon overartistic infringements),Led Zeppelin II remains the most strictly bluesy of all the bands offerings.

If II is the soundtrack of a band grindingout nonstop rock on a busy touring sched-ule, thenLed Zeppelin III is the sound of aband in repose. Record-ed at an estate cottage inWales known as Bron- Yr-Aur,III saw the bandbalancing heavier ten-dencies with earthier,contemplative sounds pulled from the pas-toral surroundings of Bron-Yr-Aur. Even thealbum artwork is more playful, more whim-sical. Gone is the flaming Hindenburg motif that graced the othertwo albums. In itsplace, a colorful butterfly theme. The estatesnamesake anthem, the Celtic and bluegrass-

inspired Bron-Yr-AurStomp, is actually aremake of Bert Janschs The WaggonersLad. But this, as well as the mandolin-driven Gallows Pole, showcases Bonhamsability to adapthis heavy-hitting techniqueto differentstyles. The dynamic snare rollsand bouncing, four-on-the-floorkick pat-terns in these two songs still come across asintensely powerful, while the drumming inthe elegantTangerine, though command-

ing, melts into the melody until its more feltthan heard.

Despite leading off the fourth album withBlackDog and Rock & Roll, whichpromise a return toII s straightforward,blues-rockroots,Led Zeppelin IV was anotherattempt at image rejuve-nation. Zeppelin releasedthe album untitled andunattributed, reportedlyin response to a media intent on labeling theband as over-hyped, even though the

Zeppelin sound by this time was so recogniz-able that the albums credits were never inquestion. Commonly referred to asFour Sym-bols , Zoso , orsimplyLed Zeppelin IV , the al-bum sees the expansion of Robert Plantsdarkmystical bent in the sweeping BattleFor Evermore, the strongest acoustic contri-bution yet with Going To California, andthe instant classic Stairway To Heaven,which, despite its debut on this stealth al-bum, becomes arguably the most recogniza-ble song in the Zeppelin repertoire.IV hassince become one of the top four best-sellingalbums in U.S. history.

Having pumped outfour wildly successfulalbums in justunder three years, the bandtook some time recordingHouses Of The Holy ,

finally releasing it in 1973. The album makes itclearZeppelin was both maturing as a band,and reflecting elements of the changing mu-sical landscape, withDYerMaker and OverThe Hills And FarAwayhinting at a funkier, moreswing-oriented feel. Thealbum was also referen-tial for the band down the road. The Song

Remains The Same, would pop up threeyears laterto become the title track on thepsychedelic film of the same name, whileThe Ocean features a guitar riff in the mid-dle thats a clearprecursor to the weirderandmore completely realized Kashmir, whichshows up on the nextalbum.

After a two-year break an eternity forfans the band released a generous two-disc compilation in 1975 titledPhysical Graffiti . In retrospect,the album stands as aperfect stylistic bridge at

the centerof the bandscareer, referencing earli-er offerings, as on theacoustic folk ballad Bron-Yr-Aur and theaforementioned Kashmir, while throwingout some evocative experimental pieces likeIn The Light, with its long, haunting in-tro, and the epic In My Time Of Dying thatrequire a certain amounto f patience fromthe listener. But Zeppelin had earned lis-teners trust, and with the nearly 90 min-utes of music onPhysical Graffit i, fans hadenough to be thankful for.

1976sPresence sees the band returningto a straight-ahead rock sensibility, albeitwith a looser, almost funkier feel, as exem-plified by Royal Orleans and Hots On For

Nowhere. Aslew of interesting drum breaksin Nobodys FaultBut Mine establishesBonhams evolving musicianship, even as therest of the bandmembersappear to be settling backinto whatthey knowbest. All told,Presence lacks the creative focus of the otheralbums, andthe result is that its arguably the least mem-

orable offering in the Zeppelin catalog. Theonly song thatmade a real impact from thestandpoint of posterity is the epic opener,Achilles Last Stand, a reference to the bro-ken ankle Plant suffered in a car accident andnursed throughout the albums recording.

The final installmentbefore Bonhamstragic death in September1980 was 1979sIn Through The Out Door . The album is notwithoutits strong points,most notably the Kash-mir-esque All MyLove, and the brilliantly

funky Fool In The Rain.But as much as any al-bum could, it signaled the end of an era,both forBonham and for the organic 70srock sound thatZeppelin had pioneered.Ironically, this is the only album on whichBonham received no writing credits, as hewas unhappy with the bands softer, morepop-oriented direction. Indeed, In TheEvening feels like a precursor to the early80s contributions of David Bowie or The Cars,while the jarring synthesizer experiment inCarouselambra suggests what might havebeen had Zeppelin been forced to weather

the soul-sucking transition into the 80s thatembarrassed so many othergreat bands.

By DAVE CONSTANTIN

T H E Z E P P E L I N C O R E C ATA L O G

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fter the mid 70s, Led Zeppelin moved abroad to become taxexiles, followed by a series of mishaps that dogged the groupand further undermined Bonhams confidence. His former boisterous good humor gave way to dark brooding and fits of anger. He became involved in an assault on an Americansecurity guard backstage at the Oakland Coliseum inCalifornia in July 1977. Grant, Richard Cole, and Bonham werearrested after beating the hapless guard, who had offendedGrant. It led to fines and suspended sentences. Zeppelin neverreturned to America.

CHAPTER VIII WHEN THE TIDE TURNS

It was all turning sour. Following thedeath of Robert Plants son in England, itseemed the group was close to breakingup. Bonham was left with more time onhis hands and his behavior became un-predictable. Said his friend, drummerBev Bevan of ELO: He was an extrovertcharacter, a friendly, huggable bloke. But

unfortunately the drink just got too muchfor him. He overdid it and could becomequite aggressive. He was similar to KeithMoon. They felt they had to live up totheir reputations.

Robert Plant elaborates, He was a big,warm softy who often got swamped by theabsolute remoteness inside the goldfish bowl. Often that was very sad for all of us, but I think he felt it most of all, whichkind of accented his vulnerability. Heloathed touring in America. He loathedthe whole rock and roll circus. The thing

he loved most of all was just [to] get onthose drums and show everybody how itshould be done. Drumming is what hecould do best of all, and thats what youhear on When The Levee Breaks, Black

Dog, and Rock And Roll, where his fillsare very sparing. The essence of Bonhamis what he didnt play rather than what hedid play what he left out.

The last time I saw John drummingwith Led Zeppelin was at the outdoor con-certs at Knebworth, England, in 1979. Johnwas well enough on the two U.K. shows, but showed signs of fatigue on a subse-quent German tour. After three numbersin Nuremberg he was taken ill and ap-peared unwell for the rest of the tour.

Rehearsals for a North American tourtook place at Jimmy Pages home in Wind-sor in September 1980. Bonham starteddrinking at lunchtime and carried on untilmidnight. On the way in a car with RobertPlant on the morning of the 24th, John

suddenly said: Ive had it with playing

drums. Everybody plays better than me.Ill tell you what, when we get to the re-hearsal, you play the drums and Ill sing.

After falling asleep on a sofa, he wasput to bed by an assistant and laid on pil-lows for support. The following morning John Paul Jones and road manager BenjeLeFevre found him unconscious. After try-ing to wake him they realized he was dead,at the age of 32, from asphyxiation of vom-it. John Bonhams funeral took place at

Rushock Parish Church in Worcestershireon October 10, 1980, attended by crowds of mourners that included family, friends,and his bandmates. Tributes came fromPaul McCartney, Phil Collins, Cozy Powell,and Carl Palmer.

I do very much remember that day, and Idont think any of us have ever really dealtwith his loss, says Deborah, who still easily becomes upset with the sad memory. I thinkwe just live with it. We were a close familyand when something like that happens, youtry to make some sense of it but you justcant. What else can you do other than justlive with it? So thats what we do.

AI dont think any

of us have ever really dealt withhis loss Deborah Bonham

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Dazed And Confused

B O N H A M I S M S

Hard rock drumming with blues roots, an un-deniably deep pocket, and a gargantuansound. These are all unmistakable JohnBonham trademarks that, sadly, dont easily trans-late onto the printed page. Our advice is to spendtime with the Led Zeppelin catalog to digest thesubtleties of Bonhams feel and sound, but here wewill study the nuts and bolts Bonham used to con-struct his masterpieces.

BASS DRUM DOUBLES.Bonham had a powerfulright foot, which he used to not only drive hismassive bass drums but also to play rapid multiplestrokes. One of his most famous examples of thiscomes in Good Times Bad Times, the first tune off Led Zeppelins debut album. In measure 10 of theaccompanying transcription youll see quick bassdrum double strokes played as sixteenth-notetriplets. This subsequently became a staple formany rock drummers, often preceding a backbeat,which makes for a much grander statement. As youcan see in the following transcriptions, Bonhamoften employed this device, including measure 5 of Out On The Tiles, measures 4, 9, 24, and 28 in

Black Dog, and measure 10 in The Ocean.THE VALUE OF THREE.Slightly slower but no lessimpressive, Bonhams busy right foot was alsoknown for laying down triple strokes. Check outmeasures 68 in Good Times Bad Times. Here histriple strokes drive the groove forward under hiscowbell ride pattern, which is another Bonhamsignature. Other three-stroke bass drum groupingscan be found in measures 9, 11, and 13 of Communication Breakdown.

SIXTEENTH KICKS.Bonham often used sixteenth-note double strokes on the bass drum as a season-ing. Notable examples appear throughout his driv-ing beat on Immigrant Song, as well as on theodd-metered funk of The Crunge. A casual scanthrough all of these transcriptions will reveal plentyof other examples.

HAND PATTERNS.Bonham also had some favoredmoves around the top of the kit. Check out the lastmeasure of this transcription of Stairway ToHeaven the big fill from the middle of thetune. Beat4 contains a sextuplet comprised of twothree-note phrases of right hand, left hand, rightfoot. While this three-note pattern is notaBonham original, he certainly knew how to use it,and made it a powerful component of his soloingarsenal. However, the first three beats contain oneof his signature licks: a phrase that consists of thefirstfour notes repeated fourtimes. The result is apolyrhythm of four overthree , or four evenlyspaced accents over the space of three beats. Youllalso find a slight variation of the same four-noteconcept in measure 31 of BlackDog.

SLOW BLUES.Bonhams ability to groove wasindisputable, especially when he was playing aslow 12/8 blues. He had some favorite licks in thattime signature, such as the sixteenth-note fill inmeasure three of Dazed And Confused, whichshows up often in his drumming vocabulary. Scanahead to measures 10, 11, and 13 to find it again. Iteven crops up in measure 10 of I Cant Quit You.

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