Led Zeppelin - O2 Arena, London

"It is a Great Life This Life of Music" - Ahmet Ertegun

by Anne-Marie Douglas | 13 December 2007

First the worst kept secret that they would be reforming for a 'one-off gig', then the lottery and the hoo-ha over pass-codes being sold on eBay, tickets being cancelled, a potential lawsuit and promoter Harvey Goldsmith’s site collapsing from anxious fans demanding answers before the show is delayed two weeks after Jimmy Page breaks a finger. And all the while the debate rages as to whether the three original members of the band, Plant, Page and Jones will reach the dazzling standards they set all those years ago, given their combined age of over 180 years and their few heavily criticised re-formation performances since 1980, the year original drummer John Bonham died.

And suddenly we're here. The atmosphere in the O2 Arena is one of intense anticipation for this decades awaited show to live up to extraordinary expectations. You can almost touch the fever. And so, to a mighty roar from 20,000 people, Led Zeppelin appear to the tune of ‘Good Times, Bad Times’. Page is donning a long black coat and sunglasses topped by a matt of white hair, Plant dons the same tatty-head but not so tight jeans, while Jones looks elegant and and Bonham Junior powerful behind his drum kit; in short they appear extremely self-assured and you somehow know this is all going to come together like magic.

‘Ramble On’ is next and Plant begins to defy his years by kicking at the mike stand as he belts out the lyrics like his legacy depends on it. The back of the stage is awash with 70’s footage of the band in their prime, and while the looks may be different, the sound certainly isn’t. They move on to the down and dirty filthy blues territory of ‘In My Time Of Dying’ and ‘Black Dog’, which is astoundingly good, before Plant announces ‘Trampled Under Foot’ as their tribute to Robert Johnson’s ‘Terraplane Blues’. Then the highlight of the night, the most beautiful version of ‘Since I’ve Been Loving You’ you'll ever hear. Plant reaches all the notes, and the expression of pain and heartfelt emotion that he demonstrates on the song can only compare to the likes of Aretha Franklin for raw power, his astonishing voice competing with Page’s guitar.

The infamously titled ‘Dazed And Confused’ follows, an epic 26 minutes of it, with Page parting with his dark coat and glasses and gurning like a mad man as he produces the famed double neck guitar and the violin bow to attack his Les Paul, a cringe-worthy clique from the past perhaps but from possibly the only man who can get away with it. Who cares, the noise he creates is still amazing. The crowd inevitably go ballistic for the intro to ‘Stairway To Heaven’ (unimaginatively given the tabloid tag of ‘Stairlift To Heaven’ prior to this gig). It’s an alternative version tonight and, while nostalgic, not Led Zeppelin at their best. Sadly is was no room for 'Immigrant Song', which would have been a worthy inclusion, but their most seminal of classics proves a huge crowd pleaser and as Plant explains: “There are some songs that have to be done. Hey Ahmet, we did it”, in reference to the late Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, who's charity organisation inspired the reunion.

The show ends with 'Kashmir' and a visibly giddy Plant is flailing all over that stage, buoyed by grins of encouragement from Jones. Page is in his element, triumphantly demonstrating his genius by thrashing at his guitar with electrifyingly precision, considering the band have been on stage for almost two hours. After a good ten minutes of bowing and applause they return for a predictable ‘Whole Lotta Love’, which though enjoyable, seems replicated verbatim from the album version.  Their second encore is the thrilling ‘Rock and Roll’, and yes, he informs us "It’s been a long time, been a long time, been a long lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely,  time…" Bonham's drumming is particularly good with Plant exclaiming, "Spectacular!" in homage to their original drummer's son once he's finished beating the skins out of his kit. Bonham returns the compliment by coming to the front of the stage and, falling to his knees to give the three remaining members of the band the worship bow. The gesture follows from the 20,000 people who have been hanging onto their every chord and every moment of this most special of performances. The past has been put to rights, now what of the future.

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