Early on in life I became a Led Zeppelin fan. I bought my very first record, Led Zeppelin II, at a garage sale across the street when I was only eight years old. But it was in my high school years when I became a mega-fan, loving all things Led Zeppelin. I bought t-shirts, posters, stickers, rear-view mirror doo-dads, can coolers. You name it, I had it. I knew every song on every album, able to recite almost all the lyrics on a whim. I got in trouble once for writing the entire lyrics to the song Over the Hills and Far Away on my desktop during social studies in 11th grade. Mr. Hahn made me go fetch a can of toxic cleaner from the custodians and scrub it all off. That was a shame. I had done it using the fancy Led Zeppelin “font” like below. It was a true piece of art.
Things got really intense when I moved off to college and discovered that one of my new friends, Mark (a.k.a. Wooly), was perhaps an even BIGGER fan then me. Of course I wouldn’t admit it. Instead we would constantly quiz one another, trying to one-up or out-trivia the other. But mostly we were on the same team – comrades in arms, defending our masters as the undisputed heavyweight kings of rock ‘n’ roll. No one else was even close, in our minds. We would laugh at anyone who attempted to argue otherwise.
The Firm
Since Led Zeppelin had been disbanded for several years by this time, the only thing current we had was the solo work from the remaining band members. At that point, it primarily consisted of Robert Plant’s solo albums from ’82 and ’83. These were great, but we were concerned about Jimmy Page. Apart from his minor participation in the Honeydrippers in ‘84, he hadn’t been heard from in almost five years.
Jimmy finally emerged in early 1985. He had formed a new supergroup with singer Paul Rodgers (of Free and Bad Company fame), calling themselves The Firm. Their first album, self-titled, was a hit on the radio as well as on the latest music format, MTV. The first single, Radioactive, hit #1 on the charts, with the follow up, Satisfaction Guaranteed, hitting #4. We were thrilled that Jimmy was experiencing some post-Zeppelin success. And we loved the music, too.
To our surprise, in late ’85, The Firm announced they already had another new album on its way, titled Mean Business. But more importantly…they were going on tour. And the tour would include a stop in MINNEAPOLIS. Wow – we were pumped!!
The Friday after tickets went on sale, I made a special stop at the concert venue on my way home from college for the weekend (with a full basket of dirty laundry and a yearning for home-cooked meals). I was disappointed to find that the show was almost sold out, with only a smattering of tickets remaining. I told the guy at the ticket booth that I really needed four tickets together, but he could only shrug his shoulders. Just then, a voice from a back room said, “Hey, I think four tickets were returned this morning. Look next to the will-call box.” Sure enough, there sat an envelope containing four tickets. And they were on the main floor, row 11! My disappointment quickly transformed into over-the-top excitement.
I couldn’t wait to tell my buddies.
A Near Disaster
About a week before The Firm concert, I stumbled upon a TV special that caught my attention. It was about the prior Memorial Day holiday, where something like 50 people were killed on Minnesota roads in a single weekend. Investigators and state troopers described several different accidents, in full detail, showing that of those who were killed, none were wearing their seat belt. More importantly, those who did wear their seat belt all survived. The show was a bit over-dramatic, but I was impressed enough to take action. I vowed to join the minority (roughly 25% of the population at the time) and buckle up.
The weekend before concert I made my way to a college in northern Minnesota to hang out with a high school buddy. Also a big Zeppelin fan, he planned to return with me on Sunday afternoon, and join us for the concert on Monday.
I never made it up north, however. Less than an hour into my drive, I got into bad car accident. My car was totaled, and I was banged up. But miraculously I had no significant injuries – nothing more than scrapes and bruises. I could only wonder what would have happened if I hadn’t started wearing my seat belt earlier that week.
My dad picked me up at the scene of the accident and took me home. Exhausted and shaken up, I went straight to bed. Feeling much better after 14 hours of sleep, I made it back to school the following afternoon (with a load of clean clothes and a full stomach). Instead of spending the weekend up north, I would join my concert buddies for a final 48 hour marathon of Firm music.
The Big Event
I’ll never forget the night of that concert – Monday, May 5th, 1986. It was epic. The venue was the old Met Center, home of the Minnesota North Stars hockey team, where tailgating before the event was just as much a part of the experience as the event itself. In the parking lot we drank beer, threw around a football, and listened to the music one last time before the show.
Fully prepared, we finally entered the arena just before show time. The crowd was wild. And shortly thereafter, the band was, too. They were on fire, playing really tight. At one point I was so mesmerized watching Jimmy Page, I made the decision right there that I wanted to be just like him, with his cool black guitar.
So that summer, after I saved up some money from my warehouse job, I went out and bought a shiny black electric guitar, with a package that included a small amp and eight lessons. I couldn’t afford a 1953 Telecaster like Jimmy played that night, but an entry-level Fender would do for starters. I was sure I would master that one soon enough and move on to the next. And someday, I would be on stage, playing just like Jimmy did that night.
I held on to that dream for several years, but at some point I realized that I wasn’t even very good at tuning the guitar, much less playing it. I finally had to admit that it just wasn’t my thing. Occasionally, I still feel the sting of that disappointment.
Reflecting
Experiencing the show that night would play a crucial role in my future. It’s probably the root of my love for live music, especially rock concerts. I had been to a handful of shows prior, but this one really made an impression on me. We had great seats. I knew every single song, and enjoyed every single moment. Most importantly, I was blown away being in the presence of my guitar hero.
One moment in particular that stands out for me now, was their performance of the song Live in Peace. Paul Rodgers sat at an enormous grand piano, with a circle of green laser beams rotating over the center of the stage. After the final verse, Jimmy peeled out the most amazing two or three minute guitar solo to end the song. I remember the hair on my arms standing straight on end, in spite of the heat in the arena. Jimmy’s guitar work on that song was as good as anything he ever did with Led Zeppelin, as far as I’m concerned. I never really understood why The Firm wasn’t more popular — it remains a mystery to me. I sure enjoy their music. It always brings me right back to the spring of 1986 when we listened to their records over and over again, in preparation for that epic concert.
Many of you probably haven’t heard the song Live in Peace. I hope you like it. Be sure to check out Jimmy’s solo, starting around the 3:45 mark. Great stuff, from one of the greatest ever to pick up a guitar and play.
Leave a Reply