The legendary band that was.

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It has been over a quarter of a century since the legendary rock and roll band played their last concert. In fact it will be 30 years this September when the young father of two passed away in his sleep after a long night of drinking. John Henry Bonham was only 32 years old, and yet he had been apart of one of the greatest phenomenons of the 20th century. As drummer for Led Zeppelin, John Bonham set a new standard for the way in which drums would be played for years to come. Not the finesse drummer of the likes of Kieth Moon of the Who and others at the time, Bonham was what many called the loudest drummer ever to play, which infused with one of the greatest guitarist of all times and a lead singer that could carry the highest of notes one could possibly imagine and the multi talented bass guitarist and keyboardist, bamm! that was and will ever be the greatest band of all time. First of all Jimmy Page had already proven his ability to play the guitar during his years with the Yard Birds, but when he formed Led Zeppelin it was as if he had reinvented the way a guitar could be played. With the vocals of Robert Plant, which to this day I have never heard such a beautiful voice, and bassist / keyboardist extraordinary John Paul Jones was just brilliant at balancing the harmony of Plant's voice, Page's orchestral movements, and Bonham's bone chilling bass that he was so famous for. When you look back at what this band achieved in such a short period of time, and you think what would it have been like had they gone on for another decade it is just impossible to imagine. I have always wondered if the untimely death of a legendary figure like John Bonham was in some way a sad, but cosmic way of bring to an end of an era that is no more. I just can't imagine there will ever be a band that will have the kind of impact on a generation the way Led Zeppelin did. I know there were the Beatles, but in reality they were really the first boy band that had a cleaver beat, and when they got tired of being that band, they became the band that locked themselves away in a rehearsal room and created masterful music, but nothing they could take on the road. Whereas when you look at Led Zeppelin's history, their first album was an instant hit and even though they didn't sing the kind of songs that gave protest to a war that lead to a great many hits for other bands at that time. What they did do is turned soul music upside down and all around. They also created a new kind of music in the process, something that bands have been trying to duplicate ever since. I don't even have a word for it, but when you sit down and just listen to anyone of their albums, especially their live album, you just can't help but feel that thing inside of you, you know that feeling I'm talking about, You Just Have To Get The Led Out, and then you know what I'm talking about. So have yourselves a happy new year and don't forget the 30 year anniversary of the end of a era. Because we all know a lady who's, got a whole lot of love, going to California, to a place in the sky, and you know I can't quit you babe, so I'll say goodbye and head for the houses of the holly and wish you all a happy new year.