By 1988, Led Zeppelin had been disbanded for the better part of a decade, the members having moved on to solo careers in a show of respect for their fallen drummer John Bonham. But as they’d shown in 1985 with their mini-reunion for Live Aid, they were willing to come together for the right cause.
Singer Robert Plant had memorably told Details magazine that the Live Aid show was “probably one of the worst performances I’ve ever done in my life.” Still, on May 14, 1988, they returned to the stage.
They appeared with Bonham’s son Jason behind the drum kit to deliver a five-song set (“Kashmir,” “Heartbreaker,” “Whole Lotta Love,” “Misty Mountain Hop,” “Stairway to Heaven”) that closed out the concert event of the year: “It’s Only Rock and Roll,” an all-star extravaganza celebrating Atlantic Records’ landmark 40th anniversary.
Running nearly 13 hours in length and assembling an amazing lineup of performers that ran the gamut from classic R&B and soul acts like the Coasters, LaVern Baker, and Ben E. King to the contemporary rock bands that defined the label’s ’70s and ’80s success (including Yes, Genesis and Crosby, Stills & Nash).
Watch Led Zeppelin at Atlantic’s 40th Anniversary
The organizers decided to forgo an all-star jam at the end, which still seems like a missed opportunity, but they came up with a pretty solid substitute in the briefly reunited Led Zeppelin.
Originally aired on HBO, ABC and the BBC, “It’s Only Rock and Roll” is available in various places online, and well worth seeking out, if only to experience the joy of watching the often-incongruous acts in the lineup follow one another to the stage.
As for Led Zeppelin, they’d quickly return to hibernation following the show. Robert Plant and Jimmy Page reunited for a series of concerts and a pair of LPs during the ’90s, but they wouldn’t share a stage with John Paul Jones again until 2007.
The threesome reunited, along with Jason Bonham, at London’s O2 Arena to deliver their first full-length set in nearly 30 years as a tribute to the recently deceased Ahmet Ertegun — founder and president of Atlantic Records.
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