Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience
Spirit Bank Event Center
Tulsa, Oklahoma
November 17, 2010

By Jeb Wright

Set I

Rock and Roll | Celebration Day | I Can't Quit You Baby | Black Dog | Babe I'm Gonna Leave You | Dazed and Confused | What Is and What Should Never Be | The Lemon Song | Thank You | Moby Dick

Set II
Good Times Bad Times | How Many More Times | Since I've Been Loving You | When The Levee Breaks | The Ocean | Over the Hills and Far Away | I'm Gonna Crawl | Stairway to Heaven | Kashmir

Encore
Whole Lotta Love

On September 25, 1980, the world lost the man that many considered to be the world’s best rock n’ roll drummer, John Henry Bonham. The date also marks the demise of one of the world’s greatest bands, Led Zeppelin. While fans around the world lost a cherished hero and an incredible band, young Jason Bonham lost much more; he lost his father.

While it seems hard to believe, it was over thirty years ago that Led Zeppelin was silenced, save for a few benefit shows, two of which featured Jason replacing his father on drums. Jason wants to see to it that his father’s and Led Zeppelin’s live legacy lives on. The younger Bonham has assembled a band that can recreate Led Zeppelin’s music to such a degree that one can’t help but close their eyes and simply listen. This is more than just a tribute as with Bonham on the drum kit Led Zep’s DNA is represented. The rest of the band’s job is to recreate the magic that was Led Zeppelin live in concert. Such a daunting talk is not easily undertaken. Jason Bonham was not interested in putting a blond wig on his signer or having his guitar player where clothing like Jimmy Page. Instead, his vision was to create a band that can recreate the spirit of Led Zeppelin musically.

“Rock and Roll” opened the show as Bonham started things off with the famous drum intro. The man with the hardest job on stage, however, is not Jason Bonham. The man whose shoulders it falls on to truly bring the magic of Zeppelin to life is vocalist James Dylan. The most impressive thing about Dylan is that he can hit Plant’s high notes and also mimic Robert’s normal, lower tone as well. Bonham discovered Dylan on YouTube and even commented during the evening, “James is the real deal.”

Guitarist Tony Catania also impressed the crowd with his Jimmy Page skills. He handles the solos easily but also plays Page’s rhythms the way they were meant to be performed. Many have copied Jimmy’s lead style but not many pull off the subtle chords that Page implemented within the framework of his songs. For John Paul Jones’ parts, Bonham had to get two men on board. Bass player Michael Devin held down the low end while multi-instrumentalist Stephen LeBlanc handled the organ, piano, slide guitar and acoustic guitar needed to reproduce the Zeppelin sound.

Set I ended contained many classics, including “Celebration Day,” “Dazed and Confused,” “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” and “The Lemon Song.” The set concluded with “Moby Dick,” one of eight songs performed from Zep’s first two albums. Before the song began, Bonham told the crowd that his dad only had one drum set in the house and that he never got to play side-by-side with John. He looked to the sky and said, “Dad, tonight you’re going to get your wish.” During the solo the video screen behind the drummer showed John Bonham from both a 1970 Royal Albert Hall concert and a show from Madison Square Garden in 1973. Jason performed the solo in tandem with his father. The precision between the video and the live drumming was outstanding. When the song ended the crowd gave Bonham a standing ovation.

After a brief intermission, the band returned to the stage and began Set II with “Good Times Bad Times” followed by the musical highlights of the evening, “How Many More Times” and “Since I’ve Been Loving You.” These two songs featured soloing that was spot on while Dylan’s wailing brought the crowd to their feet. With emotions running high, Bonham began the classic opening thuds of “When the Levee Breaks,” which received the biggest ovation to that point in the show. Set II continued to deliver with back-to-back tracks from Houses of the Holy in “The Ocean” and “Over the Hills and Far Away.” The next song was the deep album cut “I’m Gonna Crawl” from Zeppelin’s final studio album In Through the Out Door.

Set II ended on a high note with “Stairway to Heaven” and “Kashmir.” “Stairway” was predictably well received but “Kashmir” proved to be an energetic catalyst that saw the band take it up yet one more notch – a feat one would not have thought possible. Upon reflection, “Kashmir” holds all of the elements that made up the best of Led Zeppelin. The guitar riff is instantly recognizable and the vocal features Plant’s entire range. The song is both rocking, and mysterious and the drumming and background sounds challenge both Bonham and Jones, making this the perfect tune to end the night with. The night, however, was not quite over. The band reconvened onstage for an encore as Bonham thanked everyone from the bottom of his heart for their support. With that, “Whole Lotta Love” lit up the auditorium.

It is worth noting that as amazing as the evening was, many Zeppelin standards were not played included “Heartbreaker,” “Livin’ Lovin’ Maid,” “Communication Breakdown,” “Immigrant Song,” “Dancing Days,” “D’yer Maker,” “Fool in the Rain,” “In the Evening,” “Out on the Tiles,” “Ramble On,” “The Crunge” and “The Song Remains the Same.” Bonham and company could easily come back next year with a new set every bit as incredible as the one witnessed on this particular night.

There are many a naysayer who spout that Jason Bonham needs to find his own gig (something, by the way, he has done as a member of Black Country Communion). Others seem to enjoy putting Jason down by claiming he is doing a Led Zeppelin tribute for the money. It is doubtful that any of these Negative Nellie’s have bothered to see Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience live or they would realize that Bonham wears his sincerity on his sleeve as he explains to the crowd how he wants to keep the live element of Led Zeppelin’s music alive. Jason Bonham appears, for all purposes, to be doing this for the right reasons. If he is faking it, or going through the motions for the money, then he should take up acting, as he would win an Academy Award, hands down.