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Press Review: Led Zeppelin unleashes sonic devastation with theatrics to match

Led Zeppelin, rock music's version of the Titan missile, is resting today. The British quartet opened a sold out, four-day stand at the Capital Centre Wednesday night with a three-hour sonic devastation of 18,000 willing victims. They played again last night and will conclude their first Baltimore-Washington appearance in two years with 8 P.M. shows Saturday and Monday. If you do not have tickets already, forget it. All four shows sold out with only word of mouth advertising last March.

Led Zeppelin is one of the top attractions in rock. Despite releasing only six albums in their nine-year existence, and without benefit of AM radio play or a hit single, they have inspired countless bands and fans with the power and glory of their music.

The bag of tricks they use at the Capital Centre features later beams, smoke pots, phosphorus explosions, double and triple-neck guitars, a stainless steel drum kit on a rolling platform and a sound system that sings by itself.  But the heart of the show is its music. And the heart of the music is guitarist Jimmy Page.

He is tall and skinny, with a thin face framed by unruly black curls. On Wednesday, he wore a white satin suit decorated with bright red poppies, brilliant green leaves and snaky-looking black monsters. On his right hip, be displayed the astrological symbol of Virgo and, below that, the numerals "69." Page is a virtuoso and he engaged his guitar in a whirling, night-long dance. At times the instrument would lead, almost flinging its player across the stage. Other times, Page would take command, slinging the guitar across his hips, knees or crotch, and bending it to his will.

The music came screaming out of Page's fingers, usually at top volume, sometimes painfully loud. But there were moments of quiet; dramatic moments when the band stopped abruptly; and sustained interludes when Page played acoustic guitar or mandolin. Jimmy Page loves the spotlight.

The drums, keyboards and amplifiers were stacked stage rear, and the speakers were hung from the rafters. In the vast remaining space, Page spun and twisted and bent his skinny body in improbable angles, seeming to defy even gravity with the strength of his music.

He smiled often, seeming relaxed and confident. He should be: His credentials are impeccable. In his pre-Zeppelin days, he played on records by Van Morrison, The Rolling Stones, The Who and The Kinks, among others. He later joined The Yardbirds and in 1968, formed Led Zeppelin from the remains of that early British psychedelic/ blues band.

In Robert Plant, Page found the perfect vocalist to complement his guitar style. With one of the most eerily effective voices in rock, Plant's singing permeates the music like a fog, binding the instruments together. Wednesday, Plant wore a burgundy lounge jacket over tight low-slung jeans. He kept his bands on his hips as he sang and vibrated more than be danced. He did as much as any human could to be heard above the guitar, often to no avail.

Between songs, however, Plant was the emcee, chatting pleasantly with the crowd, filling in background about the songs and the band, and setting up a pleasant vibration between the musicians and the people. He even apologized for starting the show 40 minutes late, explaining that the band had suffered car trouble.

The other two members of Led Zeppelin are bassist John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. Each was given a solo shot, and neither was able to light any fires. Bonham distinguished himself by playing part of his drum solo with his bare hands, even smashing his fist into his huge Chinese gong. Throughout the show, the lighting sound crews provided solid support. Plant's voice was augmented with echo and tape delays, so that he could still be heard singing even after he left the microphone.

The light show was splendid, mixing green, blue, pink, red and white spots with green and red lasers. At various times, the lights shown from above, behind, beside and even below the players.

At one memorable point, Page was captured in a green laser pyramid in the center of the darkened stage, stroking his howling guitar with a violin bow and waving his arms like Mickey Mouse in Fantasia.

Then came the finale, "Stairway to Heaven." Robert Plant dedicated the song to "everything that's good and wholesome that we can ever come across in life - or that we can create."  With the sound of the opening notes, the crowd rose and screamed, just as it had three hours earlier when the show began.

Led Zeppelin had completed another show - and another circle. [By Tom Basham / May 1977]