Led Zeppelin Force Jason Bonham to Change Band Name
Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience recently changed its name to Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening, and it appears the directive came from Led Zeppelin themselves.
As Bonham – the son of Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, who died in 1980 – recently told KSHE 95, the original band plans to use "Led Zeppelin Experience" in a campaign marking its 50th anniversary this year.
“I was like, ‘Um, okay, but I need to keep the logo, JBLZE,’" Bonham said. "One, I have the tag on my car, and two, I have a huge backdrop that I paid for last year. For me it’s about the music. So the name of it — I just wanted to keep the logo. So I said, ‘I got it. Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening.’ I don’t know what they have planned, but I said, ‘Okay, I will clear the way so they can do what they wish.’”
Led Zeppelin have been hinting at some big projects coming in the future. Guitarist Jimmy Page promised more music was on the way, while singer Robert Plant mentioned a "celebration" for their 50th anniversary. So far, a hardcover book and a reissue of the 2003 live album How the West Was Won were announced.
Supposedly, even more projects will be revealed over the next several months. What the band plans to do with "Led Zeppelin Experience" isn't clear yet.
Bonham started touring under that name back in 2010. Three years earlier, he joined his dad's former bandmates for the briefly reunited group's celebrated appearance at the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert in London. The show was documented on the live Celebration Day DVD and CD.
Since then, he's toured with his band, which performs the music of Led Zeppelin, and played drums with Heart's Ann and Nancy Wilson when they performed "Stairway to Heaven" as part of a Led Zeppelin tribute at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2012. He's also a member of Black Country Communion and Sammy Hagar's group the Circle.
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening will hit the road at the end of May for a new tour that will keep them busy through the start of August.