Led Zeppelin's 1968 tour of the United Kingdom was the first concert tour of the United Kingdom by the English rock band. It commenced on 4 October and concluded on 20 December 1968.
| Tour by Led Zeppelin | |
 Poster for Led Zeppelin's concert at the University of Surrey (billed as "The New Yardbirds featuring Jimmy Page"), used to help promote its 1968 U.K. tour | |
| Location | England |
|---|---|
| Associated album | Led Zeppelin |
| Start date | 4 October 1968 |
| End date | 20 December 1968 |
| No. of shows | 16 |
| Led Zeppelin concert chronology | |
For some of these early shows, the band were billed as the "New Yardbirds". Press releases eventually announced that they would make their debut under the name 'Led Zeppelin' on 25 October at the University of Surrey (although posters advertising this concert erroneously continued to bill them as the 'New Yardbirds').[1]
There was very little press reaction to this tour.[2]
The band's second London concert (18 October, billed as 'New Yardbirds'; 9 November, billed as 'Led Zeppelin') at the Roundhouse on 9 November doubled as singer Robert Plant's wedding reception.[3]
Jeff Beck attended the Canterbury show on 13 December. "Things went slightly wrong!" he recalled to Jimmy Page. "Your fucking amp blew up and I went, 'What's up with that, Jim?' And then I realised it was my amp, because my roadie had moonlighted and rented Jimmy my equipment! And he'd changed the impedance on the back so it sounded like a pile of shit! But I could see the potential. It was just amazing – blew the house down, blew everybody away."[4]
Tour set list
editExact set lists during this tour are sketchy, due partly to the lack of early live Led Zeppelin bootleg recordings. Old Yardbirds' live staples such as "Train Kept A-Rollin'", "Dazed and Confused", "White Summer" and possibly "For Your Love" were performed, in addition to material from the then unfinished debut album, such as "Communication Breakdown", I Can't Quit You Baby, "You Shook Me", "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You", and "How Many More Times". The band also likely performed a Garnet Mimms cover, "As Long as I Have You".[5]
A likely set list for the tour was:
- "Train Kept A-Rollin'" (Bradshaw, Kay, Mann)
- "I Can't Quit You Baby" (Dixon)
- "As Long as I Have You" (Mimms)
- "Dazed and Confused" (Page)
- "White Summer" (Page)
- "For Your Love" (Gouldman)
- "You Shook Me" (Dixon, Lenoir)
- "Pat's Delight" (Bonham)
- "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" (Bredon, Page, Plant)
- "How Many More Times" (Bonham, Jones, Page)
- "Communication Breakdown" (Bonham, John Paul Jones, Page)
Tour dates
edit| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 October 1968 | Newcastle upon Tyne | England | Mayfair Ballroom |
| 17 October 1968 | Wolverhampton | Lafayette Club | |
| 18 October 1968 | London | Marquee Club | |
| 19 October 1968 | Liverpool | Liverpool University | |
| 25 October 1968 | Guildford | University of Surrey | |
| 2 November 1968 | Ewell | Ewell Technical College | |
| 9 November 1968 | London | Roundhouse | |
| 23 November 1968 | Sheffield | Sheffield University | |
| 29 November 1968 | Richmond | Crawdaddy Club | |
| 10 December 1968 | London | Marquee Club | |
| 13 December 1968 | Canterbury | Bridge Place Country Club | |
| 14 December 1968 | Leeds | University of Leeds | |
| 15 December 1968 | Hampstead | Bridge Place Country Club | |
| 16 December 1968 | Bath | Bath Pavilion | |
| 19 December 1968 | Exeter | Civic Hall | |
| 20 December 1968 | London | Wood Green Fishmongers Hall |
References
edit- ^ Led Zeppelin official website: concert summary
- ^ Liner notes by Cameron Crowe for The Complete Studio Recordings
- ^ Nigel Williamson, "Good Times...Bad Times", Uncut, May 2005, p. 54.
- ^ Murray, Charles Shaar (August 2004). "The Guv'nors". Mojo. No. 129. p. 74.
- ^ Led Zeppelin official website
External links
editSources
edit- Lewis, Dave and Pallett, Simon (1997) Led Zeppelin: The Concert File, London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-5307-4.