Интервью на ангЛийском(невоЗможно дать ссыЛку...):
(Robert was interviewed on 18 January, JPJ on 28 January and Jimmy on March 10th.)
RobertDid the success of the show test your previously stated resolve not to reform for a full-blown reunion and tour?Not at all. I really enjoyed it. And hopefully, one day, we could do it again for another really, really good reason. Our profit is – it’s metaphysical. And that’s the thing, especially with my connection with Jimmy. I mean, the two of us are almost umbilically attached in some strange way and have been down the years. And that’s survived everything. From the time I was 19 to now, when I’m 59.
How different was he (Jimmy) at the O2 reunion from the guy you worked with on the Unledded tour in 1994?If Jimmy was as healthy then – and when we came to do Walking Into Clarksdale- if he’d been as open and as healthy then as he has now, we’d probably have gone somewhere else again. Because I’m always exhilarated by hearing him play. I think he’s met his demons now and he’s made that public now as much as he can. Without giving too much away, the olive branch came out. And when he brought that branch out – he said, “I offer you an olive branch”.
[Talking about the issues surrounding the ’77 tour]…..For me, then, it didn’t really work from ’77 onwards. However, there were moments from Knebworth that were spectacular. But the price you have to pay to get to those moments, I didn’t think it was worth it anymore. It wasn’t my idea of constructive open-heart surgery.
Finally, how did you feel as you finished that set at the O2?First of all, we did what we set out to do and more, in every respect. We showed people that Led Zeppelin did go on a bit. There was an opportunity to get a drink occasionally during the show. But at the same time that’s what we were. The personality of the audience has changed from those days when everybody was in the same condition as the band. Now it was more like the 68th wonder of the world, rather than as a gig. So I felt a bit embarrassed. I felt a bit like I’d gone into character, in a way, even though I sang my nuts off. And the interplay between us all was excellent. I just wanted to take it somewhere else for a minute. I kept saying during rehearsals, ‘Maybe we can just drop that bit there and perhaps finish off with ‘Goodnight’ by the Incredible String Band’.
What, from “A Very Cellular Song”?Yeah, that’s it. [Sings]: “I was walking in Jerusalem, just like John…Lay down my sweet sister Jesus, won’t you lay and take your rest”. And, “Yeah”, Jimmy said “We always said we’d do that” And of course we didn’t, because the occasion was bigger than that. And that’s the trouble with the whole thing, about Led Zeppelin. It was always bigger than the beauty of what we had in mind. So I felt like it was a job done, that we were friends, strong, good.
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John Paul JonesIs he [Jimmy] as good as the Page of old?Yeah, he is. I know this sounds obvious, but he was always one of my favourite guitarists and as soon as we started rehearsing, I was amazed to hear how he’d actually improved. He seemed to have grown since I saw him last.
I know you weren’t involved with Unledded, but was there part of you that was glad to see Jimmy working with Robert again?[Doubtfully] Yeah…I wasn’t particularly glad for anybody at that point. [Laughs] But yeah…it was mitigated by that thought. At least he was playing. It was probably good for him.
Can you and Jimmy joke about that now?We don’t actually joke about it. It was quite a hard time for me. But we’re past it, if you know what I mean.
Would you like to make another Led Zeppelin album?Errr…I’d have to think about that.
Really?Led Zeppelin’s a…I mean, it was great to do the show. We spoke afterwards, and we both thought the same – it felt like the first night of a tour. You think, ‘Oh, I could do that bit better, or change something in that song’. And we didn’t get a chance to do anymore.
Would it be hard to build up that momentum back up again? Because Robert’s off on tour with…[Interrupting]Yeah. Yeah.
Do you think the reunion began and ended at the O2?It’s possible. It is possible.
You don’t sound too certain about the prospect of an album?No. I’m not sure. I’m not certain about anything, right at the moment. I’ve got no idea what’s going to happen. But I’d certainly like to play with Jimmy again.
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JimmyWhat memories and emotions from the night of December 10 stand out for you?First of all, I think that what we intended to do, we accomplished. Judging by the feedback, it really moved a lot of people. It was a totally different show to the production rehearsal beforehand, but that was intended; we wanted to be able to move this way and that, musically, within the framework of the songs. So, yeah, on reflection, it was mission accomplished.
You walked onstage at the O2 wearing shades. What could you see in the faces of the front rows?I wasn’t concentrating on the audience. It was heads-down for the first three numbers, which we did as a medley, non-sop, and when I took my glasses off, I didn’t see the audience then, either. I was just getting lost in the music. We’d paced ourselves for this concert, we’d given it our total commitment, and nothing was going to getin the way of it – not even broken fingers – forget it, nothing was going to get in the way of this.
What were the most stunning performances of that night?From the feedback I’ve had, it all built towards ‘Kashmir’. Everybody who remarked on it, whether it was the public or other musicians, said that ‘Kashmir’ was totally out of this world.
….But with Led Zeppelin, that music is probably going to go through to the DNA imprint of my children. It’s so much a part of me. I just go into a sort of…For example, a number that we did in the rehearsals was ‘The Rover’. Now, we hadn’t played ‘The Rover’ before, not in a complete version…
I always think of ‘The Rover’ as a perfect illustration of Zeppelin at their most confident.That sort of swagger? It’s got a real swagger about it. An intentional swagger.
Will there be a CD and DVD from the O2?It was recorded, but we didn’t go in with the express purpose of making a DVD to come out at Christmas, or whatever. We haven’t seen the images or investigated the multitracks. It’s feasible that it might come out at some distant point, but it’ll be a massive job to embark upon.
We learn in our Sunday newspapers that Robert has turned down an offer to tour the world with Zeppelin. What’s the situation? Could a tour happen?The focus was on the O2 show. That’s what I had my focus on. As for Robert, he had a parallel project [with Alison Krauss] and it’s been successful, which I suppose means he doesn’t have time for Zeppelin at this point. What I do know – what I do know - is that rehearsals, and the O2 gig, were really inspiring. OK? That’s all I’ll say.
Right, but are Led Zeppelin…That’s as fair an answer as I can give you.
Can’t you go further than that?I don’t know what John Paul Jones has said, and I don’t know what Robert has said. But I know how I felt about the thing and…
But it sounds like you, yourself, are open to the idea of a Zeppelin tour, and possibly an album? I don’t want to put words into your mouth…Well don’t put words into my mouth. I know how…Look, I started this by saying there was a will to succeed, if you like, in those original rehearsals. And everybody had such a commitment to it. Now, if you’re talking about a tour – other dates, maybe recording together – there’s only one thing that’s going to be a common denominator with that. And that’s commitment. That’s how we did the O2.
Was playing Robert at the O2 a very different experience to the Page & Plant tours of the ‘90’s?Of course it was different, because it was better. With no disrespect to the musicians who played in Page & Plant, it’s got to be better to play the music with the key members who’ve written it. So that’s Robert, that’s me and that’s John Paul Jones.
Robert’s touring now with Alison Krauss. Does it infuriate you? Do you feel like saying: ‘But Robert, this is LED ZEPPELIN we’re talking about!’No, because he’s made many departures and that’s what he feels the needs to do. No, he can do what he wants. We’re all grown men, for heaven’s sake. But I know what is inspirational, and what is really challenging, and that is the sort of direction that I personally – personally – intend to go.
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