Ticket 2 Ride

Fifty-seven years after their formation, finally a worthy documentary about them. All three surviving members of Led Zeppelin participated in the making of this documentary, and who seemed delighted to talk about those early day.

Becoming Led Zeppelin is a marvelous and impressive film, and even though I knew most of the facts, there are plenty of nuggets left for the most knowledgeable fans. This is a well-researched film, and the film clips, performances, photos and artwork are amazing. Director Bernard MacMahon even had materials the band members weren’t familiar with.

The focus of the documentary was on the how the four members of Led Zeppelin came together to form the band in 1968, and the period up to the release of Led Zeppelin II. If you expect the story of “Stairway to Heaven”, tales of black magic, or the debauchery years, you’ll be disappointed. The film really just centers on the musical forces that established Led Zeppelin as the biggest rock band in the world, and only incidentally on their personal lives.

“When I saw everything Bernard had done both visually and sonically on the remarkable achievement that is American Epic, I knew he would be qualified to tell our story,” said Jimmy Page on agreeing to participate on the film.

Apparently, MacMahon worked years on this film. It’s a meticulous effort and the search for performance clips pays off. The early filmed performances hint at the magic that was soon to be revealed. In one scene, the band performs in front of an audience unfamiliar with these four guys. It shows on the blank faces of the crowd, who weren’t expecting these loud, longhaired men with funny clothes. To think, just months in the future, this band would be playing to screaming audiences.

It’s hard to believe how quickly Led Zeppelin came together, releasing their debut and second album both in 1969. That first year, the band was unknown, even though Page tried to link the band to his old group, The Yardbirds. From their beginning in 1968 to the release of Led Zeppelin II at the end of 1969, you see the metamorphosis of Led Zeppelin. That’s the story of Becoming Led Zeppelin.

As a longtime fan, it was fun to revisit those days, and to hear both old and new stories. As I mentioned above, some film and photos were even new to the band members; their reactions to matching these new pieces of their story are fascinating.

Page and Jones seem impressed and enjoying the look back; Page is always a question mark on revisiting the past. To the viewer, he seemed to engage in the experience, despite holding Led Zeppelin’s legacy as arm’s length for most of the past 45 years.

After watching this film, my wife and I dug out Celebration Day, the concert of Page, Plant and Jones performing with Jason Bonham, son of drummer John Bonham in 2007 at the O2 Arena in London, to honor the late Atlantic Records founder Amhet Ertegun. This was a temporary reunion, and thankfully the concert was filmed and recorded for future release, which wasn’t until 2012.

Celebration Day is a meaningful concert, one that Led Zeppelin spent six weeks preparing for, and it shows up on screen. Despite Page, Plant and Jones being in their late 50s and early 60s, this two-hour performance is marvelous. The performances are not exactly carbon copies of the albums, but they aren’t the bloated renditions as heard on The Song Remains the Same, a 1976 concert/fantasy film released by the band.

Celebration Day is a great bookend to Becoming Led Zeppelin.

A final note…

The sound quality of the music featured in Becoming Led Zeppelin was remarkably clear and sonically powerful. Whatever technology used to transfer those sound recordings to the digital format of the documentary is be commended. Recordings of songs from the 1950s and 1960s, the influences of Led Zeppelin, are stunningly clear and vibrant. The sound quality of Led Zeppelin’s early recordings and performances will bowl you over, it did me. I am thankful to have seen, and heard, this film in a theater. I hope the streaming experience comes close to what was provided in the theater.