Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
's 1972 Australasian Tour was the only
concert tour
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific to ...
of
Australia and
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
by the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
Band or BAND may refer to:
Places
*Bánd, a village in Hungary
*Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania
*Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...
. The tour commenced on 16 February and concluded on 29 February 1972. (Led Zeppelin's guitarist
Jimmy Page had earlier toured Australia with
The Yardbirds
The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell ...
in January 1967).
The original plan for this tour was for the group to stop off en route at
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
for a concert on 14 February, but the local authorities refused their entry due to local laws banning males from wearing long hair.
[Lewis, Dave and Pallett, Simon (1997) ''Led Zeppelin: The Concert File'', London: Omnibus Press. , p. 74.][Chris Welch (1994) ''Led Zeppelin'', London: Orion Books. , p. 65.]
Led Zeppelin received generally good press coverage for this tour and black-and-white footage of some of their concert at
Sydney on 27 February,
[Led Zeppelin official website: concert summary](_blank)
/ref> along with a press party, were filmed by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
and shown to a national audience. Some of this footage was later made available on the ''Led Zeppelin DVD
''Led Zeppelin DVD'' is a double DVD set by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in the United Kingdom on 26 May 2003, and the United States on 27 May 2003. It contains live concert footage of the band spanning the years 1969 to 1979. The D ...
'', released in 2003.
Part way through this tour, Jimmy Page shaved off his trademark beard, a look he adopted nearly two years before while recording ''Led Zeppelin III
''Led Zeppelin III'' is the third studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 5 October 1970. It was recorded in three locations. Much of the work was done at Headley Grange, a country house, using the Rolling Stones Mobil ...
''. He had the beard at Led Zeppelin's concert in Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
20 February, but is clean shaven at the band's press party two days later. Page would remain clean shaven for the rest of the band's career.
All of the concerts on this tour except for one (at Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
on 29 February) were performed at open-air venues. The Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
performance at Kooyong Stadium
Kooyong Stadium, at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club, is an Australian tennis venue, located in the Melbourne suburb of Kooyong. The stadium, was built in 1927, and has undergone several renovations.
It has a seating capacity of slightly more t ...
on 20 February was cut short due to inclement weather.Led Zeppelin official website: concert summary
/ref>
All concerts from this tour are available on unofficial CDs except for the Perth concert, and show the band in fine form.
Tour set list
All track written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, except where noted.
The fairly typical set list
A set list, or setlist, is typically a handwritten or printed document created as an ordered list of songs, jokes, stories and other elements an artist intends to present during a specific performance.
A setlist can be made of nearly any materi ...
for the tour was:
#"Immigrant Song
"Immigrant Song" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is built upon a repeating riff and features lyrical references to Norse mythology, with singer Robert Plant's howling vocals mentioning war-making and Valhalla. The song was ...
"
#"Heartbreaker
Heartbreaker(s) or The Heart Breaker(s) may refer to:
Film and television
*''The Heart Breakers'', a 1916 film starring Andrew Arbuckle
*''The Heart Breaker'', a 1925 film directed by Benjamin Stoloff
* ''Heartbreaker'' (1983 film), an American f ...
" ( Bonham, Page, Plant)
#"Out on the Tiles
''Led Zeppelin III'' is the third studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 5 October 1970. It was recorded in three locations. Much of the work was done at Headley Grange, a country house, using the Rolling Stones Mobil ...
" (intro) (Page, Plant, Bonham) / " Black Dog" (Page, Plant, Jones)
#"Since I've Been Loving You
"Since I've Been Loving You" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released in 1970 on the album ''Led Zeppelin III''.
Overview
"Since I've Been Loving You" was one of the first songs prepared for the ''Led Zeppelin III'' album. The s ...
" (Page, Plant, Jones)
#"Celebration Day
"Celebration Day" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin, and the third track from their 1970 album ''Led Zeppelin III''. The band's last concert film and album, released on 19 November 2012, took their name from this song.
Composition and ...
" (Page, Plant, Jones) (on 25, 27 and 29 February only)
#" Stairway to Heaven"
#" Going to California"
#" That's the Way"
#"Tangerine
The tangerine is a type of citrus fruit that is orange in color. Its scientific name varies. It has been treated as a separate species under the name ''Citrus tangerina'' or ''Citrus'' × ''tangerina'', or treated as a variety of ''Citrus retic ...
" (Page)
#" Bron-Yr-Aur Stomp" (Page, Plant, Jones)
#" Dazed and Confused" (Page)
#"What Is and What Should Never Be
"What Is and What Should Never Be" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant and was included as the second track on ''Led Zeppelin II'' (1969).
Composition and recording
"What is and What Should ...
"
#"Rock and Roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...
" (Page, Plant, Jones, Bonham)
#"Moby Dick
''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship ''Pequod'', for revenge against Moby Dick, the giant whi ...
" (Bonham)
#"Whole Lotta Love
"Whole Lotta Love" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is the opening track on the band's second album, '' Led Zeppelin II'', and was released as a single in 1969 in several countries; as with other Led Zeppelin songs, no single was ...
" (Bonham, Dixon, Jones, Page, Plant)
Encores:
*"Communication Breakdown
"Communication Breakdown" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, from their 1969 self-titled debut album. It was also used as the B-side of the group's first single in the US, " Good Times Bad Times". A promotional video was released ...
" (Bonham, Jones, Page) (On 25 and 27 February)
*"Organ Solo"/"Thank You
"''Thank you''" (often expanded to ''thank you very much'' or ''thanks a lot'', or informally abbreviated to ''thanks'' or alternately as ''many thanks''Geoffrey Leech, ''The Pragmatics of Politeness'' (2014), p. 200.) is a common expression of ...
" (On 27 February)
There were some set list substitutions, variations, and order switches during the tour.
Tour dates
References
External links
Comprehensive archive of known concert appearances by Led Zeppelin (official website)
Sources
*Lewis, Dave and Pallett, Simon (1997) ''Led Zeppelin: The Concert File'', London: Omnibus Press. .
{{Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin concert tours
1972 concert tours
Led
1972 in New Zealand