Jason Bonham on Why Robert Plant Won’t Agree to a Zeppelin Reunion

With the 50th anniversary of Led Zeppelin I looming and plenty of things planned to celebrate the legendary band in the coming year, many are still likely holding out for a reunion of some sort, but Robert Plant has been clear he’s not interested.  His reasoning, however, is both understandable and beautiful.

Jason Bonham, son of the late John Bonham, opened up about it in an interview with Billboard.  Bonham recalled the band’s 2007 performance at the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert in London and how after six weeks of rehearsals for the show, he thought more shows would be announced.

Bonham said he met up with Plant later on at a soccer game where he posed the question about a possible reunion tour, and Plant gave him this answer:  “...He said, ‘I loved your dad way too much. It's no disrespect to you; You know the stuff better than all of us, and no one else who is alive can play it like you. But it's not the same. I can't go out there and fake it. I can't be a jukebox. I can't go out there and try to do it that way...When your father left us, left the world, that was it for Led Zeppelin. We couldn't do what The Who did. It was too vital.’"

Bonham understood and respected Plant’s answer and added, “...My dad and Robert, they'd known each other since they were, like, 15. It was a lot deeper for [Plant]. So I was OK with it. It was a great time, and to end it the way it did, with that great concert, was for the best.”

With reasoning like that, it’s difficult to be upset about Led Zeppelin not reuniting.  Jimmy Page might disagree, however, he might also appreciate Plant’s not-so-subtle dig at The Who in the process.

Erica Banas is rock/classic rock news blogger that loves the smell of old vinyl in the morning.