For the tour, the band chartered ''[[Caesar's Chariot]]'', a 45-seat [[Boeing 707]] owned by the [[Caesars Palace]] Hotel in [[Las Vegas, Nevada|Las Vegas]], to shuttle them between cities. This plane should not be confused with the more famous ''[[The Starship|Starship]]'', which had been used by the band on its previous two concert stints in North America, but which was permanently grounded in 1977 due to engine problems.
For the tour, the band chartered ''[[Caesar's Chariot]]'', a 45-seat [[Boeing 707]] owned by the [[Caesars Palace]] Hotel in [[Las Vegas, Nevada|Las Vegas]], to shuttle them between cities. This plane should not be confused with the more famous ''[[The Starship|Starship]]'', which had been used by the band on its previous two concert stints in North America, but which was permanently grounded in 1977 due to engine problems.
Though profitable financially, the tour was beset with difficulties. On June 3, after a concert at [[Tampa Stadium]] was cut short because of a severe [[thunderstorm]], a [[riot]] broke out amongst the audience, resulting in several arrests and injuries. Police ultimately resorted to [[tear gas]] to break up the crowd.<ref>[http://www.robertplanthomepage.com/2006planthomepage/History/june.htm Robert Plant's Home Page]</ref> Guitarist [[Jimmy Page]]'s ongoing heroin addiction also caused him to lose a noticeable amount of weight on this tour, and arguably began to hamper his on-stage playing performances.<ref>http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/11027261/the_long_shadow_of_led_zeppelin/print</ref><ref>http://wc04.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:difoxqr5ld6e~T1]</ref>
Though profitable financially, the tour was beset with difficulties. On June 3, after a concert at [[Tampa Stadium]] was cut short because of a severe [[thunderstorm]], a [[riot]] broke out amongst the audience, resulting in several arrests and injuries. Police ultimately resorted to [[tear gas]] to break up the crowd.<ref>[http://www.robertplanthomepage.com/2006planthomepage/History/june.htm Robert Plant's Home Page]</ref> Guitarist [[Jimmy Page]]'s ongoing heroin addiction also caused him to lose a noticeable amount of weight on this tour, and arguably began to hamper his on-stage playing performances.<ref>http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/11027261/the_long_shadow_of_led_zeppelin/print</ref><ref>http://wc04.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:difoxqr5ld6e~T1]</ref> During a performance in [[Chicago]] on [[April 9]], Page fell ill and needed to sit in a chair to play "[[Ten Years Gone]]" before leaving the stage with severe stomach cramps. The show was canceled after only sixty-five minutes, with Page's illness later being attributed to a case of [[food poisoning]].<ref name=RS1985>{{cite journal |last=Davis |first=Stephen |title = Power, Mystery And The Hammer Of The Gods: The Rise and Fall of Led Zeppelin |journal = Rolling Stone |issue=451 |date=[[July 4]], [[1985]] |url =http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/ledzeppelin/articles/story/17537975/power_mystery_and_the_hammer_of_the_gods |accessdate=2008-01-15 }}</ref>
The tour also experienced some unsavory off-stage problems, exacerbated by the the hiring of London gangster [[John Bindon]] as security coordinator. After a July 23 show at the "[[Days on the Green]]" festival at [[Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum]] in [[Oakland, California]], Bindon, band manager [[Peter Grant (music manager)|Peter Grant]] and band member [[John Bonham]] were arrested after a member of promoter [[Bill Graham (promoter)|Bill Graham]]'s staff was badly beaten during the performance. A member of the staff had allegedly slapped Grant's son when he was taking down a dressing room sign. This was seen by John Bonham, who then walked over and kicked the man. Later, when Grant heard about this, he went into the trailer, along with Bindon and savagely assaulted the man with tour manager [[Richard Cole]] guarding the door and also roughing up another member of Graham's staff. Later after the incident, Bill Graham was reported to have flatly stated he could never book Led Zeppelin again in good conscience. <ref name="Hammer of the Gods"> {{cite book | title=Hammer of the Gods (LPC) | year=1995 | author=Stephen Davis | pages= 277}}</ref> <ref name="Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography"> {{cite book | title=Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography | year=1993 | author=Ritchie Yorke | pages= 210}}</ref>
The tour also experienced some unsavory off-stage problems, exacerbated by the the hiring of London gangster [[John Bindon]] as security coordinator. After a July 23 show at the "[[Days on the Green]]" festival at [[Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum]] in [[Oakland, California]], Bindon, band manager [[Peter Grant (music manager)|Peter Grant]] and band member [[John Bonham]] were arrested after a member of promoter [[Bill Graham (promoter)|Bill Graham]]'s staff was badly beaten during the performance. A member of the staff had allegedly slapped Grant's son when he was taking down a dressing room sign. This was seen by John Bonham, who then walked over and kicked the man. Later, when Grant heard about this, he went into the trailer, along with Bindon and savagely assaulted the man with tour manager [[Richard Cole]] guarding the door and also roughing up another member of Graham's staff. Later after the incident, Bill Graham was reported to have flatly stated he could never book Led Zeppelin again in good conscience. <ref name="Hammer of the Gods"> {{cite book | title=Hammer of the Gods (LPC) | year=1995 | author=Stephen Davis | pages= 277}}</ref> <ref name="Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography"> {{cite book | title=Led Zeppelin: The Definitive Biography | year=1993 | author=Ritchie Yorke | pages= 210}}</ref>
Led Zeppelin's 1977 North American Tour was the eleventh and final concert tour of North America by the Englishrockband. The tour was divided into three legs, with performances commencing on April 1 and concluding on July 24, 1977. The tour was originally intended to finish on August 13, but was cut short following the death of lead singer Robert Plant's son.
History
This was the first tour embarked on by the band following their enforced layoff caused by Plant's car accident in Greece in 1975. During this sabbatical, the band had recorded their seventh studio album, Presence. Rehearsals for the tour eventually took place at Manticore Studios, Fulham in early 1977, where the band worked on a new set list.
Forty nine concerts were originally scheduled over a three-leg period, for 1.3 million ticket holders. The tour was scheduled to commence on February 27 at Fort Worth, Texas, but Plant contracted laryngitis and the schedule was postponed for a month. It eventually kicked off on April 1, at Dallas, Texas.
Led Zeppelin's 1977 North American Tour was a massive fiscal success, as the band sold out large arenas and stadiums. On April 30 they performed to 76,229 people at the Pontiac Silverdome, a new world record attendance for a solo indoor attraction, beating the 75,962 that The Who attracted there in December 1975.[1] Lengthy stints were spent in New York and Los Angeles, where the band performed six shows each at Madison Square Garden and the Los Angeles Forum. In New York alone, enough ticket applications were received to sell out a further two nights, had time permitted.
For the tour, the band chartered Caesar's Chariot, a 45-seat Boeing 707 owned by the Caesars Palace Hotel in Las Vegas, to shuttle them between cities. This plane should not be confused with the more famous Starship, which had been used by the band on its previous two concert stints in North America, but which was permanently grounded in 1977 due to engine problems.
Though profitable financially, the tour was beset with difficulties. On June 3, after a concert at Tampa Stadium was cut short because of a severe thunderstorm, a riot broke out amongst the audience, resulting in several arrests and injuries. Police ultimately resorted to tear gas to break up the crowd.[2] Guitarist Jimmy Page's ongoing heroin addiction also caused him to lose a noticeable amount of weight on this tour, and arguably began to hamper his on-stage playing performances.[3][4] During a performance in Chicago on April 9, Page fell ill and needed to sit in a chair to play "Ten Years Gone" before leaving the stage with severe stomach cramps. The show was canceled after only sixty-five minutes, with Page's illness later being attributed to a case of food poisoning.[5]
The tour also experienced some unsavory off-stage problems, exacerbated by the the hiring of London gangster John Bindon as security coordinator. After a July 23 show at the "Days on the Green" festival at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California, Bindon, band manager Peter Grant and band member John Bonham were arrested after a member of promoter Bill Graham's staff was badly beaten during the performance. A member of the staff had allegedly slapped Grant's son when he was taking down a dressing room sign. This was seen by John Bonham, who then walked over and kicked the man. Later, when Grant heard about this, he went into the trailer, along with Bindon and savagely assaulted the man with tour manager Richard Cole guarding the door and also roughing up another member of Graham's staff. Later after the incident, Bill Graham was reported to have flatly stated he could never book Led Zeppelin again in good conscience. [6][7]
The following day's second Oakland concert would prove be the band's final live appearance in the United States. After the performance, news came that Plant's five year old son, Karac, had died from a stomach virus. The rest of the tour was immediately cancelled.[6]
Recordings
At least one concert from this tour (Seattle on July 17) was professionally filmed for the band. When reviewing material for the Led Zeppelin DVD in 2003, some 1977 footage was considered but it was not ultimately included. Producer Jimmy Page was unable to locate multi-track sound recordings from any 1977 shows, and it is unknown if any exist.
However, audio recordings from many of the tour's shows have been preserved on unofficial Led Zeppelin bootleg recordings. Notable bootlegs from this tour include The Destroyer (the soundboard recording from Cleveland on April 27), Listen To This Eddie (an audience recording from Los Angeles on June 21) and For Badgeholders Only (an audience recording from Los Angeles on June 23).
Tour set list
The set list used on this tour retained an acoustic section, which had originally been revived by the band at their previous concerts at Earl's Court in 1975 and was retained. Only two songs from their most recent album, Presence (1976), were performed: "Nobody's Fault But Mine" and "Achilles Last Stand"
Memorial Auditorium - Dallas, TX
