Hammerfall of the gods.

For all that the members of Led Zeppelin said they'd never reunite, the Cream reunions of 2005 demonstrated conclusively that "never" doesn't mean what it used to.

So, exactly as the rumor mill had suggested, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones will be joined by Jason Bonham, son of late Zep drummer John Bonham, for a gala concert honoring Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun.

Here's the press release that just hit my in-box:

TRIBUTE TO AHMET ERTEGUN
NOVEMBER 26, 2007
O2 ARENA, LONDON

LONDON -- One of the most eagerly awaited concerts of the decade will celebrate the life and work of Ahmet Ertegun, founder of Atlantic Records and much missed mentor to some of the greatest names in music.

Profits from this amazing show will go to the Ahmet Ertegun Education Fund which provides students with annual scholarships to universities in the UK, USA and Turkey. In addition, a music scholarship open to all will be established at Ravensbourne College in the UK.

The incomparable Led Zeppelin will headline the tribute to the man who founded Atlantic Records in 1947.  Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones will be joined by Jason Bonham, the son of their late drummer John Bonham.

In addition, Pete Townshend, Bill Wyman and the Rhythm Kings, Foreigner and Paolo Nutini, all touched by Ertegun's guiding hand over the years, will play on the night.  Paolo was the final British artist that Ahmet mentored.

It will be a tribute from UK artists that Ertegun worked with in a 60 year career.

The press release goes on to say that tickets, priced at £125 apiece, will be distributed via a random ballot. The official site at which to register is here.

I'd bet money that an announcement for a lucrative American tour in 2008 follows. Some bulletin boards are already buzzing with possibilities for the opening slot. Personally, regardless of whether I'd be attending such a show, I'd love to see Tinariwen get that gig.

Playlist:

David Behrman - My Dear Siegfried (XI)

Ralph Shapey - Five; Mann Soli; Partita for solo violin; Etchings for solo violin; Millennium Designs - Miranda Cuckson, Blair McMillen (Centaur)

Ge Gan-ru - Four Studies of Peking Opera - Kathryn Woodard, Shanghai Quartet; Wrong, Wrong, Wrong! - Margaret Leng Tan; Yi Feng - Frank Su Huang (New Albion)

Composers Inside Electronics - From the Kitchen Archives Vol. 4 (Orange Mountain Music)

Rex Moroux - Royal Street Inn (self-released)

Kiss - Creatures of the Night; Music from "The Elder"; Kiss Alive! 1975-2000 (Mercury)

Globe Unity Orchestra - Globe Unity 67/70 (UMS/Atavistic)

Comments

[Alex Ross]

I'm there! For the putative American tour, I mean, not the London gig.