Did Phil Collins RUIN the "Led Zeppelin Reunion" at Live Aid 1985?

[@DancingwithGhosts]

**Unfortunately, KZbin finally found a piece of my video that they wanted to copyright strike, which is weird because it normally tells you right away when you upload it so you can go in and fix the copyright issue. Anyway, the portion of the video where I actually showed the members of Zeppelin getting interviewed and acting smug had to be edited out. My apologies I would have loved to have kept that in. It still exists on KZbin though under "Led Zeppelin Live Aid Interview".

[@1111Paiste]

Good video and summary on what happened there at Live Aid with Collins and LZ. Here's the link of the MTV interview (below). Collins was right, the interview of Allen Hunter with Page or Plant didn't age well. Jones did talk more that what Collins remembers. But Collins' story from his book seems pretty spot on to how the events unfolded that day. kzbin.info/www/bejne/h6napaNqe6dkoa8

[@BjoernLewin]

that’s Karma! 😉

[@Thomasmemoryscentral]

Is there an off KZbin original edit to see?

[@ericjencson9489]

Jimmy Page was drunk off his ass. That was the problem.

[@KevinStimelsky]

@ericjencson9489 not drunk High on heroine! Townshend and Page were full blown heroine addicts. Townshend got clean in late 82,83 Page sometime in 85

[@Joolzratbag]

he was a total embarrassing mess in this, it may even have been heroin, alcohol plus who knows what else.

[@Flying-V-Shredder]

When wasn't he?

[@Cityzen1-p1n]

@@KevinStimelsky Learn how to spell numpty!

[@thecawdsquad875]

Probably heroin. He was drooling at one point.

[@reubenrozeyt5716]

Phil Collins drumming wasn't the problem. Robert's almost black out drunk ,voice croaked like a frog Jimmy was stoned off his t¡ts, his playing is even worse live. The mixing was terrible Let's just say it was a good year to be a Queen fan

[@loftlegacy]

“Deh-doh”👨🏻🎤🎹

[@reubenrozeyt5716]

@loftlegacy 🤣

[@pleun315]

Led Zeppelin.was.allready done.....nothing left of the old dynamique

[@anodeboy]

It was monitor problems, clear Bell he couldn't hear himself. Don't forget they didn't have earpieces back then.

[@pleun315]

@anodeboy yeah..... Okidoki

[@TurfShifter]

Plant's voice was shot and Page was off his tits on booze and drugs. Yeah blame the drummer if you want but those 2 killed that performance without anyone else's help.

[@justinparkerthewildwolf6394]

It was shit house

[@pleun315]

You are right....😂

[@anthonycraig1458]

Funny how Phil Collins had played a set with Eric Clapton just before Led Zeppelin and it was faultless with both drummers. In fact Clapton's performance was quite rightly regarded as one of the best of the day. The band were on form having been touring at the time. Meanwhile Led Zep weren't touring and somehow Phil gets the blame...

[@ekop1778]

COLLINS ACTED LIKE HE WAS A HIGH SCHOOL PUNK

[@jimsteele2072]

I think Robert Plant's hairstyle ruined the reunion.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

😂

[@FirebrandVOCALS]

lol

[@davidmacleod9313]

Lol

[@Piwork69]

His mid-80’s music was just as cringey.

[@MarcusHoover-y6h]

You made my day🤣

[@RubesGoodBrainCoffee]

If I might share this here: There is a KZbin channel dedicated to Led Zeppelin which painstakingly documents how Led Zeppelin's subpar performance was NOT Phil Collins' fault. As much as Jimmy Page and the Zeppelin fans might want to blame everything on Collins, anyone with the slightest objectively should know better.

[@markleggett3944]

Robert Plant was having voice problems, Jimmy Page was completely drunk or drugged out and was attempting to play songs with a out of tune guitar. They must not have done much in the way of practice and they brought Phil Collins in with no run through or any clue what he was to expect (2 drummers). It was a train wreck. Those 2 guys in Zeppelin were too egotistical to admit that they were the problem, so they blame Phil Collins.

[@Madmetalmaniac42069]

@@markleggett3944 And to be clear - Phil Collins did NOT want two drummers. He felt it was going to confuse it, but Jimmy apparently insisted on it. Hence the mess.

[@johngunne3327]

​@@markleggett3944let's not forget Phil would've been totally fucking jetlagged as well. Crossing the Atlantic on Concorde and having been up early on the Saturday morning to get to Wembley Stadium beforehand to do his set there before leaving. Poor sod didn't have a chance to rest or anything. Pathetic that Page constantly blames him for the shambles when he was off his head, drunk/high in front of everyone.

[@D-Fens_1632]

I think I know that guy you're talking about, he'll do a ten 45 minute videos on the recording of In Through the Out Door or something, and equally detailed videos about specific live shows. Forget his handle. He sounds kind of Hispanic maybe, maybe a South American accent? Anyway, sometimes it's overkill but he has some fantastic deep dives into all things Zeppelin, wish I could recommend the name. He just did one about what Out Door might have looked like if they'd included some Coda tracks.

[@johngunne3327]

@@D-Fens_1632 you're talking about this guy. Jose/JCM. youtube.com/@jcm-ledzeppelin-stories?si=dde6u-KTtviZuTRv

[@iamwolfgang]

One thing I'll always love about Phil Collins is how down to earth he was as a celebrity. He just played the biggest concert in the world, in two continents on the same day, and he knows he's going to be ragged on for the poor reunion. And at the end of it all, the only thing going through his mind is "poor interviewer, he's probably nervous because of the huge audience watching him fumble live. Let me try to help him out."

[@mancuniancandidatem]

Plant and Page only needed themselves to ruin this performance. Phil was the least of their worries.

[@FloweredUp-n4t]

No. Plant's voice, Page's terrible guitar sound and obvious intoxication coupled with under rehearsal and a tired sound crew ruined Led Zeppelin's performance at Live Aid.

[@Jonhobbs64]

Lol! Yes, that was the year everyone was using a flanger with a phaser! It "sucked" the tone right out of the system 😂

[@mattmckeon1688]

Not to mention there were two drummers for that set, and Phil wasn't even playing a full drum part, trying to fit in with Tony Thompson. There's more than enough blame to go around for that shoddy set, most of all Jimmy and Robert.

[@markcheetah4960]

Both Collins and Plant mentioned faulty monitors. I've done my share of gigs and monitors are absolutely CRUCIAL to getting a cohesive band to sound nice & tight.

[@jessejames2680]

The problem was egos drugs and booze and the fact they ain't played in years.... Not Phil Collins.. I don't even like Zeppelin anymore grew out of that many years ago..

[@markcheetah4960]

@@jessejames2680 I totally agree

[@rayroofy]

Collins did the right thing by not getting in the way. The whole set was chaotic. Don't drink and drive. Don't drink and play guitar either, especially on a big reunion night. Collins is a pro. Song writer, drummer, and vocalist. Listen to that tone on "Jesus he knows me". 👏👏

[@CKT1138]

Wait, there are people who genuinely think PHIL ruined the Zed Zeppelin reunion? You can see clearly in the footage that Phil is actually trying to do things correctly despite limited rehearsal, and that he's visibly irritated at Jimmy, who is clearly wasted. Robert Plant is trying but he is not properly warmed up for the material. It's definitely not Phil's fault, not by a long shot.

[@teijaflink2226]

Seems like he really tried but the two of them where mest up at that time and not well prepared.

[@CKT1138]

@teijaflink2226 nobody was prepared it was fairly impromptu iirc

[@trelard]

I was surprised too. I watched Live Aid live on TV in the UK. That performance was ruined by Plant and Page. Then to have 2 drummers onstage? Moronic behavior.

[@cc352]

Page was at his worst during these few years in the early '80s. Saw him in '83 at the ARMS concert at MSG. Before Live Aid, he did a few sets during the July 4th celebrations with the Beach Boys and those were terrible gigs for him. If you check out some of the videos floating around of those concerts even some members of the Beach Boys were looking at him and wondering, dude, wtf are you doing?

[@JoeGarchar1960]

Phil is no John Bonham. The problem was and is that this was not a Led Zeppelin reunion without John Bonham.

[@sydhamelin1265]

As a drummer myself, my 2 go-to drummers a Budgie from Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Phil, from the PG era Genesis. The drumming on Lamb Lies Down is possibly the most creative, best produced drums, for album oriented rock, or rock in general, including sub-genres. Phil gets so much shit, because he leaned so heavily into pop and was really good at it. It's like people took his street cred card card because 'One More Night' was estrogen driven than Barbara Streisand's entire catalog. But I contend that you judge the man by his peaks, not his valleys. And I even say that you give him his due. I don't care for his soft pop stuff, but he clearly had the ability to write those #1 ballads, and still write heavy hitting pop songs like 'In the Air Tonight', or, to me, a banger like 'Take Me Home'. And you cannot take his street cred card - this guy hammered out Apocalypse in 9/8, on the screaming 20+ minute 'Supper's Ready', where he turns the drums into total chaos, that he somehow manages to control around Bank's 4/4 keys solo. Brilliance.

[@eightiesmusic1984]

Kevin Wilkinson China Crisis. Dean Castronovo Bad English.

[@thor7564]

All true there. Phil is still doing some pretty good drumming on 'a trick of the tail', 'wind and wuthering' and '…then there were three', especially on 'down and out'.

[@richradka]

agree with you! his terrible 80s stuff solo and with Genesis have totally ruined his reputation as a drummer but until late 70s, his Genesis drumming was right up with with Bruford and other heavy/prog drummers. But you reap what you sow, and his pop stuff and its impact on the 80s was truly horrific

[@arnesaknussemm2427]

No, this was not Page’s greatest moment and the attempt to shift the blame was disgusting.

[@matsujarvinen]

Yeah.Everything related to Led Zeppelin is golden,if you ask Pagey.And if it´s not,he will blame somebody else.

[@morgellon7877]

Nah, Robert Plant had an amazing range and delivery in the original Led Zeppelin days. That wasn't studio trickery; if you listen to their live performances from then and contrast it with the Live Aid travesty it's astounding just how bad he sounded at the latter, considering what a terrific vocalist he was and is when he's on top of his game. Page was clearly too intoxicated to play well, and I think Plant was probably coked-out or something.

[@markcheetah4960]

Plant was great in the early days, but it didn't take long for his voice to deteriorate. Even back in 1973 when "The Song Remains The Same" live album came out, he was singing a LOT lower, almost "talking" sometimes. "Black Dog" and "Rock & Roll" are two prime examples. I refer to those cuts as the "Elvis" versions. Don't get me wrong, I love the guy. I have the DVD set that came out in 2003 and the live rendition of "Communication Breakdown" (a VERY hard song to sing), Plant kicks ass on it! But it's a very old video... I'm pretty sure it was filmed in B&W.

[@John-k6f9k]

@@markcheetah4960 The Song Remains The Same is literally my benchmark for disappointment. It was the first Zep album I bought after hearing how supposedly ridiculously insanely godlike GREAT they were, and the difference between my astronomical expectations and the reality has stood by me ever since

[@christianzafiroglu6705]

Phil Collins didn’t ruin Live Aid. Heroin ruined Jimmy Page A hoarse voice ruined Robert Plant Resentment ruined Jonesy Lack of rehearsal ruined Tony Thompson and Phil Collins. And bless Phil Collins for trying to rescue that poor interviewer. God, Paget and Percy could be arrogant when together.

[@edriley2703]

Phil speaks the truth here. Its disturbing how the Zeppelin members totally fucked this event up. And i love Zeppelin.

[@SDAQandA]

So glad I stumbled across your channel! Loved this episode and look forward to going through heaps more. I only found you as I’m about to buy a DR 670 and was looking for reviews on it! Came across yours

[@DancingwithGhosts]

that's awesome!

[@rumoursduo]

Watching it live at the time, it was obvious that Page was way past his prime. Even Neil Peart couldn't have saved that performance! Best just to forget it.

[@John-et9yl]

I saw LZ for the first and only time at the first Knebworth concert in 1979 and can honestly say l was completely underwhelmed except for the the laser show during Page's solo. Page and Plant let JPJ down at Live Aid imo.

[@kahnlives]

Ya, by 79 Zeppelin were probably past their prime. I believe they never fully recovered from their previous tour that was a drug war on stage. It seems all the parties had caught up to the Legends

[@themoon9442]

Just 2 small points... 1:13 Raise money, not awareness. 2:32 Geldof was not an actor. He was the singer and songwriter in Irish post-punk band The Boomtown Rats. They had been a huge deal in Ireland and the UK, scoring 2 enormous #1 singles in 1978 and 1979 - the first punk or post punk band to get a #1 single in the UK charts. He did play 'Pink' in the movie of 'The Wall', but if you've seen the movie, you'll know that there wasn't much acting involved.

[@4Mr.Crowley2]

Exactly. Thank you - the level of the snark seems ridiculous. Band Aid and Live Aid raised many, many, many millions for the famine crisis - and like all massive works of charity it didn’t achieve everything everyone set out to do however it drew a huge amount of political and public attention to the horrors endured by the people in Ethiopia who were governed by ruthless leaders - Live Aid wasn’t just some limp condescending gesture. Dude seems to think Live Aid was another Woodstock, which is entirely wrong. Woodstock was always a money-making venture. The not-actor Geldof’s punk band, The Boomtown Rats, were and still are greatly valued by the Irish together with brilliant new wave/punk Irish bands like The Undertones (whose “Teenage Kicks” is absolutely legendary as the only rock single ever played twice-in-a-row by legendary bbc DJ John Peel), and of course U2 - all of these bands share long histories together.

[@Robyn-by6qt]

And big in Australia.

[@supergrogg]

Gelfof stared and ACTED in the feture movie The Wall..and other things, as well as being the frontman for The Boom Town Rats.

[@themoon9442]

@@supergrogg I guess you read the first line of my comment and decided to reply without reading the rest. Let me help you out by showing you what you were replying to. Here's the complete OP... "Just 2 small points... 1:13 Raise money, not awareness. 2:32 Geldof was not an actor. He was the singer and songwriter in Irish post-punk band The Boomtown Rats. They had been a huge deal in Ireland and the UK, scoring 2 enormous #1 singles in 1978 and 1979 - the first punk or post punk band to get a #1 single in the UK charts. He did play 'Pink' in the movie of 'The Wall', but if you've seen the movie, you'll know that there wasn't much acting involved." End quote. You'll also notice that the OP hasn't been edited. Happy now?

[@boogiewoogie9770]

I don't think he would even class himself as an actor. ​@@supergrogg

[@drdrew3]

I saw Jimmy Page at the 1983 ARMS Concert with Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck. Page’s set was an incoherent mess at that show a full 2 years before Live Aid. His drinking led to incredibly sloppy playing such that you couldn’t even recognize some songs. He physically needed help navigating the stage. At that same time Phil Collins was doing the work of 3 people between his explosive solo career, Genesis and a myriad of studio and touring gigs. Zeppelin didn’t rehearse meaningful and failed the audition. Even Bonham himself couldn’t have saved that disaster

[@gktde9874]

Phil Collins was the original drummer of Brand X. Jimmy Page in 1000 years could never play Brand X music. It was NEVER Phil 's fault!

[@ademyers2741]

Rest assured, if there's ever a Led Zep biopic, the final scene won't be that shambolic Live Aid set

[@beauzer36]

It should be.

[@vicariousjohnson9823]

If ever…kzbin.info/www/bejne/iZrdqn-MYrSSmcU

[@ademyers2741]

@@vicariousjohnson9823 OMG!

[@haroldk3913]

Never heard Phill Collins' point of view on this interaction before. Seems like all around this was a poorly planned thing regarding his role in it. And when he said he was not going to practice, it would have been better for him to say I can't play in this because if I don't practice, then I can't be sure I am in sink and even know what is going on in the set. Saying he just came off a tour and wants some family time is not an excuse. If vacation is what is most important, then do that. He should have realized Led Zeppelin have not played together for years, and practice is imperative. It sounds like Plant and Page knew this and did practice with Thompson. Look at Queen, neither had they been together for a while due to their internal problems, but when they decided to do this show, they put that aside and practiced until they were back on their game again. So yeah, Collins did throw a wrench into this. It's not the only wrench that made this reunion much less than it should have been, but it was one of them. If there was alcohol consumption going on, that should have been put off until afterward, and any other substance. But practice for two weeks down to the smallest detail was needed here, and it did not happen. To include the guy who used to tune Jimmy Page's guitars back in the 70s would have been a nice added detail that would have made a difference in how this sounded. And the right technicians to get the equipment right. Bottom line, whoever was in this should have practiced. Even bands who are together and touring still have to practice and do sound checks.

[@mikeformby86]

I saw Genesis with Phil Collins in January, 1984 in Denver, CO during their Mama tour and to this day it still stands out as probably the tightest band out of the dozens I've seen. I was amazed how much every note sounded like the album. It was fantastic.

[@thomasleblanc4228]

Feb 1983 Mama tour in Memphis. Brilliant show!

[@redhen334]

Good timing with this video, Drumeo is a few days away from releasing their Phil Collins drumming documentary. He was a crazily amazing drummer in his day and hopefully more people will see that.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

oh i had no idea of this, thanks for the heads up

[@darrenjreynolds22]

Live aid was and still is the biggest music event the world had ever seen......collins had agreed to perform not only at Wembley but then to get on to Concorde and fly to Philadelphia.......Robert plant couldn't sing for shit and jimmy page was visibly dribbling.......they were a laughing stock.......fucking dreadful......Nothing to do with Phil Collins

[@narm_greyrunner]

We did a charity concert for Africa, which was the style at the time.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

lol

[@chupacabra3331]

I know, everybody was trying to save Africa and as soon as the 80s ended we just said fuck em, you’re on your own. Anyways, aside from some of the artists who went in with good intentions, it was a money grab from the top. A lot of people became rich or more rich by using these benefit concert scams. Put one water well in a village but most people are dying of AIDS or getting eaten by lions. At least they’ll die hydrated.

[@HexNottingham]

I read that in the voice of Grandpa Abe Simpson

[@Paneeks1960]

I sat to the left of the stage at JFK Stadium for the whole show. I can honestly say that Zeppelin's performance sounded so much better at JFK than it did on video tape a few days later. I will also say that some of the bands/artists were mixed much better than others. Overall it was one of the best all day/night into the next day events that I ever went to. We also got to see some of the Wembley Stadium acts in between the Philly sets. All for $50. Those were the days~ Rob/Boston

[@Jirass]

They really needed to rehearse. I love Phil's work on Plant's first two solo albums but he was stretched to thin on this day. Robert's voice was shot. Jimmy was in a bad mood. And Jonesy was embarrassed, I am sure. I love listening to old LZ bootlegs but this is one performance that makes me cringe.

[@satchice9102]

You described Bob Geldoff as an "actor". He was really just the lead singer and songwriter of ''The Boomtown Rats', who also did a little bit of acting (Pink in the 'The Wall').

[@jeffreywillstewart]

'Just'? I loved the Boomtown Rats. "I Don't Like Mondays" is a classic.

[@ChrisLawton66]

14:55 this is where you shouldn't editorialize. There are literally dozens of recordings of them liive in the 70s with Robert hitting those high notes. Why would you make statements like that without actually knowing for certain? It doesn't take much time to do the research.

[@Murdon-te5px]

I remember watching Live Aid during the summer of 1985. I was 15 and me my friends, along with the rest of the world, were pretty excited about the so called Led Zeppelin reunion. None of us saw them live in the 70s, we were all to young. Also, we thought it was cool that Phil Collins would be playing drums because we all liked Genesis too. My friends and I enjoyed their three song set. I remember thinking that it wasn’t the best thing I have ever heard but it was great to see the three remaining members of Zeppelin play together and Phil on drums was a bonus. It was interesting to hear Phil’s perspective of the Live Aid show.

[@idahomike4254]

Great video! One thing, though. At 2:53, David Gilmour was not an original member of Pink Floyd. New subscriber, BTW. Cheers!

[@reallyretro]

Jimmy Page being wasted, and still in the midst of his heroin addiction had something to do with the reunion being a colossal flop. Blaming Phil for his drumming is the easy thing to do for a lot of people, simply because they are not a fan of him or his music.

[@harrybehemoth2751]

It's weird that Phil waited til he was in his 60's to become an alcoholic.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

yeah... that definitely was weird, and he went fucking hard too... like there was this inner-demon in him the whole time that he was suppressing throughout his career and then BAM all his organs are shutting down because he was boozing so much.. shit that itself would make a good video topic

[@MrTheBaron]

If it wasn't the divorce he had with his 3rd wife at the time, it was him losing the ability to drum that hit him the hardest

[@trk1973]

When you see his wife at the time Orianne Cevey, it’s then easy to understand why

[@GenesisFan01]

@@trk1973 she looked much better without the plastic surgery. Now she just looks like those Hollyweird women who have their faces botoxed to death.

[@chupacabra3331]

Holy shit man, just googled her, she’s a real destroyer. She probably smacked him around, called him a pussy and pissed on his face while he was sleeping. Christ.

[@chrisorsten]

If you watch the performance, halfway through the first song "Rock And Roll", the camera is on Phil. You see him rech over to his mixing board for his drum mics, and he kills the master out to the main board. Then after you can see he is barely drumming. You can confirm this because His drum fill at the end of "Rock and Roll" you cannot even hear.

[@rogertrujillo7423]

Tell me you were born after the year 2000 without telling me you were born after the year 2000

[@ПётрПавловский-щ1х]

He’s in his mid 30s

[@scottclark3139]

Definitely not. The band were chronically under rehearsed. See the Queen rehearsals for how to do it properly. And the differing results speak for themselves

[@johndefenderfer5946]

I'll preface this by saying that I am not a huge fan of Led Zeppelin, but I admire much of their work. With saying that, they probably should've skipped Live Aid and the drama, the inebriation and the major Primadona attitudes that went with it.

[@markcheetah4960]

Man, this is a great video. Thank you SO much for posting this behind the scenes info which SHOULD be better known. You're 100% on point with everything you said between video clips. Awesome vid! It's interesting and NEVER boring or slow like some of the Rock documentaries you see these days. I'm glad this popped up in my feed... you've got a new subscriber!

[@rhetoric2k]

What I will never get about this reunion is that they had the opportunity to use Jason Bonham for Live Aid and didn't. Who would've been a better replacement than Jason Bonham? They could've all at least practiced together. What they asked Phil Collins to do was not fair to him and I wish for his sake, that he had said no. He deserved better.

[@MatthewMaloney-fj4zz]

Save your sympathy for Phil. Phil was desperate to be involved in everything back in the '80s and never seemed to turn anything down, even if it was a really bad idea, which this obviously was. See also Buster.

[@jakepepper2279]

It always amazes me that Jimmy Page blamed the poor Zeppelin mini reunion performance on Phil Collins. I watched Live Aid when it was happening, and Page struggled on his guitar. He was unprepared and rusty. Robert Plant's vocals suggested he had a very bad cold that night. Collins did very well considering. He definitely wasn't the problem.

[@debonaire_nerd]

Not entirely. The whole band were off that day. Page's guitar work was among the worst, if not THE worst, I have ever seen from him while Plant looked as though he was one crawl away from rehab. As for JPJ, he impossibly looked less enthusiastic than Plant. As horrendous as the drumming section was that day, it was only around 30% of the problem.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

i donno, honestly the video quality was so bad you could barely decipher what anything sounded like but compared to some of the other crap I have reviewed I thought it was just "ok".. not a disastrous train wreck like it was made out to be

[@markleggett3944]

It was crazy to have 2 drummers when Phil Collins wasn't even aware of the 2nd drummer and had no run through to try and work out things with the other drummer. Robert Plant's voice was not in good shape and Jimmy was stumbling around the stage playing like some kid in high school with an out of tune guitar.

[@davidwade3950]

The guitar tone was so weak ; much more of a problem than the drums

[@dez1989]

I couldn't give 30% of the problem to the drums. That's quite harsh. I'd give it 10%. If that much! John Paul was and is straight. Always on and a true musician, like Phil. So the entire blame goes to Jimmy and Robert. They BOTH sucked eggs, yet they tried to pass the blame to anyone but themselves.

[@fireatwill7707]

I’ve heard JP play considerably worse in other live recordings. I’m not saying it was good, because it was sloppy and cringey but I’ve heard him play worse.

[@paulockenden4278]

No They ruined it themselves ,Collins was the only musician on stage that day. The others were both responsible for the farce that ensued but blaming Collins was the easy out

[@derekpierkowski7641]

Phil shiuld have taken the que from John Paul. Which is "Plant and Page are pretentious idiots who WILL fuckin' muddy the waters".

[@bohs1984]

Led Zeppelin was ALWAYS a hit-or-miss band, even in the glory years. To expect them to come up on stage and nail it with no rehearsal was a bit of a bridge too far. Hell, Phil was probably the ONLY one up there who actually practiced for the gig. It certainly didn't help that Jimmy was WAY out of tune and couldn't even bother to properly tune his guitar for the gig.

[@paulstephenson7503]

Autobiographies can be very self serving and often not true however after listening to Phil’s book I watched the interview backstage. It was exactly as he described it and he was really trying to be gracious and reasonable in spite of Page and Plant being very ungracious and churlish. Strange how they rehearsed a lot for the proper 02 reunion suggesting they knew they blew the one at Live Aid.

[@craig8542]

JPJ never gets mentioned. PAY MORE ATTENTION TO EVERYTHING ZEPPELIN ACHIEVED

[@PaulFormentos]

OK, it was Jones fault, feel better?

[@turnerthemanc]

this is my take from pure experience. Please read. I was 15. I somehow got to go to Knebworth to see Led Zeppelin in 1979. Although 15, I was by then an accomplished pianist and loved music. I was a massive Genesis fan. I saw Todd Rungren Utopia, awesome!. I saw Fairport Convention, Magnificent and so talented! I saw Chas and Dave, consummate professional's at Hony tonk R&B. Then......Zeppelin came on 1 and a half hours late. Plants voice was awful. Bonham was way too loud. drowned out everything and Jimmy page was sloppy and out of his head. I dont think they had even rehearsed. What a shit end to a great day. Led Zeppelin: If they had spent 2 minutes to come out of their own arses and realise they wernt God, they may have still been here today

[@John-k6f9k]

I honestly don't get why Zep are so worshipped like gods. I know their early albums were very influential, but they're ironically full of plagiarism. Their middle period albums are patchy, their late 1970s stuff was disappointing. After that it's been a slew of bad solo albums and terrible reunion concerts (and yes the 2007 reunion WAS terrible) I also remember being profoundly disappointed by the album The Song Remains The Same.

[@chaseme65]

Boy there are a lot of people here talking out their ass about Led Zeppelin’s quality…both at Live Aid and before. Live Aid’s issues were about rehearsal…mainly. Plant’s voice was rusty, Page was drunk but this was more about being out of sync than clumsy…and that’s rehearsal. As for Zep’s talent live, ridiculous comments. Playing a live version with one guitar when the studio versions had multiple layers is going to make the live version a real challenge for anyone to play. Page is amazing. And this idiot host is wrong about Plant being able to hit notes during his Zep years. He has a unique voice and sang amazingly. JPJ is amazing no matter what. Incredible musician. In the end this was mainly about rehearsal.

[@KrisNicholsonPianist]

Phil Collins was the one SAVING the reunion. Robert Plant was on something, Jimmy Page was on something. If it wasn't for Phil the whole thing would've been the downfall of Led Zeppelin.

[@flintironstag9983]

You’re wrong on Plant never hitting the high notes live. From 71 and earlier and even some shows in 72 he routinely hit all the notes from the studio albums. A grueling touring schedule, 3 hour shows,substance abuse and playing sick multiple times had shredded his voice by ‘73. He was forced to get surgery to remove nodules from his vocal cords around this time. His voice somewhat returned to form for the 77 tour but it was never really the same.

[@leokimvideo]

The problem was Robert & Jimmy, add to that a hot day, alcohol, lack of rehearsal, and really poor sound on stage. Plant was having trouble hearing the performance. Led Zeps return was the massive disappointment of Live Aid. As history tells Queen ruled Live Aid

[@MatthewMaloney-fj4zz]

As Paul Gambaccini has said, Queen took Live Aid more seriously and professionally than any other act on the bill that day.

[@JoeGarchar1960]

Queen was touring at that time. You lack understanding of how things work.

[@MatthewMaloney-fj4zz]

@@JoeGarchar1960 Queen had actually finished their Works tour two months before Live Aid. They came back together to do Live Aid as a one-off event.

[@rhythmista7707]

The only reason the wheels fell off on that fateful day, is because both Plant and Page, bit off more than they could chew, after not playing together for 5 years at that point. Phil Collins and John Paul Jones kept it together as much as they could. Phil was jet lagged, having travelled by Concord from England to Philadelphia, with a 5 hr dfference in time zones, would be like doing a 45 min set in the evening, then not sleeping or resting, then doing another 45 min set in a different time zone. That's the equivalent of missing an entire night's sleep. So if anyone from Zeppelin, be it Plant or Page, or any other observing musician, blame it on Collins for doing a mediocre job, they are arrogant, clueless a55holes for saying so. Collins was a fucking machine on drums, vocals and keyboards, something which only John Paul Jones could understand, and not the other two clowns. Sorry Zeppelin fan boys and girls, but that's the reality and fact. Even looking back on that day decades later, Plant has admitted it wasn't Collins' fault that their performance was sub par. But he never admitted it was because of Page's extreme sloppiness, or Plant's rattled, weak vocals.. John Paul Jones also mentioned that it wasn't Collins' fault either. It was a disaster waiting to happen, when egos are flying on coke and alcohol fueled individuals. Sorry Plant and Page, but the performance suffered cause of you two, plain and simple..

[@Bigfoot-px9gj]

Phil Collins has stepped into some mighty big shoes before, and done a fine job.

[@arnesaknussemm2427]

Plant comes in a few bars early after the solo in Stairway. Not Phil’s fault at all.

[@kevinconley5076]

Random fun fact: The metal bands Ill Nino and A Killlers Confession perform with 2 drunmers. The band Ned's Atomic Dustbin has 2 bass players.

[@IWatchestheWatchmen]

The Melvins used to tour with two drummers. There is an Arnold Schwarzenegger gimmick band called Arnocorps with two bass players.

[@lassebongo126]

King Crimson had two drummers, two bass players and two guitarists during the 90's. When I saw them in 2016, they had three drummers. They sounded great!

[@DSPsWifesBF]

Fucking Ill Niño lol

[@djlehara]

NAD was awesome

[@iCrilleSwe]

Never ever forget Midge Ure, he was an important part of Live aid!!

[@jakethepitador2558]

All I know is I have to get Phil's book. Just that one excerpt from his memoir alone was awesome!

[@neilmclennan7191]

I remember watching this live on television, it was obvious Plant and Page were ot on form. The idea that Phil Collins ruined the show is ridiculous, if you watch them playing Stairway To Heaven, you'll notice how awful it is before the drums even come in. You certainly can't blame him for that one.

[@tpbrcombo]

No. There, I saved you seventeen minutes.

[@drdrew3]

Hearing the detailed explanation directly from Phil Collin’s point of view was worth the listen. The behind the scenes story has been muddied over time. Know we know how it really unraveled

[@alexpaulyoungthemuso3937]

Most simple answer is no Phil did his best to help out his friends and the quality of their performance comes down to all of them It was not his fault

[@dancahill9585]

Jimmy Page was chemically altered as he was most of the time in those days, and they hadn't rehearsed.

[@jasonleonard4000]

I just found your channel and it is AWESOME! I subscribed yesterday and now I'm binging the videos. I also love Phil and Genesis, so you're great in my book! Thanks for the entertainment

[@NicholasSadlier]

Big respect to Phil Collins - a case of a top professional tainted with guilt by association. I know what I think about the two protagonists of this situation but I'll keep it polite by not commenting.

[@truefilm6991]

Well I never ever thought that Phil is to blame. Phil always seemed like the voice of reason within the crazy world of rock music, full of arrogant nut cases. He was a fantastic drummer.

[@texasamericanpatriot8535]

Zepplin members are still pompous! Phil is now in a wheelchair, but still has his dignity! When Phil took the limelight from David Bowie, he made his own!

[@JustDatBoi]

Hey dude, what do you think of the new Manson album? I know he’s sucked for a while now, but I do think it’s far more listenable than most of his Tyler Bates era stuff.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

was never that big into manson

[@waynealvarez6519]

Gimme a break it wasn’t Phil’s fault. Sound engineer and Jimmy and some of Roberts fault. And that’s it

[@anthonylaspisa6992]

No way man Phil Collins is one of the greatest drummers that man did not ruin live Aid at all because he played with everyone great show mate live when does one show I will never forget why because I was there😊

[@farlow126]

The only Live performance I have ever seen where Plant’s voice was as powerful as it is on the albums is a KZbin video I saw when they were performing in what looked like a high school gym. He sounded AMAZING!

[@dez1989]

Yes, VERY early in their carriers. He didn't take care of his voice.

[@Teddy31976]

I remember watching that and Phil was on point. He doesn't drink and was the only good thing about that moment.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

well... at that TIME he didn't really drink, 20 years later though he would become a bad alcoholic

[@mr.blackwell5423]

@@DancingwithGhosts Make sure you marry the RIGHT WOMAN! Choose carefully! Sadly, I'm sure Phil's women destroyed him in the long run.🙄

[@larrylanberg3552]

Phil always drank. And was a big pot head in the 1970s. Although, true, he didn't have a problem with actual alcoholism until recently.

[@BBSC123]

I was watching them on mtv in 85. I agree with Phil i was just excited to see zep reunited. I never judged their performance. I never once thought something was wrong because PC was drumming. I was glad Phil was there.

[@larrylanberg3552]

Yeah I remember that too. In fact, I didn't hear anything negative about the show until years later.

[@cruzmizzl]

Collins- though messing up one note on 'Against All Odds', was the best 1 man/1 instrument performance of the entire Live Aid.

[@rgc3529]

They were all unrehearsed . . . They went on cold thinking they could handle it . . . And Jimmy Page should know better than to trust someone is going to hand him his guitar fully in tune at a big festival show. . . Not going to happen . . . And then Page attempts to play it all without practicing first. They probably couldn't hear themselves either cause of bad monitor levels and other noise. Festival shows are always disasters when you have multiple bands one after the other. They never had that experience before . . . Because they were always headliners.

[@NickThunnda]

Jimmy was shitfaced. Robert was croaky. The crowd loved it.

[@TheCrazyMoparDude68]

The reason the Robert, Jimmy, and John were acting that way is because they never wanted a ruin, nor did they ever say this was the beginning of a reunion. They made the decision after Bonham died to not go on with the band, they always said that replacing him wouldn’t be an option. And after all the years since they broke up, they have only gotten together twice, the other being with Bonham son on the drums. They have turned down guaranteed tens of millions of dollars to reunite, but they have always refused. So there was never going to be a reunion tour. As for the performance, the whole thing was pretty bad since no one involved really put in much of an effort. And that includes Collins. It was more like some jam session and not an actual performance. As for Jimmy being drunk, the man played some of his best live stuff while drunk and high on drugs. I think he just wasn’t into the whole thing and Robert was having issues with his voice. When you sing like Robert does, if you are off just a bit it will show. As for John Paul Jones, I don’t think he is capable of performing poorly, he is just an amazingly talent performer and will always give his best. And Collins, or should I say the drumming, wasn’t very good and was off beat several times. Now was that because of Collins, or simply because there were 2 drummers, hard to say since you don’t see what they are doing all of the time and can only hear it. The main thing is that you cannot ruin something that didn’t actually exist, and this was never a Led Zeppelin ruin because not all of the original band members were there. As a Led Zeppelin fan, I am grateful that they never sold out and reunited with another drummer to record or go on tour.

[@drdrew3]

What a contradictory and incoherent mess of a comment. Delete that and try again

[@tonymills4971]

Great commentary from Phil, he wasnt the problem at this show. Having a guitarist who was obviously off his face and out of tune is never going to go well.

[@dilansmithee503]

"You never go two drummers unless you are King Crimson!"

[@FarmerSlideJoeBob]

Fact XD

[@DragonflyII]

Or Butthole Surfers

[@tylerjsmithers8385]

Or unless you're the Doobie Brothers

[@chicagotransitauthority3161]

Or Allman Brothers

[@AdrianLay-c5i]

Or Gary Glitter

[@paul10018]

Being underrehearsed and smacked out would be the starting problems, one would assume.

[@John-d8p1u]

I watched this back in 85 live . I remember thinking Plants voice was shit and Page was off his tits on some substances while playing . The timing was off they played shit obviously not rehearsed. You can’t blame the drummer he did what was required

[@messi8921]

I’d say Page and Tony Thompson ruined it

[@drummerKev]

Umm yes. Robert Plant would always hit the high notes when playing for Led Zeppelin. I know, because I saw them eleven times live. Jimmy Page and JPJ and John Bonham were also absolutely incredible every time! I also saw Genesis fourteen times including when Peter Gabriel was their front man. But, when Phil Collins & Chester Thompson played together for Three Sides Live, that was the best Genesis concert I ever saw. Side stage lower balcony hanging right over Phil Collins while he and Chester played the In the Cage medley, my jaw was on the floor. Most amazing performance by Genesis of all time! This was before they were selling out stadiums.

[@davekennedy6315]

Another SUPERB video! I LOVE your enthusiasm mate!

[@DancingwithGhosts]

Thanks a ton!

[@D-Fens_1632]

Hell no. He couldn't save it, but that doesn't mean he should take the fall.

[@paulgreenwell1753]

I'm not sure this guy knows exactly who Bob Geldof actually is or the magnitude of what Live Aid was.

[@DancingwithGhosts]

i do, Gedloff was in boomtown rats but they were considered a one-hit wonder here in the states

[@anodeboy]

I shared a bear with Robert Plant a couple months after this. In Sturbridge, Massachusetts, and let me tell you we talked about live aid and what happened with the monitors. Then I couldn't get a word in edgewise. He answered by saying those bloody monitor cabinets😮. The rest of the conversation was great and lasted 20 or so minutes and this was after a performance with The Honeydrippers. So he was very pleasant to have a beer with and as far as Led Zeppelin's performance, it was totally thrown off by the monitor cabinets out of whack just saying, I heard it from the horse's mouth

[@abick8725]

Studio trickery? No…I’m not going to say it didn’t happen period back then, but you’re talking about a band of top notch musicians (in their genre) put together by Page who, by the time he was 20 years old, had more studio/performance/production experience than musicians twice his age. That kind of thing would not have flown back then, as acceptable as it may be now. That is one of the primary reasons why so many people nowadays argue that rock is dead. Billy Corgan said something to the effect of there’s a whole lot of “musicians” these days that would not have been considered so back in the prime of rock and roll and before digital technology has made it so easy to alter performances.

[@TDM1165]

Infamously bad. I mean, yes there’s been worse but when plant hoarsely bellows it’s been a long time since I rock n rolled, the temptation to reply no shit is overwhelming! Page looks like he doesn’t need a stairway to reach heaven, he’s so out of his mind on smack he’s virtually there. And the camera operators seem to have forgotten John Paul jones was in the band. Internally they were horrified which is why after yet another shambolic mini set in 1988 at an Atlantic records do, when they did that one off show in 2007 in London they made sure they rehearsed the living shit out of it, and in fairness whatever you think of zeppelin they demonstrably knocked it out of the park. Anyway I remember staying up to watch the rest of the Philadelphia segment of Live Aid when London had ended in 85, I would’ve been 19, and recall thinking the whole American side of it just didn’t have the vibe of Wembley, and Bob Dylan’s weird closing set was to come, when he went off script and started saying basically shouldn’t all this money be going to farmers in America! Like, Jesus Bob, the concert was for children literally starving to death, and hes talking about farming subsidies. The answer my friend isn’t blowing in the wind apparently 😂

[@DancingwithGhosts]

that's interesting you got to see it happen in real time at 19, shit i wasn't even born yet.. I watched the entire performance and i've seen SOOO much worse (i had to watch several rex viper concerts ffs)

[@SaltyChip]

Pretty sure Phil Collin’s was the only guy there that actually knew the Led Zeppelin songs that day.

[@CHARLESLAUTH-fi3jf]

Was there. In person it did sound fine. We all knew that this was something that wasn't going to be well-practiced. People were so excited for the surviving members of Zep just to be onstage together again. They could have stood there, said nothing and farted and the audience would have applauded. Have always heard Page's opinion on the show; thanks for providing Phil's voice.

[@donjohn2695]

Page ruined the performance he was in no state to perform due to the amount of drugs he had in his system also plants voice was shot to pieces while phil Collins did a decent job on drums the fact is plant and page should never have bothered doing live aid

[@eddiebrown687]

Jimmy Page was amazing in the studio....he was a complete joke live. Everyone needs to stop this hero BS and just tell it like it is. Him and Plant both let all the adoration go to their heads. JPJ and JB were the 2 that held the Zep sound together.

[@damianpimpinella977]

Listen to a bootleg of Vienna 1973 and tell me he was a joke live

[@nathanmitchell295]

I think Page really buys into his own aura of being the “greatest guitarist of all time” which has always been a fallacy to me.

[@damianpimpinella977]

@ Some people think he’s the greatest, some don’t. Where’s the fallacy

[@nathanmitchell295]

@@damianpimpinella977 because of that exact reason, it’s completely subjective, and I don’t believe such a title exists but there are those who insist on ranking guitarists and musicians as if they are athletes.

[@devingreco4166]

You are the joke.

[@bigdaddydk6460]

Led Zeppelin ignited my flame for rock and roll 22 years ago. Phil Collins’s Tarzan soundtrack was my childhood. This video was so fucking interesting to me and I really appreciate you for making it. Thank you bro!

[@DancingwithGhosts]

thank you so much!

[@predeterminedmeat5024]

1:29 What's that supposed to mean?

[@ralphmatthews4937]

Very interesting video involving two of my greatest musical heroes! I think a big part of the issue was that the Led Zep guys still had so much baggage with each other after what was a very tragic and no doubt traumatic end to the band, and both the other guys from the outside who were there were always going to feel somewhat excluded. Add to that the drama over how JPJ wasn't even initially invited and yeah, not a fun atmosphere. Still think they didn't do that badly regardless, still all great musicians. Much love from the UK, keep em coming!

[@quinnrollen]

Phil Collins was not the reason why it all flubbed so bad. Page just needed someone to blame for lack of rehearsals.

[@colinmitchell9128]

Simple answer: No. They didn't need any help to make a mess of it they did it all on their own.