Adam writes… Of all the music fans that turn up on my Rock’n’Roll London tours, I can almost guarantee that there will always be a Led Zeppelin fan in their number.
The most memorable bunch of Zeppelin fans that I ever met joined my Rock’n’Roll London Walk way back in 2010. Anders Ericson and his friends, all from Sweden, joined me one Friday. And they brought with them the most extraordinary story…
Back To The Sixties
Back in 1966 Anders and his friends were in a band. The band was called called The Stringtones. They first arrived on these shores for an audition with Vicki Wickham, the producer of legendary pop TV Show Ready Steady Go! Here they are in 2014 at the end of my tour…
On the same visit they stopped off to hear some live music at the famous Marquee Club. The site of The Marquee is always a port of call on the Rock ‘n’ Roll London Walk.
I had to ask: “Who was playing that night? Do you remember?”
Their casual answer…”The Yardbirds.”
In 1966 this would have been the incarnation of The Yardbirds with Jeff Beck on guitar – the man who succeeded Eric Clapton in the role of lead guitarist. Beck played lead on the successful singles Heart Full of Soul and Shapes of Things.
As it turned out, another path beckoned The Stringtones and the Ready Steady Go! gig didn’t materialize. But they made it back to see us here in London. And it only took them 44 years. Of 1966, Anders said:
“We had a great time. AND we got to see The Yardbirds.”
The Archaeology Of Zep
A week-or-so after the tour I received an email from Anders. he wrote…
“We, The Stringtones, had a wonderful weekend in London remembering most of the moments we had in 1966. We even had a wonderful start Thursday before our Rock’n’Roll Walk, listening to Alan Price and Zoot Money at the Bull’s Head in Barnes.
“Please find enclosed,” he added, “a photo of The Stringtones at Piccadilly Circus in 1966.”
Here they are…
Anders also included…
“Photos from Marquee and the concert with The Yardbirds with Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, 44 years ago.”
The first remarkable thing about the picture is that fabled guitarist Jimmy Page is playing bass guitar (left of pic), the role in which he originally became a Yardbird – he would later move on to dual-lead guitar alongside Beck.
The second point of note is that the photo captures Page in his live debut with The Yardbirds at the Marquee. The date is 21st June 1966. At the mic is Keith Relf, the Yardbirds frontman who passed away in 1976.
Anders adds:
“I also have a photo of the band who played before Yardbirds. I do not know the name.”
Having done a little digging, I was able to tell Anders and the rest of The Stringtones that the support band is Clayton Squares, a Liverpool group noted for their twin saxes. Signed to Decca (forever the label who turned down The Beatles) Clayton Squares broke up a few months after this picture was taken.
As a P.S Anders added this pic of the Rock’n’Roll London Walk on Denmark Street…
Led Zeppelin In London
Huge thanks to Anders for such an amazing tale and fabulous photographs. the location features in the London Music Tours Led Zeppelin In London map. Have a click around below for your own self-guided tour of Zep locations in London. And if you’d ike to join me for a Zeppelin-themed tour, just use the form at the bottom of the page to book a private tour.
The full London Music Tours schedule can be found here: londonmusictours.org/alltours/
The Bull’s Head in Barnes, mentioned in this post, is one of the locations on the Rock’n’Roll Explorer Day: Barnes Twickenham & Richmond tour. They offer a regular programme of live music. You can check out their website here: www.thebullsheadbarnes.com
One response to “A Led Zeppelin Fan Story + Free Map”
[…] Check out our Led Zeppelin map HERE. […]