LED ZEP/ DEF LEP

I had this feeling that members of Led Zeppelin might be in New York, and if they were, there was a good chance they’d stop by the store. I crossed my fingers and prayed to the West 48th Street music gods to deliver the goods! Led Zep had just released a new DVD set in early July, and every guitar magazine on our display racks had stories about it. I figured they might be in town for promotional opportunities. After all, New York is the media capital of the world.

Led Zeppelin—is that a cool name or what? You might recall the story of how the legendary band got their name: One day, Keith Moon, the wild drummer for The Who, was talking to Jimmy Page and his bandmates. They were discussing an upcoming gig when Keith blurted out, “I hope you guys don’t go down like a Led Zeppelin!” Well, they certainly did go down…in history as one of the greatest rock acts ever.

I was blown away the day it happened. Led Zeppelin’s bassist, John Paul Jones, paid his respects to Music Row. The double DVD set had just been released, and everyone was talking about it. “Did you get yours yet?” a regular customer asked. “What did you pay for your set?” inquired the cashier. “Can you believe the sound quality?” chimed in one of the sales guys. As I glanced back at the magazine rack, another sales guy said, “Don’t look now, but I think John Paul Jones is in the store!” “Where?” I asked. “In the bass section.” “Of course!” I thought. I headed back there, and sure enough, there he was, standing alone, looking at all the basses on display.

“Hi, John, my name is Steve Pisani. I’ve been working here on West 48th Street for over 20 years. Nice to meet you!” He smiled and explained to me (and the whole staff, which had gathered around) that he was in New York to promote the new DVD set. We chatted about what he was doing musically and what new gear he was using. The conversation soon turned to old Led Zep war stories. Wanting to show off my Zep expertise, I asked him about the large Acoustic 360 bass amps he used to use—amps the size and weight of my mother’s old GE refrigerator!

John cracked a smile and told us a story. In the early Led Zeppelin years, he used a couple of those huge Acoustic 360s on stage. One night, while performing in the UK, the amps actually caught fire during the encore! Flames roared out of the bottom of the cabinets. After the concert, during a press conference, a reporter asked, “When did you guys add pyrotechnics to the performance?” You should have seen John smile as he told us his ‘Fire Amp’ story. After a few more minutes, he had to leave for an interview, but not before signing magazine covers for the entire staff.

This wasn’t my first close encounter with the ‘Gods of Rock.’ Several years earlier, Robert Plant paid a visit to the store. One of the stock guys came running over, yelling, “Steve, Robert Plant is at Manny’s!” I ran across the street and there was the ‘Stairway Man’ himself, signing autographs while trying to check out the store. His visit was during his ‘Honeydrippers’ project, and he had a huge hit with the old classic ‘Sea of Love.’ It was a thrill to shake the hand of rock and roll royalty!

I also had a not-so-close encounter with Led Zeppelin’s guitarist, Jimmy Page. I was invited to Les Paul’s 80th birthday party at the Hard Rock Café. The event was packed with rock royalty. While standing near the bar, I saw a commotion at the entrance and realized it was Jimmy Page. He was with a young model-type, and I tried to shake his hand but couldn’t get close enough. I made eye contact with the young lady and mouthed, “Wow, you’re with Jimmy Page!” She looked puzzled, and I still believe she didn’t know who he was.

Led Zeppelin paved the way for the next wave of heavy rockers, including one of my personal favorites—Def Leppard.

About 20 years later, 16-year-old Joe Elliott was doodling in class in Sheffield, England, dreaming about becoming a rock star. Inspired by Led Zeppelin, he scribbled ‘Deaf Leopard’ in his notebook. He saw it as a sign, and a slightly different spelling—Def Leppard—became the name of his world-famous band. Early in my career, Steve Clark, one of Def Leppard’s founding members and guitarists, strolled into the store. This was right before they hit the big time, touring with the ‘Joe Perry Project’ and Ozzy Osbourne’s Blizzard of Ozz.

Steve Clark was looking for a new Gibson Les Paul Custom electric guitar, nicknamed the ‘Black Beauty.’ He explained that he needed a backup guitar for their concert that night at Nassau Coliseum. I ran upstairs and brought down a brand new ‘Black Beauty.’ He plugged it in, played for a few moments, and said, “Steve, I’ll take it and use it at the show tonight!” I asked for passes to the show, and he arranged for two at the ticket window. That night, my friend Paul and I found ourselves just off to the side of the stage. We were so close, I could almost adjust the knobs on the amps!

During the concert, Steve switched to the ‘Black Beauty,’ but to my horror, the guitar fell, and the neck cracked. The next morning, Steve was back at the store at 9:00 AM to buy another Gibson Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. That week, I had a very good sales total!

Led Zep/Def Lep Coda:

Both groups went on to sell millions of records, routinely sold out worldwide tours, and became icons of their respective generations.