Bands Re-United: The Police, the Sex Pistols & Now Led Zeppelin

In the last couple of years we have seen increased activity from bands who have decided to reform after many many years out of the limelight. Sometimes after decades of silence. With 'The Police' selling to sell-out crowds after 20+ years away the race is on for promoters to drag out the latest classic old rock groups of yesteryear to tour the world at exorbitant ticket prices.

The coup-de-grace was finally achieved this year with the announcement that after almost three decades 'Led Zeppelin' has gotten back together. This momentous occasion nicely related through the pages of 'Rolling Stone' along with the enthusiastic comments of John Bonham's son Jason took place on June 10th this year. At 2.30pm no less. Yes, we're talking minutes here folks. Initially to play to a sell-out crowd at the 'what the hell can we do with this place white elephant called O2 (formerly known as the Millennium Dome) on December 10th - Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and the heir to 'John Bonham's' drumming crown the obvious choice of his son, Foreigners current drummer 'Jason Bonham' should be excited at the prospect of sharing their irrepressible sound with the world again and with ticket prices at approx $250.00 the world is once again theirs for the taking.

Many other big names have beaten 'Led Zeppelin' to the punch. But none have the excitement or buzz that's being generated by the possibility of these guys touring perhaps one more time. 'The Police' being the obvious example. Working in the building at 'Madison Square Garden' in New York myself I could hear the comfortably familiar sound of songs such as 'Message in a Bottle', 'So Lonely' et al. wafting up to my floor. Sting still the band-leader and musical guru has managed to refocus his tight-knit threesome back into a formidably proficient musical machine. With age his brotherly love-hate relationship with Andy Copeland is still there but obviously time has calmed them both. Andy Summers sticks to his fantastic guitar playing and the songs are refreshingly familiar instead of being what I'm sure some people might have feared being overly watered down arrangements caused by Stings foray into all things jazz, jazz and even Medieval since leaving the Police two & a half decades ago.

'Van Halen' whose legendary fights, mainly between David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen have announced that they will be touring into 2008. After numerous embarrassing on TV snafus and bad-mouthing who would have thought they could stand to play again. I surmise that money has had some part to play.

The Sex Pistols, who's seemingly once a decade regrouping still managed to rake in a respectable amount of bucks, especially in Britain where all the dinosaur rock acts of old are treated with rock/punk reverence. John Lydon stays true to his usual obnoxious rhetoric and thumbing every finger he has to the world but in-so doing playing the punk caricature that the media sees him as.

The Who and the Rolling Stones were two bands who seemed to be eternally splitting up, quitting, re-uniting, never-playing again and then playing sold out World Wide tours. There's something to be said for leaving them wanting more and certainly in the case of 'Led Zeppelin' who almost 30 years since their last concert have certainly laid the bait, although I'm sure of course it wasn't part of their master plan. We even have the Spice Girls, girl-powering it up for a last hurrah, solidifying the meager interest generated from both 'Victoria Beckham's' soccer marriage and 'Mel B's' recent stint with Celebrity showmanship 'Dancing with the Stars'.

Part of the current wave of success of reunion tours is the truly awful current state of what the radio-stations and MTV type video-horny shows play and promote as good music these days. We are given no depth or range. Classic Rock Stations abound playing the old and familiar, which is a shame in a way as there are some truly wonderful Rock bands up and coming but never getting the airplay they deserve. Now it is left to the last couple of generations of rock fan to search their collective memories looking for the good stuff.