Stewart stars as Bella Swan in the hugely succesful Vampire movies, The Twilight Saga. As well, she played Joan Jett in the 2010 movie Runaways.

As mentioned on this site two weeks ago, The National Portrait Gallery in London had digitized five photographs of Jimmy Page. The photographs, by five different photographers, were part of a folio.

Now, the guitarists website is making the photographs available as framed fine art prints. The Jimmy Page Fine Art Photographic Print Collection will make the “museum quality” prints available through his website. There will only be 50 of each print available, and each framed print will be numbered and signed by Page himself and the photographer. Cost of each print is £1,000 ($1,600 US). As well, a limited set of 10 deluxe portfolio box-set is available for £7,000 ($11,216 US).

The series contains well known photographs of Page by Jorgen Angel, Dick Barnatt, Neal Preston,Baron Wolman and Ross Halfin.

To order the prints, go to JimmyPage.com and remember, your friendly, but not that rich, blogger of choice thinks the Baron Wolman print would look great in his office.

The party was for the release of Speed of Life a collaboration between David Bowie and photographer Masayoshi Sukita. Jez Coulson was there, and reported on events.

There too, was the BBC, and unlike Coulson, they had a chance to talk to Page.

In the interview, Page says he has “been working on all things musical over the last… couple of years… without necessarily playing.” And next up, Page intends to be “getting together with musicians, and just be totally focused… on just that an that alone.” He adds that at “my time of life… I much prefer to put all my energies into one thing.”

Certainly, Page has talked in the last number of years about new music, playing, touring &tc., but nothing comes about. I’ll be sceptical until we hear something more concrete.

The David Bowie book, by the way, retails for £360.00 from Genesis publications.

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

Robert Plant introduced his latest project last night at Guildhall in Gloucester last night as the Sensational Space Shifters played to the 400 or so people who were lucky enough to get tickets.

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

The Space Shifters lineup consisted of Plant, Patty Griffin (mandolin, guitar, vocals), Juldeh Camara (ritti), Skin Tyson (guitar), Justin Adams (guitar), Billy Fuller (bass), John Baggott (keyboards) and Dave Smith (drums). Minus drummer Clive Deamer, this is virtually the line up for Plant’s Strange Sensation when he recorded and toured on Mighty ReArranger.

Here’s a setlist, lifted from a picture of the stage setlist:

1. 18 hammers
2. Tin pan valley
3. 44
4. Four sticks
5. Hey joe
6. Bron-y-aur ( perhaps Bron-y-aur stomp)
7. No bad news
8. Standing
9. Black dog
10. Somebody knocking
11. Witch doctor
12. WLL/bury my body
13. Satan or Siren
14. Gallows pole

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

They did play Song to the Siren, but it’s unclear whether Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down was also played. The setlist consists of old Plant and Zeppelin numbers, some old blues pieces and one number by Patty Griffin (No Bad News). Reports are that the show was “awesome,” and the few clips that have made their way online give the impression that Plant was in good form.

Here’s Song to the Siren from last night’s show to judge for yourself.

Thanks to Wyatt Brake for much of the information on the band and for his work in referencing the songs, and to Dawn Atherton who allowed me to publish her pictures from the evening here.

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

Photo by Dawn Atherton - Used by Permission

Called Bonzo’s Birthday Bash, Dave Lewis at Tight Bit Loose is today announcing a tribute concert to John Bonham on May 31st at the House of Blues in Hollywood. Like the Groove Remains the Same shows that preceded it, Bonzo’s Birthday Bash will feature a number of drummers doing their favourite Zeppelin tunes. “When I first thought of this,” Tichy told Lewis, “the idea seemed too simple and cool not to try; get a John Bonham replica drum set… up front, center stage, and have each drummer perform their favourite Zeppelin song with a house band.”

Guest drummers include Steven Adler from Guns ‘N Roses, Carmine Appice from Vanilla Fudge, Vinny Appice from Black Sabbath and of Course, Tichy himself among others.

The backing band features Tichy in lead guitar, Michael Devin on bass and Stephen Leblanc from Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience on keyboards.

Tickets are $25.00 advance, $30.00 at the door.

By 2009 the Gallery had digitized 70,000 images. Today, the figure stands at over 100,000 images.

The 100,000th portrait digitized by The National Gallery was a picture of Jimmy Page, taken by acclaimed rock photographer Ross Halfin.

The photograph was taken in 2009 and was donated to the gallery by Dave Brolen. Both Page and Halfin have signed the limited edition print, and it is part of a collection of five photographs of Page signed by photographer and artist. The other pictures in the portfolio are by Jorgen Angel in Copenhagen in 1970, Dick Barnatt at Earls Court Arena in 1975, Neal Preston at Chicago Stadium in 1977, Baron Wolman at Oakland Coliseum in 1977.

Page appears in six pictures in total at the portrait gallery, including one of him with the Yardbirds in 1966.  The gallery also has single  Robert Plant picture, as well as a Sandy Denny portrait.

Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson have been very upfront about the Zeppelin influence in their music, and have covered a number of Zeppelin songs during their live sets through the years.

The “Zeppish” disc will include Going to California, Battle Of Evermore, What Is And What Should Never Be, Immigrant Song, Misty Mountain Hop.

Heart’s Strange Euphoria will be available June 5th.

For eons, beginning guitar students have sat in front of books plinking away to the civil war standard Aura Lee (Love Me Tender is based on Aura Lee), Jingle Bells and the big closer, Guitar Boogie. Starting on the 1st and 2nd strings and advancing to all six strings within mere weeks. Chords get introduced around the time sharps and flats do, and soon you are playing with friends to learn the songs you really want to play.

Fun! Wow!

Now, beginning students have the Led Zeppelin Guitar Method: Immerse Yourself in the Music and Mythology of Led Zeppelin as You Learn to Play Guitar, Book & Enhanced CD from Alfred Music to immerse themselves in:

The highly anticipated Led Zeppelin Guitar Method teaches the essentials required to play guitar right away, applied to 26 time-honored songs from the iconic band, written in standard notation and TAB. Beginning with the vocal melodies, the method book quickly moves on to teach authentic-sounding guitar parts of such classics as “Stairway to Heaven,” ”Immigrant Song,” “Whole Lotta Love,” “Misty Mountain Hop,” “Over the Hills and Far Away,” “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You,” and many more. Zeppelin songs are used to illustrate and teach concepts such as popular chord forms, major and minor scales, power chords, hammer-ons and pull-offs, and much more. Carefully arranged to capture the essence of their original recordings, some song arrangements have been simplified to facilitate a faster, more enjoyable learning process.

The book includes much of the traditional method - including Aura Lee and something called Rock’n Rhythm. It is supplemented, however, by Led Zeppelin music throughout, and by the end is entirely Led Zeppelin music. By page 13, after such complex subjects as holding the guitar, notes on the first string, notes on the second string the Led Zeppelin Guitar Method has you playing “Stairway to Heaven (melody)” on the first two strings.

By the end, you have played the Heartbreaker riff, Stairway to Heaven (intro), Good Times, Bad Times (lick), Over The Hills and Far Away and fingerpicked Babe I’m Gonna Leave You and Bach’s Bourée in Em (which Jimmy Page often played during live renditions of his Heartbreaker solo).

A review copy has been sent and I will do a more in depth review once I’ve seen the actual product. As a guitar player, and former teacher, I’ll know if this is a decent product or not, but I’d love to see it in action with a real student.

Led Zeppelin Guitar Method comes with a CD that plays in a regular CD player and can be played in a computer, where you can slow down the tracks to play along.

Led Zeppelin Guitar Methodcan be purchased at most music stores, or online retailing for $24.99

Page previews:

Title Page
Speed Drill
The F Chord and Communication Breakdown
Triplets and You Shook Me
The Em chord and When the Levee Breaks

The Sensational Space Shifters feature Plant and his “wife” Patty Griffin, Justin Adams, who played with Plant with Strange Sensation Days from 2001 - 2007, Adams collaborator Juldeh Camara, and bassist Billy Fuller, also formerly of Strange Sensation.

Tickets for the Guildhall shops go on sale this Friday, April 20th (maximum of 4).

Also, I review Glenn Hughes book “Glenn Hughes: An Autobiography From Deep Purple to Black Country Communion.”

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