Hi George great stuff actually got to see bonham and zep on the 1975 and 1977 tours at msg. On the 75 tour I sat in the 20th row when they opened the show with rock n roll. When he did his ending solo on the song I could not believe how heavy the drums sounded amazing to me almost a religious experience thank again keep up the great work
Hi George, it's Michael T, from Facebook - bass player/vocalist from New Orleans. Looks like this video is going to be some of my entertainment for the evening. Great job, as always, my friend
Hi George, John also was talking about going back to a black diamond Pearl Ludwig for the 1980 us tour with a 24 kick. I think is was around the time the ludwig kit from the 1st us tour was getting attention. Hope that helps...
Thank you George. Time is getting short for those who are reliable first hand witnesses. Let's hope more details and confirmations add to what's already documented so bonzo students in the future can benefit and enjoy what this truly generational talent gifted the world with his drumming .
The guy was incredible. A legendary drummer. He's the main reason I want to buy a $700 Ludwig supraphonic. It's sucks he died so young and didn't get to grow old.. kicking back marveling at his life. That's the part of life I do not understand? Why it has to be so unfair. I hope it all makes sense in the end when we all get there?
Great video, Professor George!!! The amber Vistalite is only iconic to him because it was featured in the movie. If the movie had been filmed in the early 70s or late 70s, the green sparkle or the stainless steel would have the iconic status.
2 x 26 in amber. One would be a spare in case of head break.He had a Rogers hihat with the amber kit. I had a pic of his ss kit live and a 42 strand snare on there. Plus a Rogers memriloc hihat
Bonham started using Paiste cymbals in 1971 according to Paiste. He used them before then but was likely sponsored in 1971. Paiste lists 15" 2002 Sound Edge Hi-Hat, 18" Giant Beat, 20" Giant Beat, 24" Giant Beat.
He started using them before 1971. You can clearly see he's using them from about mid 1969, 602 model, then he started using Giant Beats around Feb of 1970. Check out my Bonham cymbal videos. He did not use 2002 until the end of 1972, at which point he was only using one of them live. He then started using them regularly for the US tour starting in May 1973.
What a wonderful retrospective, George. Thanks for this. When I saw him in Ottawa in 1970, he was playing the thermogloss kit. Slaying it. I got a bit choked up watching this, thinking of what a great loss his passing was to my much-younger self and many of my muso buddies at the time.
Fantastic video George, comprehensive and obviously done with a lot of (a whole lotta?) love. A very well edited and informative video. A great reference for the many current and future Bonzo fans.
Awesome content George.That was appreciated .He regretted selling his thermos' .I love my 14x12 thermogloss power tom.,ambassador head,LZ 2 sound fer sure.
great video,but what about cymbal sizes???i read somewhere about 1970 to 1977 he favored one 18' crash (hi hat side)and a 20' on the other side (over his ride).there's also a rumor he sometimes added a 22 crash over his floor toms.the models are the ones you mention depending on the era,602,giant beats,and 2002
As I said in the description, the cymbals are covered in the specific videos I made about them a while back. You can search my videos for them. I made videos covering the hi-hats, rides and crashes.
Thanks for sharing your wealth of information!!! ALLLL systems go!!! I don't know anyone who doesn't love this video!!! THANKS for sharing BROTHER DRUMMER!!! 👍
Awesome video- so many people get the details wrong! Thanks for setting the record straight. It bothers me that Ludwig has never offered a TRULY accurate replica of any of his kits. What I would give for a green sparkle Legacy Classic replica with a six-lug 10x14" and 1.6mm hoops... or a Thermogloss replica with 15x26" kicks...
This was incredible. I just adore all discussion of JHB and loved learning all the facts/speculation as well as seeing a lot of photos I'd never seen before (like that first one as a teen looking straight at the camera). Thank you so much for all your wonderful work. One non-kit detail that I did a double take on (and apologies for the pedantry) is the possible theory about the Deborah Bonham/ Colin Fairley connection. As she was only 18 when he died, I can't imagine his being so kind as to sell his kit to Colin (who was a couple years younger than John and left String Driven Thing in 1975) if he'd been dating his baby sis when she was in her early teens!
When I started playing drums in the early 80s I read a magazine article (no internet) and it said Bonzo HATED the acrylic Vistalites for multiple reasons. 1 - they were cold and boomy which was the opposite of the warm maple green sparkle and maple thermo that he loved so much. 2 - the shells frequently developed stress cracks, not because he played so heavy, rather the shells were defective due to poor manufacturing. 3 - he wanted to use his favorite tried and true coated emperors and ambassadors, but they looked like a$$ on the transparent shells. So, he was forced to use the then new to market controlled sound clears.
@@BONHAMOLOGY Back then I had subscriptions to several automobile hot rod type magazines and several drumming/music magazines. I got rid of the hot rod mags a few years back, but I still have the drumming mags in boxes in my attic. If I ever find it, I will most certainly scan it and e-mail to you!!
Content I can trust, thanks George. 2 things, I wish I had kept my rusty Trixon in red pearl. It used to belong to the Edison Lighthouse drummer and it had a ton of Rogers clamps and a Rogers L arm on it. Could have been passed to him you never know. The other thing is I read a comment by Jason Bonham somewhere on instagram I think - that there is a green sparkle kit at his mums house (I'm assuming they still own the property) - It would be insane to see and hear that again, perhaps Jason might play it for us.
That's amazing! This video shows a short tour of the room at the Bonham home with the green sparkle . th-cam.com/video/VE-5hV4nS1o/w-d-xo.htmlsi=OLkn-wg8mjnYTG2p
Years ago I watched a video by Jason’s son Jager, in it he did a tour of an outhouse/garage which I presumed was in the UK. Inside the was quite a few kits on shelves that included the vistas but I can’t for the life of me remember if he said they were all his grandads. When I first watched it it had zeppelin playing in the background and when I went back to watch it again it had been muted. Now it looks like it’s been took down as I can’t find it anymore.
Some 25 years ago I had a Ludwig kit built for me through Todd Trent from Ontario Music in California. Todd was a well-known artist rep for Ludwig. When I went to pick up my drums, Todd showed me Bonham's backup snare from the '77 tour...a Supraphonic. John's wife had loaned it to Todd for display. A very cool memory.
Thanks a lot! Great video ! One more question about a certain detail : what about the snare wires. When did he start using the 42 strand ones ? Some people say in the later years but apparently, there are some early pics of him with the 42s… Can you maybe shed some light on this.
I feel so blessed I got to see the green sparkles on my first Led Zeppelin show in 1971 at the LA Forum and my 2nd show in Tucson in 72 then the Amber’s in 73 and my final show 3/5/1975 in Dallas. I got the dates right this time George lol.
George , your videos are simply wonderful combination of dedication and real fire. Might you consider covering "Go to Zero" as to my guitar playing ears Tony Thompson has that Morello/Bonham thingy whilst smashing the kit with substantially fewer strokes. . .most extraordinary
Fantastic history of Bonzo’s gear thank you George. Just only a few minutes(!) before you posted this my wife posted a photo (on our band WhatsApp group) a photo of Bonzo aged 16 playing with Terry Webb and the Spiders at the Red Lion pub in Worcester. Can’t make out the kit but the heads looked very well used. The photo is in your video. Appreciate all you do in support of drumming and LZ. Have a great Saturday evening!! 🥁🏴🥁👍🏼
@@BONHAMOLOGY Thanks George. fyi just seen Robert Plant on tv - in the crowd for the West Brom v Wolverhampton soccer FA cup came just about to kick off over here (11.45) ! Have a great Sunday.! Hope you are playing today. 👍🏼🥁🥁👍🏼
Great stuff George. Where did you find confirmation of him using stainless on ITTOD? I hate the drum mix on that album. Where are the toms? Especially on In the Evening & I'm Gonna Crawl. Album should have all sounded more like All My Love extended outtake.
Yes, I agree with you, I always thought it was strange how the drums sound somewhat flat and distant considering what those out takes sound like. You can see the stainless steel kit set up at Polar Studio. It's clearly visible in the photos.
Yes, I've seen that Polar pic. I wondered if they were just testing what the stainless would sound like or if they actually tracked with them. I'd kill for pics of them in the studio. Family, friends, crew; somebody's hot to have something.
Great ...also ...which I think is gone in modern times...is the art of tuning that Bonham mastered ..air flow of the two side heads ...and used heads ..he liked well beaten heads. Great stuff ...articulate indeed. UK
Thank you. That's beyond my range of expertise. Also, it's impossible to know really what was used in the studio. I know he pretty much had Shure 548s all around his kit in 72-75 someone with more microphone knowledge could chime in here
Fantastic presentation, George. It’s incredible to have all this info condensed into a single video. Extra thanks for the details on the first green sparkle kit (the Super Classic pre-LZ set). Was the Slingerland kit from the early days purchased by John or were those “borrowed” from the Yardbirds gear stash? Never knew the whole back story on that kit. Thanks again. This is a great reference source. Cheers🍻
Thanks very much. There's no confirmed background on the Slingerland kit that I've ever read. I've seen comments about them coming from the yard birds, but if that's true, why aren't there any photos of Jim McCarthy playing them?
Wow, what a trip about the Black Diamond Pearl kit being acquired by Tony Newman. He is one of my favorites, especially his work with the Jeff Beck Group on “Beck-Ola”
Not sure if anyone mentioned this below, but there is another black and white photo from behind the GS kit where he’s got CS Black Dots on all the batter sides. Bass drum too. You may have seen this already. Not sure the date or tour.
Man, thank you sincerely for this wonderful cumulative compendium! Great early shots on there too- wonderful.
Thanks George, much respect for your genuine care about our hero! John Bonham forever, never forgotten!
Hi George great stuff actually got to see bonham and zep on the 1975 and 1977 tours at msg. On the 75 tour I sat in the 20th row when they opened the show with rock n roll. When he did his ending solo on the song I could not believe how heavy the drums sounded amazing to me almost a religious experience thank again keep up the great work
Hi George, it's Michael T, from Facebook - bass player/vocalist from New Orleans.
Looks like this video is going to be some of my entertainment for the evening.
Great job, as always, my friend
Thanks, Michael!
I love that you keep talking Bonham when people don’t thanks bro
Love John Bonham ever. ❤🥁
Thank so much for this compendium!
That is the definitive guide of the John Bonham gear. Thank you for posting!
Wow, George, so great. I had to post twice. Incredible photos, some of which I have never seen. Thank you !!
This was a great 16 minutes of my life. Thanks for that.
Yes. Yes. Yes. The definitive video on this topic. Thank you George
Fantastic video and a wealth of information and some photos I have never seen before THANK YOU
Thank you so much for this informative video Mr. Fludas! Bravo!
Hi George, John also was talking about going back to a black diamond Pearl Ludwig for the 1980 us tour with a 24 kick. I think is was around the time the ludwig kit from the 1st us tour was getting attention. Hope that helps...
I heard that it was to be a black sparkle , I think in Thunder of Drums...but who knows the source of that information
Great job George!!
Thank you George. Time is getting short for those who are reliable first hand witnesses. Let's hope more details and confirmations add to what's already documented so bonzo students in the future can benefit and enjoy what this truly generational talent gifted the world with his drumming .
The guy was incredible. A legendary drummer. He's the main reason I want to buy a $700 Ludwig supraphonic. It's sucks he died so young and didn't get to grow old.. kicking back marveling at his life. That's the part of life I do not understand? Why it has to be so unfair. I hope it all makes sense in the end when we all get there?
Thanks for sharing this. It's interesting to get the history of John Bonham's drums. Very comprehensive. Cheers! 👍🏻👍🏻✌️🥁
Very interesting George, thanks!
Thanks George!
Excellent overview! Well done, George!
Great video, Professor George!!! The amber Vistalite is only iconic to him because it was featured in the movie. If the movie had been filmed in the early 70s or late 70s, the green sparkle or the stainless steel would have the iconic status.
What movie
@@Dragonwitmatches OMG, are you serious? The Song Remains the Same (1976).
2 x 26 in amber. One would be a spare in case of head break.He had a Rogers hihat with the amber kit. I had a pic of his ss kit live and a 42 strand snare on there. Plus a Rogers memriloc hihat
Bonham started using Paiste cymbals in 1971 according to Paiste. He used them before then but was likely sponsored in 1971. Paiste lists 15" 2002 Sound Edge Hi-Hat, 18" Giant Beat, 20" Giant Beat, 24" Giant Beat.
He started using them before 1971. You can clearly see he's using them from about mid 1969, 602 model, then he started using Giant Beats around Feb of 1970. Check out my Bonham cymbal videos. He did not use 2002 until the end of 1972, at which point he was only using one of them live. He then started using them regularly for the US tour starting in May 1973.
@@BONHAMOLOGY I had no idea until your video made me dig into it. I've been playing Paiste for 40 years, 2002 and Signature series.
What a wonderful retrospective, George. Thanks for this. When I saw him in Ottawa in 1970, he was playing the thermogloss kit. Slaying it. I got a bit choked up watching this, thinking of what a great loss his passing was to my much-younger self and many of my muso buddies at the time.
Thanks Sean! I'm glad to hear that it was that moving!
Fantastic video George, comprehensive and obviously done with a lot of (a whole lotta?) love. A very well edited and informative video. A great reference for the many current and future Bonzo fans.
Thanks!
Awesome content George.That was appreciated .He regretted selling his thermos' .I love my 14x12 thermogloss power tom.,ambassador head,LZ 2 sound fer sure.
I can’t get enough of this! Brilliant.
Thanks again George, enjoyed your video
Thanks for video greatest rock drummer 🥁
Really great research! 👏 👏
Great video George, very cool pictures and glad you included the 'Ritchie ring' bass drum muting at the end! ✌️❤️🥁
Excellent, George! Thank you for your hard work putting this together. Now we have all this important information in one place.
Thank you, Mark!
Nice one George great information, I recently got a 79, 402 snare I’m in bonham mode now 😁 👍
Nice! Thanks.
great video,but what about cymbal sizes???i read somewhere about 1970 to 1977 he favored one 18' crash (hi hat side)and a 20' on the other side (over his ride).there's also a rumor he sometimes added a 22 crash over his floor toms.the models are the ones you mention depending on the era,602,giant beats,and 2002
As I said in the description, the cymbals are covered in the specific videos I made about them a while back. You can search my videos for them. I made videos covering the hi-hats, rides and crashes.
Thanks for this,amazing details and accuracy.👍🇮🇪
Best video on that topic I guess. Amazing job George, thank you!
Fantastic job , super precise and accurate . Thanks for this
George…I loved every second of this video. More Zeppelin videos please.
I don’t know how you even got some of this information. This video is incredibly impressive (and informative).
BRILLIANT work, thank you!!!
Outstanding! Thanks for this!
Thank you!!
This was around 1988 to 92. When I began lining the set with foil
Thanks for sharing your wealth of information!!! ALLLL systems go!!! I don't know anyone who doesn't love this video!!! THANKS for sharing BROTHER DRUMMER!!! 👍
Very Cool video ! Thanks my Brother Love ya as Big as the Sky 🥁✌🏼
Love it! Thanks Professor!!!
Thank you for this documentation.
Awesome video- so many people get the details wrong! Thanks for setting the record straight. It bothers me that Ludwig has never offered a TRULY accurate replica of any of his kits. What I would give for a green sparkle Legacy Classic replica with a six-lug 10x14" and 1.6mm hoops... or a Thermogloss replica with 15x26" kicks...
Thanks! I've long thought same! Hoops should be 1.6mm though. 😁
D'OH- see, this is why you're the Bonham guru! 😂@@BONHAMOLOGY
This was incredible. I just adore all discussion of JHB and loved learning all the facts/speculation as well as seeing a lot of photos I'd never seen before (like that first one as a teen looking straight at the camera). Thank you so much for all your wonderful work.
One non-kit detail that I did a double take on (and apologies for the pedantry) is the possible theory about the Deborah Bonham/ Colin Fairley connection. As she was only 18 when he died, I can't imagine his being so kind as to sell his kit to Colin (who was a couple years younger than John and left String Driven Thing in 1975) if he'd been dating his baby sis when she was in her early teens!
Wow, that's a very good point! Something is amiss there.
"I Never had drum lessons, I just played the way I wanted, and got black-listed in Birmingham ....." John Bonham 6/21/1975
Awesome video! I have never been able to find the perfect tambourine ring for my hi hats. Appreciate the pic you shared
Fascinating, thanks for your work.
Very cool and nicely done George.
When I started playing drums in the early 80s I read a magazine article (no internet) and it said Bonzo HATED the acrylic Vistalites for multiple reasons. 1 - they were cold and boomy which was the opposite of the warm maple green sparkle and maple thermo that he loved so much. 2 - the shells frequently developed stress cracks, not because he played so heavy, rather the shells were defective due to poor manufacturing. 3 - he wanted to use his favorite tried and true coated emperors and ambassadors, but they looked like a$$ on the transparent shells. So, he was forced to use the then new to market controlled sound clears.
All of that makes sense. Do you recall which magazine you read that in?
@@BONHAMOLOGY Back then I had subscriptions to several automobile hot rod type magazines and several drumming/music magazines. I got rid of the hot rod mags a few years back, but I still have the drumming mags in boxes in my attic. If I ever find it, I will most certainly scan it and e-mail to you!!
@@BONHAMOLOGYwould it not be "Modern drummer"?
Would be interesting to see Zeppelin versions of Train Kept A Rollin/For Your Love interpreted with the double kick
Great synopsis! I have the same exact Ludwig Black-Diamond Pearl kit!
Nice!
Do you have any idea where Bonham's kits - other than the maple thermogloss - are now? Like the green sparkle, vistalite and steel.
No, unfortunately there is no real evidence of where they are other than a green sparkle kit at the family home as shown in this video.
Content I can trust, thanks George. 2 things, I wish I had kept my rusty Trixon in red pearl. It used to belong to the Edison Lighthouse drummer and it had a ton of Rogers clamps and a Rogers L arm on it. Could have been passed to him you never know. The other thing is I read a comment by Jason Bonham somewhere on instagram I think - that there is a green sparkle kit at his mums house (I'm assuming they still own the property) - It would be insane to see and hear that again, perhaps Jason might play it for us.
That's amazing!
This video shows a short tour of the room at the Bonham home with the green sparkle . th-cam.com/video/VE-5hV4nS1o/w-d-xo.htmlsi=OLkn-wg8mjnYTG2p
@@BONHAMOLOGY Damn!! what an amazing video! Can you imagine being in that room?
This is pure Genius! George is the man!!!
Years ago I watched a video by Jason’s son Jager, in it he did a tour of an outhouse/garage which I presumed was in the UK. Inside the was quite a few kits on shelves that included the vistas but I can’t for the life of me remember if he said they were all his grandads. When I first watched it it had zeppelin playing in the background and when I went back to watch it again it had been muted. Now it looks like it’s been took down as I can’t find it anymore.
Damn! I wish I could see that
Love it George, thank you.
Some 25 years ago I had a Ludwig kit built for me through Todd Trent from Ontario Music in California. Todd was a well-known artist rep for Ludwig. When I went to pick up my drums, Todd showed me Bonham's backup snare from the '77 tour...a Supraphonic. John's wife had loaned it to Todd for display. A very cool memory.
That's awesome! Wow
Very cool.
Excellent thanks so much❤
Thanks George! 👏🥁
Excellent👍🏼
Excellent research job. Thank you thoroughly enjoyed it.
Thanks a lot! Great video !
One more question about a certain detail : what about the snare wires. When did he start using the 42 strand ones ? Some people say in the later years but apparently, there are some early pics of him with the 42s… Can you maybe shed some light on this.
I feel so blessed I got to see the green sparkles on my first Led Zeppelin show in 1971 at the LA Forum and my 2nd show in Tucson in 72 then the Amber’s in 73 and my final show 3/5/1975 in Dallas. I got the dates right this time George lol.
George , your videos are simply wonderful combination of dedication and real fire. Might you consider covering "Go to Zero" as to my guitar playing ears Tony Thompson has that Morello/Bonham thingy whilst smashing the kit with substantially fewer strokes. . .most extraordinary
Thanks, I'll check it out
Till now I never knew about the black diamond Ludwig kit seen on the first US tour. Is it known where John got it or if it was new or used?
No, I assumed it was either rented and then purchased or bought in advance of the first tour
Thanks! You covered much or all of what I always wondered!
Good work George!
Thank you George! excellent info!
Excellent work, thank you.
Great video and excellent information, very detailed very well done!
Fantastic history of Bonzo’s gear thank you George.
Just only a few minutes(!) before you posted this my wife posted a photo (on our band WhatsApp group) a photo of Bonzo aged 16 playing with Terry Webb and the Spiders at the Red Lion pub in Worcester. Can’t make out the kit but the heads looked very well used.
The photo is in your video.
Appreciate all you do in support of drumming and LZ.
Have a great Saturday evening!! 🥁🏴🥁👍🏼
Thats incredible!! Great minds! LOL
@@BONHAMOLOGY Thanks George. fyi just seen Robert Plant on tv - in the crowd for the West Brom v Wolverhampton soccer FA cup came just about to kick off over here (11.45) !
Have a great Sunday.!
Hope you are playing today. 👍🏼🥁🥁👍🏼
Thank always wanted to know the order !!
good stuff as always..
Excellent, many thanks!
Loved the vid. I appreciate the hard work you did to produce it, Although it seems obvious to be a labor of love.
thank you george
What a great channel, thanks for this video.
You didn't mention the Rogers tom mount on the thermo kit.....lol
Aha! Good nitpick!
I thought Bonham also plyed DWs, I thought I saw him playing them in one live concert tour posted on youtube. Curious.
Well done!!
George never fail to impress with your knowledge and always your paying.
Thank you George this was great
Very cool George!
Great stuff George.
Where did you find confirmation of him using stainless on ITTOD? I hate the drum mix on that album. Where are the toms? Especially on In the Evening & I'm Gonna Crawl. Album should have all sounded more like All My Love extended outtake.
Yes, I agree with you, I always thought it was strange how the drums sound somewhat flat and distant considering what those out takes sound like. You can see the stainless steel kit set up at Polar Studio. It's clearly visible in the photos.
Yes, I've seen that Polar pic. I wondered if they were just testing what the stainless would sound like or if they actually tracked with them. I'd kill for pics of them in the studio. Family, friends, crew; somebody's hot to have something.
Nice to hear the Moby Dick from Montreux Casino @4:54... excellent job on this video BTW!
Good catch!!
So interesting.thank you for all the homework!
Great ...also ...which I think is gone in modern times...is the art of tuning that Bonham mastered ..air flow of the two side heads ...and used heads ..he liked well beaten heads. Great stuff ...articulate indeed. UK
Good video, good video. I love gear..
Very informative and well documented. How about mic placement and types used during recording and live performances?
Thank you. That's beyond my range of expertise. Also, it's impossible to know really what was used in the studio. I know he pretty much had Shure 548s all around his kit in 72-75 someone with more microphone knowledge could chime in here
Eddie Kramer would be a good source for this type of information.@@BONHAMOLOGY
Fantastic presentation, George. It’s incredible to have all this info condensed into a single video. Extra thanks for the details on the first green sparkle kit (the Super Classic pre-LZ set).
Was the Slingerland kit from the early days purchased by John or were those “borrowed” from the Yardbirds gear stash? Never knew the whole back story on that kit.
Thanks again. This is a great reference source.
Cheers🍻
Thanks very much. There's no confirmed background on the Slingerland kit that I've ever read. I've seen comments about them coming from the yard birds, but if that's true, why aren't there any photos of Jim McCarthy playing them?
This was great. Thank you.
Wow, what a trip about the Black Diamond Pearl kit being acquired by Tony Newman. He is one of my favorites, especially his work with the Jeff Beck Group on “Beck-Ola”
Yes!
Mr. John "Bonzo" Henry Bonham 🥁⚡️🔥
Not sure if anyone mentioned this below, but there is another black and white photo from behind the GS kit where he’s got CS Black Dots on all the batter sides. Bass drum too. You may have seen this already. Not sure the date or tour.
@@2mdcoe I never saw a photo like that. Never saw black dots on the green Sparkle.
@@BONHAMOLOGY check out the link I sent below