The English rock band Led Zeppelin staged a concert tour of Scandinavia in September1968. The shows marked the band's first concert tour, though they were billed under the name "the Yardbirds".
Overview Led Zeppelin's debut tour was an outstanding contractual commitment left over from The Yardbirds. The band's first concert at Teen Club, a school gymnasium in Gladsaxe, Denmark, was performed exactly two months to the day after The Yardbirds' final concert.Mick Wall (2008), When Giants Walked the Earth: A Biography Of Led Zeppelin, London: Orion, p. 47. The band's manager, Peter Grant, later said of this first concert: "Standing by the side of the stage, it was obvious that there was special chemistry."Ian Fortnam, "Dazed & confused", Classic Rock Magazine: Classic Rock Presents Led Zeppelin, 2008, p. 41.
Guitarist Jimmy Page recalled that "the tour went fantastically for us, we left them stomping the floors after every show."Dave Schulps, Interview with Jimmy Page , Trouser Press, October 1977. According to singer Robert Plant:
Plant also recalled the following:
For these early shows, the band was billed as the "Yardbirds" or "New Yardbirds", despite the fact that Jimmy Page was now the only surviving link with the previous band. Page later said:
Tour dates + List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue and opening acts Date City Country Venue Opening Act(s)7 September 1968GladsaxeDenmarkGladsaxe Teen ClubFourways, BodiesBrøndbyBrøndby Pop-ClubThe Day of Phønix, The Eyes8 September 1968LollandReventlowparkenBeatnicksRoskildeFjordvillaLadyBirds (es), Beauty FoolsKøgeTeaterbygningen12 September 1968StockholmSwedenGröna LundHep Stars, Marmalade13 September 1968InsideBernt Staf, Bertil Bertilsson14 September 1968KnivstaÄngby ParkKenneth Staags with Hayati Kafé15 September 1968GothenburgLiseberg17 September 1968MalmöFolkets Park16 September 1968OsloNorwayFolkets Hus Abildsø
Setlist The setlists of the earliest shows are sketchy, as no recordings of these shows exist.
A likely setlist for this tour consisted of: "Train Kept A-Rollin'" "I Can't Quit You Baby" "Dazed and Confused" "How Many More Times" "White Summer" "For Your Love" "You Shook Me" "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" "As Long As I Have You" "Communication Breakdown"
References
Sources Lewis, Dave and Pallett, Simon (1997) Led Zeppelin: The Concert File, London: Omnibus Press. .
External links Comprehensive archive of known concert appearances by Led Zeppelin (official website) Led Zeppelin concert setlists Led Zeppelin's first concert ever - 7 September 1968 at Gladsaxe Teen Club View in Google Earth