A very Zeppelin morning in Washington, D.C.

When I arrived at work today, one of my coworkers greeted me and immediately told me to look at the Style section of the Washington Post I was already carrying in my hand. I'm glad I did because there's an excellent concert review submitted by a fan by the name of Erik Huey. The guy appears to be very well versed in his Led Zeppelin reading, referencing the "sons of thunder" comment and other details only hardcore Led Zeppelin fans would know. Perhaps he visits my blog...?

Here is what Huey was thinking during their performance of "Dazed and Confused":

It is not long before the violin bow comes out, which Page proceeds to use for his trademark assault on his Les Paul. All notions of rock idolatry aside, it has now become obvious that Page is simply not human. He is some kind of formless shape-shifter, channeling darker forces as he languidly glides across the stage, his visage made all the more eerie by the shock of white hair that flows to his shoulders.

As part of Huey's personal story, he recounts a typical scenario he encountered during his transcontinental trip to England. It's like he's telling an old joke we've all heard before but is worth repeating in its latest incarnation:

I'm standing in front of a young customs agent at Heathrow who asks, "What is the purpose of your visit?" "To see Led Zeppelin," I emphatically reply. She nods politely and says "Oh, Led Zeppelin, is it? When is he playing?"

Talk radio station WWWT had also played a one-minute clip from Monday's performance of "Black Dog" and went into a bit of discussion about the Led Zeppelin reunion. Cohost David Burd said he'd seen some Youtube clips of the band and was very impressed with what she saw. His counterpart, Jessica Doyle, said she'd heard that the guys in the band are playing better now than they did back in the '70s – reason being that "they're clean now," she said. Then Burd joked that Jimmy Page does admit to being addicted to Vicks VapoRub, smearing it on his guitar so that he can slide his strumming hand down the neck of the guitar more easily. Burd also asked whether a DVD is going to come out officially. The British accent-using sideman who calls himself Nigel said it's positive there would be an official release. As to when it would be out? "Not soon enough," he said, adding, "I could get you one in an hour" off the Internet, claiming he has some connection with the soundboard man.

You'd think talk radio in Washington, D.C., would be completely engulfed in waterboarding and the presidential race. Well, it's not completely engulfed. We do still have personalities. Led Zeppelin is the talk of the town. I'm sure others of you in your respective cities and towns have heard or read coverage of the concert like this. One person listening to 100.7 The Bay – a Baltimore station, if I'm not mistaken – responded with a comment about the coverage on that station, and I read that Seattle was this way Tuesday morning with a local TV station going gaga over the group. How is the band being treated in your area? Comments, please!