“The first time we played together it was stunning!”: The words of John Bonham in the forthcoming Led Zeppelin documentary

The long-awaited documentary Becoming Led Zeppelin is due for release in May 2025. And it includes a 1972 interview with Zeppelin’s late drummer John Bonham, as well as new interviews with the other three members of the band - guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant and bassist John Paul Jones.

A new trailer for Becoming Led Zeppelin combines extracts from these interviews with the sound of one of the band’s classic tracks, Whole Lotta Love.

Becoming Led Zeppelin trailer 11/2/24 - YouTube

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The documentary focuses on the early part of Zeppelin’s career - tracing the origins of the four musicians and charting the band’s rise to stardom up to 1970.

In the trailer, John Bonham says of the band’s instantaneous chemistry: “The first time we played together it was stunning. It was like a gift from heaven, wasn’t it?”

Bonham is also heard recalling some early struggles: “You could tell it was going to be a good group, but people wouldn’t even book the band.”

In the new interviews, John Paul Jones also remembers a negative reaction to the band in the very early days. “Everybody said, ‘You’re mad, completely crazy,’” Jones says, before adding: “I knew we were on the right track.”

Robert Plant recalls the excitement of that period. “We knew something was in the air… it was an electric atmosphere.”

And Jimmy Page says of his masterplan: “I knew this was going to be the way to go… I wanted this to be something that they hadn’t heard before.”

Officially billed as “the first ever authorized documentary” of the band, Becoming Led Zeppelin has been a long time in the making.

“In true Led Zeppelin style, it’s been a long running saga,” says Dave Lewis, the world’s foremost Zeppelin expert, whose fanzine Tight But Loose was for decades the Bible for Zep fans.

“They started working on it in 2019,” Lewis explains. “Then a cut was shown at the Venice Film Festival in 2021, and Jimmy [Page] was there.”

Lewis says of the finished version: “As I understand it, there’s quite a lot in there about what the band members did pre-Zeppelin. There’s a lot of emphasis on 1969. And it goes up to 1970. There’s the Albert Hall show from that year, and the Bath Festival performance from June 1970 might also be included.”

Lewis says in conclusion: “As the first ever officially sanctioned Zeppelin documentary, it is eagerly anticipated. I can’t wait to see it!”