Led Zeppelin have issued a statement following news in the British press that Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones had refused permission for their Live Aid performance to be included on the DVD release of the legendary event, which will go on sale in aid of the Live Aid charities later this year.
The band were reunited at the Philadelphia leg of Live Aid in 1985 - their first performance since the death of drummer John Bonham in 1980. Bonham's replacement on the day was Phil Collins who had flown from the Wembley show to Philadelphia on Concorde. The performance was not as good as many had hoped, and, as the London Times this week explained: "Concert-goers blamed Collins's tiredness and poor sound quality on stage for the band's lacklustre performance. Plant complained about the sound quality and Page perspired freely."
On the decision not to include that set on the Live Aid DVD a spokesman for the band told reporters yesterday: "Jimmy, Robert and John Paul found that both the sound and general reproduction of their performance at Live Aid Philadelphia was sub-standard. To show their ongoing support Jimmy and Robert have therefore pledged proceeds from their forthcoming Page and Plant DVD release to the campaign. John Paul Jones will be donating the proceeds of his current US tour with Mutual Admiration Society to the project."
The Live Aid DVD, set for worldwide release on 1 Nov, is hoped to raise in excess of £300 million.