Well it's clear to me that I have not got "the right" to spend $250 each for two tickets to the Led Zeppelin gig at the O2 in London. The entire method for giving out tickets is a disaster and to me is dishonest.
First of all we had a site that could not handle the level of interest in the gig. I mean what moron could not figure out that there would be a lot of people wanting tickets? So it was a frustrating effort to even register for the "right" to get these tickets.
Secondly the ballot system is ripe for abuse. I am betting that all the buddies of those are organizing "won" their chance to get tickets.
Inevitably they will release the gig on DVD. I, for one, am not going to buy the bloody thing and I urge you not to buy it either.
Anyone who does get to go, do us a favor -- count the brand new Led Zep shirts in the audience. I bet there will be loads of "right-on" types trying to fit in. It seems a fitting way to pay tribute to the boss of one of the major labels; after all they specialize in screwing music fans.
It's terribly sad to see the reputation of a great band sullied with this shoddy exercise.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - The Haze
I don't see Led Zeppelin speaking out against this "shoddy exercise". WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!! or maybe you've just gotten use to getting screwed! YOU SAY YOU WANT TO REVOLUTION.....WELL YOU KNOW.....WE JUST WANT TO SCREW THE WORLD.
2 - MrZoSo
Not sure why you are so upset with the way this went down. I think it was a great idea that actually gave the fans a chance to see this show.
Lets face it, 18,000 tickets would have went to the highest bidder and, it wouldn't have been 250 a pop. You will always have people come off as sore losers. In this case, 20 million of them.
This was fair.
3 - Sojourner Truth
Tuesday October 2nd,2007
Our Highly Frustrated Friend, Mr. M. Dodge,
One May "Easily" Agree with the 'young Turk'.
A few years Bygone, I would have Matched Him Word for Word,almost. The TENSION In the issue Remains,
1.) A Band With the Following,Tenure,and High Repute of LED ZEPPELIN NEEDED To --OFFER-- Two or Three More Dates... at the 02 in LONDON Towne,over a FEW Evenings! These Blokes are SENIOR... However, if they can DO (1) Show, They Easily Need to Do More !! OKAY Mr. Ahmet Ertegan
Was A great "pioneer" at ATCO/ATLANTIC Records,& He took A MAJOR RISK (' what Sucessful Buisnessman Doesn'T !)- on the Boys. (2,)WE are JUST Hoping that this " NON -- Profit " experience, is
not a given TAX-Shelter...( ie., 60% to Ertegans' Foundation & 40% To "LEDZEPPELLIN Enterprizes")!
Folks, these boys are playing in a League.. of 'MAJOR ROLLERS'. When the "Stones" can come off the road W/88 Million Dollars(U.S.) for 710 days of touring! Well, It Is apparent that the "ZEP"
Boys May need a TAX Shelter or a "LEAN - TO" in their $$ Money Market Accounts $$ ! John Lennon ONCE CLUED in PEOPLE on "THE TAX MAN". Give it some 'Earplay', when you Get a Chance!
4 - romler
This article is ridiculous. It's not screwing anyone except the dumb people not heeding the warning not to buy pass codes. Otherwise, it's breaking the scalper's wallets and giving everyone around the world an EQUAL chance to actually see this one time show. If this had gone the normal route through Ticketmaster only people able to afford $1000+ ticket prices would be there, bought from scalpers. Wake up people!!! It's had a few hickups, but Led Zeppelin is doing it the best way possible for the TRUE fans.
5 - Marty Dodge
Romler read it again. Do I express any sympathy for those going to touts? No, I don't. I just don't think the draw method is fair because its too open to abuse.
The ticket business in the UK is rife with dishonesty. Doing it via "lottery" is a great way of those controlling it to make sure their friends get tickets.
As I said before...I wonder how many actual Led Zep fans will actual gets tickets and how many connected people get them.
6 - Romler
So you are saying that the UK promoters themselves are corrupt? That's something I don't know about.
What I do know is corrupt is Tickemaster and their inside connections to brokers here in the states. It's impossible to get good seats for any show in the US unless you have an inside connection.
This lottery format should stop the scalpers (big brokers and little folk on e-bay just trying to make money off this) if people who just heed the warnings.
So if not a lottery, how do you propose to do it? I'm open for anything that let's only the true average fan have access to tickets at the original asking price.
Thanks ---- Romler
7 - jeff DuBose
OK, Here is my opinion. If this is a benefit concert then why the heck is this concert NOT going to be seen live on Pay-Per view?????? Over 1 million people and 20,000 seats. If it were on Pay-Per View and they charged $99.99 USA dollars a millions households here would pay to see them live no matter the time difference. Now include the rest of the world, HDTV wide screens, poop whan you want, get as drunk as you want ,with the company of your choice. So who is really losing out??????? Not us the fans.. But the charities this could benifit..Led Zep get your act together and put this on Pay Per View. You can do a lot for this world, like donate hundreds of millions of dollas to charities. 20,000 seats or help world hunger!!!!!!!!!!! My point is proven, please comment.
8 - Bill
how about some cheese to go with all this whining
9 - Rev. Chewie
Why do you say it's dishonest? Is there one shred of evidence that the promoter's "buddies" are getting preferential treatment? Or is it simply sour grapes just because *you* didn't get a passcode? (No, I didn't either, I wish I had! I'm just young enough to have missed Zep before Bonzo died so this would really be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me.) It seems to me that the way they're doing this is about the only way to keep the tickets out of the hands of touts/scalpers. If they hadn't done the lottery, the touts/scalpers would have, as they always do, gotten hold of 90% of the tickets and *nobody* would have gotten into the show for under a thousand pounds, more likely five thousand.
10 - Triniman
I haven't paid a lot of attention to the distribution of tickets. The article would have been more interesting if you explained how it operated and how you think it's open for dishonesty.
I'll buy the eventual DVD, I'm sure, as will many others.
You've got to wonder about the enormous pressure for them to tour. It must be Abba-esque.
11 - SLUMPY
Bet my house that there are 2000 tickets thrown out to people like Peaches Geldof and her squealy friends, Naomi Campbell, Pete Doherty...all scum floating on my pond but destined to get in.
The ballot idea was excellent, and if a few idiots decided to spend thousands on ticket codes after being warned...well DURRRR!!
12 - Steve Shaw
Are the smell of sour grapes in the morning.
Goldsmith has been saying since before the concert was even confirmed that no touted tickets would be honoured so not to buy from touts. How can we complain about the problem whilst being eager to contribute to it?
If half the tickets have gone to friends (which I doubt) that would still have been possible if the tickets had been distributed on a first come first served principle.
Rather than bickering amongst our selves we should be putting all the pressure on the band (MR Plant!)to do the tour the whole world so obviously wants.
A long time ago in Brussels I found my self in the position of having 2 spare LZ tickets. I sold them for what I paid for them to the first 2 ticketless fans that came along. That's what being a fan of the World's Greatest Band means to me.
13 - Ian !
I'll bet you now that Peaches et al don't get in. This band never played the celebrity party gig and won't now. And this is the only band that would have the integrity not to cash in by arranging 5 nights at Wembley stadium etc.
Believe Robert Plant - this is not about money, its about celebrating their friend and a chance to put the band to bed once and for all with 1 final killer gig.
The legacy remains the same.
And no - I didn't get a ticket either.
14 - Zoso69
Can't everybody see that this is this the greatest PR exercise in the world. Page is the master of generating subversive PR, he bypassing the mainstream media and generates huge interest in other ways. Looks like he's pulled of another masterstroke. oh and i'm going to the gig
15 - Raymond Hill
Mr Goldsmith, the pay-per-view suggestion is a very good one. It would do wonders for the charity! It has been clear that not everyone who wanted to go would be able to and that a lottery was probably the best way to deal with this. The other would have been to charge £500 a ticket. Why does anyone doubt that members of "the industry" and their leggy blond girlfriends will be sitting in the front row!
16 - James
Whinge, whinge, whinge.
I'm 20 years old and I consider myself to be a Led Zeppelin fan. Their music has changed my life and set me on a collision course with a destiny I mightn't have otherwise reached without Mr. Plant's voice and Mr. Page's strings.
I didn't get a ticket in the recent ballot, but I ask all of you complaining about it.
What better way could they have offered tickets?
If it was a first-come, first-serve thing then we'd see the corporate tickets filling up most of the seating, going on-sale days before the 'general public' tickets (just like the recent Guns N Roses show's here in Australia).
The ballot gave everyone an equal chance. It levelled the poor person who would JUST be able to go and the millionaire who can ring Mr. Goldsmith himself. There's no proof behind the accusations of 'friends' getting a definite draw in the ballot and it makes everyone saying so seem childish beyond all hope.
I'm shattered that I didn't get in. But before I started my tyraid against the man who organised the last Zeppelin show ever, or against a band who technically disbanded almost thirty years ago, I did a little research and actually used my brain.
Any tickets seen on eBay will be cancelled immediately. This was said on the registration forms when you signed up. Anyone buying off of eBay deserves to lose their money because it was quite clear and every bit of coverage I've seen (which is a lot, I've scoured the web) has said the same thing. I've also read in more than one place that you need to purchase your ticket within 72 hours of receiving a winning email or your pass-code will be deactivated.
Think about this:
Every passcode seen on eBay will be cancelled. They won't leave those seats empty, they'll re-allocate the tickets.
Every person who went in it because, "it's free and I MIGHT win!" that can't actually afford it now knows they can't re-sell it. They'll HAVE to let the email pass up which again means they'll have to re-allocate those tickets.
It says, in black and white, right here that any cancelled or unclaimed tickets will be re-allocated in a second draw. Given the nature of the exercise a second draw will still yield some null results prompting a third draw and so on.
People are telling me I'm foolishly holding out hope but I consider myself to not be sticking my head in the sand and yelling about a band not caring about their fans or various other pieces of claptrap.
I personally think all you negative people who've got a bad word to say about the organiser, organisation and, worst of all, the band, should take a step back and look again at the calibre we're dealing with.
It's commonly accepted that the Mighty Zep are the greatest band ever. Not to come, but ever. Ever was, is and ever will be. When you have a reputation like that behind you and you're approaching 60, are you going to risk putting on some bad shows just to sell more tickets?
I whole-heartedly agree with Mr. Plant's statements and decisions. As he said, they've done some bad shows and they want to go out with one last, perfect gig. Irrespective of who's there the gig will be perfect and I know I'll be watching it on TV and snatching up the DVD the moment it's available.
It's heartbraking that he intends to step away from the music industry and his career simply because it's one of my dreams to sing harmonies with him on some tracks one day but, eh... When I'm in his position, with the world begging for a reunion, I know I'll be giving it serious thought.
And I know people behaving the way so many of the 'unlucky' ones are would make me less and less interested in doing a full-scale tour.
Suck it up. It's not the end of the world and the band doesn't owe you a single thing.
17 - magiczep
Stop the whining,this was the best way to stop the scummy profiteers cashing in. I am lucky,very very lucky as I got a winning email and am going to see them again after more than twenty years. The missus thinks I am god atm. Anyway all of you who missied out may still get a chance to get a ticket so dont give up hope as they will soon be cancelling all those scummy profiteers tickets and putting them up in a second ballot, so keep watch on your email. Good luck to you all, its going to be one helluva night to remember.
18 - Greeny
I think that the ballot systerm was as fair a system as we could wish for.
I did not get a ticket and am extremely dissapointed.
Dissapointed in the band I have supported for 32 yrs, not the promoter.
I am sure Ahnmet Eryegun was a very dear friend and suporter who made a big difference to their careeer with the aid of Peter Grant
But what about the fans?
What about those that bought every LP and then CD and then CD remaster and then Cd remaster in album sleeve format andevery Greatest hits package even though some of this stuff offered very little new for us.
What about the fans who supported these guys on all their solo tours, when they really needed us.
What about the fans that have always defended them and been with them from day 1.
They owe us as well as Ahmet Eteegun.
Even when they were in their prime,the UK did not recive the touring foucs that the USA had.
How are we rewarded?
One date.
I am bitterly dissapointed.
19 - inmytimeofdying99
actually, mr goldsmith's 'friends' did get tickets without the need to register seeing as a know some that did, so how many actual tickets are????? hmm probably around 18 000, maybe less. but yeh zeppelin should definatley broadcast it or def release it on dvd how cream did
20 - rich
i'm approximately 37 years past my first zeppelin concert. i live across the pond and would be there in a second. i missed the lottery and have been reading and watching since october 1st. really think about how would you would meet the demand with one performance. the lottery was meant to give open access (agreed some issues), beat the scalpers, and let the money go where it should. thank the greedy bastards who stole your ticket with no intent of participating except make some bucks. hopefully the band sees the demand and takes care of business in short order. otherwise work as hard at justice and world peace as you are on this blog! the song remains the same!
21 - Charles
Seems like blogcritics likes to delete certain comments if they aren't rants...
Once again, this is not ever going to be on DVD or broadcast according to reports...
see the url by my name and maturely sign the petition asking them to do so.
And yes, the method used was a well intentioned attempt, but could have been executed in a better fashion. But, too little too late. As long as ticketmaster gets paid and that goes the charity, whoever ends up paying that last leg should be allowed to attend.
22 - ed o'riley
How would you feel if you were in the U.S. and not even having a chance of going? America made Zep famous long before the U.K. accepted them as a "real band".
Don't moan the blues Marty...just be part of the Plan.
Is this concert fair to everyone? No. Zep could have played Wembley AND Giants Stadium in New Jersey USA for months and sold them both out!
So, it's all crazy - but all good, would we rather have NO Zep at all?
Inside info - there will be no DVD of this event, no record of this concert at all except for the press reports and those who will attend.
23 - MrZoSo
Listen, Screw the audience and the ticket holders. Never mind this ticket crying crap ok. If you want to discuss how Zeppelin fans get screwed lets talk honestly. Robert Plant doesn't give a shi-t about Zeppelin fans. We all know this. But to have a one off concert, and announce it to the whole world as such, in it self is beyond selfish. Screw there fans? lol. Plant has been doing that for the better half of 25 years with a small reprieve of a Page/Plant reunion that was watered down sappy versions of Jimmy Pages music. Insulting Zeppelin fans by calling them a boy band yet, 80% of his shows are Zeppelin covers while 99.9 % are Zeppelin fans who pay to see whatever he calls his horrible band. Who is doing all the talking and interviews? Shocked its Plant? It's not his band, never was, F him.
Led Zeppelin fans have gotten very used to being screwed. Will it be the same as it was for one night? No. Age and death has taken that away but, the hope here is that for one f-ing night, the real Led Zeppelin will emerge, and give us what we have been waiting for since the death of John Bonham.
A real Led Zeppelin show.
And that is what Zeppelin fans have been screwed out of all these years.
24 - James
Been working from seven, to eleven every night
Kinda makes life a drag
I don't think thats right
25 - Charles
Sign the petition!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THEN PASS IT ON!!!!!!!!!
SIGN THE PETITION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THEN PASS IT ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!