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John Bonham

                                                                                                                                                                         Drummer John Henry Bonham was born in Redditch, England in (b.1948). His early musical training came from rhythmic beating on pots and pans that he confiscated from the kitchen. By the age of ten he had moved up to a real drum, and then later a complete used drum kit his father bought for him.

    By 1968 he had won a noteworthy reputation that had several groups making him offers of membership. One was a heavy rock band called the New Yardbirds. The Yardbirds didn't offer as much pay as some of the others, but Bonham joined anyway. The guitarist in this little band was Jimmy Page. Chris Dreja was bassist, and Robert Plant was the new singer. Thanks to a comment made by Keith Moon, a member of the Who, the band's name was changed to Led Zeppelin. The rest is album rock history.

    A part of that history came to a premature end in 1980. John Bonham, only 33 years young, was known as a man who loved his alcohol. On September 24th he downed somewhere over three dozen straight shots of vodka in just a few hours. He passed out, and by swallowing his own vomit, died shortly after. Left to grieve his loss and ask why, were his wife, two children, many friends, and tons of fans. The band Led Zeppelin didn't recover, and called it quits within three months.

    In 1994 the members of Led Zeppelin, including Bonham, were inducted into the Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame. The next year they each received a lifetime achievement award.