JASON BONHAM On Performing LED ZEPPELIN's Entire 'Physical Graffiti' Album: 'Fifteen Years Into Paying Homage To Dad, I Wanted A Challenge'

In a new interview with Australia's "Today Extra" TV show, Jason Bonham spoke about the upcoming JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING tour of Australia celebrating the 50th anniversary of LED ZEPPELIN's "Physical Graffiti" double album. Regarding his inspiration for launching the show in tribute to his father, late LED ZEPPELIN drummer John Bonham, Jason said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "At a young age. I think, from being able to play from about five years old, I then heavily got into motocross when I was about nine. And if it wasn't for my father's passing, I think I would've been riding dirt bikes. So, really, it was my dad's passing that made me suddenly go, 'I wanna do this. I wanna follow in his footsteps.' And then here I am now coming up to my 60th birthday and paying tribute to the greatest music in the world, but also being able to play my father's music. And it's all from [the heart]. That's the thing we do with the show. I've been doing this show now for 16 years, and the only reason we keep going — it's because of the fans, but because it's still alive here in our hearts."

Asked what the "Physical Graffiti" album means to him, Jason said: "Fifteen years into paying homage to Dad, I wanted a challenge. Well, my favorite album was 'Physical Graffiti', so I went back and did some research and realized that some of the songs were actually recorded for 'Led Zeppelin IV', some of them were recorded for 'Houses Of The Holy'. I always say, why wasn't 'Houses Of The Holy' on 'Houses Of The Holy'? So, part of the show — it's more than just us playing the music. I explain some of the things and what it was like being around them and growing up in the household of Bonham and getting to play with, of course, Robert [Plant], John [Paul Jones] and Jimmy [Page]."

The current JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING tour setlist is built around "Physical Graffiti" in its entirety, allowing audiences to hear deep cuts such as "In The Light" and "Boogie With Stu", alongside cornerstone tracks like "The Wanton Song" and "Kashmir". The show will also feature a broader selection of LED ZEPPELIN classics, including "Good Times Bad Times", "Whole Lotta Love" and "Stairway To Heaven".

"It's gonna be more than just the album," Jason confirmed to "Today Extra". "And we couldn't just go and play it the same way as the album. We wanna keep you entertained. We wanna keep you sat in your seat. We want to keep you standing up. So it's a show, and we have some great stories in between and how things are put together. And if the audiences are good, and they're usually very, very good in Australia and New Zealand, so we can always throw in some surprises. The main thing in the band is you have to know every song to be in the band, and we know every song. So just shout them out and we'll play 'em."

JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING's tour of New Zealand and Australia commences with two concerts in New Zealand at Wellington's The Opera House on Tuesday, April 14, followed by Auckland's Kiri Te Kanawa on Wednesday, April 15. The tour then heads to Australia for the remaining five shows at Brisbane's Fortitude Music Hall on Friday, April 17, Newcastle's Civic Theatre on Sunday, April 19, Sydney's Opera House on Tuesday, April 21, Adelaide's Thebarton Theatre on Thursday, April 23 and Melbourne's Palais Theatre on Saturday, April 25.

Joining Jason in JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING's current lineup are vocalist/acoustic guitarist James Dylan, bassist Dorian Heartsong (formerly of POWERMAN 5000),lead guitarist Akio "Mr. Jimmy" Sakurai and rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Alex Howland.

Jason Bonham spent nearly a decade touring as JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE before changing the band's name to JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING. Bonham later explained that the switch was prompted by a request from the LED ZEPPELIN camp, who wanted to use the "Experience" name for a project involving the archive of ZEP live recordings.

JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE was formed in 2009 to pay tribute to Bonham's father, who died in 1980 at the age of 32.

Jason launched JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EXPERIENCE two years after taking part in LED ZEPPELIN's one-off performance at London's O2 Arena tribute concert for friend and Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun. The rare live set, which saw Jason behind the drums in place of his late father, was released in 2012 as "Celebration Day".

Released in February 1975, LED ZEPPELIN's first album issued by the band's own label Swan Song Records, "Physical Graffiti" features songs written between 1973 and 1974 as well as previously unreleased material from the recording sessions for "Led Zeppelin III" (1970),"Led Zeppelin IV" (1971) and "Houses Of The Holy" (1973).

Jason Bonham is no stranger to sharing the stage with the remaining members of LED ZEPPELIN, having filled his father's shoes on three separate occasions: 1988 (Atlantic Records 40th-anniversary concert),1990 and 2007 (the aforementioned Ahmet Ertegun tribute concert).