 |
| Photo courtesy of Dana Gorab |
Songs will forever take hold of a moment in our lives – a feeling, an emotion, a pocket of time. Our first kiss, our first dance, our first heartbreak – the song is a portal to that memory.
When I think of my first love, I think of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. When I think of my childhood, I think of The Beach Boys. When I think of sadness, I think of James Taylor. We begin to knit together songs that create a beautiful tapestry of our lives.
When music took a shift in my life and opened up the sky, I think of Led Zeppelin. This is where the story truly begins. I was listening to Early Days and Latter Days in the car with my father while waiting for my brother to finish practice. I was 13 years old; he put on Stairway To Heaven – my soul and heart were forever changed. This unexplainable feeling of life, death, love, sadness and joy all wrapped into eight minutes.
The band became the beginning of my rock and roll journey and blew the doors wide open to everything I’ve come to love as an artist and music lover. If you don’t already know, the band was largely famous in the late 60s and early 70s and disbanded after their drummer passed away. Conveniently born in the wrong era of all my most cherished musicians – my idols are either dead or dying.
I missed the height of their touring days but was lucky enough to see their frontman, Robert Plant. This is a man I’ve idolized since that soul awakening moment. (I even had a band in high school called “Robert’s Plant”.) There had been previous years where the band had done brief reunion tours or shows, but I was either too young to travel or it was sold out.
 |
On June 15, 2018, fate would have it that my brother and I had a connection to front row tickets to Sheryl Crowe and Robert Plant at the Budweiser Stage in Toronto, Canada. The both of us shared the connection to the band – framed posters, vinyl, patches, stickers, lyrics forever memorized. We were finally seeing the force of one of our favorite bands.
I remember the drive over to the show; at the time he was promoting his solo project that had moved into more of a blues-grass type of feel. We were alright with that; with the hopes he may play some obscure b-sides of his Led Zeppelin days.
Robert Plant stepped on stage and did not disappoint. At the age of 69 years old, and a full head of lion hair, he opened his show with a fan favourite, “Lemon Song”.
Being in the music industry, I think a lot of the romance is tainted in regard to idolizing artists. We often see behind the curtain, but as he belted some of my favorite melodies that changed my life, the tears slowly fell down my cheek.
As the set progressed, I remember having a moment of pause and whispering to my brother, “This is it. This will probably be the most meaningful concert we will ever get to be at, we have to take it all in.”
He played some of my favorites, “Going To California” and “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You”. The tears continued to flow, as I floated back to my discovery of these records, my love of music, the direction of my musical path. I was standing a few feet away from an idol I never thought I’d never have the chance to see.
These are the moments and feelings we want to capture as songwriters – what our idols made us feel. Song tapestries of our life stories. That is the unexplainable magic of eight minutes. It could change your life in an instant.
I remember the drive over to the show; at the time he was promoting his solo project that had moved into more of a blues-grass type of feel. We were alright with that; with the hopes he may play some obscure b-sides of his Led Zeppelin days.
Robert Plant stepped on stage and did not disappoint. At the age of 69 years old, and a full head of lion hair, he opened his show with a fan favourite, “Lemon Song”.
Being in the music industry, I think a lot of the romance is tainted in regard to idolizing artists. We often see behind the curtain, but as he belted some of my favorite melodies that changed my life, the tears slowly fell down my cheek.
As the set progressed, I remember having a moment of pause and whispering to my brother, “This is it. This will probably be the most meaningful concert we will ever get to be at, we have to take it all in.”
He played some of my favorites, “Going To California” and “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You”. The tears continued to flow, as I floated back to my discovery of these records, my love of music, the direction of my musical path. I was standing a few feet away from an idol I never thought I’d never have the chance to see.
These are the moments and feelings we want to capture as songwriters – what our idols made us feel. Song tapestries of our life stories. That is the unexplainable magic of eight minutes. It could change your life in an instant.
Thank you, Led Zeppelin, and thank you, Robert Plant – I am forever grateful and will continue to search for that magic – over the hills and far away.
Love always,
DYLYN, singer/songwriter
X
0 comments