Havertown resident Denny Somach, a former WYSP disc jockey and Grammy Award winning producer, recently released a new book about one of my favorite bands, Led Zeppelin.
Somach’s company, Havertown-based Denny Somach Productions, is considered one of the most successful independent producers of syndicated and network radio programming in the United States.
Producer of the nationally syndicated “Get the Led Out” weekly and daily radio features, Somach has been on the bluesy Brit band’s case since the early 1970s. That’s when he started cranking out the likes of “Dazed and Confused” and “Good Times Bad Times” on Allentown rock radio station WSAN (1470-AM), then brought it here for a long run on WYSP (94.1-FM), where Somach helped establish the station as an FM rock radio innovator and ratings-grabber with the “Superstars” and “Classic Rock” formats.
Somach jumped into the syndicated radio and TV show business with his own production company in the early 1980s, creating the year-end “The News That Rocked” specials for MTV, then shows for USA Network, NBC and CBS. Eventually, he’d amass more than 10,000 hours of taped interviews with important music figures. Among them, rarer than rare chats with Led Zeppelin’s drummer, John “Bonzo” Bonham, and press-shy guitarist Jimmy Page.
But only recently did Somach get the urge to gather his Zeppelin treasures in a copiously detailed and colorfully illustrated coffee-table-style book, Get The Led Out: How Led Zeppelin Became the Biggest Band in the World.
“Lots of teenagers today wear Led Zeppelin T-shirts with pride. How many other bands from the late ’60s and ’70s can you say that about?” Somach pondered. “Tribute bands like Get the Led Out and Lez Zeppelin sell more tickets than any others, even the Pink Floyd and Beatles emulators.”
And, [via the Delco News Network]
A few years ago he [Somach] decided there was enough material in his massive rock archives… for one more book about the hard rock quartet of Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bonham.
The book features an exhaustive day-by-day chronology of the band that is followed by 27 interviews with music industry legends and insiders, most conducted by Somach. The timeline begins with the breakup of Page’s former band, the Yardbirds, in the summer of 1968 and ends with the Dec. 4, 1980 announcement of the disbanding of Led Zeppelin following Bonham’s death after a day of binge drinking.
The book is available online for as low as $14.97 so if you dig Led Zeppelin, like I do, then I suggest that you SUPPORT A LOCAL BUSINESSMAN and buy this book!
Overview
Get the Led Out is the ultimate book for the ultimate fan of the ultimate band–Led Zeppelin. This lushly illustrated volume begins with a unique day-by-day timeline based on Carol Miller’s radio show of the same name, and it provides a behind-the-scenes view, revealing quirky details, achievements, and adventures big and small. Twenty-seven rare, unguarded interviews feature the band members themselves, as well as other musicians and insiders who witnessed it all, including Jason Bonham, Chris Squire (Yes), Joe Perry (Aerosmith), Alice Cooper, and music industry legends Danny Goldberg and Ron Nevinson. The book ends with a comprehensive discography.
Editorial Review
Led Zeppelin had a distinguished prehistory as the Yardbirds and the New Yardbirds, but they really struck rock n’ roll after they adopted their new name in late 1968. The music made by Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, Robert Plant, and John Bonham reverberated through the pop culture scene, influencing rockers down to this very day. Drawing on dozens of exclusive interviews with band members and others, Denny Somach’s Get the Led Out focuses on the human story of the illustrious combine and features rare photographs and a comprehensive discography. (P.S. To date, the group has sold more than 200 million record albums.)
Meet the Author
Denny Somach is an author and Grammy® Award-winning producer through his company Denny Somach Productions–one of the most successful independent producers of syndicated and network radio programming in the country. DSP’s landmark programming includes Legends of Rock, Live From the Hard Rock Cafe for NBC; Rolling Stone Magazine’s Continuous History of Rock and Roll for ABC; and Scott Muni’s Ticket to Ride. Somach is considered to be an originator of the Classic Rock format and has created some of the most memorable programs in rock radio. He has appeared on numerous television shows, including the Today show, Larry King Live, the Early Show, Dateline NBC, and CNN’s Moneyline. He is the producer of Carol Miller’s Get the Led Out, as well as the popular Zeppelin website ledzeponline.com.
Maybe we could arrange for a book signing at the 2013 Haverford Music Festival. That would be cool. But, what would be REALLY FUCKING COOL is if Denny could get Zeppelin to tag along with him and play a set or two while he’s signing the book. I know it is wishful thinking but – what the fuck? – it doesn’t hurt to ask, does it? You never know until you ask.
Just close your eyes and picture this for a moment, if you will: Led Zeppelin, on a small stage on Darby Road on a warm and sunny September afternoon, playing “Stairway to Heaven” for us. It gives me goose bumps just thinking about it.
Come on, Denny, you can do it, man!
Related articles
- Rock Historian Takes A Look At Superstar Band – Led Zeppelin (philadelphia.cbslocal.com)
- LedZeppelinTickets.com Announces that the Hottest Tickets in the World are to a Led Zeppelin Concert that Never Happened (virtual-strategy.com)
- Led Zeppelin Honored By President Barack Obama At Kennedy Center Honors (contactmusic.com)
- JASON BONHAM On Why LED ZEPPELIN Reunion Tour Never Materialized (Video) (blabbermouth.net)
- Jimmy Page: Plant was too busy for Led Zeppelin tour (contactmusic.com)
- Led Zeppelin visit David Letterman, explain their sound in one amazing ‘sentence’ (popwatch.ew.com)
