For Badgeholders Only is a bootleg recording of a rock concert by the English band Led Zeppelin, performed on June 23, 1977, at the Los Angeles Forum (then located in Inglewood, California). The show came towards the end of the band's 1977 North American concert tour.
Overview
The recording is notable for the band's strong performance, its superb sound quality, and the surprise appearance of Keith Moon, drummer of The Who. Moon plays throughout the nearly 20-minute drum solo and returns later for the encores. The concert occurred just two days after the equally famous June 21, 1977 show, which was immortalized on the bootleg Listen to This Eddie.
The recording that appeared on the original For Badgeholders Only vinyl bootleg was the work of audience member Jon Wizardo. This was not widely known for many years until the release of the bootleg's master tapes in 2023. Another audience member, Mike Millard, also made a recording of the June 23 concert, but his tape did not appear until years later on other bootleg releases.
Album Title
The title For Badgeholders Only most likely derives from Robert Plant's numerous references to "badgeholders" throughout the concert. "Badgeholder" was a band/crew slang term for a groupie, derived from the special badges reserved for that contingent. For example, before performing "Trampled Under Foot," Plant asks, "Is there anybody on the spotlights who could find us a badgeholder?"
Release History
The original vinyl issue was released on two separate double-LP releases, with songs from the concert featured out of sequence. The first release was simply titled For Badgeholders Only, packaged in a plastic-wrapped sleeve with a photocopied insert. For Badgeholders Only (Part 2) featured the remaining songs from the show, save for "The Song Remains the Same," which was not included on either release. The records bore labels with a dragonfly logo and the words "Dragonfly Records." Later pressings used alternate labels such as "Ruthless Rhymes."
Multiple tapers in the audience recorded the show, but none captured the entire concert without missing sections. Jon Wizardo's original master tapes reveal he fully recorded the concert but omitted "The Song Remains the Same" from the original vinyl releases, presumably due to equipment errors audible on his master recordings. Consequently, collectors and bootleg labels have compiled the best parts from multiple sources to create seamless listening experiences of the complete concert.
Set List (Complete Concert)
- "The Song Remains the Same"
- "Sick Again" (with "The Rover" intro segment)
- "Nobody's Fault but Mine"
- "Over the Hills and Far Away"
- "Since I've Been Loving You"
- "No Quarter"
- "Ten Years Gone"
- "The Battle of Evermore"
- "Going to California"
- "Black Country Woman"
- "Bron-Yr-Aur (Stomp)"
- "White Summer" / "Black Mountain Side"
- "Kashmir"
- "Trampled Under Foot"
- "Out on the Tiles" / "Over the Top" / "Moby Dick" (featuring Keith Moon)
- Jimmy Page Guitar Solo (interpolates "The Star-Spangled Banner")
- "Achilles Last Stand"
- "Stairway to Heaven"
- "Whole Lotta Love" (featuring Keith Moon)
- "Rock and Roll" (featuring Keith Moon)
References
- Led Zeppelin official website: concert summary
- Lewis, Dave and Pallett, Simon (1997) Led Zeppelin: The Concert File, London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-5307-4.
- Luis Rey (1997) Led Zeppelin Live: An Illustrated Exploration of Underground Tapes, Ontario: The Hot Wacks Press, pp. 396–398
- Giles, Jeff (23 June 2015). "The Day Keith Moon Joined Led Zeppelin Onstage". Ultimate Classic Rock.
