BONHAM
Band formed by Jason Bonham son of deceased Zeppelin drummer John Bonham.

Disregarding the Timekeeper Bonham - Disregarding the Timekeeper (WTG/CBS) 1989

1. "The Disregard of Timekeeping" (2:09)
2. "Wait for You" (5:02)
3. "Bringing Me Down" (4:18)
4. "Guilty" (4:37)
5. "Holding On Forever" (4:56)
6. "Dreams" (7:50)
7. "Don't Walk Away" (4:43)
8. "Playing to Win" (6:55)
9. "Cross Me and See" (5:27)
10. "Just Another Day" (4:26)
11. "Room for us All" (7:13)

Having heard 'Mad Hatter' before hearing this CD, I had an idea of what to expect. I have read many, many review tearing into this CD as boring, ho-hum Led Zeppelin rip-off stuff. While there are some obvious Zeppelin influences, I really don't hear 'Houses of the Holy Part 2'. This is just good, melodic hard rock; excellent musicianship, high clean vocals, captavating vocal harmonies and, as would be expected, a killer drum sound to boot. Wait For You" was the single from this album, which I believe did quite well for the band, helping the album to reach gold status. This song, along with several others like the epic "Room For Us All" are quite good. Having said all that, however, I am not trying to make this out to be the greatest thing since the Beatles, or uh, Zeppelin, but it certainly isn't the wad of crap everyone makes it out to be. As a matter of fact, I quite enjoy it. Since that is all that matters, I guess I will kick back, stop writing and thrown on some Bonham.

Mad Hatter Mad Hatter Bonham - Mad Hatter (WTG) 1992

1. "Bing" (4:48)
2. "Mad Hatter" (5:20)
3. "Change of a Season" (6:58)
4. "Hold On" (4:20)
5. "The Storm" (5:56)
6. 'Ride on a Dream" (5:47)
7. "Good With the Bad" (6:36)
8. "Backdoor" (3:34)
9. "Secrets" (4:36)
10. "Los Locos" (3:53)
11. "Chimera" (5:54)

Jason Bonham, son of deceased Zeppelin drummer John Bonham follows very closely in his father's footsteps on 'Mad Hatter', but sounding a bit more modern, not unlike Kingdom Come or Great White. Some of this stuff is heavily Zeppelin influenced, like the epic "Change of a Season," which is actually an excellent song on it's own and probably my favorite track on this disc. However, "Ride on a Dream," "Hold On," and "The Good With the Bad" are all within this same Zeppelin's style. Despite the obvious Zep connection however,this CD sports good songs, strong rhythms, melodies and harmonies. I cannot see any fa of melodic 80's metal/hard rock like Whitesnake, Great White, Zebra, Hurricane, etc. not liking this CD. Not sure what the deal is with the two different covers. I have the version with the tree, but have seen the other one as well.


Jason Bonham - In the Name of My Father-The Zepset: Live from Electric Ladyland
(Sony) 1996

1. "In the Evening" (7:15)
2. "Ramble On" (5:36)
3. "The Song Remains the Same" (5:46)
4. "What Is and What Should Never Be" (5:15)
5. "The Ocean" (4:47)
6. "Since I've Been Loving You" (7:53)
7. "Communication Breakdown" (4:58)
8. "Ten Years Gone" (7:44)
9. "The Rain Song" (2:26)
10. "Whole Lotta Love/Kashmire" (19:23)

I found this disc used for a mere 99¢ and actually debated whether or not it was even worth that much. To my surprise and
delight, this disc is quite good. Recorded live in NYC, the album features the drum talents of Jason Bonham, son of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, and a proficient backing band. Vocalist Charles West has a gritty voice that sounds like a cross between Robert Plant and Nazareth's Dan McCafferty. Bonham, the son, does and excellent job of emulating his father's style. With the possible exception of the vocals, the whole show sounds like it could have been an actual Zep show. I suppose some would frown on this, but I enjoyed it.

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