* En anglais uniquement
Out of all the numerous rumors that have surfaced over the years of
Led Zeppelin possibly re-forming, it appears that the one time it came closest to actually becoming a reality (the mid-'80s), the drummer who was projected to take the spot of
John Bonham was ex-
Chic pounder
Tony Thompson. Hailing from New York City,
Thompson made a name for himself in the late '70s as one of the dance movement's leading drummers -- due to his hard-hitting style (which hinted that his playing was equally influenced by hard rock). Getting his start playing briefly with
LaBelle,
Thompson found himself part of a local Queens, NY, disco outfit by the middle of the decade (called
Ecstasy, Passion & Pain), and in the process, befriended musicians
Nile Rodgers and
Bernard Edwards.
Rodgers and
Edwards were fresh out of a punk/new wave outfit (Allah & the Knife Wielding Punks), and were looking to form a group more aligned with the fast-rising disco movement.
They couldn't have picked a better drummer to propel the groove, as
Thompson signed on, as well as singers
Norma Jean Wright and
Alfa Anderson, resulting the formation of
Chic. Signed to Atlantic Records,
Chic quickly became one of disco's leading bands (albeit for a short time), landing a sizable hit with its 1977 debut,
Chic, which spawned the hit single "Dance Dance Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)." But it would be
Chic's sophomore effort that would be the group's greatest artistic and commercial triumph, 1978's near chart-topping
C'Est Chic, which spawned one of disco's most instantly recognizable anthems, the number one hit "Freak Out."
Chic would score another chart-topping single a year later, "Good Times," but almost immediately thereafter began to fall out of favor with the pop audience (due to a mass anti-disco movement).
Upon splitting from
Chic in the early '80s,
Thompson's talents were put to good use as a session drummer, appearing on high-profile recordings by
Sister Sledge (
Love Somebody Today),
Debbie Harry (
Kookoo),
Madonna (
Like a Virgin), and
Mick Jagger (
She's the Boss), among others, as well as
David Bowie's
Let's Dance and its subsequent "Serious Moonlight" tour.
Thompson's stature as one of rock's leading drummers only became greater by the middle of the decade, as he participated in the all-star
Duran Duran side project,
the Power Station. Although
Duran members Andy and
John Taylor (and to a lesser degree, frontman
Robert Palmer) were the main attraction, it was
Thompson's powerful drumming that propelled the group's sound, as it scored a Top Ten EP (1985's
The Power Station) as well as a pair of MTV-approved hit singles, "Some Like It Hot" and a cover of
T. Rex's "Get It On (Bang a Gong)."
But it was
Thompson's next project that would be the most talked about of the decade for the drummer. With the mammoth Live Aid benefit concert booked in the summer of 1985, the three surviving members of
Led Zeppelin (singer
Robert Plant, guitarist
Jimmy Page, and bassist/keyboardist
John Paul Jones) decided to reunite for a mini performance at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Filling the shoes of the late
John Bonham would be an impossible but a much sought-after gig, and
Thompson got the nod. What followed that day was a horribly under-rehearsed and sloppy performance -- but it was not
Thompson who was at fault (he was probably one of the set's few bright spots). At the last moment (for reasons unknown), it was decided to have
Phil Collins join
Thompson as a second drummer. With
Collins obviously not familiar with
Zeppelin's repertoire (and visibly looking at
Thompson for cues throughout), it only added to the set's woes.
For years afterwards, it was assumed that this was the last hurrah for the "
Thompson" version of
Zeppelin, but it later became known that it wasn't. It turns out that in 1986, all four held some "secret" recording sessions in Bath, England. Although the sessions proved to be promising, they came to an abrupt halt when
Thompson was involved in a serious car accident.
Thompson continued as a session drummer afterwards (appearing on recordings by
Robert Palmer,
Duran Duran,
Platinum Blonde,
Rod Stewart, and
Jody Watley), but by the '90s appeared to vanish entirely -- although he appeared sporadically as part of "tribute" albums (
Jimi Hendrix's Stone Free,
Queen's Stone Cold Crazy, and
Aerosmith's One Way Street). This decline in work may have been caused by severe hearing loss suffered by
Thompson from his loud and hard-hitting playing style and extensive touring career, according to friend and
Chic bandmate
Nile Rodgers, who worked with him on the Stone Free sessions.
However, the mid-'90s found
Thompson in a re-formed
Power Station for their second album in 11 years, 1996's
Living in Fear, and its supporting tour. The album and tour reunited
Thompson with former
Chic bandmate and bassist
Bernard Edwards, who produced the album and handled bass duties on arrangements co-written by original
Power Station bassist
John Taylor. The reunion proved short and heartbreaking, as
Edwards died of pneumonia during
the Power Station's tour of Tokyo in April 1996. Years later after a battle with renal cell cancer (and oddly two months after
Power Station bandmate
Robert Palmer died of a heart attack),
Tony Thompson passed away on November 12, 2003, leaving a wife and two children. ~ Greg Prato