From humble beginnings the ‘Whole Lotta Love’ celebration of the music of Led Zeppelin has now been gripping Australian audiences for ten years. We talk to ‘Musical Director’ Joseph Calderazzo about the journey.
Mark: This year is 10 years for the ’Whole Lotta Love’ show, it’s a long time, how does it feel to have made it this far?
JC: It’s really good. We actually started twelve years ago in a tiny little room in Kings Cross; I used to run an acoustic music night there every Tuesday night. It was a room that held probably 80-100 people, and it was in the back of a bar. It was for original artists, who would come in and do their songs, I had some great artists come through, John Butler and Pete Murray played there, and all these great people, before they became famous. I had this idea of getting about sixteen artists together all on the one night, just for fun, and I thought of getting them all to do a Beatles song, in their own way, and that would glue it all together. So, we did that, and it was a really successful night, and good fun. We ended up doing a couple of Zeppelin shows, totally unplugged, with a couple of violins, a viola and a couple of cellos and it was really cool, and that’s sort of how it started. It started more as a Zeppelin unplugged vibe, and then we took it to The Basement, which is still a small venue, but we were able to go electric, and since going in to the theatres, we’ve been able to bring in multimedia and more musicians, more percussion, more strings sometimes, keyboards, so it’s been able to grow really well. I never thought it would end up in the theatres, and lasting ten years!
Mark: It is an amazing show, and of course Zeppelin is an amazing band, that people still love. Is there any pressure to do something a bit different for the anniversary year?
JC: No, we’re not really doing anything different; we’ve got three new songs, which is good. We don’t really change the repertoire that much, because it’s so good to start with. We have a couple of new singers, but only because the others were unavailable, both out of Melbourne, one is a girl called Dallas Fresca, who’s quite the rock chick, and she’s just finished touring Europe, so I’m looking forward to seeing her in action. The other is a guy, called Jimmy Couples, who was a contestant on the reality show,”” The Voice”, and he’s a real rocker too, he’s right in to Zeppelin! He will be great, and so I’m excited about that too.
Mark: Is Dallas taking over from Natasha?
JC: No, Natasha will still be there, she’s really good.
Mark: As artistic director, what are your main duties, and how have they evolved over the years?
JC: I guess, as creative director, it’s essentially up to me to choose the singers, choose the musicians, the songs and marry up the singers to those songs, and then get the set list in order so it becomes a musical journey. I also look at the lighting and how the multimedia is going to work as well. It’s pretty much the whole thing really. It’s changed in that the bigger it gets, the more people are involved, more crew and all that sort of stuff. I’m still doing things like booking flights, hotel rooms and transport.
Mark: So, you get to do all the glamorous stuff as well?!!
JC: Yeah, that’s it!! Actually we have a book keeper this year, so, I’m just feeding her the information, and she’s been doing the bookings, but yeah, the publicity stuff is taken care of by my business partner, Martin, so I don’t have to concern myself too much with that, as that’s quite a big job as well. You have to get the word out, and people come up to me and say you should have advertised, and I’m like, man, we just spent a fortune on advertising!! So, not everybody sees it, and I don’t know how you get that right! That’s a whole other animal!!
Mark: Yeah, I think the world would be a different place if we all knew how to do that! Do you know if any of the members of Led Zeppelin are aware of the show, and if so, have you had any feedback?
JC: I don’t know, and there are probably millions of Zeppelin tribute bands in the world! Some of them do the whole “copy” thing and are probably really good and tour constantly, but as for the band I’m sure they are aware of that, but as to being physically aware of mine, I don’t really know. There’s a good chance Jason Bonham might, because he was going to tour here last September, but it fell through, and that was our run too. I don’t think it really matters to me whether they know or not, but I suppose it would be nice if they saw it and said this is really good! It would be a great testimonial. We are doing our own thing; we are sort of moving away from the Led Zeppelin thing, and doing a cross between Led Zeppelin and the Plant/Page from the early nineties.
Mark: I think that’s the appeal, and that’s what makes it stand out from the crowd. Last time I looked there were about 2-300 cover bands in the States alone, but there’s no one doing this sort of show, as far as I can see.
JC: Yeah, I think it is different and quite unique.
Mark: Let’s talk about Led Zeppelin for a bit, as that’s what draws most people in! What is it that makes their music so timeless, do you think?
JC: I really don’t know. I think it’s very powerful and very passionate. I think any music that is passionate is going to stand the test of time, look at the classical stuff, Mozart and Bach, that’s all powerful and passionate music. Maybe that’s what it is, I mean I don’t know, it’s definitely all from the heart, Zeppelin music was never contrived, it’s so honest, I think that’s what it is, something that people do relate to. It’s your heart and soul where music hits.
Mark: I think you’re right, and I think for me it’s the fact they never seemed to follow any fashion, and were never afraid to incorporate many different styles in to their music. You could never accuse them of just being a hard rock band!
JC: Yes, that’s something I find appealing about their music as well. It means when you are doing a concert, there are a lot of things you can do within that concert to make it interesting. I have seen some tribute bands, and they just do the hard rock stuff. And I get really bored with that, and I feel they have missed the point of what Zeppelin’s about! There’s all the orchestral sort of stuff, the mandolins, and once you put all that together, it’s pretty exciting.
Mark: One of the hard questions I was going to ask you was if you were going to recommend a Led Zeppelin album, as an introduction to them, what would it be for you?
JC: Maybe” IV” would be the best one to introduce people to them; I’m not saying that’s my favourite album, but that’s the answer to your question. But, I think that one because it’s got most of their “hits” on it.
Mark: I don’t know if you saw recently, but Robert Plant was a bit cryptic when he was interviewed recently, about the Capricorns? He was asked as always, if there was any chance of a reunion, and he sort of vaguely alluded to the fact that he might be open to something along those lines, but you’d better ask the Capricorns.
JC: I think they will do a tour, I heard that they were auditioning singers as well, and Miles Kennedy auditioned, he didn’t get the gig, but, I read somewhere he said it was one of the greatest experiences of his life! I think they’re probably doing what they do because they have always been brilliant at marketing and stirring up interest, they always do it in a very cool way! If you read their books, they had great ideas, like Stairway to Heaven, was never released as a single, despite the fact it was played on American radio a million times, and the record company insisted on it! And Led Zeppelin IV, they didn’t want their name written anywhere on the album, and the record company said you can’t release it without your name on it, but they did and these things worked really well! So, who knows, it might be that sort of vibe!
Mark: Could well be! I’d certainly pay to see it! As a musician, what inspires you, there must be easier day jobs!?
JC: Absolutely! I don’t know, it’s just a decision I made years ago, that’s what I wanted to do and that’s what I stuck with. It’s hard, but it’s rewarding, if you go for easy the rewards aren’t as good, and you’re not doing what you are passionate about. It’s definitely not all glamour or fun, there are some real down sides to it, and it can be a really hard life. But, I wouldn’t change it, I love it, and I’m happy.
Mark: Who do you think have been your most enduring influences over time? Who’s the one artist that has stuck with you over the years?
JC: I don’t think there is just one, it’s a combination, I do different styles in what I do, and so it’s a combination of them that I have picked up over the years. I do quite a bit of jazz as well, I do a few jazz gigs, and I really enjoy that and that’s like a whole different language almost. I really like doing acoustic gigs as well; I do a few with Natasha Stewart as well, we do some great stuff when we get together. I do different things, and that keeps me evolving, if I had to do the same thing all the time, I don’t think I’d be doing it. I would get bored, that’s why I like the Zeppelin show, as it’s once a year, actually it’s been eighteen months since we last did it, and we only go out and do five or six shows, so every time we do it, I get really excited about it, and it’s a real highlight for me. I think variety is the answer!
Mark: You mentioned before, Led Zeppelin IV, wasn’t your favourite album, so I guess it’s time to ask, if you could have been a fly on the wall when they were recording any album, what would it have been for you?
JC: That’s a good question! It would have to be something early; I’d say Zeppelin I, the first album. The recording techniques would have been pretty basic, and it would have been great to see how Jimmy Page worked as well, as he produced all that stuff. That’s not to say that’s my favourite album either, but that’s the fly on the wall answer!
Mark: We’ll save that question for next time!! Finally, the question we ask everyone, what is the meaning of life?
JC: Did you want the short answer, or the more in depth answer?!! Be good to one another, and love each other, there’s a good short answer! I’ll go with love one another.
Mark: That’s great, mate, thanks for taking the time to talk to us. I loved the show when you came over to Perth; but I know how hard it is to get here: good luck with the shows.
10th anniversary 2013 East Coast Tour dates
Friday 26 April 2013 – Laycock Theatre, Gosford
laycock.com.auor (02) 43 233 233 – SOLD OUT
Saturday 27 April 2013 – IPAC Theatre, Wollongong
merrigong.com.au or 02 4224 5999
Thursday 2 May 2013 – Concert Hall, QPAC, Brisbane
qpac.com.au or 136 246
Friday 10 May 2013 – Palais Theatre, Melbourne
Ticketmaster.com.au or 136 100
Saturday 18 May 2013 – State Theatre, Sydney
Ticketmaster.com.au or 136 100
