Dread Zeppelin

Dread Zeppelin was an American reggae rock band. They got their start in 1989 in Sierra Madre, California, blending hard rock, reggae, and comedy. The group became famous for covering Led Zeppelin songs in a reggae style, with a Las Vegas Elvis impersonator on vocals. Their setlist also included tunes originally by Elvis Presley, Bob Marley, and The Yardbirds. While signed to I.R.S. Records, they toured heavily across the globe.

The core of the band—bassist Put-Mon, drummer Cheese, and guitarist Jah Paul Jo—first played together in a Pasadena group called The Prime Movers. That band signed with I.R.S. Records in 1986 and had some UK success with the singles "On The Trail" and "Dark Western Night." Big Country’s Stuart Adamson added his signature E-Bow guitar to "Dark Western Night," and another Prime Movers track, "Strong As I Am," appeared in the 1986 film *The Hitcher*. When The Prime Movers ended in 1989, Jah Paul Jo came up with the idea for Dread Zeppelin. Alongside the three original members, they brought in guitarist Carl Jah and a 300-pound Vegas-era Elvis impersonator named Tortelvis. According to band lore, they met Tortelvis after he rear-ended their car with his milk truck. The Prime Movers’ longtime graphic artist, Bryant Fernandez, joined on congas as Ed Zeppelin.

The concept wasn’t as random as it might seem. Led Zeppelin themselves had recorded a reggae-influenced song, "D'yer Mak'er," in 1973, and they often performed Elvis medleys in concert that bordered on self-parody. (Led Zeppelin even met Elvis briefly in 1974 after attending one of his L.A. shows.)

The first Dread Zeppelin recording was a joke: a cover of Led Zeppelin’s "Immigrant Song" backed with "Hey Hey What Can I Do." Produced by Jah Paul Jo and Rasta Li-Mon, and released on their own Birdcage Records label, the single sold surprisingly well. Represses came on colored vinyl—red, green, yellow, blue, white, and clear. Most early recordings, including most of the debut album *Un-Led-Ed*, were cut at the home studio of Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart, where Rasta Li-Mon worked as a house engineer. After the success of "Immigrant Song," a second single, "Whole Lotta Love/Tour-telvis: A Bad Trip," came out on Birdcage, followed by "Your Time is Gonna Come/Woodstock (live)" as part of a singles compilation called *Komm Gib Mir Deine Zeppelin*.