Bootleg trader John Waters recently released lost footage of a Led Zeppelin performance in Los Angeles in 1970, which he restored from video a fan secretly recorded at the concert more than 50 years ago.
Videos by American Songwriter
The clip, recorded on Sept. 4, 1970, at the band’s Inglewood Forum show was previously released in audio format and known to fans as On Blueberry Hill.
Waters recently connected with a fan, Eddie Vincent, who snuck in a movie camera to the Led Zeppelin show, and could only record portions of the show 30 seconds at a time with his antiquated device. The footage was matched to the audio clips another fan recorded from the show, which Waters combined in the completed restored video clip.
“I had really great seats,” said Vincent in a recent interview. “They were right behind the band. I had seats in the front row, right behind John Bonham’s kit. The only problem was that you couldn’t really see John because the gong was there, but he came around and chatted to us while they were doing the acoustic set.”
Vincent later forgot about the footage, according to a report, and had it stored award for 50 years before connecting with Waters for restoration.
“The music needs to be out there,” added Vincent. “I know a lot of collectors and traders that don’t give their stuff away, and that’s a shame to me. Music [is] to be shared, and today you need it to get away from the crazy world. And if this film brings a lot of people happiness, hey, we did a good job.”
Waters shared the restored video footage on YouTube, thanking the band for their music.
“Old concert film is important and must be preserved,” wrote Waters, who shared his email for anyone looking to restore old concert footage. “If you shot film in the past, traded and collected reels, or just bought them from the classifieds of rock magazines in the ’70s and ’80s, it’s important we save these.”
Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
