How Fans Got Led Zeppelin Banned From Boston
Led Zeppelin are arguably one of the greatest rock bands in history. Even though you're unlikely to hear their music in films, according to the Los Angeles Times, their iconic riffs are easily recognized by millions of people from multiple generations. The band reached the very top of rock 'n' roll stardom which comes with its fair share of glory but also with a generous portion of consequences.
There's plenty of myth and lore surrounding Led Zeppelin, as the height of their fame was long before smartphones and the ability to catch everything on video. Rumors and fantasy spread like wildfire, and the band has not yet set the record straight for most of the shenanigans. However, one of the most outlandish-sounding Led Zeppelin rumors is one that actually happened. Perhaps the most incredible part is that it wasn't something that the band actually did, but rather, it was all due to their fans.
Fans set fire to the Boston Garden
In January 1975, Led Zeppelin's world tour was scheduled to make a stop at the Boston Garden, in Boston, Massachusetts, according to GBH. The band had already played the city plenty of times before this, and their fans were more than eager to witness them live once more. Around 3,000 kids showed up at about 5:00 p.m. and waited to buy tickets dressed in their double-denim outfits of jeans and a denim jacket that did little to keep out the freezing cold of a Boston winter.
The gates of the Boston Garden were opened up to let the mass of young rockers inside, but mayhem quickly ensued. The "led heads" began drinking any and all alcohol they had snuck in with them and eventually broke into the concession booths while security was preoccupied with a shift change. The fun quickly escalated to a full-fledged riot, and when the next shift of security officers came on, they tried to de-escalate the situation by turning fire hoses on the crazed fans. Unfortunately, the response they received was very much the opposite of what they wanted to achieve because the rioters began to torch the seats of the venue. Overall around $30,000 of damage was done before control was finally regained at around 5:30 a.m.
Jimmy Page had no idea about the riot
The following morning, Kevin White, the mayor of Boston at the time, saw the aftermath of a wild night amongst the led heads, and banned Led Zeppelin from performing at the Boston Garden for five years, according to Far Out Magazine. This event might have been big news for the city of Boston, but Jimmy Page revealed 45 years later that he had no idea any of this had even happened, according to 94.3 WQCM.
Boston isn't the only place to have banned Led Zeppelin. At one point, the band was banned from an entire country. Singapore wouldn't allow them to get off their plane when they landed and forced the band to return home. While their fans didn't cause this incident, it wasn't due to the band's tendency for reckless behavior either. They were turned away because all four of them had long hair, which was no longer accepted in Singapore as an attempt to keep out drug culture, according to Mental Floss. There are plenty of rumors surrounding Led Zeppelin that may not be true, sometimes the best ones actually happened.