The Details: Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham is often cited as one of the music industry’s most respected and influential drummers of them all and you can hardly argue that when you hear his legendary sound and start to name all the drummers whose own skills he had inspired. As a former skin basher myself, I always loved the powerful groove that Bonham laid down and was always amazed at how well he combined being explosive at times while at others was as subtle as a whisper. No wonder so many genuflect when his name is mentioned. The Bonzo Birthday Bash is exactly what it sounds like. If you have not figured it out, it will be a collective of numerous drummers of note all gathered together to celebrate and perform the music that Bonham gave us. I’ll have more details after this leader but this all being said, I am pleased as a paradiddle to let you know that thanks to the fine folks at Livenation, some PiercingMetal readers will be seeing this interesting show on the house. Read on.

When and Where: Thursday, May 30th at Gramercy Theatre (127 East 23rd St. NYC)

Drummers Scheduled To Appear In NYC: Carmine Appice (drum legend), Michael Cartellone (Lynryd Skynrd, Damn Yankees), Joe Franco (Twisted Sister, Good Rats, Widowmaker), Jerry Gaskill (King’s X), Jojo Mayer (Nerve), Johnny Kelly (Danzig, Type O Negative), Jonathan Mover (Aretha Franklin, Joe Satriani), A.J. Pero (Twisted Sister), Thommy Price (Joan Jett, Billy Idol), Bobby Rondinelli (Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Lizards), Matt Starr (Ace Frehley, Burning Rain), Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, Foreigner, S.U.N.), Steven Wolf (Alicia Keys, Pink, Britney Spears), Zack Alford (David Bowie/Bruce Springsteen/The B-52s), Aaron Comess (Spin Doctors), Nikki Glaspie (Beyonce’/9th Power/Dumpstaphunk), John Hummel (Matt O’Ree Band), Corky Laing (Mountain), Ron Lipnicki (Overkill), Rod Morgenstein (Dixie Dregs/ Winger), Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers/Chickenfoot), Danny Schuler (Biohazard), Chad Szeliga (Black Label Society/Breaking Benjamin), We” likely find more drummers appearing and they’ll be joined by Russell Allen (Adrenaline Mob, Symphony X), Randy Jackson (Zebra), Jimmy Kunes (Cactus, Savoy Brown), Sass Jordan (S.U.N.) and Mike Orlando (Adrenaline Mob). This is going to be a fun one.

To Participate: Calling all drummers!!! Yep. I’d like to open this one up to the drummers first and foremost. Tell me about how Bonham has influenced your own playing style and how you perhaps have integrated some of this into your current activity. You non-drumming types are eligible to enter as well, but we are aiming for the folks behind the kit first but do your best to impress us anyway. Remember to put your full real name and an email address in the comment form so we know how to reach you (but don’t put them in the comment itself out of privacy concerns). Also it never hurts to subscribe to the comments during the contest so you are aware if you win. I’ll be commenting right under the winning submissions. Guest and Anonymous submissions while approved will not be considered.

Restrictions: While all PiercingMetal.com contests are open to our regional site readers, we do look at new responders first in order to give everyone a fair shot at enjoying a show on the provider and us. Of course we still encourage all to respond because you never know just how many tickets we are offering. At present we have a lot of contests running but you just might be lucky based on the overall response.

While I am certain that everyone reading this contest posting is aware of the majesty and melodic might of John Bonham, I am embedding a bunch of links to the Led Zeppelin works for you to indulge in should you still need a few for your collection.