Age, Biography, and Wiki
John Bonham was born on May 31, 1948, in Redditch, Worcestershire, England. He rose to fame as the drummer for the legendary rock band Led Zeppelin, known for his powerful and dynamic drumming style. Bonham's life was marked by his contributions to music, but it was cut short when he died on September 25, 1980, at the age of 32.
| Occupation | Musicians |
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| Date of Birth | May 31, 1948 |
| Age | 77 Years |
| Birth Place | Redditch, Worcestershire, England |
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| Country | England |
| Date of death | 25 September, 1980 |
| Died Place | N/A |
Height, Weight & Measurements
While specific details about John Bonham's height and weight are not widely documented, his physical presence was known to be substantial, reflecting his energetic stage performances.
Bonham's drumming has been widely sampled in hip hop music; for example, the Beastie Boys sampled "Moby Dick", "The Ocean", and "When the Levee Breaks" on their debut album Licensed to Ill. The drum beat of the popular song "Return to Innocence" by Enigma was sampled from the Led Zeppelin song "When the Levee Breaks".
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Dating & Relationship Status
Bonham was married to Pat Phillips, and they had two children, Jason and Zoe. His family life was integral to him, and his wife and children inherited parts of his business interests after his death.
He began learning to play drums at age five, making a kit of containers and coffee tins, imitating his idols Max Roach, Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich. His mother gave him a snare drum when he was 10. He received his first drum kit, a Premier Percussion set, from his father at age 15. Bonham never took formal drum lessons, although he received advice from other Redditch drummers. While at school, between 1962 and 1963, Bonham joined the Blue Star Trio and Gerry Levene & the Avengers.
Bonham attended Lodge Farm Secondary Modern School, where his headmaster wrote in his report that he would "either end up a dustman or a millionaire." After leaving school in 1964, he worked for his father as an apprentice carpenter between drumming for local bands. In 1964, Bonham joined his first semi-professional band, Terry Webb and the Spiders, and met his future wife, Pat Phillips, around the same time. He played in other Birmingham bands such as The Nicky James Movement and The Senators, with whom he made a single, "She's a Mod", in 1964, at Hollick and Taylor Studios in Birmingham. Bonham took up drumming full-time. Two years later, he joined A Way of Life. After the band's demise, Bonham joined a blues group called Crawling King Snakes, whose lead singer was Robert Plant.
Bonham had a younger brother, Mick Bonham (1950–2000), a disc jockey, author and photographer, and a younger sister, Deborah Bonham (born 1962), a singer-songwriter. Bonham's mother, Joan, died aged 85–86 on 10 February 2011. She sang for The Zimmers, a 40-member band set up as a result of a BBC documentary on the treatment of the elderly. Bonham's cousin Billy (born 1950) played keyboards for Terry Reid and Ace Kefford.
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Net Worth and Salary
At the time of his death in 1980, John Bonham's net worth was approximately $10 million when adjusted for inflation. This figure reflects his significant earnings from Led Zeppelin's massive success, as well as other business ventures.
Business Ventures
Bonham was involved in several business ventures, including the establishment of companies to manage his income. After his death, his family inherited parts of his shares in these companies, such as United Blag Productions, which controlled significant music publishing rights for Led Zeppelin.
Bonham initially used Premier drums, but in the late 1960s was introduced to Ludwig drums by Carmine Appice. Throughout the remainder of his career, Bonham endorsed Ludwig. At times, Bonham's kick drum pedal squeaked. Jimmy Page later commented:
Rock drummers influenced by Bonham include Roger Taylor, Joey Kramer, Lee Kerslake, Neil Peart, Dave Grohl, Tommy Lee, Peter Criss, Chad Smith, Dave Lombardo, Brad Wilk, John Dolmayan, Ian Mosley, Yoshiki, and Shinya. Phil Collins, who became a drummer for Plant's solo career, told Plant he wanted to play with him because he "loved" Bonham's drumming.
The surviving members of Led Zeppelin reunited to play Live Aid in 1985 and employed two drummers, Phil Collins and Tony Thompson, to take his place. In June 2017, John Bonham's childhood home received a blue plaque in his honour.
Social Network
Given that Bonham passed away in 1980, he did not have social media profiles. However, his legacy continues to be celebrated on platforms through fan communities and official Led Zeppelin accounts.
Bonham showcased a hard-hitting hard rock style, but also handled funk and Latin-influenced grooves in later Led Zeppelin releases. Like Keith Moon of the Who, Bonham's drum set grew in size following the band's 1969 concert tours, including congas or timpani and a gong. His drum solo "Moby Dick" was featured on the group's second album and was a staple of their concerts, often lasting just over 20 minutes. Outside of Led Zeppelin, Bonham played drums for other artists, including the Family Dogg, Screaming Lord Sutch, Lulu, Jimmy Stevens and Wings. Bonham played with Led Zeppelin until his sudden death at age 32, in September 1980 following a day of heavy drinking. The surviving members disbanded the group out of respect for Bonham.
During Led Zeppelin's first tour of the United States in December 1968, Bonham became friends with Vanilla Fudge's drummer, Carmine Appice. Appice introduced him to Ludwig drums, which he then used for the rest of his career. His hard hitting was evident on many Led Zeppelin songs, including "Moby Dick" (Led Zeppelin II), "Immigrant Song" (Led Zeppelin III), "When the Levee Breaks" (Led Zeppelin IV), "Kashmir" (Physical Graffiti), "The Ocean" (Houses of the Holy), and "Achilles Last Stand" (Presence). Page let Bonham use a double bass drum in an early demo of "Communication Breakdown" but scratched the track because of Bonham's "over-use" of it. The studio recording of "Misty Mountain Hop" captures his dynamics, similarly exhibited on "No Quarter". On cuts from later albums, Bonham handled funk and Latin-influenced drumming. Songs like "Royal Orleans" and "Fool in the Rain" are examples, respectively displaying a New Orleans shuffle and a half-time shuffle.
The inquest on 27 October 1980 showed that in 24 hours, Bonham had consumed around 40 shots (1–1.4 litres) of 40% ABV vodka, after which he vomited and choked, a condition known as pulmonary aspiration. The finding was accidental death. A post-mortem found no other recreational drugs in Bonham's body. According to Rolling Stone, Bonham had recently overcome a heroin problem and was taking an unspecified medication for anxiety and depression at the time of his death.
For music critics who were not receptive to the hard rock aspects of Led Zeppelin's sound, Bonham's playing was sometimes characterized (along with the other elements of Led Zeppelin's music) as bombastic and lacking a sense of swing. For example, Rolling Stone's Jim Miller wrote the following in 1975, while reviewing Physical Graffiti: "Bonham ... is a steak-and-potatoes percussionist, handpicked, one assumes, for his ability to supply a plodding, stolid, rock-solid bottom—no one has ever accused Led Zeppelin of swinging." In the 2012 documentary Beware of Mr. Baker, Eric Clapton reinforced the idea that Bonham's playing lacked subtlety, and that Bonham and his contemporary Keith Moon of the Who were not equals in terms of musicianship to Ginger Baker, Clapton's drummer in the 1960s rock band Cream. "No, no, no, no, [scoffs]. Ginger was nothing like those players. His musical capabilities are full spectrum. He can write and compose and arrange, and he has an ear, and he is harmonic. He is a fully formed musician."
Since his death, however, Bonham's reputation has continued to grow beyond the world of hard rock, and his playing is now commonly recognised by critics and musicians as worthy of close study. Modern Drummer had the following to say about Bonham in 2010. "Like nearly every British rock musician in the mid-'60s, the members of Led Zeppelin played in groups specializing in amped-up versions of black American music like the blues, R&B, jazz, and soul. To play that music convincingly, you had to swing, and few drummers in any genre have swung with as much swagger as John Bonham ... Despite all the deserved attention paid to his brilliant soloing ideas, his rhythmic sophistication, or his bass drum prowess, John Bonham was, above all else, a groover."
Grohl said: "John Bonham played the drums like someone who didn't know what was going to happen next—like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff. No one has come close to that since, and I don't think anybody ever will. I think he will forever be the greatest drummer of all time." Smith remarked: "To me, hands down, John Bonham was the best rock drummer ever. The style and the sound was so identifiable to one person. Any drum set that he would play, it sounded like him." Mike Portnoy said: "He was one of the all-time greats. He was just rock solid, and one of a kind. His swing and his feel is unparalleled. Nobody played like John Bonham, and still to this day, nobody really can play like John Bonham – as much as everybody tries. He will forever be one of the greatest rock drummers in the history of music. And he deserves it." Other musicians also paid tribute. John Paul Jones said Bonham was a "bass player's dream". Page has commented: "One of the marvellous things about John Bonham which made things very easy [for a producer] was that he really knew how to tune his drums, and I tell you what, that was pretty rare in drummers in those days. He really knew how to make the instrument sing, and because of that, he could just get so much volume out of it by just playing with his wrists. It was just an astonishing technique that was sort of pretty holistic if you know what I mean."
A Rolling Stone reader's poll where he "led the list by a significant margin" in 2011, and in 2016, the same magazine ranked him as the greatest drummer of all time in a list of 100 Greatest Drummers of all time. According to the Los Angeles Times, even after all these years, Bonham still ranks as the best drummer of all time, mentioning that "[his] beat still bangs like a mofo ... Nobody else has brought quite that balance of muscle, groove and showmanship."
Education
Details about John Bonham's formal education are not well-documented. His career path was largely defined by his early involvement in music and his rise to fame with Led Zeppelin.
In conclusion, John Bonham's impact on music and his financial success during his lifetime were significant. His legacy continues to inspire musicians and fans alike, ensuring his enduring influence in the music industry.
He played with multiple local bands both at school and following school, eventually playing in two different bands with Robert Plant. Following the demise of the Yardbirds in 1968, Bonham joined Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and bass guitarist John Paul Jones to form Led Zeppelin.
