Led Zeppelin’s Live Aid Set Is the Musical Footage That Shall Not Be Named

If you’re planning to relive the magic of Live Aid this weekend, don’t expect to see Led Zeppelin anywhere in the mix. As the 40th anniversary of the historic 1985 concert rolls around this Sunday, there will LIKELY be one very notable no-show . . . because they want it that way.

The official Live Aid YouTube channel is celebrating the milestone with over 10 hours of classic performances, and CNN is dropping a four-part documentary titled “Live Aid: When Rock ‘n’ Roll Took on the World” at 9:00 p.m. Sunday.

But if you were hoping to see that infamous Zeppelin set, you’ll probably be out of luck.

Led Zeppelin’s three-song reunion performance at Live Aid, which brought together Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones for the first time since drummer John Bonham’s death, has long been considered a trainwreck by fans and the band alike. The group has refused to allow any official footage of the set to be included in Live Aid retrospectives, box sets, or documentaries ever since.

Why so bad? Well, for starters, they had less than two hours to rehearse. One of their fill-in drummers that day was Phil Collins (yes, that Phil Collins), who had just flown in from another Live Aid stage in London.

According to Jimmy Page, Collins struggled to sync up during the opening of “Rock and Roll”. And to be fair, even Phil admits it wasn’t his finest hour. In interviews, he’s said he felt like a “spare part” on stage, and would’ve walked off if he could’ve.

The performance lives on in grainy bootlegs floating around online, but you won’t find it in the official archives. Zeppelin’s stance has been firm: they want that chapter closed and buried.

So while you’ll still get Queen’s legendary set, U2’s breakout moment, and Bowie’s eyeliner in HD glory, the Led Zeppelin reunion will remain the awkward family photo everyone agreed not to frame.