First they promised to reform for a concert even their most ardent fans thought would never happen and embraced the internet by using it to allocate tickets to the lucky few. Now Led Zeppelin are hoping to shake off the last vestiges of their image as rock dinosaurs by releasing their songs digitally for the first time.
One of the last remaining artists to resist licensing their music to online download stores, Warner Music announced yesterday that all the band's catalogue would be available from November 13. The decision will allow fans to buy songs including Whole Lotta Love, Stairway to Heaven, Kashmir and Communication Breakdown individually for the first time.
During their 12-year career, during which they earned the dubious honour of inventing heavy metal but also influenced a host of other acts, they never released any UK singles, at the behest of notoriously shrewd manager Peter Grant.
Guitarist Jimmy Page yesterday pronounced himself pleased with the move, which would "better enable fans to obtain our music in whatever manner they prefer".
The group have sold more than 300 million albums worldwide and their release on download stores such as Apple's iTunes Music Store and 7 Digital is likely to boost sales further. A new greatest hits album will also be released next month.
Other acts such as The Doors and Elton John have enjoyed sales boosts from older fans replacing vinyl copies of their original albums but also through younger music lovers who have heard them name-checked by current favourites.
In the wake of Led Zeppelin's move, and Radiohead's decision earlier this year to license their albums digitally for the first time, the Beatles are the one major hole in the catalogue of online music stores.
A legal dispute between Apple Computer and Apple Corps was settled earlier this year, paving the way for their appearance online for the first time. But despite speculation, and the appearance of solo work by both Paul McCartney and John Lennon, they have yet to appear.
Record labels are looking to digital downloads to help compensate for falling profits from CD sales. They are also looking for new ways to repackage the output of older acts, many of whom are also reforming for lucrative gigs.
On November 26 Led Zeppelin will top the bill at a concert at the O2 arena in London commemorating the life of Ahmet Ertegun, the legendary Atlantic Records founder who died last year aged 83 and who originally signed the band in 1968.
