Me and Nige popped along to The Office in South Shields to catch the first ever performance by Zep3. It was upstairs and a fiver in but for Russ, well, hey, that was a steal.

The Russ Tippins Band has been well known for turning in some superb Zep covers - many times better than Zep tributes who charge obscene amounts to see them do what can sometimes be described as fairly week covers.

Being at the front I had time to have a good skeg at Russ and I noticed he has a very lithe body, gorgeous hair and beautiful white teeth. Men may only appreciate his superb vocals and excellent guitar playing, but I can appreciate quite a bit more than that......!!
Russ's voice is nothing short of superb and can reach the Plant notes with ease. In fact, he didn't even seem to be trying. Must have really pissed off any singers in the audience!

There was plenty of stage space at the Office, even with three people on there was still room; the light show may not have been as strong as I was expecting but, being at the front, then I got a much better view than people further back whom, I have heard, where slightly disappointed not only with the sound, but also with the lights.

And on the subject of disappointment, why is the bar service at the Office so poor? I was stood in the bar queue for so long Nige thought I had gone home! No excuse for a venue with supposedly such a good reputation for live music. Reputation tarnished. Full stop.

Anyway, the band were superb and all three lads turned in a really beautiful and exceptional performance.
So many Zep tracks to choose from it was inevitable that many people's favourites would be left out. But in all honesty, mine were all in there, even Kashmir; Trampled Underfoot, Custard Pie and nearly all of the first bluesy album. Dazed and Confused? - with Russ's talent - certainly!

I must mention Colin's lovely sparkling smile. To a gal, that gives him that extra noticability - not to mention his obvious enjoyment of what he was doing. Many bassists just stand still but not Colin - he was a movin' an' a groovin' all night long.
But, saying that, Jeff was no wallflower on the drums either, pulling some great faces and keeping a lovely tight beat for the whole gig.

A great solid performance by all and if their performance gets better then I see no reason why they shouldn't become one of the most respected Zep tributes around.
I will make a point of catching Zep3 very soon......