CYMBALS flying, his drum sticks a blur, John Bonham, hailed as the greatest rock drummer there has ever been, has been re-born in Mercian Square, Redditch.

At midnight on Wednesday night, Thursday morning, on the dawn of his 70th birthday, a two and a half tonne cast bronze tribute to the Led Zeppelin drummer was placed in the heart of his home town.

The work of sculptor Mark Richards the piece, set on a plinth inspired by the band’s album Houses of the Holy, shows Bonham in full flow, hair a swirl as he beats out the rhythms which made the band famous.

Ros Sidaway, owner of Birchfield Road record shop Vintage Trax who has been at the heart of efforts to get a tribute to John Bonham in Redditch, said: “It’s hard to believe that it’s finally here.

“It was dropped in place at midnight, just at the start of John’s birthday. It was under floodlights but in the natural light of day you can see how beautiful it is.”

The sculpture is the result of years of fund raising, the work of a small band of dedicated fans here in Redditch, and the support of John Bonham’s family, without whom it would never have been possible.

Led Zeppelin sold more than 300 million albums worldwide and such is the appeal of the band that Redditch is likely to become a place of pilgrimage for fans around the globe.

For the full story, see this week’s Redditch Standard, or later, www.redditchstandard.co.uk .

For more on Led Zeppelin click here https://www.facebook.com/ledzeppelin/

Vintage Trax is on Birchfield Road, Redditch.