In the wake of Led Zeppelin's reunion concert at London's O2 Arena on Monday, NME reported Wednesday that the band's album sales have increased 500% in the United Kingdom. Additionally, music retailer HMV told NME that the recent compilation album by the group, Mothership, had risen by 50% in the first night after the concert and was the "biggest selling album in HMV stores" on Tuesday. NME also notes that the increase in sales of Led Zeppelin products is not limited to music. An HMV spokesman told the magazine "this demonstrates the enduring appeal of Led Zeppelin as the definitive rock band. Their music is now connecting with a whole new generation of fans, who are discovering its brilliance for the first time."

In addition to the new compilation Mothership, Led Zeppelin's catalog also received a boost after the reissue of the 1976 concert soundtrack The Song Remains the Same and a new version of the accompanying film. The band also joined fellow classic acts by joining the digital market, with a "Complete Led Zeppelin" becoming available in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s iTunes Store the same day the new compilation was released in stores.

Following the success the band has enjoyed with the reunion concert and the sales increases, rumors are now circulating that the band will embark on a full scale worldwide reunion tour, and enter the studio to prepare new material for the first time in nearly thirty years. These rumors aside, the success the band is experiencing is certainly a welcome site for the band and the music industry. There is no doubt that a full scale world tour and/or new material would only continue this success, but until the rumors are confirmed fans can enjoy the images of the band performing on Monday, as well as the solid catalog that is now available in both physical and digital mediums.

In an interview with Billboard, Paul McCartney has revealed that The Beatles catalog is ready to go on sale digitally next year. He has also revealed that the delay "has been due to contractual issues as well as deliberate planning by all parties involved." Unfortunately, the motivation for McCartney to divulge this information came in a press release for his new DVD and the re-release of his new album Memory Almost Full, where he also pleads with fans to buy the new version and the original version released earlier this year, claiming that they are not the same thing. (It almost makes me feel like a tool since I have both.)

The big news here though is the release of The Beatles digitally, which has the potential to completely revolutionize the music industry, just like the band did in the 1960s. Of all the major artist catalog's not available on the web, The Beatles is perhaps the most striking. Other holdouts such as Led Zeppelin and Radiohead have made the leap in the last couple of months. This release will theoretically be much larger, considering that fans will be buying second, or third, or fourth copies, while new listeners more attuned to digital releases will be buying this music for the first time. The potential for massive music sales are very exciting.

The rumors that The Beatles were going digital in 2008 have been long standing, at least since the 2007 release became impossible in recent months (the solo Beatles catalogs seemed to take precedence). No official word from a Beatle or representatives had been issued until now, which means this interview has given credence to those spreading rumors (luckily, it also validates their claims). In the end, all you need is love and for fans in 2008 they will have what they have been hoping would happen for some time.

The one-off reunion concert by veteran English rock band Led Zeppelin originally set for November 26 has been pushed back to December 10 due to an injury sustained by lead guitarist Jimmy Page. He broke his finger and "will not be able to play guitar for three weeks." The performance at London's O2 Arena is a tribute to the founder of Atlantic Records, owned by Warner Music Group Corp. (NYSE: WMG), Ahmet Ertegun, who originally brought the band to the label in 1968. All tickets for the original date are still valid, according to Billboard's source.

Fortunately for fans, Page's injury to his finger will not halt the array of products becoming available in the coming weeks; foremost of those is the release of the band's entire catalog via digital stores on November 13. A new two-disc compilation entitled Mothership will also be available then. The band's entrance into the digital market leaves The Beatles and Radiohead as the other two major groups not to have material in stores like Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s iTunes Store (the store which is coincidentally running a promotional offer for three sets of two fans to win a trip to see the one-off show).

In a statement released by Page, the guitarist announced his disappointment, but urged that the band "feel that this postponement will enable my injury to properly heal and permit us to perform at the level that both the bad and our fans have always been accustomed do." The show will be the first time since 1995 that the band has performed a live set, the last coming at their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Prior to that they had performed only twice, at Live Aid in 1985 and for a 40th anniversary show for Atlantic Records.

Fans may be forced to wait two more weeks, but with this being only the fourth post-breakup show for the band, the wait is probably worth it.

English band Pink Floyd is set to release a 16-disc box set in December that features the band's entire studio catalog as CD reproductions of the original vinyl records, Billboard reported yesterday. Unfortunately, the set is limited to 10,000 copies and will be available in the United States only as an import. It is unknown whether the box set will be reproduced in digital stores or not and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s iTunes Store has created complete digital box set's for catalogs in the past.

This news is not very descriptive about availability for the new album, but it has me wondering how many physical box sets are to be produced as the music industry moves closer and closer to fully embracing digital outlets. With the releases of s new Bob Dylan retrospective set and the coming Led Zeppelin catalog set, both available on iTunes and as physical CDs, what is the market for the CD versions? The Pink Floyd physical-only set (as far as is known at this point) takes this further with a price tag of $250.

A cursory glance at iTunes will tell you that the catalog is already available from iTunes Plus as DRM-free (Digital Rights Management) tracks, including the previously released 40th anniversary edition of Pink Floyd's debut album. With that knowledge, this box set seems marketable only to serious collectors and importers. The price tag and difficulty of availability make it hardly an item that the casual listener and even devout fan can seriously consider checking out. One has to wonder if EMI has a similar plan in store for The Beatles when that remastered catalog is available.

The music catalog of heavy metal band Led Zeppelin will become available in all digital stores on November 13, reports Billboard this morning. Following AC/DC, the band has also entered an exclusive agreement with Verizon (NYSE: VZ), making the mobile music provider the first to offer "full-song over-the-air downloads, ring tones, ringback tones, alert tones and wallpapers."

Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) will make the catalog available on the same day that a new career spanning compilation album, Mothership, will be released by Atlantic Records. A week later, a new "remixed and remastered" version of live album The Song Remains the Same will also be released and offer six new songs for the album. Finally, as was previously reported, Led Zeppelin will also play a "one-off" performance at London's O2 Arena on November 26, to honor the memory of Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun.

All told, it seems that November will be a very busy month for the British band. It is quite surprising to see Led Zeppelin have waited so long to offer digital downloads, considering that the remastered versions that will likely be uploaded by Warner Music Group were first released thirteen years ago. The release of the How the West Was Won live album in 2003 seems like a more apt chance to move into the market in retrospect, but here we are four-and-a-half years later.

The only remaining major digital market holdout now is The Beatles, and their move is expected in the new year.

Billboard.biz reports today that legendary rock band Led Zeppelin will reunite for a one-off performance at the O2 Arena in London on November 26. According to the report, the "show is a tribute to Atlantic Records co-founder and chairman emeritus Ahmet Ertegun" who died late last year and originally signed the band to Atlantic in 1968. A new two-disc greatest hits album will be released in the United States on November 13 from Atlantic and Rhino, both part of the Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG).

Original members Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones will be joined onstage by Jason Bonham, the son of original drummer John Bonham, who died in 1980. In addition, other classic rock acts will perform, including Pete Townshend, Bill Wyman, and Foreigner, with proceeds benefiting the Ahmet Ertegun Education Fund. Billboard comments that the fund "provides scholarships to universities in the United States, United Kingdom and Ertegun's homeland, Turkey."

The concert is the third such reunion the band has undertaken since splitting up after Bonham's death in 1980, the first coming in 1985 for Live Aid and the second three years later for a 40th anniversary concert celebrating Atlantic Records. Led Zeppelin is renowned for a variety of reasons, notably their live performances. It's reckless at this point to speculate whether the O2 concert will emulate classic '70s performances, but the excitement that has grown since this announcement was first rumored is certainly proof that the audience is hopeful.

I took the train from Central London to Gatwick Airport to catch my plane home to the U.S. I have done this over 200 times in the past 16 years and I can almost do the steps with my eyes closed. As I was leaving the train at Gatwick Airport to make my way to the warmth and gratitude of the Northwest Airlines ticket clerk, I saw an older guy waiting to board the train with what appeared to be a 5- or 6-year-old boy; I figured it was a grandchild.

I brushed past this gentleman, took three steps when I felt I had been hit by a bolt of lightening. That's Jimmy Page! It was Jimmy Page, founder and lead guitarist of what many feel was the finest rock band of all time -- Led Zeppelin. I looked back as he very gently lifted his grandson onto the train and took his seat. I figured, if not now, when?

I hopped back on and gently asked him "Are you Jimmy Page." He stood up and respectfully said yes while shaking my hand. I was speechless. Am I a 51-year-old groupie? The train had 15 minutes before leaving to go back to Central London. I asked Jimmy if I could chat with him for a few moments. He said, "Yes, of course, please sit down. I do not get the opportunity to chat with fans very often," probably thinking -- yeah, a fan this old!!

First question I asked was, "Why don't you guys reunite and tour. Put the great John Bonham's son Jason on the drums? " Jimmy said he would love to tour, but that lead singer Robert Plant was not interested at the moment. Ever the gentleman, Jimmy said, "You know, I am over 60 years of age, and the rest are approaching 60. We need to do this soon!"