Black Jacket Symphony will recreate ‘Led Zeppelin IV’ at the Bing

Most tribute acts stick to a particular recording artist. The focus isn’t just on a particular sound but also a look. However, Black Jacket Symphony is a tribute act that comes from a completely different angle.

Black Jack Symphony, which returns Friday to the Bing Crosby Theater, doesn’t portray a particularly legendary recording artist but instead is about delivering an iconic classic album.

“Led Zeppelin IV” is delivered from back to front on the current Black Jacket Symphony tour. “What Black Jacket Symphony delivers is the complete album experience,” Black Jacket Symphony founder J. Willoughby said while calling from Portland. “We’re all about precision. How many times have you heard a bar band just completely botch ‘Stairway to Heaven?’ When we play these incredible songs from Led Zeppelin IV from ‘Going to California,’ to ‘Black Dog’ to Stairway to Heaven,” it will sound like it does when you listen to the album.”

The Led Zeppelin IV band is comprised of vocalist Jon Campbell, guitarists Ben Owens and Landon Hunt, bassist Heath Price, keyboardist Erika Crowley and drummer Mark Lanter.

Black Jacket Symphony has performed more than 40 classic albums live, including AC/DC’s “Back in Black,” The Beatles “Abbey Road,” “Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” Nirvana’s “Nevermind” and Guns N’ Roses “Appetite for Destruction.”

To play such a diverse array of material would be a tall order for any band. Unlike its peers, Willoughby and Rogoff assemble a different group of musicians for every BJS tour.

“We do what we have to do and it all works out,” Rogoff said. “It’s worked out from the beginning.” Black Jacket Symphony was born in 2009 after Willoughby heard a radio advertisement celebrating the 40th anniversary of The Beatles “Abbey Road,” followed by a commercial for a live performance of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.

“It hit me that albums like ‘Abbey Road’ … are the classical albums of tomorrow,” Willoughby said. “If an orchestra can play music from the 1800s, why can’t we play the incredible work from bands from the 1960s and beyond?”

Willoughby, who has been in a number of rock bands and alt-country acts, teamed with Rogoff, who has worked in music management with recording artists such as Counting Crows, Lenny Kravitz and Matisyahu, and created a unique tribute entity.

“We’re different since we’re not just about the music,” Willoughby said. “No one comes out in a Beatles wig.” However, the musicians, save the drummer, hit the stage sporting fitted black jackets hence the band’s name. The show is divided into two parts. The first half focuses on the featured album, which is played in its entirety. The second half of the show is comprised of songs from that recording artist. “So it’ll be a night of Led Zeppelin when we come to town,” Rogoff said. “Expect the greatest hits and a whole lot of Led Zeppelin IV.”

There is an appeal to Black Jacket Symphony that is beyond the music. Rogoff brings the production. “Sound and lighting are a big part of the show,” Rogoff said from Portland.

And then there is the reasonable ticket price in an era of dynamic pricing. “A lot of concerts are just unaffordable,” Rogoff said. “I don’t know how a mother, father and two kids can afford to go to some of these shows that are so expensive, but we want to give families an entertainment option in which they can experience songs played the way they were meant to be played and a great all-around experience.”