John Henry Bonham - Bonzo - was born in Redditch on May 31 1948.

Rumour has it that he made his first drum kit out of coffee tins at the age of five.

Once he got a proper kit, at the age of 15, he began playing with bands in Worcestershire. He soon got a reputation as being very good, and very, very loud.

When he joined the Crawling King Snakes he met their lead singer, Robert Plant, and the two went on to play together in Band Of Joy.

When Plant was recruited by Jimmy Page for his new band - briefly called The New Yardbirds before they metamorphised into Led Zeppelin - he suggested his former bandmate as the drummer.

One rehearsal was enough to convince Page that Bonzo was something very special.

Bonham's sensational drumming with Zeppelin, and in particular his massive drum sound, have been much sampled by later musicians, including The Beastie Boys, and Puff Daddy.

Once Led Zeppelin hit the big time, Bonzo bought Old Hyde Farm, in North Worcestershire, as a family home, and also as somewhere to store his growing collection of vintage cars.

John Bonham died on September 25 1980, after reheasals for a Led Zeppelin US tour.

He's buried in Cutnall Green in Worcestershire, where his grave is regularly visited by fans.

His son, Jason, is now a world class drummer in his own right. His sister, Deborah, is a noted singer/songwriter, and grew up at Old Hyde Farm.

If you have any stories about John Bonham - if you met him at school, worked with him, or watched him in action - we'd love to hear from you. Either use the Contribute tag, or email worcester@bbc.co.uk.