 The band completed the Scandinavian tour as the New Yardbirds , playing together for the first time in front of a live audience at Gladsaxe Teen Clubs in Gladsaxe , Denmark , on 7 September 1968 . Later that month , they began recording their first album , which was based on their live set . The album was recorded and mixed in nine days , and Page covered the costs . After the album 's completion , the band were forced to change their name after Dreja issued a cease and desist letter , stating that Page was allowed to use the New Yardbirds moniker for the Scandinavian dates only . One account of how the new band 's name was chosen held that Moon and Entwistle had suggested that a supergroup with Page and Beck would go down like a " lead balloon " , an idiom for disastrous results . The group dropped the ' a ' in lead at the suggestion of their manager , Peter Grant , so that those unfamiliar with the term would not pronounce it " <unk> " . The word " balloon " was replaced by " zeppelin " , a word which , according to music journalist Keith Shadwick , brought " the perfect combination of heavy and light , <unk> and grace " to Page 's mind . 
