“See how natural he was”: Jimmy Page on the guitarist he considered a genius
When Jimmy Page wrote ‘Stairway to Heaven,’ he played into the idea he initially had for Led Zeppelin. This was to make a band that dabbled in various styles of music, be it hard rock, blues, R&B, or acoustic music. The introduction to ‘Stairway to Heaven’ was done with predominantly acoustic instruments and then becomes a lot heavier with electric guitar and distortion towards the end.
While the band was pleased with the song and how people reacted to it, they were also left with a dilemma: Page had no idea how to do the original recording justice on a live stage. As such, he reached out to Gibson and asked for one of their double-necked guitars so he could easily play the acoustic intro and rock-heavy outro.
Page has since become synonymous with the double-necked guitar, to the point that Gibson has launched its own range of guitars modelled after his. This perfectly highlights the power of Page as a guitarist, as just seeing him on stage with a double-necked SG was enough for people worldwide to want to invest in what was previously a relatively uncommon guitar.
Page wasn’t as intrinsically linked with Gibson as many other guitarists were. For instance, he famously used his gifted Fender when working in the studio. However, he did have a lot of respect for the brand, not only because they helped him commandeer a double-necked guitar but also because of his adoration of Les Paul.
Les Paul was an untouchable guitarist. He didn’t just perform songs that operated within the world of jazz, country, and blues, but he did so innovatively, with a completely unique sound and at a pace that many others thought was impossible. Even now, decades after he initially started playing, people watch videos of him taking to a six-string and can’t believe what they’re witnessing.
Jimmy Page was a lot of people’s guitar heroes because he had an innate ability to merge multiple genres and play in a truly inspiring way. However, his inspiration had to come from somewhere, and when the Led Zeppelin lead singer talks about who one of his favourite guitarists is, he takes great pride in discussing Les Paul’s work.
“More than anything I appreciated enough of his playing, but to meet him and see how natural he was was amazing,” said Page, “Apart from the fact he’s a genius, he’s such a warm person. I’ve never had the chance to actually play guitar with him at the same time. I’ve been to his house and we’ve had a chat. He’s the father of everything.”
Page was always ambitious with his approach to music. His idea to merge multiple genres and still create something cohesive and sound as though it’s all coming from the same band was a bold move but one that paid off plenty. His unrelenting attitude towards such ambitious ideas is a direct result of who he admired and aspired to be like, and Les Paul, with his inventive eye both playing guitar and on the technical side, was a good person to idolise.
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