“Throwaway”: The Led Zeppelin song Jimmy Page refused to play live
Led Zeppelin stand as one of the most revered bands in music history. Titans of rock, the English quartet rose to dominance in the late 1960s and ’70s with their electrifying blend of blues-infused rock and roll, quickly surpassing The Beatles as the world’s most talked-about band. Their ascent to legendary status was multifaceted, but their live performances played a pivotal role. While The Beatles retreated from the stage to focus on studio work, Led Zeppelin embraced the spotlight, cementing their legacy through unforgettable, high-energy performances.
Another defining characteristic of Led Zeppelin was the individual brilliance of each member. The band was truly the sum of its parts, and removing any one of them would have fundamentally altered their chemistry and diminished the power that defines their legacy. Together, they forged a musical juggernaut that was, for the most part, utterly unstoppable.
Breaking down each quarter of the group, it’s hard to find a single fault in the line-up. Frontman Robert Plant’s primal vocals are unmatched; guitarist Jimmy Page is the ultimate rock axeman; bassist John Paul Jones has a musical background like no other; and drummer John Bonham was arguably the greatest rock drummer of all time.
Led Zeppelin gave fans countless incredible moments over their 12-year career. However, the band wasn’t always happy with their creative output, and it transpires that one song was never played live as chief songwriter Jimmy Page “hated” it. His disgust with the tune would not be restricted to the studio session in which it was created but would also see Page refuse to perform the track on stage.
In 1969, the band released their second album, the iconic Led Zeppelin II. Famously, the LP was recorded across the United Kingdom and North America between January and August 1969 due to the band having a packed tour schedule at the time, and most of the writing was done on the road. Unsurprisingly, this urgency bled into the album’s sound, creating tracks that range from ‘Whole Lotta Love’ to ‘Moby Dick’.
However, the song that Page hated was track six, ‘Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman)’, released as the B-side to ‘Whole Lotta Love’. The material was inspired by a groupie who had previously stalked the band early on in their career, but there are other reasons why the Page dislikes the number. The group were dedicated to their craft and took the art of rock and roll very seriously. Here is where things went wrong for Page. The Heston native hates the tune because of how “throwaway”. Out of the cavalier cuts on Led Zeppelin II, it is that singular effort that, to him, has the least quality.
It’s interesting that Jimmy Page has a particular dislike for ‘Living Loving Maid’, as since the album was released, the song has been hailed by diehard Led Zeppelin fans as one of their best. Reflecting that Page’s opinion is nonconformist, the song actually made it onto the charts, reaching number 65 on the US Hot 100 and 93 on the Japanese Oricon. In a way, though, it adds to the song’s magic that Page hated it, and the band never played it live, sprinkling it with the type of excitement you get from contraband.
There are a lot of ways songwriters can signal their issues with a particular tune. Usually, a barbed remark in an interview is enough to shed a little gloom on a track, but simply refusing to ever take what appears to be a fan-favourite song to the stage is about as robust as one can get. Jimmy Page is very clear: ‘Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman)’ is well below Led Zeppelin’s impressively high watermark.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Led Zeppelin Newsletter
All the latest stories about Led Zeppelin from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.