The rarest guitar solo of Jimmy Page’s career
No matter what group he’s in, Jimmy Page has never been one to play a solo the same way twice. This idea comes from a lifelong dedication to pushing himself to new heights and a preference for improvising in the live setting to make the experience more compelling.
Famously with Led Zeppelin, Page used his recorded songs as nothing more than blueprints and basic ideas – despite their mastery – for where to take solo melodies when live, as one of the quartet’s greatest strengths was their performances. Imbuing rock music with genuine enchantment and intrigue, the fact that fans never knew where they would take songs made every show different and worth every penny for the punters.
It wouldn’t be until nearly 20 years after Led Zeppelin’s 1980 split that Page would carry off a solo note for note. According to Cheat Sheet, this came when he converged for a handful of shows with one of his old band’s most famous disciples, The Black Crowes, in 1999. During one performance, the supergroup played The Yardbirds song, ‘Shapes of Things’. Notably, the 1966 psychedelic classic features the dual guitar assault of Page and his old friend Jeff Beck, who later played it with the Jeff Beck Group.
In the 2012 collection of Jimmy Page conversations, Light and Shade, Brad Tolinski writes that one of the guitarist’s rarest solos occurred when he played ‘Shapes of Things’ with The Black Crowes. Not only was it note for note, but it wasn’t even his solo; it was Jeff Beck’s flourish that he played perfectly, something he hadn’t attempted since 30 years prior.
Seemingly, this would prove to Page that sometimes, it’s alright to play his own solos nearly note for note. When Led Zeppelin reunited in 2007 for their show at the O2 Arena, he closely followed the original version of his climactic burst on 1971’s ‘Stairway to Heaven’. This makes it another rare moment from the Londoner.
Page would also reveal to Brad Tolinski in Light and Shade that he decided to perform the solo of ‘Stairway to Heaven’ as close to the original as his ethos would possibly let him prove to fans and detractors that he could replicate the brilliance he laid down in the studio all those years ago. He said: “I don’t think anybody thought I could actually play it! I guess I just wanted to show I could.”
Listen to the show below.
