Jimmy Page Shared 1 Regret About Led Zeppelin’s Early Years
Once Jimmy Page formed Led Zeppelin in 1968, the band worked almost constantly for several years. They connected with their fans almost immediately — an early show convinced singer Robert Plant the band might mean something — and gave them plenty of material. Several albums and hundreds of concerts over Zep’s first three years together built their reputation. But missing the chance to see another legendary guitarist — Jimi Hendrix — perform is something Page regrets about Led Zeppelin’s early days.
Led Zeppelin’s early years were a flurry of activity
Page assembled Led Zeppelin in the back half of 1968 after his previous band, the Yardbirds, disintegrated in the summer of that year. Contrary to the name, the group nimbly flew into the music mainstream.
They played their first gigs in Scandinavia in September 1968. Led Zeppelin I was finished before the winter holidays and released in early 1969. The band launched its first U.S. tour just before 1969 rolled around. The second, third, and fourth albums followed in 1969, 1970, and 1971, respectively.
When not recording, Zep practically lived on the road. They crisscrossed the Atlantic several times in 1969 alone; 1974 was the first year they didn’t play live, according to the band’s website.
Constantly recording and touring gave Led Zeppelin worldwide fame, but it also made Page regret he didn’t have a chance to see another guitar prodigy play live.
Jimmy Page regrets not seeing Jimi Hendrix perform during Led Zeppelin’s early career
The London music scene of the mid- to late-1960s was a tight-knit one. The Beatles watched Pink Floyd perform and gave away songs for the Rolling Stones to record. Future Stone Ronnie Wood played in a band with Page’s friend Jeff Beck. Wood roomed with Jimi Hendrix for a while.
The guitarist put all his efforts into Led Zeppelin’s rapid growth. It wore down Page and led him to regret not making more of an effort to see Hendrix perform before he died, per Light and Shade: Conversations With Jimmy Page author Brad Tolinski:
“In the first two years of any band, you just work solidly. If you’re going to make an impact, that’s what you have to do. We were no different. In fact, we probably worked for three years straight. Anyway, every time I came back from tour and Hendrix was playing somewhere, I would always say to myself, ‘Oh, I’m just so exhausted, I’ll see him next time.’ I just put it off and, of course, there ultimately never was a next time. I’m really, really upset with myself for never seeing him. I really wanted to hear him.”
Jimmy Page describes why he never saw Jimi Hendrix perform
Hendrix’s peak years overlapped with Led Zeppelin’s growth period. Zep turned down a $250,000 paycheck to perform at the Bath Festival in June 1970. It was worth it as they won over English critics.
That concert segued into a European and U.S. tour that lasted several more months. They were on the road when Hendrix played one of his final concerts at the Isle of Wight Festival in August of that year, and he died a month later. Page seemed to understand that Hendrix was serious rival as the greatest guitar player on the planet (certainly the most innovative of the era). Still, he had hoped to see him perform at some point. Page’s regret is that he never made more of an effort to watch Hendrix perform.
Page and Hendrix shared some common traits
Hendrix wasn’t native to England but fit right in with the best guitar players in London — Page, Beck, Wood, Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac founder Peter Green — with his virtuosic playing. Page regrets not seeing Hendrix play during Led Zeppelin’s hectic early days, and that could be because he felt a kindred spirit.
Both players used the blues as a foundation for their riffs. They both adapted backmasking guitar effects in their recordings — Page on “Whole Lotta Love” and Hendrix on “Are You Experienced?” — and both were guitar showmen in concert. Page routinely danced around the stage and often gestured wildly with his hands while playing. He inspired Eddie Van Halen’s finger-tapping style with a solo at an early Zep concert. Hendrix frequently leaned and swayed with his riffing. Aside from his famous guitar conflagration, he soloed behind his head and with his teeth while performing.
Led Zeppelin needed to remain busy in their early days to build their audience. It paid off, but Jimmy Page regrets he never saw Jimi Hendrix perform because of it. Zep’s founder probably would have found a like-minded spirit in the gone-too-soon guitarist if he had.
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