3 Reasons ‘Since I’ve Been Loving You’ Is 1 of Jimmy Page’s Best Led Zeppelin Songs
Jimmy Page formed Led Zeppelin so he could fully flex his creative muscles. The band’s fans would say he did just that during their 12-year career. Still, “Since I’ve Been Loving You” is one of his best Led Zeppelin moments. The five-note lick that starts the song might have been an apology to his friend Jeff Beck. The rest of the song is what makes it one of Page’s best Led Zeppelin songs.
1. Jimmy Page’s solo on ‘Since I’ve Been Loving You’ is an underrated gem
What starts as a slow, steady, and quiet blues number (augmented by Robert Plant’s impassioned singing and John Paul Jones’ warm keyboard) builds up to the solo. Then Page takes over with an expressive and impressive solo that ranks as one of his best.
Page’s playing at times sounds like a high-pitched wail of someone crying, which perfectly syncs up with Plant’s lyrics about being wronged. There’s fast fingerwork, big string bends, and notes that seemingly utilize every part of the fretboard. Page’s stellar solo lasts for more than a minute and rejoins the song effortlessly.
The story behind the solo is nearly as good as the performance. Page popped into a Memphis, Tenn., studio, plugged into whatever amp was lying around, and churned out his “Since I’ve Been Loving You” solo in one take without using any effects pedals. That might be why the engineer who worked the session said this Page solo is the best of all time.
2. Led Zeppelin took a standard blues song to new realms
The bones of “Since I’ve Been Loving You” almost sound like something from a Depression-era blues song. And they are, but the genius of Page and Led Zeppelin was that they created something unique, powerful, and all their own from a well-known template.
The languid rhythm, Plant’s soaring vocals, and Page’s blistering solo are disparate elements that, on the surface, don’t mesh. Led Zeppelin’s blistering hot fusion melted them together into a solid, unified whole. The band went for it, and fans were the beneficiaries.
Page shouldered a lot of the burden as the creative force behind the band. So he deserves a fair share of the credit for Led Zeppelin taking a standard blues number to unprecedented heights.
3. Page and Led Zeppelin recorded it live in the studio
“Since I’ve Been Loving You” had been a staple of Led Zeppelin’s live act before it appeared on 1970’s Led Zeppelin III. Still, the song was the toughest track to record for the album. The band labored over it precisely because it was basically a blues standard and they didn’t want it to sound derivative on the record.
In the end, the band performed most of the album version of the song live in one take. Jones played keyboards with his hands and bass with foot pedals. A squeaky bass drum pedal from John Bonham’s kit made the final cut. The vocals, Page’s standout solo, and a few overdubs happened later, but most of the song was a one-and-done affair.
Even for a band used to working quickly — Led Zeppelin recorded the first album in a little over a day, and Page finished Presence in three weeks — finishing “Since I’ve Been Loving You” in a single take was impressive.
Put it all together — Page’s solo, not letting the band play a standard blues track, doing it all live in one take — and it’s easy to see why “Since I’ve Been Loving You” is one of Jimmy Page’s best Led Zeppelin songs.
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