Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin Guitarist Profile
January 17th, 2007
Jimmy Page is seriously the shit. I know there are haters out there, but as far as I’m concerned he is the Godfather of Rock guitar. The Jimmy Page was doing things with music in the 60’s and 70’s that were revolutionary then. Now, they are common place. My favorite all time Page contribution has got to be the rock ballad. Stairway to Heaven is the most popular one, but he had many others including Ramble On and Over the Hills and Far Away. When I talk about a rock ballad I’m talking about a song that has a soft intro and a soft verses possibly played on acoustic guitar but then busts full out into a distorted rock chorus. Obviously like I said Stairway is the best example of this.
Some people criticize Page for being a sloppy player. The solo from Heartbreaker is an example of exactly what I’m talking about. To the untrained ear yes, it just sounds like a barrage of random notes with no reason. However, in all that chaos I hear a great solo. I think that is exactly what it was supposed to be, a slew of highly overdriven notes. The truth is guitar players are generally over critical by nature. I think it is a side effect of wanting to be the best you can be. Maybe if you can play the Song Remains the Same version of the Stairway to Heaven solo without slipping up where jimmy does it makes you a better guitar player. To go a step further, maybe you are a better guitar player if you can play it AND do the exact same mistakes (on purpose) Jimmy made when he played it live. Who knows… What I want to say is I get the feeling when listening to a Zeppelin that if I were to have had the chance to hear it live it would have been just as good if not better played as on the album, mistakes and all. He is human right?
Reasons why I love Jimmy Page
He is a master of stringed instruments. He can play acoustic, electric, 12-string, mandolin, whatever, and he is amazing at them all.
His guitar solos have got rhythm. Jimmy didn’t use any of the techniques that are popular today like sweep picking, tapping, shredding, or tremolo, but his solo skills are still idolized to this day. He did an amazing job of writing a solo that complemented the song.
He wrote great acoustic songs. Although he was clearly a rock and roll man, he knew how to create a rock song with an acoustic guitar.
Top 5 Jimmy Page Songs
Everyone hates a Led Zeppelin top list because it always includes Stairway and it is usually at the top. My list is no different. However, this is only because of the amazing Stairway performance from the Song Remains the Same DVD. This is my all time favorite Jimmy Page moment so here is a video. is a crappy rip and just the solo, but I have included a link to the full song just below. It’s much better quality.
The full Live Stairway to Heaven video is here.
Top 5 Jimmy Page Guitar Pro Tabs
- Stairway to Heaven (Song Remains the Same Live version)
- Over the Hills and Far Away
- White Summer Black Mountain Side
- Ten Years Gone
- The Rover
Get Guitar Pro 5 now to use these tab files.
My reasons: Over the Hills has my favorite acoustic riff at the start. White Summer is all over and uses an alternate tuning, Ten Years Gone was the first Zeppelin song I learned. The Rover has an awesome solo that really flows. Obviously there are lots to choose from, and I chose these as my personal favorites, but I’m sure everyone has their own. What are yours?
tagged guitar pro 5, guitarist profile, Jimmy Page, led zeppelin and tablature
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