Jimmy Page

James Patrick Page OBE , known as Jimmy Page, (born January 9, 1944 in Heston, Middlesex, England) is widely considered one of the greatest and most influential guitarists in rock and roll. He was a founding member of Led Zeppelin and, prior to that, a member of The Yardbirds from late 1966 through 1968. Before these two groups however, Page was one of the most in-demand studio guitarists in England.

Session player years

While still a student, Page would often jam on stage at the Marquee with bands such as the Cyril Davis All Stars, Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated and with guitarists Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton. He was spotted one night by John Gibb of The Silhouettes, who asked him to help record a number of singles for EMI, including "The Worrying Kind". It wasn't until an offer from Mike Leander from Decca Records that Page was to receive regular studio work. His first session for the label was the recording "Diamonds" by Jet Harris & Tony Meehan which went to Number 1 on the singles chart in 1963.

Related Topics:
Cyril Davis All Stars - Alexis Korner - Blues Incorporated - Jeff Beck - Eric Clapton - John Gibb - The Silhouettes - EMI - Mike Leander - Decca Records - Jet Harris - Tony Meehan - 1963

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After brief stints with Carter-Lewis and the Southerners, Mike Hurst's group, and Mickey Finn and the Blue Men, Page committed himself to full-time session work. His studio output in 1963 included Brian Poole & The Tremeloes' cover of "Twist and Shout", Heinz's "Just Like Eddie" and in 1964, the Rolling Stones' "Heart of Stone", Marianne Faithfull's "As Tears Go By", The Nashville Teens' "Tobacco Road", Dave Berry's "The Crying Game", and Lulu's hit "Shout". Under the auspices of producer Shel Talmy, Page recorded The Kinks' "You Really Got Me" (1964) (although there is a dispute on whether Page or Dave Davies played lead), the guitar part on Them's "Baby Please Don’t Go" (1965), and recorded a lead guitar part on The Who's first single "I Can't Explain", although there is disagreement over whether or not it was used. In 1965, Page was hired by Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham to act as house producer for the newly-formed Immediate Records label, which also allowed him to play on tracks by John Mayall, Nico, and Eric Clapton. Page also formed a brief songwriting partnership with then girlfriend, Jackie DeShannon.

Related Topics:
Carter-Lewis and the Southerners - Mike Hurst - Mickey Finn and the Blue Men - 1963 - Brian Poole & The Tremeloes - Twist and Shout - Heinz - 1964 - The Rolling Stones - Marianne Faithfull - The Nashville Teens - Dave Berry - Lulu - Shel Talmy - The Kinks - You Really Got Me - Dave Davies - Them - 1965 - The Who - Andrew Loog Oldham - Immediate Records - John Mayall - Nico - Eric Clapton - Jackie DeShannon

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After being invited to replace Eric Clapton in the Yardbirds on March 20, 1965, Page turned down the offer and instead suggested his friend Jeff Beck. On May 16, 1966, drummer Keith Moon, bass player John Paul Jones, keyboardist Nicky Hopkins, Jeff Beck and Page recorded "Beck's Bolero" in London's IBC Studios. The experience gave Page an idea to form a band with John Entwistle on bass (instead of Jones), however the lack of a quality vocalist and contractual problems brought the project to a halt.

Related Topics:
Eric Clapton - The Yardbirds - March 20 - 1965 - Jeff Beck - May 16 - 1966 - Keith Moon - John Paul Jones - Nicky Hopkins - IBC Studios - John Entwistle

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Within weeks, Page was again offered a spot in the Yardbirds and at first played bass guitar with the group after the departure of Paul Samwell-Smith, before finally switching to twin lead guitar with Beck when Chris Dreja moved to bass. The musical potential of the line-up however was scuttled by interpersonal conflicts caused by constant touring and a lack of commercial success. Despite the departure of Keith Relf and Jim McCarty in 1968, Page wished to continue the group with a new line-up. After Keith Moon heard that Keith Relf and Jim McCarty left the band, and that Page wanted to continue it, he insisted the band was going to "go down like a lead zeppelin", hence the band's new name, Led Zeppelin.

Related Topics:
Bass guitar - Paul Samwell-Smith - Lead guitar - Chris Dreja - Keith Relf - Jim McCarty - 1968 - Keith Moon

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