Happy Birthday Jimmy Page!

walrus

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Jimmy Page is 75 today. One of my all time favorite guitarists. Here's a great clip from the DVD "It Might Get Loud":



walrus
 

CA-35

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Ramble on James Patrick Page

Then
led-zeppelin-jimmy-page_a-G-14248963-0.jpg



And now
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adorshki

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I've put this up before, but it's worth it again, since it seems to me that the majority of folks forget what he was doing before the 900 megaton Zeppelin entered the room:
http://yardbirds68.blogspot.com/
Although at least the recent Dragon Tele "re-issue" helps keep the memory alive.
Speaking of which, a couple of teasers from that blog:
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tumblr_na9s8u5fkm1stbyx4o1_1280.jpg

Yes, Jimmy was bowing his Tele before there was ever a Led Zeppelin.

And if you were lucky, you might have even got to see 'em at your high school dance:
LIVE SHOW: 29 March 1968. Senior Class Concert, Conard High School, West Hartford, Connecticut. Supported by Dick Davy. Show delayed until 9.30pm due to a snowstorm.
 
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walrus

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Good stuff, Al! And he was playing on hundreds of songs as a studio musician before this!

I think another aspect of Page that gets overlooked is that he produced many songs when he was working as a studio guitarist, and he produced all the Led Zeppelin albums. A few examples of stuff he did that was really different - backwards echo (ex. "Whole Lotta Love"), Bonham's drum sound, and the layering of guitars (his so-called "guitar army").

His working knowledge of the studio really helped Zeppelin create their sound.

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adorshki

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Good stuff, Al! And he was playing on hundreds of songs as a studio musician before this!

I think another aspect of Page that gets overlooked is that he produced many songs when he was working as a studio guitarist, and he produced all the Led Zeppelin albums. A few examples of stuff he did that was really different - backwards echo (ex. "Whole Lotta Love"), Bonham's drum sound, and the layering of guitars (his so-called "guitar army").

His working knowledge of the studio really helped Zeppelin create their sound.

walrus

True all dat, but let's not forget yet another Hendrix/Yardbirds (by way of Zeppelin) engineering connection, besides Roger Mayer:
Eddie Kramer.
(I must admit I myself never fully registered that fact, "back in the day", and he certainly never got album credits for his work with the Beatles....)
:smile:
 

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It was on BBC-World this morning, he was the studio guitar musician on Petula Clark's "Downtown," his first #1 recording...:pride::laughing::triumphant:
 
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Even at the ripe ol' age of 75 I'm sure Jimmy could still smack a groupie around with a mud-shark like nobody's business!:biggrin-new:
 

adorshki

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It was on BBC-World this morning, he was the studio guitar musician on Petula Clark's "Downtown," his first #1 recording...:pride::laughing::triumphant:
A nit-pick (aimed at BBC's short-changing the other 2 guys' contribution), but Wiki has 3 session men on that session:
Vic Flick, Page, and Big Jim Sullivan.
Flick and Sullivan had a lot more stature than Page at the time; Flick was the guy who played the original James Bond theme.
Arguably one of the most recognizable riffs of the era.
 

walrus

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A nit-pick (aimed at BBC's short-changing the other 2 guys' contribution), but Wiki has 3 session men on that session:
Vic Flick, Page, and Big Jim Sullivan.
Flick and Sullivan had a lot more stature than Page at the time; Flick was the guy who played the original James Bond theme.
Arguably one of the most recognizable riffs of the era.

I think the James Bond theme could be considered the most recognized guitar riff ever, particularly on an international scale...

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adorshki

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I think the James Bond theme could be considered the most recognized guitar riff ever, particularly on an international scale...
walrus

LOL!
Probably.
Haven't you mentioned Flick before, yourself?
When his white Stratocaster appeared on Pawn Stars?
My only hair-splitting would be China's population, because at the time and throughout the '60's for the average citizen there was no such thing as private ownership of TV's, radio, or record players, so millions of Chinese never heard of the Beatles and I'm pretty darn sure Dr. No wasn't making the rounds in theaters....especially Dr. No.. :biggrin-new:
But getting back on track, Flick was even a member of the George Martin Orchestra which used many of the musicians who performed on the Goldfinger soundtrack for the Bond-ish musical elements in HELP!, including the lick that leads into the movie take of "Help".
And Big Jim Sullivan was looked up to by many in the British pop music industry.
Wonder if Jimmy remembers the "Downtown" session(s)?
I bet at the time he would have been pretty excited to be working alongside two of the heavies of the biz.
 

walrus

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No, I don't think it was me who mentioned Flick before. But you have supplied some interesting info!

walrus
 
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