The version of "Whole Lotta Love" performed by Jimmy Page with singer Leona Lewis at the closing ceremony of the Olympics, now having taken place in Beijing and aired on television in some parts of the world, was part of a spectacle that will presumably have drawn several hundred million viewers -- undoubtedly one of the biggest gigs a musician can possibly ever obtain.Atop a red double-decker tour bus as found all throughout London, Page appeared with his long silver hair tied back in a pony tail, but only after a one-minute intro during which Lewis was elevated. Playing on a Les Paul, Page took command of the 39-year-old signature riff. An unseen rhythm section, seemingly prerecorded, laid down a faithful rendition of the song. Each chorus had some orchestral sounds that recreated the sound of Page's divebomber effect from the 1969 studio recording. The second verse gave way to a fiery guitar solo that was vintage Page.
After the song concluded, the performers strutted around to a continuing orchestral arrangement that was reminiscent of Faith No More's "Epic." As expected, David Beckham kicked a soccer ball into the crowd. It ended up as the souvenir of a Japanese woman in a parade.
What I want to know is who played drums!
Good luck finding clips on the Internet. It does appear that videos of the broadcasts are being removed from YouTube due to copyright claims.
I just read the following suggestion on FBO and thought it would be cool to reproduce here. Steve Thomson writes:
ReplyDelete"I ... wonder if they plan to release the duet as a single. It would be cool to hear on the radio. I think Leona did a tremendous vocal on it, and Jimmy's guitar sounded good, so why not?"