Isn't it interesting that nearly all of the Led Zeppelin news coverage anywhere on Thursday was centered on Robert Plant's declaration that there was "zero" chance of another Led Zeppelin reunion? In case you missed it, that's what he told the BBC in the very last second of a six-minute chat aired on BBC radio Wednesday morning and was available online for listening all over the world.
It's what he said in the very last second, the "zero" chance comment, that stole the headlines. Because there's always been an interest in a Led Zeppelin reunion, no matter when the last one was, or how discouragingly bad the last one was, or how astonishingly good the last one was. But Robert's closed the door.
Jimmy admitted, in his separate interview, also broadcast April 23, that he's more surprised than anyone there's not been a reunion. Furthermore, he's not the one to ask about a Led Zeppelin reunion. He's only the guitar player. He's not the singer. You should ask the singer. And so they did, and the singer said no. It was an outright no. And as Brian Gardiner astutely observed on his site, this is exactly what he could have said a long time ago and saved us all some agony.
I'm feeling really badly for Jimmy now. I think he put a whole lotta stock in the inevitability that Robert would change his mind once again. It's possible Jimmy didn't want to get any kind of a studio or live project going again unless Robert was going to be the frontman. Luckily, John Paul Jones doesn't feel that way, and we've gotten Them Crooked Vultures, Seasick Steve, Minibus Pimps, I won't repeat myself...
What was really cool is the fact that neither of the two Led Zeppelin bonus tracks premiered by the BBC at the same time was anything ardent fans have ever heard before. (Correct me if I'm wrong!) Jimmy truly dug into boxes of tapes, and took two years doing it, to arrive at the best stuff there is. And so far, this is stuff that never leaked to the masses.
We've now heard a minute's worth of the Led Zeppelin III outtake "Key to the Highway" (none of the "Trouble in Mind" portion expected later) and learned it was recorded 30 minutes after "Hats Off to (Roy) Harper." It features Robert Plant singing through the same reverberating filter also heard on another studio outtake already distributed and well known among bootleg collectors. But it's a totally different melody, and the chord progression features a nice two-five turnaround seldom heard in the blues.
Representing Led Zeppelin II's bonus disc is a rough mix of "Whole Lotta Love" with an alternate vocal. This is nothing that came out with the multitracks when they leaked online in February 2012. Hmm, just over two years ago, which we can now surmise is when Jimmy started working on this remasters-plus-bonus project taking advantage of technological advancements of the past two decades since the first remastered Led Zeppelin CDs ...
And this is all in addition to the sweet first track of the live CD accompanying the Led Zeppelin remaster, which we can stream on Spotify now whenever we want.
Also, it was fun hearing Robert admit he was imitating the stylings of Steve Marriott on "Whole Lotta Love." Isn't it funny how Jimmy wanted Steve Marriott as the singer and instead got a Steve Marriott imitator? Not that Robert was a Steve Marriott imitator all the time. He says he was this for one three-minute song, then onto something else entirely different for another. Great point!
It sure would be nice hearing from John Paul Jones on these matters. I wonder why not.
Anyway, now that Robert closed the door to any future Led Zeppelin reunions, what impact will that make on whether Jimmy picks up a guitar again, in his 70s, and goes out there with somebody else?
Showing posts with label retirement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label retirement. Show all posts
Friday, April 25, 2014
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Jimmy Page coming out of retirement; guitarist makes 2nd onstage visit as Web countdown ends
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| Jimmy Page joined the Black Crowes onstage in London, Wednesday, July 13. They played "Shake Your Moneymaker," a blues by Elmore James they last played together on tour over a decade ago. YouTube: brenotube |
London, where many of Page's post-Led Zeppelin gigs have taken place over the past 31 years, on Wednesday night solidified his intention to make a comeback of sorts.
Wednesday's gig was at Shepherds Bush Empire, a venue where Page might remember sharing the stage in March '98 with Robert Plant, during the tour in support of new material on an overlooked album but whose live sets focused on Led Zeppelin hits from another era.
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| Singer Chris Robinson marvels as Jimmy Page plays one of the first guitar solos of a long-awaited and crucial phase of his career, his coming out of retirement. YouTube: dsrc18 |
With the Black Crowes, the very group with which Page embarked on his last tour just over a decade ago, he entertained Shepherds Bush on a blues standard, Elmore James's "Shake Your Money Maker."
Meanwhile, fans who've been aware of an imminent change to Jimmy Page's official site, www.jimmypage.com, prepared to check in on the hour, every hour, until something changed.
Kool-Aid drinkers believed Page would come out of retirement, in one way or another, when, 24 days ago, a daily countdown of Roman numerals first appeared on Page's site alongside an active sandglass.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Do musicians really ever retire?
There's an unconfirmed report that Charlie Watts is quitting the Rolling Stones. The veteran drummer apparently isn't interested in touring or recording with the group anymore.
So, in effect, would Charlie be retiring? I mean, he's not forfeiting his license to play Stones songs. But if he's not playing them with Mick and Keith anymore, then who's he gonna play 'em with?
Is Charlie going to go the Ringo Starr route and start up his own cavalcade of stars, rock musicians who go around and play yawn-inducing versions of their songs to aging folks in lawn chairs?
Drummers aren't afforded the same luxuries given to singers. If Robert Plant doesn't want to tour with Led Zeppelin, he can still record an album with Alison Krauss and sing "Black Dog" in concert -- and he does, and then people vilify him for doing the same thing others praise him for doing.
Or is Charlie just going to sit at home and relax now that he is in advanced age and enjoy the fortunes he has earned playing his limited role in the creation of songs like "Street Fighting Man" and "Start Me Up"? And if that's what he's doing, doesn't the word "retirement" come to mind? How many times do you hear that word in this discussion?
Jimmy Page hasn't been on a major tour since 2000, and he didn't even finish it for reasons that were explained at the time as medical. There was probably a time last year that he genuinely thought he would be on the road this very day, playing Led Zeppelin songs with John Paul Jones, Jason Bonham and the singer of their choosing. It fell through for reasons not exactly explained, and Jimmy must be disappointed about that, if not absolutely heartbroken.
He says he wants to be seen again, and thank goodness for that -- because if things continue to carry on the way they have for the past decade, Jimmy will soon find himself in declining health and moping that he missed out on being seen, and enjoyed, when he certainly was capable. People want to see Jimmy and enjoy him.
Les Paul never retired. To the very end, he made himself available to his fans. Those who met him found a man who was very proud of his accomplishments and who was very friendly with those who admired him. Les was a great role model for any artist, not just guitarists but singers, drummers, everybody.
There's still a market for Jimmy Page, no doubt. There's still a market for Charlie Watts too. But is it the Rolling Stones crowd? Is that the only vehicle for his career today?
Does Charlie still have any unrealized aspirations? His technical abilities aside, could Charlie be the mastermind drummer in a spontaneously arranged supergroup not unlike the one John Paul Jones is in, and go out and write new music that has nothing to do with "Street Fighting Man" and more to do with, say, "The Day that Never Comes"? Might Charlie have some skills he's been shielding from the spotlight, like a decent singing voice?
As I watched "It Might Get Loud," it struck me when Jimmy Page declined to sing along with The Edge and Jack White when the three attempted "The Weight," the classic by The Band. Jimmy used the word "can't" when asked to sing. Aren't we taught as children to aspire higher than that? "Can't" was a naughty word in my household. Jimmy does end up singing a third harmony on the "and" at the end of each chorus, so kudos to him for overcoming one of his anxieties.
Jimmy also sang backup a few times during Led Zeppelin's career, and don't forget his pre-Yardbirds solo single "She Just Satisfies"; he was all over that one vocally. But why a man at his age would be debating whether or not to sing in the company of The Edge and Jack White is beyond me. Just go out there and do it, Jimmy. I encourage you!
Don't retire, Jimmy, and don't make us think you retired either. There's a market for you. There's a band for you. You're not washed up, and you never will be. Go out there and be seen. We promise your fans will be there.
So, in effect, would Charlie be retiring? I mean, he's not forfeiting his license to play Stones songs. But if he's not playing them with Mick and Keith anymore, then who's he gonna play 'em with?
Is Charlie going to go the Ringo Starr route and start up his own cavalcade of stars, rock musicians who go around and play yawn-inducing versions of their songs to aging folks in lawn chairs?
Drummers aren't afforded the same luxuries given to singers. If Robert Plant doesn't want to tour with Led Zeppelin, he can still record an album with Alison Krauss and sing "Black Dog" in concert -- and he does, and then people vilify him for doing the same thing others praise him for doing.
Or is Charlie just going to sit at home and relax now that he is in advanced age and enjoy the fortunes he has earned playing his limited role in the creation of songs like "Street Fighting Man" and "Start Me Up"? And if that's what he's doing, doesn't the word "retirement" come to mind? How many times do you hear that word in this discussion?
Jimmy Page hasn't been on a major tour since 2000, and he didn't even finish it for reasons that were explained at the time as medical. There was probably a time last year that he genuinely thought he would be on the road this very day, playing Led Zeppelin songs with John Paul Jones, Jason Bonham and the singer of their choosing. It fell through for reasons not exactly explained, and Jimmy must be disappointed about that, if not absolutely heartbroken.
He says he wants to be seen again, and thank goodness for that -- because if things continue to carry on the way they have for the past decade, Jimmy will soon find himself in declining health and moping that he missed out on being seen, and enjoyed, when he certainly was capable. People want to see Jimmy and enjoy him.
Les Paul never retired. To the very end, he made himself available to his fans. Those who met him found a man who was very proud of his accomplishments and who was very friendly with those who admired him. Les was a great role model for any artist, not just guitarists but singers, drummers, everybody.
There's still a market for Jimmy Page, no doubt. There's still a market for Charlie Watts too. But is it the Rolling Stones crowd? Is that the only vehicle for his career today?
Does Charlie still have any unrealized aspirations? His technical abilities aside, could Charlie be the mastermind drummer in a spontaneously arranged supergroup not unlike the one John Paul Jones is in, and go out and write new music that has nothing to do with "Street Fighting Man" and more to do with, say, "The Day that Never Comes"? Might Charlie have some skills he's been shielding from the spotlight, like a decent singing voice?
As I watched "It Might Get Loud," it struck me when Jimmy Page declined to sing along with The Edge and Jack White when the three attempted "The Weight," the classic by The Band. Jimmy used the word "can't" when asked to sing. Aren't we taught as children to aspire higher than that? "Can't" was a naughty word in my household. Jimmy does end up singing a third harmony on the "and" at the end of each chorus, so kudos to him for overcoming one of his anxieties.
Jimmy also sang backup a few times during Led Zeppelin's career, and don't forget his pre-Yardbirds solo single "She Just Satisfies"; he was all over that one vocally. But why a man at his age would be debating whether or not to sing in the company of The Edge and Jack White is beyond me. Just go out there and do it, Jimmy. I encourage you!
Don't retire, Jimmy, and don't make us think you retired either. There's a market for you. There's a band for you. You're not washed up, and you never will be. Go out there and be seen. We promise your fans will be there.
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