Decades before he was caught sneaking into Nando's and squabbling over the garden fence with Robbie Williams, Jimmy Page was pretty much the coolest electric guitar player alive.
These days, we tend to picture him in dragon-stitched flares, Les Paul at knob level with a Marshall stack looming in the background. Of course, every novice guitar geek has that moment of clarity when they finally figure out that the Les Paul and Marshall set up that defines Led Zeppelin's 1969 debut album is in fact a '59 Telecaster, an ancient and modified Supro 1695T Coronado amp and a Germanium transistor-driven fuzz pedal.
Jimmy didn't just employ this gear over the first couple of Led Zep albums, he used his old Yardbirds Tele and Supro amp on the solo for Stairway To Heaven. So, if you're looking to nail Pagey's tone on that record, step away from the Les Paul and embrace the power of singlecoils.
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You can nail the wood and string part of Jimmy's early Led Zep tone with this fantastic Mexican built Telecaster. When it comes to spec, you're on the same, er, Page here with an alder body, maple neck, rosewood 'board and punchy singlecoil pickups. The dragon pants are strictly optional. On a budget? For £275 the Squier Standard Telecaster offers the classic looks, rosewood 'board and bright and ballsy tone of Jimmy's squeeze.
This 1 x 12" all-valve 25-watt combo is a replica of the heavily-modified late 50s Supro that Jimmy used on Stairway To Heaven and the first Led Zep LP. Like Jimmy's, the amp features a Brit-voiced speaker that pumps out a beefy blues and proto-rock tone. Cool name too...
If you want the early rock tone, you need a good fuzz box. The Supro 1304 is inspired by, among others, the classic Tone Bender used by Pagey back in the day. Don't let the pedal do all the work. Crank your amp and let the gain on the fuzz push it into overdrive and wring some serious vibrato out of your fretting hand.
