Jimmy Page has recalled his attempts to keep the remnants of Led Zeppelin together after their 2007 reunion show as a “nightmare.”
The guitarist says the original music he was creating with John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham was worth the effort – but things became too complex as they got waylaid by looking for a singer.
Robert Plant refused to keep working with the band after their one-off concert at London’s O2, later released as Celebration Day. A number of vocalists were tried out, including Steven Tyler of Aerosmith and Myles Kennedy of Slash and Alter Bridge.
Page tells Metal XS: “In the run-up to the concert, the only music we played was Led Zeppelin. But we played really, really well.
“Jason, myself and John Paul Jones played really well together so it made sense to see what we could do, using that same energy with new material.”
He continues: “But of course, that’s not good enough for other people – they want to keep trying singers out. From my point of view, the most important thing is to concentrate on your strengths, not your weaknesses.
“With the weaknesses, none of us sang. But we could play.”
While Page wanted to focus on “shaping up songs so we’ve got a collection,” he suggests he was overruled. “We kept trying singers and we compromised, and it actually became a total nightmare,” he says.
The guitarist last month oversaw the conclusion of Led Zep’s remaster series – and discussed the plans he and late drummer John Bonham had laid for what would have been the band’s ninth album. He’s featured in the current edition of Classic Rock, on sale now in print, digital and via TeamRock+.
