In the latest issue of Guitarist, Pete Thorn shared that the allure of Jimmy Page lies not in his flawless technique but rather in his mistakes and human aspect.
The musician explained his thoughts about Page’s style:
“Jimmy Page’s playing was like a stream of consciousness – it was about freedom of ideas. He didn’t care about things like mistakes, I don’t think. Like when you watch some of his solos, especially live, it’s really magical.
He’s the ultimate guy to listen to and try to absorb if you’re uptight about your playing and worried about making mistakes… Because that doesn’t exist in his world.”
Then, Thorn appreciated the human quality in the Led Zeppelin icon’s playing, finding it appealing and relatable:
“It’s all cool. It’s a really appealing sound because it’s so human. That and the fact that he doesn’t choke. He might make an error or do something that’s not technically correct.
But he never chokes – he always moves on to the next thing. And that’s part of his sound, and it’s the beauty of his playing. It’s so magical and so rock ‘n’ roll, in a way.”
Still, the musician continues to receive acclaim from his counterparts. Speaking to Classic Rock in 2021, Joe Satriani expressed his admiration for Page’s fearless attitude in playing. Joe acknowledged that he might not have always been the most technically skilled guitarist, but what set Jimmy apart was his spirit and passion.
Satriani said:
“I love that Page would always just go for it. He may not have thought he could always pull it off; some other guitar player might have better technique, but what Page did would always trump it because the spirit was so overwhelming. Whatever he did on guitar would turn into a technique.”
In a chat with Total Guitar in February, Brian May also honored the guitarist by calling him “the master of the riff and the master of getting lost deliberately in time signatures.” In other interviews, Steve Stevens and Phil Collen paid attention to how his musical skills went beyond simply playing notes on the guitar.
