In honor of his “hero,” Link Wray, Jimmy Page made an unexpected appearance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Friday night (November 3).
The 79-year-old LED ZEPPELIN icon first showed up on screen during a video that detailed Wray’s innovative career. He delivered a pre-recorded message as part of the presentation. In the message, Page recalled thinking, “What is that?” when he first heard Wray’s iconic instrumental “Rumble” as a teenager. “There were a lot of guitar instrumentals back then,” he remarked. “Even though I was only 14 years old and could hardly play the instrument, it still had an impact on me.” The vitality, strength, and power within it. You also need to know that it was bold. It was simply amazing. The pinnacle of style.”
After that, Page performed “Rumble” live on stage at Brooklyn, New York’s Barclays Center with his recognized Gibson double-neck guitar. He did this in honor of the late American guitarist and songwriter who was being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For Page, it was his first show in eight years.
Page’s last public onstage performance before tonight’s Rock Hall show occurred in November 2015. It took place at a benefit show at Seattle’s Experience Music Project Museum. There, he performed the ZEPPELIN classic “Rock and Roll” alongside an all-star cast of musicians. This cast included members of ALICE IN CHAINS, SOUNDGARDEN, CHEAP TRICK, and GUNS N’ ROSES.
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, Kate Bush, Willie Nelson, Missy Elliott, Sheryl Crow, George Michael, DJ Kool Herc, and THE SPINNERS are among the other members of the 2023 class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
When Jimmy Page stated in 2014 that he wanted to go on tour, he was still working on getting the band together. He revealed this to England’s The Week. “I know people want to hear me play,” he stated. “I also want to hear myself perform. I’m actually beginning to energize and prepare myself for assembling something. That seems like the ideal situation to me. I wish to take people off guard.”
Page is regarded by many as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. He is also considered one of the most significant songwriters and record producers in the annals of rock music. At the age of 12, Page began playing the guitar. He started performing with Neil Christian and THE CRUSADERS as soon as he got out of school. He became one of the most in-demand guitarists in Britain by the mid-1960s, honing his skills as a session musician in London. After playing with THE YARDBIRDS from 1966 to 1968. He started LED ZEPPELIN, one of the most popular and enduring bands in rock history, in late 1968. The band has sold over 300 million records to date.
After LED ZEPPELIN, Page produced the soundtrack for a movie called “Death Wish II” in the 1980s. He also formed the bands THE FIRM and COVERDALE PAGE. Additionally, he went on the “A.R.M.S.” tour with Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck and released a solo album called “Outrider.” Page and Robert Plant, his bandmate from LED ZEPPELIN. They collaborated again from 1994 to 1998 on two albums and two tours under the name PAGE AND PLANT. Since then, Page has worked with many different artists on a variety of projects. Some of these projects include performing with Sean Coombes. He also collaborated with THE BLACK CROWES and Leona Lewis at the 2008 Beijing Olympics closing ceremony.
Jimmy Page has had two inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once in 1992 with THE YARDBIRDS and again in 1995 with LED ZEPPELIN. In addition to receiving an honorary doctorate from the University of Surrey (2008) and an OBE from the Queen in 2005. Page also received an honorary doctorate from Berklee College in Boston (2014). He was honored with the Kennedy Center Honors, America’s highest honor in the arts, by President Barack Obama at the White House in 2012. Page produced and remastered LED ZEPPELIN’s nine studio albums with companion discs in 2014 and 2015. In 2019, some of his most recognizable guitars were on display at the remarkable “Play It Loud” exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
