The MOST IMPORTANT Thing I LEARNED From Jimmy Page 

Jimmy was a studio guy. He COULD do 'perfection'. But, as he once said, "Technique doesn't come into it. I deal in emotions." Jimmy was a MASTER of tapping into the subconscious of his audience.

Jimmy Page got me playing guitar. Sloppy or not, he always touches me, he's written dozens of riffs that everybody knows.There are guitarists with 'better' technique(EVH), others 'perhaps' are better at the blues (Clapton), but if I could magically get the abilities of any guitarist I'd choose Jimmy Page.

I've heard Page play badly when he'd obviously been awake for 4 days straight on smack, cocaine and Jack Daniels but I have also heard him play the most moving, brilliant and emotionally charged guitar solos and riffs I've ever heard. Nobody could capture the mood of a song with a solo like him . To me he's one of the few true geniuses in rock. His versatility is also something that sets him apart. He could create songs in several different styles.

Imagine a guy playing an electric guitar while riding on a surfboard. That's Jimmy Page. It's not sloppy. It's going with the sometimes unexpected flow.

You know what’s REALLY amazing about “Since”?… it’s that JPJ is playing organ but also bass pedals WITH HIS FEET, at the SAME TIME. F*cking LEGEND!!!!

Jimmy had studied a lot of styles of music, from classical to East Indian. He could also play different instruments, so when he performed some of his solos, he would incorporate different structures and tunings that most rock players didn't even have a clue about. A real genius.

Jimmy Page is from another galaxy. No one I've ever heard approaches the guitar like he does.

Love how Page at times makes it sound like he's about to go off the rails entirely. The solo in Communication Breakdown comes to mind. So much more exciting than clinical precision. I wonder why we find it more compelling with a touch of chaos. It's fascinating how sensitive humans are to little touches of disorder, like when Bonham and Jones play behind the beat ever so slightly.

“Oh, my tears they fell like rain” I worked in a video store when I was 17 and every night when cleaning up before close I would crank this song on the store sound system with no one around. My favourite Zep song ever. I don’t say that lightly there are so many bad ass songs. Since I’ve been loving you and comfortably numb made me pick up a guitar! Music is life.

My 2 cents: The 'secret' to true virtuosity is to know your instrument well enough that you can play it with 'reckless abandon'. That's the point where *your* 'voice' and *your* 'personality' come through the instrument. Music isn't about 'musicianship', it's about communication. Does the listener 'hear' what you're 'saying' through your instrument?

I've always considered Jimmy's solos as Sloppy Genius. Most of the old-school blues guys weren't known for their perfect playing. They were known for the emotion they showed in their playing. It's showing humanity. We're imperfect beings. That's why the music is so easy to relate to still after over 40 years.

Playing 30 minutes of dazed and confused live in concert, i’m sure there were points in the song where they didnt have a precise roadmap, but they improvised and jammed their hearts out! Totally 1970s. Totally awesome!

Holy Cow, Tim. Everyone has their own favorite kind of music, but that opening solo work was the BEST stuff I’ve heard you play so far. Rock. On!

It's really simple, but somehow it's taken me years to figure it out. There is an emotional honesty about Page's playing that I connect with. I've watched more than my share of shredders play thousands of great licks...perfectly. Great, you've been practicing, but it doesn't tell me what you feel. So many great players overlook what might be the most important thing about music; telling a story. Jimmy Page communicates emotion with his instrument, which is a powerful thing.

Just my two cents here: I don't think of Page so much as sloppy; I think of him as playing very emotionally, directly from the soul and heart (and not from his head). Also, to me, it sounds like he's having a conversation with himself, such as: "I don't know (quiet)...should I do THIS (loud) or that (quiet)...or should I do THIS (loud) or THISSSSS (digs in)..." "Soft" and "loud" come from his feelings at that very moment he is playing, which can change at will. Emotions go up and down or less intense/more intense, which is velocity. And that velocity - how loud or soft he playsing - is generated by his heart and his soul right at the moment he is playing. I never hear him playing from his head like a lot of guitarists, such as those in prog rock (for the record, I love prog rock). It's just a different style. He doesn't have "clean hands." Perhaps it's as simple as defining it in terms of the blues/pain or NOT the blues. Also, when he improvs, I love it when he'll just launch out of 4/4 and into free time outer space and just go OUT there improvising and having that "conversation" with himself and then fly in back into the song's time signature after 8 or 16 bars. Love that. Page was my main influence in life, as a musician and composer/arranger. I relate very much to his intense emotion (velocity/hard-soft), whether it be quiet, dissonant and ethereal or bad ass sublime coolness and spanking the plank. It just doesn't get any cooler. Just my two cents.

Great lesson Tim. But sadly, I'm in my 50's and if Jimmy Page plays like a teenager, I play like a toddler.🤗😉😁

One of the things I've always admired most about Page was his ability to make imperfection sound impeccable.

I loved the way they recorded Since I've Been Living You. Everything is mic'd up so clean and close. You can hear the mechanics of Pages fingers on the fretboard, his pick against the trings, his volume knob being turned up. You can even hear Bonhams kick drum sqeaking.

Tim, in general I love your playing, but your chops on this video are Next Level. You sound really inspired here. I really enjoyed this. 💜

Can't figure out if I like his virtuoso playing or his sheer joy the most.

I was 13 years old when I first heard 'Since I've Been Loving You'. In the split second of silence at the end of the guitar solo I was struck by a [metaphorical] lightning bolt and became a musician. There was me before, and a me after. Still gives me chills at 48yo. Page is beyond emulation imo.

Page smokes them all, in my opinion. The versatility, compositions, arrangements, production, the guts and grace and grit and groove and abandon. There's a reason that Zeppelin stands above the others, and one of those reasons is Sir Jimmy Page. As a band they could give fuck all about clean, in time, in tune (--within reason)--- they made music as it happens, not how it's scientifically designed but how it feels. That's no diss on theory or metronomes etc. but after you've done your homework you have to remember to show up for the music in the air and then play together. Music isn't really about cents or grids or flawlessness, it's about the song, the piece, the expression, the story, the communication and connection. Page and Zeppelin in spades.

My favorite zep tune of all time. Bought the third album and played it through then came back to this tune and I must have played it 15 times in a row just blown away by the song - Plants voice - the organ - Everything about it. A masterpiece. I remember I worked for a classically trained musician for a number of years. A guy that played in the LA Phil for many years and considered himself a true connoisseur of the blues having been born in Naw Linz and growing up in an area steeped in blues. I played this song for him one day and he was mesmerized by it and asked me to play it again 5 more times for him before he asked who the band even was. He then stated it was the finest example of the blues he had ever heard. I agree with him.

I still listen to their studio albums after 40-50 years. Still some of the best. Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd are up there, but Zeppelin still rules.

I remember thinking that Page was always a bit off. Then I realized he was consistent with it and it was all intentional. That moved me to complete awe of this artist.

The dynamics he employs in "Since I've been loving you" are the most 'human voice-like' I think he ever got. Great topic, really needs to be understood better by lots of musicians that unknowingly strip the emotional life from their playing by being too precise and technical. Too much over-producing from the board can really flatten out the richness in a player's tracks as well. To me personally, I've always felt the most perfect meeting between precise playing and that loose, organic, emotional tone has always been the main guitar voice in "Reeling in the years".

Ten Years Gone solos get me every time. Every single time.

I saw Page with Yardbirds in Tampa.. As a youngster I was floored by the raw, dynamics of his playing. I couldn't believe what I was seeing/hearing. 1st song Train kept Rolling. Several months later Zep small club Miami Communication Breakdown. I am 70 and saw all the great ones.Early Jimmy Page was the greatest guitar player I ever saw.

I never understand the "sloppy" label about Page. There is no doubt in my mind he could play every note perfect if he wanted to. His whole thing was to create a series of memorable moments that caught the attention of the listener and playing loose in a tight structure created by the bass and drums. Oddly Plant did the same thing as a vocalist, he had all kinds of imperfections in his voice. Yet he is concidered a great singer. Page was a virtuoso who wasn't afraid to take risks.

Page isn’t sloppy he’s (sometimes) loose and that’s what the blues has always been about.

I love the joy you Exude when you play; the smile of complete joy. Magical.

Jimmy was the top session guitarist in London, after only playing guitar for five years. That is a God-given talent.

The “Presence “ album is my favorite because it was produced under the gun in about 2 weeks, and is filled with those moments.

I'm glad that I'm not the only one who deeply appreciates Since I've Been Loving You! I am a bit younger, this was released the year the year I was born, so I am not as deeply educated on the original blues giants that influenced Page and his contemporary British invasion bands. But this song just slays me to the core. Without question, I put in the top ten of greatest blues songs of all time (more than 100 years), for me personally, I put in top 5 or top 3! And I don't even consider Led Zep a true, pure blues band! They always mixed British folk, Indian modal, Blues, and the more intense beginnings of hard rock or heavy metal. Right from the first album. And the further irony is that this is on their "acoustic" third album.

Great stuff! I always preferred Page's raw but perfect imperfection over the safer sounding Clapton.

Still my favourite Led Zep song. The way he switches to the bridge pickup soloing over the turnaround straight after a quiet section - so explosive and emotional!

I've been playing for many years and play in many different genres and styles, but there is no one like Page. His compositional skills are second to none and ability to gain and maintain interest via lead, chords, riffs is like no other. Aurally, he's the most interesting guitarist I know of.

when it comes to Jimmy and Zeppelin everybody talks about stairway and whole Lotta love but I'll always keep saying 'since I've been loving you' is his best work ever

Jimmy is my favorite for so many reasons. All I can say is, his playing style connects more with me and my personality than any other guitar player

Ah, the harmonies, creative process, swing, and tone that went into these one of a kind classics! Wonderful share. Thanks Tim! Best, Daniel

In the loose-ness, the irreverence, we hear the sound of the guitar and the amps in a glorious way unlike anyone else, fully captured and awesome. Tim, this is a great episode man!

Jeez Louise, I love Tim’s phrasing. He definitely observes the attitude, allows for his own emotions to guide his playing, and totally makes this his own. I love to hear Tim Pierce play as much as any other guitar hero. Thank you so much for posting this, Tim.

Jimmy Page’s riffs were the first I learned as a young player back in the early 80’s. Zeppelin II was especially instrumental in my ear training.

The most by me loved music of Jimmy Page is his Chopin Prelude no. 4

So many people try to cover or emulate Jimmy Page these days and I'm loving it. Tim you have the magic that others don't have... you Feel the music AND you have great timing - you're not just a technical guitar guy, although I have to say your supportive equipment is impressive. Thanks for sharing

Tim is such a thrill to watch. Pure joy emotes from him. So inspirational. One of the very best on the planet.

I watch all the big guitar youtubers every day. Tim simply stands out. Tommy Bukovac and Tim. Yin and Yang. Sorry I just love this man.

What a fantastic breakdown. Man, your masterful at this. Thanks so much for your time and energy putting these together. By far my favorite on RU-vid.

Excellent Tim, I'm down with anything Pagey!!!! Growing up I was always more impressed with Jimmy's emotional content and "sloopiness" as compared to any technically perfect players!! Cheers mate!!!

Sorry I missed the live stream. I love SIR Page but, I do have a question for you. Do you ever put your guitar down? I am convinced you do not, nor do you ever leave your starship enterprise bridge because I can see no way in or out, it's just you surrounded by all this awesome gear. Love you man, you are awesome.

It's great to read everyone's JP story. I went from being forced to practice my guitar lesson, to cutting school and practicing 8-hrs/day after seeing TSRS -MSG movie in 7th grade. I never knew anyone could play an instrument like that. JP is my favorite! Obviously, other greats as well. We used to call him "controlled slop." But nothing sloppy at TSRS concert. Since I've Been Loving You is my overall favorite song by LZ. Anyhow at 60 yrs old I still pay guitar and currently a Bass player in a horn band: Chicago, Steely, Dan, etc. Keep on Rockin'! Ohhh, and great job Tim on your playing and break-down of Jimmy, truly a great video!

Great Rock and Blues music is not about clinical perfection. It has a soul all its own. Loose is the word. People who say Page is sloppy are just plain jealous. The man knew how to make it happen. Zeppelin showed the old Blues masters how their great music could be enhanced.

A mon sens "since i've been loving you " est le morceau le plus puissant dans l'univers de blues. Votre interprétation était superbe, merci de partager votre travail, vous êtes un prodige de la guitare.

I learned the loose technical approach to guitar playing from Neil Young and Jimmy Hendrix. As long as you stay in time, you can get away with murder, especially playing with a lot of gain and distortion and delay. Page is another great example though. What all three share is that they are composers first, guitarists second. I learned that distinction from studying Classical and Jazz. While I appreciate virtuosity, what really advances an artform is composition. We remember great composers because they come to represent some aspect of their time, place and culture which is both unique, timeless and universal. Virtuoso performers master their instruments technically, and the best show stunning insight into the compositions they recite, and in the case of Jazz, embellish through improvisation. But I also learned from classical and jazz music culture - and later heavy metal rock - that virtuosity and it's worship can devolve into a snobbish cult that ignores or even denigrates passion and pathos in favor of Platonic perfection, speed, and efficiency. That's where the utility of an iconoclastic movement like Punk comes in, and pisses all over the wankers, reminding everyone that music is fundamentally about human EMOTION, and human emotion isn't perfect - it's messy AF. 😉

I love how Tim doesn't try to sound exactly like Page, he gets close yet instills his own style and technique.

Loved Pages playing, one of my earliest hero's! learned a TON of his music. Absolutely great playing Tim, just top notch as usual

I loved your terminology. It is not sloppy, it is loose. Page always had a flow to his playing. I love how he goes out of time & control then snaps you back in with precision. Stretching the notes has a sound and feel that is the purest form of guitar playing. Incredible session.

Your SC is freaking B E A U T I F U L!! And that run at 1:11! (Whoah - someone grab a fire-extinguisher!!) But I'm sure you could make a broom-with a string tied to the end sound like gold! Thank you so much, Tim!!

Always enjoy your wisdom, playing, and fabulous insights! I'm 65, and we always called Page's playing "loose" which was meant as a compliment. I still prefer that style to super-technical stuff, which is great too! Just love it loose. Thanks for all you do! I always look forward to your posts.

Nice rundown on this tune! Love your channel.

I always liked Led Zeppelin, but when I was a young pup, learning guitar back in 1979, I also liked the precision players, because it made more sense to me when I was learning. After a few years, I grew to really LOVE Led Zeppelin because of Jimmy's irreverence to time, and breaking the rules. It's just brilliant, like a great artist coloring outside of the lines!

I have a theory about Jimmy’s “sloppy” playing - often it was his live playing and I think a big part of it was the fact that his guitar hung down around his knees. He has very large hands so he’s able to do that, but the lower that guitar hangs, the more difficult it is to be precise and play clean. I’m guessing in the studio he was sitting a lot of the time.

Thank you for posting this lesson!!

That was a pleasure to watch. Thank you so very much.

Even when you’re trying to play more “sloppy” is pure Precision!

If music makes you feel something that’s what’s it’s all about and that is the magic. Jimmy Page is the master at just that. I get nothing from some of the amazing and technically proficient guitar players. Life isn’t perfect and neither is great music in my opinion.

You crushed that! Well done. Saw them in ‘77 Madison Square Garden. Some things you never forget .

This is the best thing I've ever seen Tim play! Just gorgeous!

With Jimmy it was everything...he was King of Kings. In addition, i've never heard anyone who plays like he did with Zeppelin. I was lucky to have seen them twice.

Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, David Gilmour, Tony Iommi… these are people that get put up against Jimmy Page a lot of times and for good reason. Obviously, Clapton and Beck get on with the comparison because of the their tenure in The Yard Birds. Clapton, Beck, and Page are all big blues players also. Clapton being the most traditional. Then you have David Gilmour. And like Jimmy Page he is known for his phrasing. Both have made such ear-catching guitar solos mostly thru improv in the studio. Big difference though, Jimmy Page still puts so much more fresh improv in his performances while Gilmour tends to stick with composition as recorded. Nothing wrong with that of course. Then there is Tony Iommi. Arguably, Iommi might be the better riff maker. It’s definitely debatable and no disrespect to the other by saying one is better than the other. The bigger difference is that Jimmy Page’s riffs are composed with a lot more sonic intuition. String bends, hammer-ons, pull-offs, fret slides, and other slurring methods are all compositional elements of his riff phrasing. Even his vibrato on certain notes are paramount. Most Zeppelin riffs require you to just play like Page to perform it. That’s possibly why so many people are influenced by Led Zeppelin because you can’t help it. If you’ve played any of Zeppelin’s hits you’ve learned to handle some part of Page’s playing style. Then I have to end with the comparison of Page and Beck. Really, there is no comparison. Beck has rewritten his style several times over. He has evolved into such an emotional and unimitatable player. The only comparison: both players will help you unlock your own potential by attempting to do what they do. But I digress. We are talking about why Jimmy Page is great.

Awesome, thank you for making such high quality teaching available!

I think some guitar people are not in it for the fun but to demand perfection. Thank you for speaking to the joy from your position of wisdom.

The question for me will always be "what would Hendrix be playing today if he had lived ?" And "how crazy would it have been if Hendrix and Page had jammed ?"

The Fool in the Rain solo is so sick. He was supposedly piss drunk through most of those times. His playing is perfect in feel. Precision is sterile.

This added to my appreciation of Jimmy Page, and opened my mind a bit. Thanks

Golly Tim, you're so good. Thanks as always for sharing.

I based my entire guitar style on the Jimmy Page vibe: I tell my students, "Play a mistake 3 more times and it's a riff."

5:51 one of my favorite LZ deep cuts. One of the catchiest choruses they ever wrote imo.

My favorite blues ballad of all time and you didn't fuck it up! hahaha Tim: I love your playing. Thanx for sharing your heart and soul with us

Everything you have taked about is what I love about this and your music...you can feel the love and pain of these music passages thanks so much

Beautiful analysis of Jimmy's playing style!

I don’t listen to music for perfection, I listen to music to be moved… and Zeppelin moves like no other.

Nothing has touched me & change me more than Zeppelin did in middle & high school. Not something one can theorize why. To My Heart and Soul

Timmy Page ... great solos Tim ... thnx for showing us

I think jimmy page is the next level after learning to play perfect. I don’t think you can play like that until after you know what perfect playing is.

Amazing Lesson from Tim! Thank you Tim ... Pages 'Slop' was Texture much like a Van Gogh Painting . The Microtones, Grace notes , rhythmic swagger etc ,make him impossible to replicate and creates the art (albeit Tim does a fantastic job!) Its not intended to be "Surgically Precise" I have a friend who paints with such 'Surgical Precision' its virtually impossible to tell from a photogragh.. That does not make him as great as Van Gogh.... For Tone Chasers I replicate the 1973 TSRTS tone on my channel using the UNBALANCED pickup set Page used Post May 1972.

I just started working on Since I've been loving you. what a great song, your playing is amazing and inspiring! Thank you.

Thanks Tim for the tips! Stuff I can use!

Jimmy secret was playing loose and up picking notes . Some have said sloppy I say GENIUS. It added Dynamics.

With Jimmy Page it feels like the overall vibe or effect is the real thing that comes across. The way he orchestrated parts in the studio for sure. His improvisations same kind of thing, it's not about precision it's about exploring all these interesting places. Loved the studio shots of all the gear.

Tim, your the best. Thanks for all your hard work you do for us.

Thanks Tim. Great video. Great playing and great teaching.

My 2 cents.... As Tim noted, Page is a master composer, could readily track "perfect" lines were that his desire. But Page lets loose and flies with emotion and plays to the core of the song. Together the composition matched with the eclecticism of his lead work takes on and builds massive song sculptures of magical proportions. I cannot think of any other who has done it so well. Of course Plant, Bonham and especially Jones added to and helped bring Pages work to full fruition. This took Zeppelin's work beyond what others were creating in the day.

Did anyone see Rick Beato's "What if EVH played the Stairway solo" video? If there is a theoretical "better" version of the classic Zeppelin solos floating around out there somewhere, then I truly believe it lies beyond the grasp of most humans. If you had a contest to see who could execute different solos for, say Stairway vs Eruption, I think there would be a million versions of Eruption that would be at the very least interesting, but nothing could improve on the existing Stairway solo (most if not all would sound weird and wrong). I think Comfortably Numb would also be much easier to improvise on than Stairway, and I've also heard very passable and interesting improvising on Hendrix's work, but I've never heard anyone do Page and sound close. His orbit is like Pluto

I love your practice space dude Thanks for sharing, keep up the videos your helping improve my playing so much ✌🏾❤️

Thank you , your videos are amazing. Your playing is awe inspiring.

Jimmy’s philosophy was to be true to himself rather than imitate the American black blues players whom he admired and had learned so much from. He stepped into his own shoes and found his own brilliance.

Another lesson is also to be aware of an artist's roots to understand what his work is made of, where it comes from on a culture point of view. Jimmy Page case is so interesting (as Clapton, Beck & other british guitarist from the 50/60's). He actually explains it perfectly in the documentary It Might Get Loud. Understanding what we are listening to it's adding another layer to our knowledge. Curiosity is the key.

Since brought tears to my eyes,,,,,,,,,,,bought I and II new. III took a bit. First concert, LZ Houses, Kezar.. i was 15 in '73.

"Since I've Been Loving You"; such a fitting song -- like you, Tim, I've been in love with Page's playing since my early teens in the 70s. Thanks for reminding me why!