Was Jimmy Page a Mad Scientist as well?

skoora

Well-known member
For some reason I decided I wanted to learn the Rain Song and who the hell not only thinks, let me tune to Gsus, but then figures out such beautiful and lyrical voicings to go with it? Once you practice it a bit (with TAB mind you) it's actually quite easy but to think of the creative process that got there is incredible. I imagine he was imagining a way to get certain open strings to drone and ring out the way he wanted in his head but damn it's clever. Is that a holdover from the 60's where you had a lot of acoustic folk and bluegrass etc. and it bled into the 70's rock players who started in the 60's?
 
chumbucket":2owcs14z said:
He probably stole the idea from someone else.

:LOL: :LOL: You're probably right.

…..or "borrowed"

He may have heard/new a player using the tuning and messed around with it. Still, what he did with it is the real deal.
 
I don't know that he stole the riff from someone, maybe the idea for tuning that way,
But just think how many songs and great riffs Jimmy Page has came up with.
 
I play in a lot of different tunnings and never seen it used by or on anything else. It certainly does not sound right if you try it in any other tunning.

Does anyone know of a other tunning or song that is similar ?
 
I never cared for him as a player when I was younger, but recently started appreciating what a great player he is.

Only took me 25 years...lol
 
Yes, he was a Mad Scientist. I agree with some of the post above, where he basically took ideas from his influences and made them his own.
 
Sus tunings are popular in Celtic music, he probably learned the tuning con concept there and adopted it to his needs (DADGAD etc)?
 
the crush 36":2c33e18f said:
I don't know that he stole the riff from someone, maybe the idea for tuning that way,
But just think how many songs and great riffs Jimmy Page has came up with.


Or how many of his riffs have been borrowed ....... I never would have picked up a guitar had I not heard Page play. Would still just be playing ragtime piano.
 
Jimmy did live under the old musicians code of "Armatures borrow but Pro's STEAL". Zep covered and released a multitude of songs written by Howlin Wolf, Muddy Waters and a whole list of other musicians. If you want to hear where Jimmy Page got his "Unique" riffing style, give the late and great Alvin Lee a listen. You'll hear Page riffs played at light speed by Alvin on the Woodstock recording "I'm Going Home". No one does it better, not even Page.

My humble opinion :D
 
It happened when he was dazed and confused, listening to Percy's incessant whining that only stopped with bitch slap from Peter Grant. Nothing to do with a mud shark though...

Celtic tuning as mentioned above.
 
skoora":2srlmv89 said:
For some reason I decided I wanted to learn the Rain Song and who the hell not only thinks, let me tune to Gsus, but then figures out such beautiful and lyrical voicings to go with it? Once you practice it a bit (with TAB mind you) it's actually quite easy but to think of the creative process that got there is incredible. I imagine he was imagining a way to get certain open strings to drone and ring out the way he wanted in his head but damn it's clever. Is that a holdover from the 60's where you had a lot of acoustic folk and bluegrass etc. and it bled into the 70's rock players who started in the 60's?
Had a Led Zep song book back in the day. Back before tablature.

s-l300.jpg


All the guitar parts were transcribed as if it were played on a piano (this is how all song books were back then).

Tuned my acoustic to one of the open tunings - forget which song it was.

Never actually learned the song, but started composing music using that open tuning.

:rock:
 
I basically had the same epiphany that the OP did when I learned The Rain Song... freakin' genius, elegant simplicity. Reminds me I should mess around with open tunings more often.
 
The first two chords of Rain Song are the same as Something by The Beatles.
Was a nod to George Harrision who'd become buddies with the band.
 
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