Fingerpicker wrote:
I always thought Page was pretty hot until I read the Jeff Beck biography "Crazy Fingers". There was a lot of copying going on in the Led Zeppelin early years.
There have been many allegations of copying and downright plagiarism against Led Zeppelin, mostly revolving around material on their earlier albums. In some cases there were out of court settlements.
None of this makes Page any more or less of a guitar player.
Certainly if you listen to the first two Jeff Beck Group albums it's clear that Beck and Page were moving in the same general direction. But you could argue that they both started heading in that direction when they were in the Yardbirds, that it is THAT vision that they both pursued. I know that Beck has claimed that Page ripped him off, but given their common background I'm not convinced by that argument.
To many Jeff Beck was the man who influenced many others. I find Plants work prettier to listen to than Becks because of my lower level musical ability. I don't yet have an appreciation for the more complex use of music, especially as played by Beck.
That may be because the more complex music has nothing to offer beyond complexity.
I have problems with Beck. They revolve around taste and not knowing when to shut up. When he can keep himself focused and work within a framework he can really deliver the goods. Look no further than
Blow By Blow for the proof of that. Too often he has erred on the side of lots of sizzle, too little steak.
Page is, I think, a lesser technician than Beck, but his focus was so much sharper and he crafted better songs and arrangements.
