After The Yardbirds came to an end, guitarist Jimmy Page decided to form a new band with Robert Plant, John Paul Jones, and John Bonham, which was later named Led Zeppelin. The group became one of the most important forces in the evolution of Hard Rock music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, influencing countless bands around the world for decades to come.
Although many great bands from the genre emerged in England, several were also formed in the United States. One of them was Aerosmith, a band that Jimmy Page has spoken about on several occasions throughout his career.
What is Jimmy Page’s opinion on Aerosmith
Jimmy Page has always been very supportive to other bands, frequently going to see other artists playing live and he is a big fan of Aerosmith. Back in the 80s, when he was promoting his solo album, he gave a TV interview and was asked to pick a music video to be played and his choice was “Dude (Looks Like A Lady)” from the American band’s 1987 album “Permanent Vacation”. “Yeah, this is done by the guy who did our video and apart from that I really like Aerosmith, which is who is by. Because I think, you know, out of all the bands that come from early on, say in the 70s’, I think they’ve come through with their really strong identity. They are just Aerosmith without ripping off other bands,” he told Sky Trax in 1988 (Transcribed by Rock and Roll Garage).
Curiously, Aerosmith has been often called by many the American Led Zeppelin and three years later, in 1990, Page had the chance to play with them on stage. He was their special guest during their concert at the Monsters of Rock Festival in Donington, England. They performed “Train Kept A-Rollin’”, the influential 50s song previously recorded by The Yardbirds, and Aerosmith’s hit “Walk This Way”.
Jimmy Page talked about that performance
Page gave some interesting details of that day on his social media once, recalling: “I guested with Aerosmith at Donington at the Monsters Of Rock Festival. I travelled with Aerosmith in their tour bus to and from the show. All of the time on the bus was spent chatting and exchanging stories. At one point Steven Tyler played me the current Red Hot Chili Peppers album. There was much enthusiasm and discussion about music on that journey,” he said.
Two nights later, Page joined them again on stage. But this time was in a small secret show at the Marquee on London’s Charing Cross Road. The Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry had the chance to perform that song on other occasions with Page, like at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony, for example.
Perry and Steven Tyler in fact, were the ones who inducted Led Zeppelin into the Rock Hall in 1995. They even ended up playing a few songs together that night. A few months before, Jimmy Page was having dinner one night with Perry in Buenos Aires, Argentina when he asked the American musician for them to induct them. During his speech, Steven Tyler recalled he first met Jimmy Page when his earlier band Chain Reaction opened for The Yardbirds in the late 60s.
Steven Tyler auditioned for Zeppelin when Jimmy and Jones wanted to tour
Around 2010, a few years after the incredible Led Zeppelin reunion show at the O2 Arena in London held in honor of the late record executive Ahmet Ertegün, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones expressed interest in touring again. However, the band’s vocalist, Robert Plant, declined to take part. For a time, they considered moving forward with a different singer. Curiously, Steven Tyler was among the artists who auditioned for the role.
The Aerosmith frontman recalled that experience in an interview with Howard Stern in 2011. “I looked Jimmy in the eyes and I went, ‘No.’ He then explained how he was first invited: “I spoke to Jimmy Page’s manager, Peter Mench, who’s been a good friend of mine forever. He said Robert wouldn’t play with them again, and would I want to come over and jam with the guys? I went over and played. It came time for (Jimmy) to say, ‘You want to write a record with me?’ I went, ‘No.’ I’m in Aerosmith. He’s in the biggest band in the world and I’m in a band like that. I have such an allegiance to my band and I love it so much,” Steven Tyler said.
Although the partnership didn’t happen they remained good friends and saw each other multiple times. One of the most recent encounters was at a Black Crowes concert in England in 2024.
Joe Perry and Jimmy Page watched a Jeff Beck performance together
Jimmy Page and Joe Perry were close friends of Jeff Beck for decades. Interestingly, one of the last times the Aerosmith guitarist saw Jeff perform live was alongside Page. “One of the last times I saw him play live we were doing the Classic Rock Awards in Tokyo (2016). Ross Halfin (Photographer) put it together, but I didn’t want to go all the way to Japan for one thing. I said, ‘Okay, who’s gonna be there?’ Ross went down the list. I said, ‘I cannot miss this!’ I remember sitting in the audience during the soundcheck when Jeff came out.”
“(So) I was sitting there with Jimmy Page. Just the two of us, like two kids elbowing each other every time Jeff would play something. I don’t know why he bothers playing his slide because he can duplicate that with his vibrato arm. He’ll test his amp just to make sure it’s working and it’s like, ‘I never heard that before!’
He continued:
“That’s the thing about Jeff: he’s on this journey and always has been, discovering new stuff. That’s the genius, that’s why there’s all of us other guitar players and then there’s him. Every time you see him he’s doing something different. That’s the thing that inspires me the most about Jeff,” he told Guitar World in 2023.
Aerosmith was formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1970. Their classic line-up has Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton, Joey Kramer and Brad Whitford. They were one of the few bands who were able to be really successful during the 70s, 80s and 90s. They sold more than 150 million records worldwide, what makes them the best-selling American Hard Rock band. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.
