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Most technically difficult song for page to play in concert


riffsofpage

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I've been thinking about this question. I'm pretty sure they have played everything and nothing was studio only because of its' difficulty- correct me if I'm wrong. I was wondering about this from the fan's perspective and also venturing as to what Page may have thought or felt - just in case it was mentioned in a guitar magazine interview or something.

Excluding the solo of any song which is always subject to change depending on the year and mood,

I would say "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" ,

I could never get the timing and chord coverage on that.

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I would have to say WS/BMS, HB, SIBLY, TSRTS, IMTOD, TYG, ALS, NFNM, TFO. Those would be my picks for the most difficult to play live regarding the original structure and arrangement though D&C, NQ, & WLL with the improvisations and medleys are on a different level all together.

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I would say either 'Ten Years Gone', due to the 14 guitar overdubs which required John paul Jones to join in with a 3 necked guitar + Bass instead of just bass, and Also 'Achilles Last Stand', due to how page arranged the Guitars like an Orchestra in the studio version and made the change to live extremely difficult.

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I would have to say WS/BMS, HB, SIBLY, TSRTS, IMTOD, TYG, ALS, NFNM, TFO. Those would be my picks for the most difficult to play live regarding the original structure and arrangement though D&C, NQ, & WLL with the improvisations and medleys are on a different level all together.

Technically IMTOD would be the easiest to replicate because the studio version has only one guitar track.

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I don't know how anyone could answer that, as what someone considers difficult would be an individual experience, but as others said anything that involved multiple overdubs in the studio would require creative thinking to play live. It definitely is not "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" because I can play that song and I am an intermediate level guitarist at best!

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Technically IMTOD would be the easiest to replicate because the studio version has only one guitar track.

True, but that single guitar part is without a doubt one of the most difficult slide guitar parts I have ever heard bar none. I have been playing for over 30 years, can play most Zeppelin, however I cannot come close to playing the fast runs in that song...they are INSANE!!!

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Heartbreaker: if you had a audience full of guitarists that were scrutinizing Jimmy's playing-that would possibly be the most difficult to pull-off. For a start, it's a solo, so he cannot hide behind the rest of the band. Then, since it was written in 1969, the entire bar for rock guitar playing (technique) has risen markedly over the years; he could not get away with a sloppy performance, like he possibly could have in the 70's. Today when people listen to the live versions (official or boot), they tend to judge the solo as "sloppy", or loose (by today's standards). Even the studio version is controversial (for technique). The thing that alwaysbothered me is why did Jimmy choose this number at the Atlantic 40th Anniversary show to attempt "live" on TV in front of millions of people watching. He could have chosen dozens of technically easier to play tunes in the Zep rep with little chance of embarrassing himself-YET, he chose to play HB, and it is probably his single worse solo ever played , and hurt his reputation. I still think JPJ could have played a better solo that day!

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^ Funny you say that regarding JPJ. If you listen to his solo albums or have see him live you would have been treated to some pretty sweet soloing on the guitar. JPJ is no slouch on the guitar and can shred like a madman. His fluency and technique on the pedal steel makes most country players sound weak in comparison.

All in all, JPJ is a very good lead guitar player in his own right, he just chooses the bass & keyboard.

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IMTOD uses a slide- makes thing easier from my perspective. As a side note, it is interesting you chose that because I think Plant and Page "gel" big-time with that track on Celebration Day.

I excluded the solo because of songs like HB. Almost impossible to replicate from transcript/sheet. Guitar published it back in the 80's?

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IMTOD uses a slide- makes thing easier from my perspective. As a side note, it is interesting you chose that because I think Plant and Page "gel" big-time with that track on Celebration Day.

I excluded the solo because of songs like HB. Almost impossible to replicate from transcript/sheet. Guitar published it back in the 80's?

Slide can be a blessing or a curse, for me at least. The up side is it's just the slide, no having to finger every arpeggio or solo. The downside is the flat / sharp mistakes that are oh so easy to make, especially while doing a fast solo where that slide is moving all over the damn place. The slide in effect makes the guitar a fretless instrument.

I agree with IMTOD on Celebration Day and prefer the sound of the Gibson Hollow body to the Dano. The solo Jimmy did though not Earls Court psycho insane fast, was none the less amazing and fluid.

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I don't know about Ten Years Gone, i'm playing guitar since 2.5 years, it's not that hard, although I don't know how to play the solo, but the rest is not that hard, maybe the "Oh darling ... never gonna leave you, all alone, ten years gone, all alone ..." part is hard with all the overdubs. I'll go with Achilles last stand !

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I drove myself insane trying to learn a Page tune. Everything about it was counter intuitive to the way my hands worked. All the bends come in weird places that required strange fingerings. After a long time wrestling with it, I realized that it was b-bender trickery. That song was Jam Sandwich.

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Actually although there are other close candidates, the 73' on SIBLY IMO takes the cake. Live, there were so many points where the

instruments are moving around each other and are not exactly in any time signature. Yes they do usually end up in time, but go ahead

and try get note for note this sliding around. Jimmy on the solo also has to play thru some precise nuanced chords, not just basic blues.

Also on some versions he is playing at lightning speed, all over the neck, not just sticking to a "blues box". Actually the SRTS version

shows all this.

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