Why Robert Plant said it was “always difficult” working with John Paul Jones
Led Zeppelin were always a strange beast. They might have been the group that trounced an ailing Beatles towards the end of the 1960s, but like the Liverpudlian group, their make-up was complex, with diverse characters underpinning the cultural leviathan. The ‘Stairway to Heaven’ quartet could be split into two camps, each headed up by Robert Plant and Jimmy Page.
Following the demise of The Yardbirds, and still unwavering in his dedication to his ultimate creative vision of making rock much darker, esoteric and full-bodied than it had ever been, guitarist and producer Page set about forming ‘The New Yardbirds’. It wouldn’t be long before they became Led Zeppelin, but first, he needed the correct lineup.
Famously, Page’s first choice for the lead singer of the new outfit was Terry Reid, but the widely influential singer-songwriter declined due to other commitments with The Rolling Stones and Cream. Resultantly, he was led to a young powerhouse making waves in the West Midlands. The golden-haired vocalist was Plant, and he had been cutting his teeth in the Band of Joy and Hobbstweedle. He accepted Page’s offer and recommended his best friend and former Band of Joy drummer, John Bonham, who was also hired.
During this formative period of searching for the right crew, Page debated hiring many different people. However, after former Yardbirds bassist Chris Dreja realised he no longer wanted in and dropped out to become a photographer, a former associate of Page’s from the London session scene, John Paul Jones, enquired about the position. He became the final piece of the puzzle.
It doesn’t take a genius to note how two camps would form in Led Zeppelin despite all four men getting on like a flaming abode. Both Plant and Bonham were Black Country natives from a completely different world from Jones and Page, two men who had enjoyed years of musical refinement being the capital’s most sought-after session players.
Naturally, the two big fish from the same small area quickly realised that they were no longer musical titans compared to Jones and Page. Since then, Plant has admitted that he was even initially daunted by the prospect of being around such excellence despite desiring to be amongst it before joining.
Hailing from such a different environment than Jones would also make it challenging for Plant to work with the bassist and multi-instrumentalist throughout Zeppelin’s career. This distinction would even rear its head during the band’s first rehearsal in Chinatown when the members asked each other what songs they wanted to play, but Jones “didn’t know anything at all” because of his somewhat aloof session work.
In an interview with Classic Rock in 1982 – his first after the demise of Zeppelin – Plant maintained that the band would never get back together because they could not carry on without Bonham, who had been a vital part of the team. However, attention then turned to whether the group being finished meant it ruled out future collaborations with Jones or Page. Then, the vocalist revealed that working with the former was “always difficult” due to their respective backgrounds.
Plant revealed: “It was always difficult to collaborate with Jonesy because he never listened to the lyrics. I used to talk about a song, and he would say: ‘Now, which song would that be?’ And I’d go: ‘You know, the one on Presence.’ And he’d say: ‘I’m sorry, I’m not familiar with the titles, what key was it in?’ I’d sigh and say: ‘I haven’t a clue, Jonesy.'”
Despite that, Plant asserted that he missed his old bandmates. He explained that the surviving members had been friends for years, and regardless of being “totally unalike”, naturally, he missed their musicianship and personal idiosyncrasies.
Listen to Led Zeppelin’s ‘Communication Breakdown’ below.