John,&Keith,&Led Zep

[Linda Thompson <lthompsn@sound.net>]

Has anyone ever wondered about what if Keith and John DID join Led Zeppelin?
The main reason I pose this question is because when I read in Maximum R&B
that they were thinking of leaving the group to join up with Page, I
thought,"That's WIERD". But now that I am listening to Led Zep more often,
I'm thinking,"What if?". It seems to me that it might be a wierd combo, yet
not a bad one. Because I think that with Page's writing style, John's
rolling bass, and Kieth's destructive drums, they would have made the
ultimate Heavy Metal band. Not that I like Heavy Metal very much, but I'd
listen to it.

                                SUBJECT CHANGE

On another note, has anyone ever noticed that some guitarists describe their
influences as Hendrix in their solos, and Townsend in their rhythm guitar?
If you haven't noticed this, than just ignore me, 'cause I don't have any
evidence to back me up. But for those that have any idea of what I'm talking
about when I say that some people like the way Hendrix solos more than the
way that Pete plays his. Yet some of the same people like Pete's overall
playing in songs just as much. But to many people, sometimes it's the SOLOS
that make a song truly great. And many people that would strive for that
greatness, attempt to play like Hendrix or Page, but not Townsend. It just
makes me feel kinda depressed to know that SOME people(I'm being careful in
this message) aren't willing to let themselves go and try to truly express
themselves. But they stick with the more beaten path, and stick to the more
successful jargon. I think thats the main reason why I like the Who, they
were able to express their feelings and thoughts. And I really don't have a
problem with any of Pete's personal songs that were done by the Who. They're
REAL. They're EMOTIONS. They're not songs for the sake of being something
popular, and being just some THING to dance to. I have the most respect for
musicians who wright their songs from their thoughts, emotions, and ideals.
I mean, compare people like Pete and John Lennon, to those like Jimi Page,
Paul McCartney, and Keith Richards. It's minds/musicians compared to rock
stars. Not to say that the latters are stupid and uncreative (though some of
them might be), they aren't as REAL as the others. I mean Pete is a man, an
everyday man with a talent, he is aware that he isn't invenciable, he has
pains and joys. Whereas Kieth Richards obviously doesn't give a shit about
anything, and hasn't looked into the mirror lately, to realize he messed up.
It hasn't hit them yet, but they're old; they're not terrific anymore,
they're not sexy anymore, and they're wrinkled. Not wrinked; but WRINKLED!
TED have realized that they're not the super-hyped, moody giants that htey
once were. The only one that hasn't slowed down much is John, but he was
never as active/autodestructive as the others. But still, Pete and Rog have
adapted their performance to what they know they can handle. Someone wrote a
while back about how Rog sang,"..Love - PLEEEAAAAASSE Reign over me!"
because he couldn't hit the note. He obviously knows this and has dealt with
it. Now why don't you. I know it's hard to adjust when great groups change
their style to fit their personalities. The Beatle changed, and the WHO are
going through their second or third change (Depends what changes you count).
And the reason why the music changes, is that THEY change, because they're
people. I haven't seen any changes in the Stones, they're still horny,
grungy men, who play horny, grungy music.

                                SUBJECT CHANGE

The reason why I like emotional, idealistic, effective music compared to
cool, complicated shit, is that, I'm not a musician, I'm an artist. I'm into
stuff that makes you think, makes you feel something, other than,"That's
tight!". Oh, and when I say that I like music that is effective, I mean it
is able to get a certain feeling or mood across, whether or not it's
complicated. If it can relay the idea of the piece, then it's EFFECTIVE. A
real good example is "Louie Louie" though it contains only, what, THREE
chords, it's FUN, it makes you feel good. That's why I like a lot of John's
songs, because, though some of them may not be serious, they can give off a
sense of what the song is about. Like "Boris", it is able to exagerate(sp?)
and exploit the world's greatest fear - the fear of spiders. He is obviously
a natural, since he wrote the song overnight. Well, I think that should hold
me for a couple of days. :)

Andrew Thompson

P.S. Sorry 'bout the length, but those are my thoughts

P.P.S. Sorry to all of the Stones fans, but - those are my thoughts

P.P.P.S. LONG LIVE THE WWWWWHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

(p.p.p.p.s. regardless of age)