Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

Led Zeppelin were asked to do Abba-style avatar act, Jimmy Page says

Led Zeppelin were asked to do Abba-style avatar act, Jimmy Page says

Guitarist says band was approached well before talk of Abba shows but he and surviving bandmates couldn’t agree
Led Zeppelin were approached with the idea of doing an Abba-style avatar act, guitarist Jimmy Page has disclosed.

Well before there was talk of the Swedish pop group’s Voyage concert, the rock band was asked to do “that sort of thing”, Page told an audience at the Hay festival.

However, the musician and music producer said that he and his two surviving bandmates, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones, couldn’t agree, so the project “didn’t really get moving”.

Page said he didn’t think a virtual tour would work for his former band the Yardbirds, but indicated that he thought it might for Led Zeppelin.

He also spoke positively about Elvis Presley’s hologram performance. “I bet that was good, but I didn’t see it”, the 78-year-old said.

The Abba show appears poised to be a critical and commercial smash for the band, highlighting the appetite of fans to still enjoy their musical heroes, even in computerised form. The show in London is to run seven times a week until December and the Guardian’s music critic Alexis Petridis described it as “genuinely jaw-dropping … any lingering sense that you’re not actually in the presence of Abba has dissolved.”

But Page admitted to having mixed opinions towards technology’s increasing involvement in music. Music videos, he said, “shut down” the wide variety of music styles that had been emerging, encouraging bands to assimilate to a model that worked well for videos.

However, he praised the way that computers allowed young people to create home studios to make music and “stick it on the internet.” He spoke of a “really exciting” band he had met in Brighton, who had found success in Vietnam. After a song they put on the internet got picked up and used in an advert in south-east Asia, this band gained popularity in that region, showing, Page said, that “it does work!”

While Page is clearly interested in the ways technology can be useful to bands, the “communion of musicians” that is achieved through live performance is essential, he said. Performing the same songs again and again was why he was a successful studio musician, he said, “because I can keep coming up with spontaneous style”.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
×