**Guitar Legend Jeff Beck Reflects on First Meeting Jimmy Page Through His Sister, Early Home Recordings, and the Rivalry Sparked by Led Zeppelin’s Rise — Shares Rare Anecdotes of Tea, Cake, and How Robert Plant’s “Golden Locks” Gave Zeppelin the Girly Edge Rod Stewart Couldn’t Match**
Jeff Beck, the late guitar virtuoso revered for his innovative style and trailblazing albums, once offered a revealing and humorous look back on his early connection with Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page—a friendship that started thanks to Beck’s sister and a bit of school gossip.
“My sister knew Jimmy from Epsom Art School,” Beck recalled. “She came into my room one day and said, ‘There’s a weirdo at school, he’s got a weird guitar like yours,’ then slammed the door.” Intrigued, Beck chased her down, demanding to know more. She eventually took him to Page’s house. “He opened the door, and we got tea and cake,” Beck said with a laugh. “We visited regularly from then on.”
Those early visits became the foundation for a musical relationship that would later ripple through rock history. Page, equipped with a high-end tape recorder his mother had gifted him, began recording with Beck—rare sessions that remain a mystery today. “I don’t know where those tapes are now,” Beck mused, “but there’s some rare stuff on them.”
Still, Beck wasn’t shy about his feelings when Led Zeppelin exploded onto the scene in 1969. “When I first heard what he’d done with Led Zeppelin, I thought, ‘That’s a little bit more than inspired by the *Truth* album,’” referencing his own 1968 record with the Jeff Beck Group.
Eventually, Beck acknowledged Zeppelin’s innovation—and their secret weapon. “I realized I needed more than I had. I needed a frontman with girly appeal,” he said, tongue-in-cheek. “Plant certainly had that in abundance—bare chest, golden locks, and all that. We had Rod Stewart,” he added with a laugh.
This rare window into Beck’s reflections shows not only the mutual admiration and rivalry between two guitar giants but also the humor and humility of a true
rock legend.
