I have to credit Led Zeppelin 1 for opening the doors to other genres of music for me back in the 6th grade. Up until that point, I was a closed-minded
metal head. They were heavy enough to keep me interested and at the same time, I can't think of a better segue into folk and the blues. Their first song that made a lasting impression on me wasn't even "Stairway"...oddly enough, it was "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You."
Granted the criticism of being plagiarists and "tasteless" had their merit, it was the band's music going beyond the constraints of their influences and trying out new aesthetics that made me respect them more. It's a precarious balancing act, coming up with something "new" and being commercially
viable enough. A lot of the later material is difficult to get into at first, and in my experience there have been some lemons that left me scratching my head.
He's not the fastest and criticized as being sloppy, but JP has left an indelible mark on the guitar as the instrument and in my mind, is deserving of his
place in the Pantheon of Rock. It blows my mind that artists who grew up in the 70's and 80's have often gravitated to a Les Paul because Jimmy played one. Despite being associated with that particular instrument, it reblew my mind knowing that aside from number 1 and 2, another equally iconic instrument that doesn't get anywhere as much attention or fanboyism is the "other other" JP guitar, the Dragoncaster.
Not going to lie, I'm a huge fan. Ika nga ni Jack Black "They sang about vikings....they sang about making love.....they sang about vikings making love."