Happy Birthday to Rock & Roll Hall of Famer John Paul Jones! Born John Richard Baldwin on January 3rd, 1946, in Sidcup, Kent, England – he turns 77 today! Of course, best known for his work as bassist & keyboardist in the legendary rock band Led Zeppelin which he helped co-found with guitarist Jimmy Page back in 1968.
JPJ was raised in a musical family, his dad, Joe, was a pianist and arranger for big bands in the ‘40’s & 50’s – most notably with Ambrose & his Orchestra. His mother was also in the music business which allowed the family to often perform together touring around England as a vaudevillian comedy act.
JPJ started playing the piano at age six. By the time he turned 14, he became the choirmaster and organist at his local church… and it was also at that age, JPJ bought his first bass guitar, a Dallas Tuxedo solid body electric. He joined his first band, The Deltas, at age 15 – also lending his efforts to the jazz-rock band Jett Blacks. Jones’ big break came in 1962, when he was hired to join the British group the Shadows. It was there, on the recommendation of bandmates, JPJ began studio session work with Decca Records. From that point until the formation of Led Zeppelin in 1968, JPJ played on hundreds of recording sessions including the Rolling Stones, Herman’s Hermits, Jeff Beck, Cat Stevens & Rod Stewart… which just barely scratches the surface of the talent and reach of John Paul Jones’ work over the years.
During his time as a session player, JPJ bumped into guitarist Jimmy Page quite a bit on the scene, who was also a session veteran at that time. Page joined the Yardbirds in 1966, and it was the very next year Jones contributed to the band’s album ‘Little Games’ – also the first Yardbirds album to feature Jimmy Page on guitar.
With the Yardbirds disbanding only a couple of short years later, JPJ along with Page and the additions of Robert Plant & John Bonham formed the New Yardbirds… of course shortly thereafter, changing their name to what would become the legendary rock band known as Led Zeppelin. Some of my favorite JPJ Led Zeppelin songs include, “No Quarter”, “Trampled Under Foot”, “Black Dog” & “Dazed & Confused” … among many others!
Studio group portrait of Led Zeppelin, London, 1968. Clockwise from left: John Bonham, John Paul Jones, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page.
With the passing of drummer John Bonham, Led Zeppelin dissolved as a band in 1980. Once again, JPJ began collaborating with artists including Paul McCartney, R.E.M., Peter Gabriel, Cinderella, Lenny Kravitz, the Foo Fighters, and many others. Jones released his debut solo album ‘Zooma’ in 1999, followed up by ‘The Thunderthief’ in 2001.
Out of all my favorite John Paul Jones pieces of work, Them Crooked Vultures quite possibly could be at the top of that list! The very short-lived supergroup that features JPJ on bass & keys, Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) on vocals & guitar, Alain Johannes on guitar & backing vocals, and the one and ONLY Dave Grohl on drums. Vultures released only one album so far, their 2009 self-titled debut. There have been rumors over the years that Dave Grohl wants to do more with Them Crooked Vultures, but their schedules are so crazy that it’s hard to get all the members together to make it work properly. The last time TCV toured extensively as a band was back in 2010 – however, they did to reunite twice in 2022 at the Taylor Hawkins Tribute shows in London & Los Angeles.
In the meantime, as we say Happy 77th Birthday to John Paul Jones, go crank up your favorite Zeppelin tunes – or even better yet… go listen to the great Them Crooked Vultures album on full blast… it’s SO good!!
Them Crooked Vultures
