Jimmy at his Thames riverside home at Pangbourne, where ‘Whole Lotta Love’ and ‘What Is and What Should Never Be’ were routined. There was a particular energy about that house and it was quite a catalyst for everything that went on. “I came up with the guitar riff for “Whole Lotta Love” in the summer of ’68, on my houseboat along the Thames in Pangbourne, England. I suppose my early love for big intros by rockabilly guitarists was an inspiration, but as soon as I developed the riff, I knew it was strong enough to drive the entire song, not just open it. When I played the riff for the band in my…👇👇

..living room, it was like a spark hit dry wood. Bonzo immediately locked into a thunderous rhythm on a nearby drum pad, Jonesy began working out a deep, rolling bassline, and Robert instinctively started improvising melodies, that raw, bluesy edge already showing through. It was magic—instant and unspoken. That’s how we worked best, really—no one had to explain anything. We just played, and the song revealed itself.

That house in Pangbourne, nestled right on the riverbank, had an energy that’s hard to describe. It was peaceful, but charged—like the calm before a storm. You could hear the water lapping gently against the houseboat, birds in the trees, and occasionally the distant hum of a boat drifting by. But inside, it was all about the music. We’d set up amps, recorders, bits of gear wherever we could, moving between rooms with cables trailing behind us. It wasn’t a studio, but it had soul—and that mattered more.

‘What Is and What Should Never Be’ also took shape in that house. That one began as a kind of dreamy, introspective piece, with Robert writing lyrics inspired by personal experiences. We toyed with dynamics—whisper-soft verses exploding into soaring choruses—and the result was something fresh, unpredictable. I was experimenting with panning and layering even then, using the limitations of the space to our advantage. We didn’t need a professional studio to get inspired. We needed atmosphere, and Pangbourne gave us that in spades.

It was a formative time. We were young, hungry, and pushing ourselves to find a new sound—our sound. Those early sessions, chaotic and full of possibility, laid the groundwork for what Led Zeppelin would become. Sitting by the Thames, guitar in hand, with the band responding in real-time—it felt like alchemy. I’ll always associate those first breakthroughs with that house, that river, and that singular summer when everything began to fall into place.