WCSX Classic Cuts : No Quarter
WCSX Classic Cuts
Led Zeppelin: “No Quarter”
The Hook: A showcase for the keyboards of John Paul Jones, who was more than up to the task.
Album: Houses of the Holy
Year: 1973
Writers: John Paul Jones, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant
Stats: Never released as a single.
Background: “No Quarter” is a song that’s closely associated with Led Zeppelin bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones, who chose it as the music for his fantasy segment in the movie The Song Remains the Same. Recording engineer Eddie Kramer, who worked on some songs on Houses of the Holy, but not “No Quarter,” says it makes him think of what an outstanding all-around musician Jones was and is.
Studio engineer Eddie Kramer on John Paul Jones and his contribution to Led Zeppelin’s “No Quarter.” OC:…keyboard player. :27
“I remember him coming into Olympic Studios, wheeling his little Ampeg bass amp and his bass under one arm and a stack of music under the other arm, ‘cause he used to arrange pop sessions and score them for strings and horns. And I remember him standing up on the conductor’s rostrum and conducting the strings and the horns and the rhythm section with his bass in his hand, nodding his head and his left hand waving up and down on the bass. When it comes time for Zeppelin and him to put his keyboard parts on, he’s obviously going to show off what he can do, and he’s a fantastic keyboard player.”
