Toto’s Steve Lukather recently recalled being praised by Led Zeppelin‘s Jimmy Page when they met, and looked back on crossing professional paths with Eric Clapton.
Steve Lukather is the guitarist for one of the best-selling rock bands of the early ’80s, but he is also a renowned session musician. His numerous achievements as a hired gun leave many who have played in similar roles in awe.
With contributions to over a thousand records, Lukather’s extensive list of collaborations includes some of the biggest names in music, such as Aretha Franklin, Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, George Benson, and Alice Cooper.
While it’s no surprise that Lukather’s career garners admiration, he has also received significant recognition from Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page, who praised him in a recent interview with Forbes.
Steve Lukather recalls the encounter
The conversation took place during the guitarist’s only encounter with the Led Zeppelin icon and to make matters all the more interesting, Eddie Van Halen was right at his side:
“I have a funny story about Jimmy. It was the one and only time I ever met him. I went over to this Guitar Center thing honoring Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap. In fact, I ended up producing four tracks on their next record because of that night.”
“I showed up with Eddie Van Halen and my boys. Hey, we’re going to meet Jimmy Page, a big deal, right? Jimmy’s standing there greeting everyone. He points at me.”
He added:
“I think he’s pointing at Ed, of course, but it’s me, and he motions for me to come over. He said, ‘You have something that these other guys here don’t.’ And I go, ‘What’s that, Jimmy?’ He said, ‘You understand and I understand, but those other guitarists don’t. We were studio players. They don’t know what that means.'”
Lukather disclosed Page said that he had previously read somewhere that Lukather felt like he wasn’t being taken seriously due to his focus on session work. Encouraging his colleague, Page disagreed with that notion strongly:
“‘That’s the opposite of the absolute truth. That sets you above these other guys,’ Jimmy said. I asked if I could give him a hug, and tell people he had said that. He laughed, gave me a hug and said, ‘Sure.’ That meant the world to me.”
“He’s one of the few guys who ever freaked me out”
Unlike Page, Lukather got to know Eric Clapton, another Yardbirds alumnus, a bit better through doing sessions for the 1985 LP “Behind the Sun.” He said:
“My hero, man, and yes, I had the honor of working with him once. I was so nervous I could hardly play. It was weird. He’s one of the few guys who ever freaked me out. I think it was because he had such a profound influence on me when I was a kid. The way he played, and that guitar sound on [Cream’s] Disraeli Gears. I was overly shy with Eric, and I’m not known for that. He might have thought I was a little standoffish, but I just didn’t want to get in his way. He was super nice to me, though, so God bless you, Eric.”
