Coverdale/Page

After all the accusations of <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">David Coverdale</a> "ripping off" <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Led Zeppelin</a> in his group, <a href="spotify:artist:3UbyYnvNIT5DFXU4WgiGpP">Whitesnake</a>, skeptics continued to raise their eyebrows when founding <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Zeppelin</a> guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:55bGuHb50r5c0PeqqMeNBV">Jimmy Page</a> united with <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">Coverdale</a> during the early ‘90s in the super group, Coverdale/Page. Although the collaboration was a fleeting one, it did spawn an album (which unsurprisingly, was very <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Zep</a> derivative), and a smattering of live dates. To recap, <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">Coverdale</a> first came to the attention of rock fans as a replacement for singer <a href="spotify:artist:4QCflfSOonkybNw5D7GqGk">Ian Gillan</a> in <a href="spotify:artist:568ZhdwyaiCyOGJRtNYhWf">Deep Purple</a> in 1973, before launching <a href="spotify:artist:3UbyYnvNIT5DFXU4WgiGpP">Whitesnake</a> during the late ‘70s. Over the course of quite a few bluesy hard rock albums, <a href="spotify:artist:3UbyYnvNIT5DFXU4WgiGpP">Whitesnake</a> built up a substantial following in the U.K., but failed to breakthrough in the U.S. This all changed though in the mid- to late ‘80s, when <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">Coverdale</a> honed in directly on the <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Zeppelin</a> sound with such hit albums as 1984's Slide It In, 1987's mega-seller Whitesnake, and 1989's Slip of the Tongue. By the dawn of the ‘90s, <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">Coverdale</a> put the group on hold -- opting to step out of the spotlight for a brief spell. As a founding member of <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Led Zeppelin</a> (and previously a member of <a href="spotify:artist:2lxX1ivRYp26soIavdG9bX">the Yardbirds</a>), <a href="spotify:artist:55bGuHb50r5c0PeqqMeNBV">Jimmy Page</a> became one of rock's premier guitarists and songwriters -- penning countless air guitar classics throughout the ‘60s and ‘70s. But with <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Zeppelin's</a> split in late 1980 (due to drummer <a href="spotify:artist:6NAJM9Zc8wUQbKCzxpt6kM">John Bonham's</a> death), <a href="spotify:artist:55bGuHb50r5c0PeqqMeNBV">Page</a> spent the remainder of the decade reappearing on a sporadic basis -- including composing the motion picture soundtrack for Death Wish II, launching a brief union with former <a href="spotify:artist:2e53aHBQdCMKWqHDuyJsjC">Free</a>/<a href="spotify:artist:5AEG63ajney2BoDXi0Vb84">Bad Company</a> vocalist <a href="spotify:artist:2gaWNB3YrlTc0KRlHNqhol">Paul Rodgers</a> in the Firm, and even issuing his first official solo album, Outrider. Rumors continued to swirl about an impending <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Led Zeppelin</a> reunion through it all, and come the early ‘90s, it appeared as though it would finally come to fruition. However, when former <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Zep</a> singer <a href="spotify:artist:1OwarW4LEHnoep20ixRA0y">Robert Plant</a> began to have cold feet concerning the reunion, the plan was nixed. As a result, <a href="spotify:artist:55bGuHb50r5c0PeqqMeNBV">Page</a> united with <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">Coverdale</a> (which some felt was <a href="spotify:artist:55bGuHb50r5c0PeqqMeNBV">Page's</a> way of "getting back" at <a href="spotify:artist:1OwarW4LEHnoep20ixRA0y">Plant</a>). The project officially began in 1991, however, no recordings were issued until 1993, when an 11- track debut, Coverdale/Page, was released. Despite alternative rock being all the rage on the charts and radio at the time, the album initially had a strong showing, peaking at number five in the U.S. (and eventually going platinum), while such tracks as "Pride and Joy" and "Shake My Tree" earned a considerable amount of rock radio airplay. Despite its early success, the album eventually sank from sight, and a proposed tour of U.S. arenas was axed. Coverdale/Page did manage to play a series of shows in Japan during December of 1993, however, with a set list that included selections from their debut recording, as well as classics from <a href="spotify:artist:3UbyYnvNIT5DFXU4WgiGpP">Whitesnake</a> ("Still of the Night," "Here I Go Again," etc.) and of course, <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Led Zeppelin</a> ("Rock N' Roll," "Kashmir," "Black Dog," etc.). This would prove to the end of the road for Coverdale/Page, though -- as <a href="spotify:artist:55bGuHb50r5c0PeqqMeNBV">Page</a> would almost immediately go on to work once more with <a href="spotify:artist:1OwarW4LEHnoep20ixRA0y">Plant</a> (as <a href="spotify:artist:6QNTDs3QxycP09ceCHz0Uh">Page & Plant</a>, rather than a full <a href="spotify:artist:36QJpDe2go2KgaRleHCDTp">Zep</a> reunion), and <a href="spotify:artist:2t5vvfFf3UdW0pJa7bz7i1">Coverdale</a> would reappear from time to time with different <a href="spotify:artist:3UbyYnvNIT5DFXU4WgiGpP">Whitesnake</a> lineups. ~ Greg Prato, Rovi