"
Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" was the first single by the British rock band
The YardbirdsThe Yardbirds are an English rock band, notable for starting the careers of three of rock's more famous guitarists: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, all of whom were in the top fifteen of Rolling Stones' 100 Top Guitarists list...
to feature future
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
guitarist
Jimmy PageJames Patrick Page OBE is an Englishcomposer and record producer.Page has been described as "unquestionably one of the all-time most influential, important, and versatile guitarists and songwriters in rock history". In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Page #9 in its list of the 100 Greatest...
in the band. Page had recently replaced the original bassist for The Yardbirds,
Paul Samwell-SmithPaul Samwell-Smith is best known as a founding member and bassist of the 1960s English band, The Yardbirds, a group that spawned such noteworthy musicians as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page, and as a youth, attended Hampton Grammar School with The Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty.While in The...
. "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" was also the first of three recordings pairing Page with encumbent lead guitarist
Jeff BeckGeoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He was one of the three noted guitarists — the others being Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page — to have played with The Yardbirds...
.
John Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones is an English musician, composer, arranger, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist musician.Best known as the...
played session bass on the song, he would later play on the song "
Beck's Bolero"Beck's Bolero" is a short, rock-based instrumental piece heavily influenced by Maurice Ravel's Bolero, recorded by Jeff Beck with Jimmy Page on guitar, John Paul Jones on bass, Nicky Hopkins on piano, and Keith Moon on drums. The song was first released as the b-side of a Jeff Beck solo single on...
" with both Beck and Page and would eventually join Led Zeppelin with Page.
The U.S.
"
Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" was the first single by the British rock band
The YardbirdsThe Yardbirds are an English rock band, notable for starting the careers of three of rock's more famous guitarists: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, all of whom were in the top fifteen of Rolling Stones' 100 Top Guitarists list...
to feature future
Led ZeppelinLed Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in 1968 by Jimmy Page , Robert Plant , John Paul Jones and John Bonham . With their heavy, guitar-driven sound, Led Zeppelin are regarded as one of the first heavy metal bands, helping to pioneer the genre...
guitarist
Jimmy PageJames Patrick Page OBE is an Englishcomposer and record producer.Page has been described as "unquestionably one of the all-time most influential, important, and versatile guitarists and songwriters in rock history". In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Page #9 in its list of the 100 Greatest...
in the band. Page had recently replaced the original bassist for The Yardbirds,
Paul Samwell-SmithPaul Samwell-Smith is best known as a founding member and bassist of the 1960s English band, The Yardbirds, a group that spawned such noteworthy musicians as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page, and as a youth, attended Hampton Grammar School with The Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty.While in The...
. "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" was also the first of three recordings pairing Page with encumbent lead guitarist
Jeff BeckGeoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He was one of the three noted guitarists — the others being Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page — to have played with The Yardbirds...
.
John Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones is an English musician, composer, arranger, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist musician.Best known as the...
played session bass on the song, he would later play on the song "
Beck's Bolero"Beck's Bolero" is a short, rock-based instrumental piece heavily influenced by Maurice Ravel's Bolero, recorded by Jeff Beck with Jimmy Page on guitar, John Paul Jones on bass, Nicky Hopkins on piano, and Keith Moon on drums. The song was first released as the b-side of a Jeff Beck solo single on...
" with both Beck and Page and would eventually join Led Zeppelin with Page.
The U.S. picture sleeve, featuring Beck and Page in the photo, only coincides with the A-side of the U.S. single. Its B-side, "The Nazz Are Blue", features the pre-Page lineup with Paul Samwell-Smith as well as a rare lead vocal by Beck.
There had been a few errors previously made in U.S. distribution of Yardbirds material, most notably the picture sleeves for the "I Wish You Would" and "Heart Full Of Soul" singles. Another goof was made when the same photo erroneously used for the latter single (featuring Eric Clapton) was printed on the front of the "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" sheet music.
"Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" was voted number 3 in
Record CollectorRecord Collector is the United Kingdom's longest-running monthly music magazine. It distributes both within the UK and worldwide. It started in 1979.-The early years:...
’s "100 Greatest Psychedelic Records".
This song was covered by
Todd RundgrenTodd Harry Rundgren is an American musician, singer-songwriter and record producer.-Early career:Rundgren was born in Upper Darby, PA. He began his career in Woody's Truck Stop, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based group based on the model of Paul Butterfield Blues Band. However, he left the band to...
in 1976 on his album
FaithfulFaithful may refer to:* Faithfulness* Faithful , a baptised Catholic* Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season, a book about the Boston Red Sox...
.
Personnel
Happenings Ten Years Time Ago
- Keith Relf
Keith William Relf , is known as the lead singer and harmonica player of The Yardbirds. After the Yardbirds broke up Relf formed the acoustic duo, Together, with fellow Yardbird Jim McCarty, followed by Renaissance which also featured his sister, singer Jane Relf, then hard rock group Armageddon...
- Lead vocals
- Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He was one of the three noted guitarists — the others being Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page — to have played with The Yardbirds...
- Lead guitarA lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, and guitar solos within a song structure.In rock, heavy metal, blues, jazz and fusion bands and some pop contexts as well as others, the lead guitar lines are usually supported by a second guitarist who plays...
, spoken interlude
- Jimmy Page
James Patrick Page OBE is an Englishcomposer and record producer.Page has been described as "unquestionably one of the all-time most influential, important, and versatile guitarists and songwriters in rock history". In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Page #9 in its list of the 100 Greatest...
- Lead guitarA lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, and guitar solos within a song structure.In rock, heavy metal, blues, jazz and fusion bands and some pop contexts as well as others, the lead guitar lines are usually supported by a second guitarist who plays...
- Chris Dreja
Chris Dreja was the rhythm guitarist, and later bassist when he switched with Jimmy Page for the 1960s British band, The Yardbirds.-Early life:...
- Rhythm guitarRhythm guitar is the use of a guitar to provide rhythmic chordal accompaniment for a singer or other instruments in a musical ensemble. In ensembles or "bands" playing within the acoustic, country, blues, rock or metal genres , a guitarist playing the rhythm part of a composition supports the...
- Jim McCarty
Jim McCarty is a English musician, best known as the drummer for The Yardbirds and Renaissance.-Early life:...
- drumsA drum set is a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person . The term "drum kit" first became used in the 1700s in Britain...
- John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones is an English musician, composer, arranger, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist musician.Best known as the...
- BassThe electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum....
Psycho Daisies
- Jeff Beck - Vocals, lead guitar
- Jimmy Page - Bass
- Chris Dreja - Rhythm guitar
- Jim McCarty - Drums
The Nazz Are Blue
- Jeff Beck - Lead vocals, lead guitar
- Paul Samwell-Smith
Paul Samwell-Smith is best known as a founding member and bassist of the 1960s English band, The Yardbirds, a group that spawned such noteworthy musicians as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page, and as a youth, attended Hampton Grammar School with The Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty.While in The...
- Bass
- Chris Dreja - Rhythm guitar
- Jim McCarty - Drums