Although Led Zeppelin’s illustrious 1970s run appeared unstoppable, things weren’t always easy behind the scenes. John Paul Jones nearly left the band at the height of its popularity, a move that might have altered the course of rock history. Just before they released one of their most famous albums, Physical Graffiti, he was on the verge of leaving the band due to their unrelenting traveling schedule, weariness, and mounting pressure.
Burnout and Second Thoughts
By 1973, Led Zeppelin was smashing records on their massive North American stadium tour, but the grueling schedule took a toll. Playing three-hour sets every night left the band drained and disconnected from reality. Jimmy Page later told Crawdaddy in 1974:
“When I came back from the last tour I didn’t know where I was. … The only thing I could relate to was the instrument onstage.”
For John Paul Jones, the exhaustion hit even harder. Unlike his bandmates, Jones had started out as a studio musician and valued a quieter, family-centered life. By late 1973, he was seriously thinking about leaving the band. He confided in manager Peter Grant, explaining that while he loved the music, he was struggling to balance it with his personal life.
“We were all very tired and under pressure, and it just came to a head,” Jones told Mojo in 2007. “I didn’t want to harm the group, but I didn’t want my family to fall apart either.”
Grant, realizing how important Jones was to the band, urged him to take a break before making any drastic decisions. To buy time, the band publicly stated that Jones was too ill to attend the first recording sessions for their upcoming album.
A Well-Timed Break and a Fresh Start
Jones took Grant’s advice and skipped the band’s November 1973 recording sessions. At the time, Zeppelin was just starting work on what would become their groundbreaking double album, Physical Graffiti.
In the meantime, rumors swirled, but Zeppelin stuck to their cover story. Even after the album’s release, Page told Rolling Stone in 1975:
“John Paul Jones wasn’t well and we had to cancel the [studio] time. Everything got messed up. It took three months to sort the situation out.”
Fortunately, stepping away helped Jones regain his love for the band. By early 1974, he was back in the studio, energized and ready to create. The sessions were so productive that Zeppelin ended up with almost three album sides’ worth of new material. They even revisited older unreleased tracks like “The Rover” and “Houses of the Holy” to complete what would become their first double album.
Jones’ Lasting Impact on Zeppelin’s Sound
Jones’ return wasn’t just good for the band—it helped shape some of their most innovative music. His creative energy was all over Physical Graffiti, especially on tracks like the funky, clavinet-driven “Trampled Under Foot” and the hypnotic, synth-heavy “In the Light.”
He stayed with Zeppelin until the band disbanded in 1980 following drummer John Bonham’s death. In their later years, as Page struggled with substance abuse, Jones and Robert Plant took on bigger creative roles, especially on the band’s final album, In Through the Out Door (1979).
After Zeppelin ended, Jones went on to have the most versatile solo career of any band member. He worked as a producer and arranger, collaborating with artists like R.E.M. and the Butthole Surfers, and later joined Dave Grohl and Josh Homme in the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures.
In the end, Jones never walked away from Led Zeppelin—but for a moment, he almost did. And if he had, the history of rock music might have looked very, very different.