Led Zeppelin's 1971 rock masterpiece, among Rolling Stone’s greatest solos, never charted on Billboard. Guitarist Jimmy Page reveals why

It is regarded as one of the greatest rock songs of all time. ‘Stairway to Heaven’, a masterpiece released by English rock band Led Zeppelin in 1971 remains an iconic song among rock aficionados, despite not being a chartbuster. Sitting pretty at 7 on the list of Rolling Stone's ‘Top 100 Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time’, the song had all the ingredients to be a runaway hit – Robert Plant’s wistful, hard-hitting lyrics, John Paul Jones’s unforgettable recorder and electric piano sounds, and John Bonham’s addictive drum rhythms – yet the song did not make it to a single chart. In Mick Wall’s biography, When Giants Walked the Earth, guitarist and composer Jimmy Page revealed the secret to why this iconic song should have been a music chart juggernaut but wasn’t.

One Creative Disagreement Sealed The Song’s Fate

Due to the lack of YouTube and streaming services in the 1970s, bands mostly relied on radio singles to promote their music. The band resisted strong pressure from Zeppelin's label to make the song a commercial single. They adamantly opposed it because they wanted listeners to experience the song in the context of the entire album (and, to be honest, to boost album sales). Labels fought so hard for it to be featured since tracks that weren't released as singles couldn't appear on the charts.

“Stairway to Heaven’ was never, ever, ever going to be released as a single. I said it will help the album sell because it’s not a single, [and] I knew the minute it was a single, the next thing they would want was an edited version, and I wasn’t having that, no way,” explained Page.


In December 1970, Led Zeppelin started recording Stairway to Heaven at the new recording facilities on Basing Street in London owned by Island Records. Plant added words to the song during the Led Zeppelin IV recordings at Headley Grange, Hampshire, in 1971. After that, Page went back to Island Studios to record his guitar solo.

When The Song Got Its Due

The song was re-released as a single in 2007 and reached #30 on the US Billboard Hot Digital Songs Chart, a respectable #17 on the Canadian Billboard Hot Digital Singles Chart, and peaked at 37 on the UK Singles Chart.