Jimmy Page Says Touring No Longer Appeals to Him — But He's Still Playing Guitar

Jimmy Page has drawn a clear line between two things most fans tend to treat as one: touring and playing. Speaking at the Music Industry Trust Awards in London on November 9, 2026, the 82-year-old Led Zeppelin guitarist said life on the road holds no appeal for him anymore. The guitar still does.

"The whole sort of, 'living out of a suitcase, bags go down at seven in the morning and then you leave for the plane at midday', that doesn't really appeal to me any more," Page told The Sun at the event. "But the idea of playing does, and I am still playing – of course I am."

It is a short comment, but it is the most direct thing Page has said in years about where he stands as a performer.

A Night Honoring Led Zeppelin's Publisher

Page was not at the Grosvenor House Hotel to talk about himself. The annual MITS Award supports the BRIT Trust and Nordoff and Robbins, the music therapy charity, and the 2026 honoree was Guy Moot, chair and CEO of Warner Chappell Music, which administers Led Zeppelin's publishing. Page attended to honor Moot, and the touring remarks came in conversation with reporters on the night.

He also spoke to Nordoff and Robbins about what music has meant to him. "Music is an area where if you allow it to embrace you, it can change your life," he said, recalling that as a teenager he listened to "anything that had six strings."

What Page Actually Said, and What He Didn't

It is worth being precise here, because comments like this get stretched quickly. Page said the routine of touring, the early bag calls, the airports and the suitcase life, does not appeal to him. He said he is still playing. That is the full extent of the confirmed statement.

He did not announce a retirement. He did not rule out a one-off performance, a guest appearance or new recordings, and he did not say anything about Led Zeppelin. Any claim that he has quit performing for good, or that a reunion is off or on the table, goes beyond what he said. Equally, nothing in his comments points to new music or shows in the works. As of this writing, there is no announced Jimmy Page performance.

A Quarter Century Off the Road

In practical terms, Page's comments describe a reality that has held for a long time. His last tour was in 2000, when he teamed with the Black Crowes for a run of shows built around Led Zeppelin and blues material. According to Guitar Player, that tour was cut short when Page injured his back and the remaining dates were canceled.

Since then his live appearances have been rare and carefully chosen. The biggest came on December 10, 2007, when Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham played Led Zeppelin's one-off reunion concert at London's O2 Arena. He joined the Foo Fighters at Wembley Stadium in 2008 and appeared with Leona Lewis at the Beijing Olympics closing ceremony that same year.

His most recent public performance came at the 2023 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, where he surprised the audience with Link Wray's "Rumble," a song he has long credited as an early inspiration. It was his first public live performance in more than a decade.

The Guitarist Who Built the Template

Page's reluctance to tour carries extra weight because of how much Led Zeppelin defined the modern rock tour. Formed in 1968 out of the ashes of the Yardbirds, the band spent the 1970s playing arenas and stadiums across North America and Europe, and Page was at the center of it with the Les Paul, the Gibson double-neck, the violin bow and the long improvised stretches of "Dazed and Confused."

Before that, he had already logged years as one of London's busiest session guitarists. Then came Led Zeppelin's eight studio albums, with Page as the band's guitarist and producer. The group ended in 1980 after the death of drummer John Bonham. In other words, Page has spent a long time living exactly the schedule he described at the awards, and he knows its cost better than almost anyone.

Still Playing, in His Own Way

The second half of his quote may be the more meaningful part. Page has said similar things before. He told Planet Rock in 2014 that he would be working on the guitar "because I want to be seen to be playing," and in 2018 he told the Academy of Achievement, "I hope to be seen to be playing. So I'd better get on with it!"

His recent activity has centered on tone and gear rather than stages. This autumn he released the Sundragon Dragonette, a limited six-watt amp modeled on the modified Supro he used with Led Zeppelin. You can read our full story on that amp here. It is a project that only makes sense coming from a player who still cares deeply about how a guitar sounds in a room.

The Takeaway

Page is not telling fans goodbye. He is telling them how he wants to spend his time. The tour bus, the hotel lobbies and the 7 a.m. bag calls are behind him. The guitar is not. For a player whose career has always been about the instrument first, that distinction makes sense, and it leaves the door open in the only way that matters: Jimmy Page is still playing.