“It came from a great deal of eye contact between the two of us”: When it came to Led Zeppelin's most powerful riffs, sometimes what didn't get played was more important than what did, says John Paul Jones

(from left) Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page perform onstage in Knebworth, England on August 11, 1979.

Starting in 1996, Guitar World was honored to publish a handful of lesson columns authored by Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones. The following is one of these columns. It has been edited in certain instances for use online.

Last time, we were discussing how octave-doubled single-note riffs and shifting rhythms can be used to create heavy-sounding “stomp grooves,” and we cited my Black Dog riff as an example of how effective this type of playing can be in a power trio lineup.