“The Allman Brothers were unbelievable. When Duane came to the studio to play on Layla, I was so taken with him that I started ignoring my own band”: How the 1970s became the greatest decade for rock guitar

A montage of Duane Allman, Jimmy Page, Brian May and Tony Iommi playing guitar.

On December 27, 1969, just a few days before the dawn of the new decade, the music world witnessed an extraordinary changing of the guard as Led Zeppelin II reached Number 1 on the Billboard charts, dethroning the Beatles’ final full-on studio effort, Abbey Road.

After hearing Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant proclaim “I’m gonna give you every inch of my love” on their hit, Whole Lotta Love, the Beatles probably realized their days of singing sweet harmonies in an octopus’s garden were numbered.