The Yardbirds Biography

The Yardbirds were an early English rock band, noted for starting the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page. A blues-based band whose sound evolved into experimental pop rock, they had a string of hits including “For Your Love”, “Over, Under, Sideways, Down” and “Heart Full Of Soul”. They were a crucial link between British R&B and psychedelia; they set the framework for heavy metal explored further by Led Zeppelin and their guitarists were extremely influential in music.

The Yardbirds were pioneers in almost every guitar innovation of the '60s: fuzz tone, feedback, distortion, improved amplification, and were one of the first to put an emphasis on guitar virtuosity and experimentation. They eventually evolved into Led Zeppelin, once Jimmy Page became the leader and the rest of the members left after several unsuccessful efforts to keep them in, forcing Page to find replacements in the form of John Paul Jones, Robert Plant, and John Bonham.

The term, "Yardbird" is southern American slang for 'chicken' (as in poultry) and was the nickname of legendary jazz alto saxophone player Charlie Parker. It is a slang expression for "prisoner", ie one hanging out in the prison yard.