Heartbreaker (4:14)

“Heartbreaker” is a song from English rock band Led Zeppelin’s 1969 album, Led Zeppelin II. It was credited to all four members of the band, having been recorded at A&R Studios, New York, during the band’s second concert tour of the United States, and was engineered by Eddie Kramer.

“Heartbreaker” opens Side II of the album, and is famous for its memorable guitar riff by Jimmy Page, along with its unaccompanied solo, which he did not compose but rather improvised on the spot. It was voted as the 16th greatest guitar solo of all time by Guitar World magazine. It is included in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Page’s legendary guitar solo on this song inspired a young Eddie Van Halen to invent his “tapping” technique after he saw Led Zeppelin perform live at the Long Beach Arena in 1972. (See Heartbreaker Songfacts).