“One of the greatest to ever do it”: Terry “Superlungs” Reid, the guitarist, singer, and songwriter who forged his own path after turning down Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, has died aged 75

Terry Reid, the guitarist, songwriter, and vocalist whose emotive singing style led gave him the moniker “Superlungs,” has died at 75, following a battle with cancer.

Earlier in July, Reid was forced to postpone a European tour “due to medical issues arising from recent treatment for cancer” – while his family and friends had organized a fundraising appeal to support the cost of his ongoing treatment.

News of his death led to an outpouring of tributes from the music community, with Joe Bonamassa calling him “one of the greatest to ever do it and a beautiful person and soul.”

Determined to forge his own path, Reid famously turned down an offer by Jimmy Page to become the lead vocalist of the band that would evolve into Led Zeppelin, as well as an offer from Ritchie Blackmore to become Deep Purple's frontman. However, he was much more than that – in 1968, Aretha Franklin stated that the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and Terry Reid were the best talents England had to offer.

His career included extensive tours with the Stones, Cream, Jethro Tull, and Fleetwood Mac – the Isle of Wight Festival in 1969 and Glastonbury in 1970, as well as numerous collaborations with Graham Nash, a catalog of seven studio albums, session work with the likes of Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt, and songs he penned that featured in movies such as Up in the Air and The Devil’s Rejects.

In a 2023 interview with Uncut, Reid clarified that he’d rather be known as the man who put together Led Zeppelin.

“Jimmy [Page] asked me what he should do with the band,” he explained. “He needed a singer who could sing around those guitar licks, and not everybody could do that. I’d seen Robert with John Bonham, so I said to him, ‘Not only is Robert perfect, you’ve got to get the drummer – he’s an animal!’”

And while he may not have joined a big band, he clarified that he had no regrets and was proud of plowing his own furrow.

“When you’re in a band, you’re committed to that style,” he said matter-of-factly. “You’re not gonna be able to play any of that Brazilian music you like, cos they don’t do that. And all those folk things you like, well, forget that.”