Rayk
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That’s funny . It would be a great sales picture. I always like the Mesa sound best of all .
RIP Jeff Beck
- Thread starter twocorgis
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The Guilds of Grot
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Just 'cause nobody else has...
RIP Jeff.
Incredible guitarist. I just saw him one time around 2018 I think. His right hand technique was amazing and his hands were very big, which I believe allowed him so much control of volume knobs and the whammy bar. Most great guitarists I see live I am looking at what they are doing with their fretting hand. WIth Jeff Beck it was staring in amazement at his right hand.
I wish I had gone to see him when he swung through town last October. Unfortunately the addition of Johnny Depp to the band kept me home.
I had his first 2 solo albums and Beckola. Wired was pretty incredible but did not really resonate with me personally, nor did Beck Bogert and Appice. As a pure and inventive guitarist there was none better.
Incredible guitarist. I just saw him one time around 2018 I think. His right hand technique was amazing and his hands were very big, which I believe allowed him so much control of volume knobs and the whammy bar. Most great guitarists I see live I am looking at what they are doing with their fretting hand. WIth Jeff Beck it was staring in amazement at his right hand.
I wish I had gone to see him when he swung through town last October. Unfortunately the addition of Johnny Depp to the band kept me home.
I had his first 2 solo albums and Beckola. Wired was pretty incredible but did not really resonate with me personally, nor did Beck Bogert and Appice. As a pure and inventive guitarist there was none better.
Westerly Wood
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While a fan of Jeff Beck, I only listed to one album one time, but I listened to it over and over again, while driving around Wisconsin on a sales trip. The beat up Honda accord has a tape player and I stopped by this thrift store before heading out on road (2-3 day trip on behalf of my boss who was super lazy and didn't want to do it, lol. I said, sure, I will go!). Anyway, I threw some clothes together, stopped by a thrift store for a couple items I would need, stopped by the cassette section and saw this Jeff Beck Blow by Blow tape. I thought, wait, I heard of this guy...I don't remember the business meetings I had or the food I ate. I do remember the crappy hotels I stayed at. And I remember just driving from small town to small town, across farm country, all over WI, beautiful sunny late fall weather, jamming out to Blow by Blow. At the time, even still a ravid Who fan, this guy, this album, this music was different. I could tell it was on a different level. Nobody really played electric guitar like this. Not to mention, it was my first real foray into instrumental music. After this experience, I got into Leo Kottke big time.
Canard
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Some nice photo galleries:
www.theguardian.com
Jeff Beck: The British rock guitar legend's career in pictures
Some images from the life of one of rock's most influential guitarists, who has died aged 78.
www.bbc.com
Jeff Beck – a life in pictures
The maverick virtuoso rock guitarist has died aged 78. We take a look back at his career in pictures
www.theguardian.com
Canard
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The famous scene from the movie, Blow Up. The audience seems to be made up of mannequins for the most part, either that or they are totally kazooed. Jeff throws a staged temper tantrum and smashes up a guitar (probably a prop). He does not smash up the Les Paul that appears later.
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jp
Senior Member
Just a devastating and tragic loss to the music world. Like many here, I was also a big fan and wore out my copies of his records. He was masterful. R.I.P.
HeyMikey
Enlightened Member
One of my favorites and a perfect example of the “touch” Jeff had. Incredibly haunting, mezmurizing, captivating example of how he could “say” the same simple phrase many different ways. Truly expressive playing.
bluesypicky
Enlightened Member
Feels like I lost a brother, or father.
Definitely the guitarist that had the most impact on me.
He had a unique Master's take on any style he ever approached from Blues to jazz-rock that would make him instantly recognizable Everything he did was "different" as he created his own brand of play (like so few were ever able to).
Spent a good few years listening to "Blow by Blow", "Wired" and the B.B.A. bootlegs EVERY SINGLE day.
Glad I got to see him live a few years back, for most of the show I was trying to prevent my lower jaw from hitting the ground.
It hurts.
Definitely the guitarist that had the most impact on me.
He had a unique Master's take on any style he ever approached from Blues to jazz-rock that would make him instantly recognizable Everything he did was "different" as he created his own brand of play (like so few were ever able to).
Spent a good few years listening to "Blow by Blow", "Wired" and the B.B.A. bootlegs EVERY SINGLE day.
Glad I got to see him live a few years back, for most of the show I was trying to prevent my lower jaw from hitting the ground.
It hurts.
Westerly Wood
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I was hoping you would weigh in on this, Pascal. Figure you would know...
tildeslash
Member
People Get Ready is the song that made me want to play guitar.
Jeff Beck's guitar work on that song is haunting.
Jeff Beck's guitar work on that song is haunting.
Rayk
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Midnight Toker
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This wraps up Beck’s abilities nicely.
I'll have to watch this. I like the Guitar Gate guy and have even considered signing up for his lessons.
adorshki
Reverential Member
My favorite Hendrix anecdote comes from Jeff, cue up to 13:58, here ( @bluesypicky you'll love this if you haven't seen it before) :
This must have been in the summer of '68 when they were both in town at the same time. Jimi even jammed with the Beck Group, Jimi played Jeff's Les Paul, Jeff played bass while Ronnie Wood looked on:
They jammed more than once, apparently:
https://www.silive.com/news/2021/05...ndrix-and-jeff-beck-held-secret-jam-here.html
So Jeff and Jimi were obviously close, I mean, having mutual artistic respect and jamming is one thing but asking a guy if he wants to go cruising in your new 'Vette is another level.
As well, since about '73 I became convinced that the single biggest influence on Jimi's London sound was Jeff and the Yardbirds. I say "London sound" because that's when the Octavia and the Marshall-enabled feedback entered his sound palette.
Prior to that he had the ripping blues solos down, I saw a vid of his version of "Drivin' South' " with Curtis Knight ca late '65/early '66 and he already had all those licks down. This is the only thing I've heard pre-London that gives any inkling of what lay in store. (And now I think the Experience version as on Radio One influenced Page's technique, after having to learn most of Beck's licks in the Yardbirds. Also, suspect this is the style that originally sold Chas Chandler on Jimi)
Anyway, there's that idea that he wanted to meet Clapton when he got to London. He really wanted to meet Beck.
What does an itinerant musician listen to in the early '60's? AM radio. On which many stations, all genres were freely intermixed: Pop, R&B, Soul, and "Rock and Roll". Clapton in late '65-early '66 was known only for the early Yardbirds stuff which was minor top-40 in the US, and Mayall's "Beano" album for his version of "Stormy Weather". I'm sure Hendrix would have been familiar with that even though not a top 40 hit at all, here. But for sure he would have heard the Yardbirds.
The Yardbirds had released a string of top 10's here after Beck came on starting with "Heart Full of Soul" and culminating in "Over Under Sideway Down" about 3 months before Jimi got to London.
Point being that when Jimi got to London Cream was still rehearsing, hadn't cut vinyl yet and were just about to start doing small shows to generate buzz for record sales and airplay. Revolver and the Yardbirds were less than 3 months old and all over the BBC (the Beatles getting more US airplay than the Yardbirds). THAT'S what Jimi would have heard before and when arriving in London.
As it happened he met Clapton before he met Beck, but in an interview in '67 he name-dropped "Shapes of Things" as a record he admired. Billy Gibbons has told the story of how, when he was touring with Hendrix, Jimi would constantly play Truth and ask him "How do you think he did that?"
I've had a pet hypothesis for years that many tunes on Are You Experienced were directly influenced by the 2 albums mentioned above.
More specifically, "Love or Confusion" is Jimi's reaction to "Shapes of Things". (It's that solo, although it precedes the Yardbirds by about a year) :
"Manic Confusion" is a reply to "Over Under Sideways Down", you can even medley 'em.
"Are You Experienced" is a reply to "Tomorrow Never Knows" down to the backward guitar solos.
Then there's the curious coincidence that Roger Mayer, who flogged his custom-built fuzzboxes to Beck and Page, showed up at Jimi's first gig to show him a little gizmo called "Octavia". A month later it was on the radio, providing exotic timbral color to "Purple Haze".
Roger became Jimi's equipment tech.
And finally, Jimi even lifted Jeff's licks when it suited the purpose, story here:
http://rockandrollgarage.com/how-jeff-beck-reacted-when-he-first-saw-jimi-hendrix-play/#:~:text=In%20an%20interview%20back%20in,last%20night%2C%20it's%20unbelievable%E2%80%9D. :
' When the two finally met face to face, Jeff Beck recalled that Hendrix even asked him about his music: ‘What is that lick you play in ‘Happening Ten Years Time Ago’ (from the Yardbirds)’, Hendrix asked and then continued saying “I swiped that on this”. Jeff Beck then said he thought at that moment: “‘This is really incredible, this is kind of like we could talk music now’ not instead he is ‘immovable force’. I can actually get some inspiration and he was a great source of inspiration. The fact that he was doing things so upfront and so wild and change.” '
He also copped the intro lick from "Rice Pudding" in a version of "Ezy Rider" on the Maui soundcheck bootleg.
I bet eventually Jeff would have showed Jimi how to keep his 'Vette from boiling over. You know how car guys are. After all, the first thing he bought with his Yardbirds money was a '62:
Another nice article here:
https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/music-theatre/2023/01/jeff-beck-interview-tribute-guitar-hero
This must have been in the summer of '68 when they were both in town at the same time. Jimi even jammed with the Beck Group, Jimi played Jeff's Les Paul, Jeff played bass while Ronnie Wood looked on:
They jammed more than once, apparently:
https://www.silive.com/news/2021/05...ndrix-and-jeff-beck-held-secret-jam-here.html
So Jeff and Jimi were obviously close, I mean, having mutual artistic respect and jamming is one thing but asking a guy if he wants to go cruising in your new 'Vette is another level.
As well, since about '73 I became convinced that the single biggest influence on Jimi's London sound was Jeff and the Yardbirds. I say "London sound" because that's when the Octavia and the Marshall-enabled feedback entered his sound palette.
Prior to that he had the ripping blues solos down, I saw a vid of his version of "Drivin' South' " with Curtis Knight ca late '65/early '66 and he already had all those licks down. This is the only thing I've heard pre-London that gives any inkling of what lay in store. (And now I think the Experience version as on Radio One influenced Page's technique, after having to learn most of Beck's licks in the Yardbirds. Also, suspect this is the style that originally sold Chas Chandler on Jimi)
Anyway, there's that idea that he wanted to meet Clapton when he got to London. He really wanted to meet Beck.
What does an itinerant musician listen to in the early '60's? AM radio. On which many stations, all genres were freely intermixed: Pop, R&B, Soul, and "Rock and Roll". Clapton in late '65-early '66 was known only for the early Yardbirds stuff which was minor top-40 in the US, and Mayall's "Beano" album for his version of "Stormy Weather". I'm sure Hendrix would have been familiar with that even though not a top 40 hit at all, here. But for sure he would have heard the Yardbirds.
The Yardbirds had released a string of top 10's here after Beck came on starting with "Heart Full of Soul" and culminating in "Over Under Sideway Down" about 3 months before Jimi got to London.
Point being that when Jimi got to London Cream was still rehearsing, hadn't cut vinyl yet and were just about to start doing small shows to generate buzz for record sales and airplay. Revolver and the Yardbirds were less than 3 months old and all over the BBC (the Beatles getting more US airplay than the Yardbirds). THAT'S what Jimi would have heard before and when arriving in London.
As it happened he met Clapton before he met Beck, but in an interview in '67 he name-dropped "Shapes of Things" as a record he admired. Billy Gibbons has told the story of how, when he was touring with Hendrix, Jimi would constantly play Truth and ask him "How do you think he did that?"
I've had a pet hypothesis for years that many tunes on Are You Experienced were directly influenced by the 2 albums mentioned above.
More specifically, "Love or Confusion" is Jimi's reaction to "Shapes of Things". (It's that solo, although it precedes the Yardbirds by about a year) :
"Manic Confusion" is a reply to "Over Under Sideways Down", you can even medley 'em.
"Are You Experienced" is a reply to "Tomorrow Never Knows" down to the backward guitar solos.
Then there's the curious coincidence that Roger Mayer, who flogged his custom-built fuzzboxes to Beck and Page, showed up at Jimi's first gig to show him a little gizmo called "Octavia". A month later it was on the radio, providing exotic timbral color to "Purple Haze".
Roger became Jimi's equipment tech.
And finally, Jimi even lifted Jeff's licks when it suited the purpose, story here:
http://rockandrollgarage.com/how-jeff-beck-reacted-when-he-first-saw-jimi-hendrix-play/#:~:text=In%20an%20interview%20back%20in,last%20night%2C%20it's%20unbelievable%E2%80%9D. :
' When the two finally met face to face, Jeff Beck recalled that Hendrix even asked him about his music: ‘What is that lick you play in ‘Happening Ten Years Time Ago’ (from the Yardbirds)’, Hendrix asked and then continued saying “I swiped that on this”. Jeff Beck then said he thought at that moment: “‘This is really incredible, this is kind of like we could talk music now’ not instead he is ‘immovable force’. I can actually get some inspiration and he was a great source of inspiration. The fact that he was doing things so upfront and so wild and change.” '
He also copped the intro lick from "Rice Pudding" in a version of "Ezy Rider" on the Maui soundcheck bootleg.
I bet eventually Jeff would have showed Jimi how to keep his 'Vette from boiling over. You know how car guys are. After all, the first thing he bought with his Yardbirds money was a '62:
Another nice article here:
https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/music-theatre/2023/01/jeff-beck-interview-tribute-guitar-hero
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Guildedagain
Enlightened Member
I have some memories that probably aren't real either, stemming from dreams, or fantasies that become realities over time.
There isn't much evidence to back up this claim. He used Vox amps in the Yardbirds, as well as the favored/or virtually only box of its day, a Tonebender, switching over to Marshall Superlead amps, and staying with Marshall throughout his career, using obviously very hand picked heads, 2 matching Plexi heads plus 2 matching JMP heads.
Jeff Beck's guitar gear: a guide through the ages and stages
A detailed look at the guitars, amps and effects the legendary musician has used over his multi-decade spanning career
He did have quite the dalliance with Seymour Duncan amps in the 80's, how much he used them in the studio and on the road, no clue.
I have extensive personal experience with Boogie vs Marshall, and it's Marshall all the way for me.
A/B them and you'll see what I mean. Marshall cuts through.
Also, a frankly very small list of top level Boogie players like Carlos Santana and Al DiMeola makes no mention of Jeff Beck and I'm sure they would love to.
My dislike of Boogie amps in the Boogie vs Marshall context seems to be echoed here*, there and everywhere, something I lost track of years after my last failed Boogie purchase, also the only amp I bough brand new ever, a Subway Rocket when they came out.
Succint;
Not really picking on Boogie here, sorry Boogie fans, I'm just thinking that Jeff used what sounded best, a formula followed by many, Gibson or Fender guitars into Marshall amplifiers.
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bluesypicky
Enlightened Member
Those clips are classics Al.... and yes I had already seen them all (as any good Beck disciple has), but I never tire watching them all over again.
I remember an anecdote about Jeff arriving to a show with traces of axle grease still on his hands, from working on one of his collection cars.... one more reason to love him in my book.
I remember an anecdote about Jeff arriving to a show with traces of axle grease still on his hands, from working on one of his collection cars.... one more reason to love him in my book.
Midnight Toker
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Some reports from a Zep site, referencing a post from someone in the Steve Hoffman forum that has a relative that works in the hospital Beck was in. Apparently, he was in hospital for close to two weeks.
And as for Beck and a small boogie…seriously doubt it. His entire playing style depended on big cabs cranked up, always teetering on the edge w/ the guitar vol. My fav setup of his was what he had for the last 30+ years. A single Marshall stack next to a tweed Fender. The clean chimey bell tones of the Fender on top of the throaty growl of the Marshall= bliss!!
Someone on the Steve Hoffman Forum (related to a member of staff) reported that both Page and Clapton visited him in hospital (which I found rather comforting to read).
And as for Beck and a small boogie…seriously doubt it. His entire playing style depended on big cabs cranked up, always teetering on the edge w/ the guitar vol. My fav setup of his was what he had for the last 30+ years. A single Marshall stack next to a tweed Fender. The clean chimey bell tones of the Fender on top of the throaty growl of the Marshall= bliss!!