Last week, Jeff Beck, one of the world's best guitar virtuosos, at least for me, passed away suddenly.
And since I followed him almost throughout his career, it might be right to write something about him.
Otherwise, you can read details about his career here, so I wouldn't about it.
Just a few highlights:
He earned two inductions into the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame. For the first time in 1992 for his work with the Yardbirds, and in 2009 as a solo artist in the Jeff Beck Group.
He also earned 8 Grammy Awards (17 nominations).
In 2015, Rolling Stone magazine ranked him as the fifth-best guitarist to date.
His playing changed guitar music and influenced musical genres such as heavy metal, jazz-rock, and even punk.
Along the way, he has also helped to introduce some important technical innovations on the guitar. He developed the use of distortion and feedback effects and expanded the range of expression that could be achieved with devices that were modified on the guitar, such as the whammy bar.
He has always argued that the whole point of playing is to break the rules:
I play the way you know it because it allows me to create the wildest sounds. That's the point, isn't it? I don't look at the rules. What's more, if I don't break the rules at least ten times in one song, then I'm not doing my job well.
I would highlight three periods in his career.
Yardbirds
He replaced Eric Clapton in the Yardbirds in 1965 and was joined by Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) a little later. He parted ways with the band after a year and a half, mainly because of his difficult character, nervousness, and tendency to perfectionism.
The song "Heart Full Of Soul", the first single they recorded when he replaced Eric Clapton, dates from this period. It was the second Yardbirds song to reach the Top 10 singles chart in the UK and other countries.
The Yardbirds - Heart Full Of Soul
Jeff Beck Group
After leaving the Yardbirds, he later formed a band with then-unknown singer Rod Stuart and bass guitarist Ron Wood, which was later called the Jeff Beck Group. This line-up didn't last long, as all three of them were too big egos, but he continued to perform under that name throughout the 1970s and 1980s with other musicians, bassist Tim Bogart (Vanilla Fudge) and drummer Carmine Appice (Cactus). During this time he changed the balance of influences from jazz to rock and funk, creating a sound that was surprisingly new and very successful.
The best-known albums from that period are "Blow By Blow" (1975), which went platinum, and "Wired" (1976), from which the song "Blue Wind" below is taken.
Jeff Beck - Blue Wind
Solo career
For the last twenty years he has performed extensively wherever he can, including many charity concerts, and everywhere he goes he has set milestones in genres ranging from jazz, rock, pop, and electronica. He has collaborated with many younger musicians and other artists on various projects. I last mentioned him a couple of months ago in my #newtunes post, for his collaboration with actor Johnny Depp, they play a cover of Velvet Underground's "Venus In Furs" on the album "18".
Finally, I've chosen a recording from June 2010, Crossroads Guitar Festival, Chicago, with three songs - Hammerhead, Nessun Dorma, and Five Long Years.
Jeff Beck - Live @Crossroads
Rest In Peace, Jeff Beck.
This was my post for the #threetunetuesday initiated by @ablaze.
Images are mine, created in NightCafe Creator and edited with Photoshop.
If you're interested in the latest music news, follow me on #newtunes, or take a look at my rare recordings at Music podcast :)
Music4life!
Thank you for your attention!
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