I hope you are all doing well. Today I want to focus on another great guitar legend.
Jeff Beck.
Jeff Beck.
Enough said. That's it for today. See you next time......
Just Kidding. I think it's the other way around; there is so much to say about this legend. The question is where do you start and end. The cool thing is you can pick anywhere in Jeff Beck's career and have a good relevant conversation.
I discovered Jeff Beck back in my teenage years. I was into buying vinyl albums (that's all there was) and I came across the album "Blow By Blow". The cover instantly captured my interest and I bought it, listened to it, and loved it. It went from there. I was inspired by his playing for quite some time. Enough about me.
I found this article from Gibson.com about the Jeff Beck's Les Paul years. Since I love Les Pauls myself I thought it would be cool to post. Enjoy.
Just Kidding. I think it's the other way around; there is so much to say about this legend. The question is where do you start and end. The cool thing is you can pick anywhere in Jeff Beck's career and have a good relevant conversation.
I discovered Jeff Beck back in my teenage years. I was into buying vinyl albums (that's all there was) and I came across the album "Blow By Blow". The cover instantly captured my interest and I bought it, listened to it, and loved it. It went from there. I was inspired by his playing for quite some time. Enough about me.
I found this article from Gibson.com about the Jeff Beck's Les Paul years. Since I love Les Pauls myself I thought it would be cool to post. Enjoy.
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Blow by Blow: Jeff Beck’s Les Paul Years
Ted Drozdowski
06.24.2011
Rarely do technical ability, natural talent and creative inspiration dovetail in one guitarist as they do in Jeff Beck. The magic in his playing truly stems from himself and not his gear, since Beck manages to sound recognizable regardless of what amps or guitars he’s favoring at the moment.
But many of Beck’s fans feel the British dynamo, who turns 67 today, June 24, has never sounded better than when he’s had a Gibson Les Paul in his hands. Beck’s cut some of his most career-defining recordings with Les Pauls: Truth, Beck-Ola, Blow by Blow and Jeff Beck With the Jan Hammer Group Live among them. And last year he appeared in a Grammy ceremony tribute to Les Paul with one of the late genius’ namesake guitars slung low and dangerous around his shoulders and shredding every tick of the way.
Beck’s on-and-off love affair with the Gibson Les Paul goes back to his early career and his fascination with the musician Les Paul. Paul’s jazz-inflected playing, multi-tracking, shimmering tone and seemingly effortless melodic improvisations captured the young string demon’s attention.
Beck bought his initial Gibson Les Paul when he was in his first major band: The Yardbirds. The guitar was a 1959 Les Paul Standard with humbuckers he bought during the group’s short-lived but most formidable lineup, when guitarists Jimmy Page and Chris Dreja were also in the band. Beck told a music journalist that he loved the model for its sonic properties: “It has a deep, powerful sound and you can use it to imitate just about anything – violin, sax, cello, even a sitar.” For a taste of the latter, check out Beck’s famous faux sitar lines on “Over Under Sideways Down” from 1966’s Roger the Engineer. He went on to use the guitar on his first Jeff Beck Group albums, 1968’s Truth and ’69’s Beck-Ola.
Beck bought his initial Gibson Les Paul when he was in his first major band: The Yardbirds. The guitar was a 1959 Les Paul Standard with humbuckers he bought during the group’s short-lived but most formidable lineup, when guitarists Jimmy Page and Chris Dreja were also in the band. Beck told a music journalist that he loved the model for its sonic properties: “It has a deep, powerful sound and you can use it to imitate just about anything – violin, sax, cello, even a sitar.” For a taste of the latter, check out Beck’s famous faux sitar lines on “Over Under Sideways Down” from 1966’s Roger the Engineer. He went on to use the guitar on his first Jeff Beck Group albums, 1968’s Truth and ’69’s Beck-Ola.
But the Gibson Les Paul most closely associated with Beck’s career is a 1954 model he bought in a Memphis guitar shop in the early 1970s. Although the instrument had been built as a Gold Top with a trapeze tailpiece, it had been modded with replacement tuners, bigger frets and refinished in an oxblood shade. Also, the original P-90 pickups were replaced with humbuckers.
Go here to read full article:
Today I came across this Guitar World reissue of part 1 of the interview they did with Jeff Beck back in 1985. Lot of good stuff gets discussed. He briefly talks about the switch from Les Pauls to Fender Strats. Check it out.
Jeff Beck Discusses Gear, Technique and Hendrix in 1985 Guitar World Interview
Posted 08/31/2011 at 9:17am | by Gene Santoro
It’s been a long time since anybody’s heard from Jeff Beck. With the exception of the ten-date ARMS tour of 1984, his last time on the road was in 1981, in support of his album There and Back; and it was on that album and tour that the preeminent guitar-explorer bade farewell to his latest incarnation as a fusionmaster.
Nearly three years of silence followed, and as his old Yardbirds mate and longtime friend Jim McCarty put it, “We thought he needed a bit of shaking up.” The immediate result was Beck’s stunning reappearance as a badass rocker on four tracks of Box of Frogs, the album McCarty and the other surviving Yardbirds put out earlier this year.
Longer term, McCarty’s phone call to Beck was only the opening shot from a fusillade of guest-spot offers that had Beck appearing on cuts with the Vanilla Fudge, Tina Turner, Mick Jagger and, of course, Rod Stewart.
As you probably recall, Beck even toured with briefly with Stewart but bowed out after only a few dates. Then there’s Get Workin’, Beck’s own upcoming LP that, at the time of this writing, stands about seventy percent completed. It’s currently scheduled for an early 1985 release date.
Go here for full article and interview:
Fender Artist Series Jeff Beck Stratocaster
Review by: Derek Davodowich
Review by: Derek Davodowich
California, beaches, surfboards, The Beach Boys, Jazz, Rock, Funk, Fusion, Blues… All of these people, places and things come to mind when we think of the Fender Stratocaster. You can’t help but know the sound, the feel, and the artists who created their bodies of work around the sound of a Stratocaster. Face it – the Stratocaster is a standards-bearer for defining a specific sound.
The Fender Artist Series Jeff Beck Stratocaster provides all the classic attributes that make the Stratocaster one of the most popular guitars in existence. As playing styles changed over the years since the Strat’s late-fifties introduction, and as guitar luthiers became more advanced with their craftsmanship, so too did the guitars themselves evolve.
The Jeff Beck Stratocaster provides a melting pot of vintage and modern technology, making this guitar extremely attractive – not to mention the way cool Surf Green color option. If there ever was an equivalent to a “tall blonde” in guitar color scheme, this just may be it. The Surf Green color lured us in like a kid in a candy shop (err… make that guitar store), but it was the guitar’s great playability and tone that kept us there.
Features
Many of the features of the Jeff Beck Stratocaster will seem familiar to players of Deluxe Strat models:
- Body: two to three piece Alder
- Neck: Maple C-shape neck with a satin polyurethane finish.........
Go here for full guitar review:
***************************Over the years, I have owned a number of different Strats (and still do). It's interesting to see a legendary guitarist switch from a Les Paul to a Stratocaster and call it done. I love the contrast of both guitars and will pick up one or the other depending on my mood. I think there both great.
Well I can't talk about Jeff Beck without sharing some video from him. I've seen this footage quite a few times and it still gives me the chills. A guitar legends take on a great Beatle song while Jimmy Page is in the audience (you can see him at the end of the video). How cool is that.
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Jeff Beck- A day in the life -(Jimmy Page was there!!)
Jimmy Page in the audience seat!!! Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club show time-2007.11.29/30 My other drawing videos: www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com www.youtube.com
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Well RockGuitarDudes. That's it for today. I hope you enjoyed today's blog on Jeff Beck. There is so much to cover; this barely scratches the surface. Keep your strings fresh and in tune. Keep your chops up and never stop rocking! Join us on Facebook to stay tuned with new RockGuitarDude updates and posts.
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