Jeff Beck

Fearless Musical Genius Tells Infamous Stories
Michael Holloway and Dawn Bonner

Born: Geoffrey Arnold Beck
June 24, 1944
Birthplace: Wallington, England

Bangin’, iconic electric guitar player, Jeff Beck, at 69-years-of-age is still going strong. After a successful tour in Australia and New Zealand back in Jan. and Feb. 2009; plus, the United States in April 2009, Beck is embarking on a world tour for the rest of 2009. Shows will be in the United Kingdom and Ireland in June and early July, then Europe in July.

Beck, a recent Rock & Roll Hall Of Famer as of April 2009, is in partnership with Panasonic to produce a CD/DVD collection of his recent tours; Performing This Week: Live At Ronnie Scott’s for which fans were treated to a live album in 2008 and an accompanying DVD earlier in 2009.

The guitar virtuoso will give fans an opportunity to capture his live performances while on the road via this exciting collaboration.

The Motivation and The Inspiration

In an interview with Adam St. James for Guitar.com, St. James said, “You’ve really been crankin’ out some albums the past few years. Certainly you must be more inspired these days.”

Beck said, “Yeah, well I just got fed up with, just possibly, not playing again; you know, the music scene changing. I hadn’t had any fun with it when it was my first turn around. I just got tired of wondering what to do.”

“And, you know, I need money as well. I can’t sustain a lifestyle without input and cash flow. A lot of people think I’m a multi-millionaire, but I’m not. Not at all, not in any way. Not compared with some people you could name.”

“But, it’s nothing to do with the money really, it’s just that that was starting to be a compound problem.”

St. James said, “Sure.”

Beck said, “I just didn’t know what direction people want, you know music was going down a path, and I couldn’t turn on a radio without being disgusted completely. And, now it’s just gotten to the point where I can’t listen to anything, it’s trashy.”

“It’s just a hundred channels of garbage all over. And, not just here, it’s in England as well. It’s almost just like a global effort to knock the sense out of you if you’re a musician (laughs).”

“There’s not any little morsel for musicians to latch on to. It’s all glossy, lipstick shit. More tits and bare midriffs. Unless you go to a blues club or some outrageous, hip dive somewhere that nobody knows about until the night before, the pickings are slim for inspiration.”

What he Plays with His Mind Set

Beck’s guitar style is eclectic. Eschewing the use of a pick, he usually lets his fingers do the talking, with the aid of his instrument’s vibrato bar, wah-wah pedal, a Pro Co RAT distortion pedal on occasion, fuzz pedals and echo units.

Beck said, “I play the way I do because it allows me to come-up with the sickest sounds possible. That’s the point now, isn’t it?”

In an interview with Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple, Blackmore said, “Jeff Beck’s great to listen to because he takes a chance, and when it comes off–it’s so emotional. When he gets feedback going right, it’s like an orchestra playing instead of just a guitar with a lot of brilliant runs.”

“Actually, the real art of chance music is knowing what to do if you don’t get what you tried for. Beck takes a chance every night. Sometimes, he’s absolutely useless and you wonder why he’s got a name. Other times he pulls things off that sound like nothing you’ve heard before. He’s one of my favorite guitarists.”

“But, taking all those chances is why he gets such bad reviews, sometimes. The reviewers sometimes catch him on nights when it doesn’t work. The kind of things that you do in that kind of playing are subconscious and depend on what type of day you’ve had and things like that.”

Beck says, “I don’t care about the rules. In fact, if I don’t break the rules at least 10 times in every song then I’m not doing my job properly. I don’t understand why some people will only accept a guitar if it has an instantly recognizable guitar sound. Finding ways to use the same guitar people have been using for 50 years to make sounds that no one has heard before is truly what gets me off.”

Music, Building, and Gadgets were Always in His Blood

He remembers from early childhood, his love of music.  Beck said, “I was really small when jazz broke through in England and I can still remember sneaking off to the living room to listen to it on the radio–much to my parent’s disapproval.”

This early love of music never left. He also loved to create things with his hands.

As a teenager, Beck’s experimental nature led him to make his own guitar. On his first attempt, he glued and bolted together a selection of cigar boxes for the body, and stuck an unsanded fence-upright on to it, which became the neck. Unfortunately, he forgot the washers, so the bolt head merely sank into the wood. Aircraft control line wires were used for the strings, while the frets were painted on. On his next attempt, he studiously cut a body from a very thick piece of wood. While constructing the neck, he attempted to use memorized measurements, only he mistakenly used those of a bass guitar as they were all he could remember.

Beck described the result as being “so bad, that it was only playable with a capo at the fifth fret…I was interested in the electric guitar even before I knew the difference between electric and acoustic. The electric guitar seemed to be a totally fascinating plank of wood with knobs and switches on it. I just had to have one.”

Boozin, Cruisin, and the Beach Boys

In an interview with Tony Fletcher author of Dear Boy, the Life of Keith Moon, Beck said, “We used to drive around in his pink Rolls, lilac 60s lipstick color, a ’62 roller and being in the back with him playing Beach Boys was as close as you could get to a great night out. We used to drive through the underpass at Knights bridge at 100 mph, and you had the Beach Boys playing. ‘Don’t Worry Baby’ was his favorite song. And, he had a microphone hooked to an amplifier that was 12 volt amp, which in those days was a hi-tech deal. And, the speaker used to come out of the radiator shell. We pulled up alongside this cyclist or moped, and Keith said “dismount immediately” and he wobbled and came to an abrupt halt. Then, he did the same thing 100 yards up the road to a police man on a motorbike. I was ducking. It was a fantastic night! By 7 o’clock we were blotto. We would drive up on the pavement – “excuse me I need to get into this shop now, I need to buy a new suit” – and he would jump out and come back again with a new suit and I hadn’t even got out of the car. Quite worrying really.”

Notable Project Jeff Beck performing this week…

In 2007, Jeff Beck performed a series of concerts at the renowned Ronnie Scott’s club in London. This DVD features pieces recorded across the different nights and presents the best version of each track. Beck is also joined by guests Joss Stone, Imogen Heap, and Eric Clapton for some very special performances.

Jeff Beck is considered a true rock legend. From his time with the Yardbirds in the 60s, the Jeff Beck Group, and throughout his solo career, his unique guitar style and constant desire to explore new musical areas and sounds has won him the admiration of his peers and the adoration of legions of fans.

Beck’s many collaborations are as famous as his solo endeavors. Apparently, so is his temper. In the early 1960s, Beck had a tumultuous time with The Yardbirds, and allegations over his hot temper were rampant. Although he continues to be a perfectionist, the most infamous account of Beck losing his temper on stage and smashing his guitar was actually a scene from the 1966 movie Blow-Up, in which the band performs Stroll On. Apparently, director Michelangelo Antonioni witnessed a similar event at a concert by The Who, and recreated the scene with Beck in the movie. As urban legends go, facts became distorted over the years and people still insist that Beck really did smash up his instrument in a fit of anger on stage.  Fellow Yardbirds member Jimmy Page tells a different story.

Jimmy Page’s Version

“It was on that Dick Clark tour, there were a few incidents. One time in the dressing room I walked in and Beck had his guitar up over his head, about to bring it down on Keith Relf’s head, but instead smashed it on the floor.”

When Relf looked at Beck in shock, Beck revealed the gag, admitting he was only trying to get a rise out of his bandmate.

Tonsillitis or Tittilitus?

One day, Beck excused himself from a performance to go see his doctor for tonsillitis. The band followed him, only to discover Beck had really gone to see his girlfriend at the time and the doctor ruse was just an excuse to ditch the band for the night.

Another amusing incident occured when Beck appeared at the Crossroads Guitar Festival in 2007.

Bass guitarist Tal Wilkenfeld performed with Beck and was accidentally omitted from the program. Because of her youth, many fans mistook her for Beck’s daughter. Wilkenfeld was 21 at the time but looked closer to 12, due to her petite build and youthful features. According to one review, Beck’s relationship, either musically or professionally, has been likened to a Svengali and Trilby relationship.

“Tal Wilkenfeld, the female bassist who looks like a 12-year-old, is also very good. Her appearances at the Crossroads show attracted a lot of attention due to her youthful appearance and the fact that she looked incredibly surprised and happy to be on stage with Beck.

There’s still those odd, charming moments when Jeff gives her a gesture of approval after she takes a solo and she looks back with a big proud and happy smile. It’s a cross between the look of a proud father and daughter and the look of a lecherous college professor giving approval to the ambitious and lusty female student that he’s having an affair with.”

Whether Beck is a virtuoso guitarist, a temperamental loose cannon or a lustful Lothario, he remains a dedicated and talented guitarist whom fans are more than eager to see perform live for years to come.

 

Tagged Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, music, The Jeff Beck Band, The Yardbirds