Learning on a borrowed guitar and attempting to make his own instrument with glued together cigar boxes as a teenager, it seemed like Jeff Beck has always wanted to play guitar. He has stated that the first time he ever heard an electric guitar was years before he tried building his own at the age of 6. While being employed with odd and end jobs upon college is when Jeff’s sister Annetta introduced him to Jimmy Page, his soon to be band mate.
Beck was recruited by the Yardbirds in early 1965 as Eric Clapton moved on to start the band Cream on the recommendation from early friend Jimmy Page. Although Clapton left early in the year, he still played guitar on most of the songs records for the album ‘For Your Love’. For a short time in 1966, Beck shared the lead guitar in the band with Jimmy Page, who first joined the Yardbirds as bass player.
In the middle of the US tour, Jeff was fired for his perfectionism and temper which helped him form the Jeff Beck Group with Rod Stewart on vocals and Ronnie Wood on guitar. The group would produced two albums for Columbia Records which included a song by Muddy Waters that was also featured in a similar style on the first Led Zeppelin album. After the break-up of the Jeff Beck Group, he took part in the rhythm section of Vanilla Fudge however was postponed after Beck fractured his skull in a car accident in 1969.
In the 1970s after recovering from his accident, Jeff Beck formed a band with Cozy Powell that included Bobby Tench on guitar/vocals and Clive Chaman on bass creating the new Jeff Beck Group with a new sound than the original line-up. After the second album released by the group in 1972, the band dissolved however Jeff Beck started a collaboration with bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice creating the power trio of Beck, Bogert & Appice. Although the band lasted only a few years, the band still released a studio and live album in the year of 1973.
After recording and releasing solo albums since the breakup of Beck, Bogert & Appice in 1974, Jeff Beck still plays on many artists’ albums today including doing a tour with Ann Wilson and Paul Rodgers that will be coming to Nashville
Discography:
Studio Albums:
- 1968 – Truth
- 1969 – Beck-Ola
- 1971 – Rough and Ready
- 1972 – Jeff Beck Group
- 1973 – Beck, Bogert & Appice
- 1975 – Blow by Blow
- 1976 – Wired
- 1980 – There and Back
- 1985 – Flash
- 1989 – Jeff Beck’s Guitar Shop
- 1992 – Frankie’s House
- 1993 – Crazy Legs
- 1999 – Who Else!
- 2001 – You Had It Coming
- 2003 – Jeff
- 2010 – Emotion & Commotion
- 2016 – Loud Hailer
Live Albums:
- 1974 – Live in Japan
- 1977 – Jeff Beck With the Jan Hammer Group Live
- 2006 – Live At BB King Blues Club
- 2006 – Live In Tokyo 99’
- 2007 – Official Bootleg USA ‘06
- 2008 – Live at Ronnie Scott’s
- 2010 – Live and Exclusive from the Grammy Museum
- 2011 – Rock & Roll Party: Honoring Les Paul
- 2015 – Live+
